Pope Francis to make “father of migrants” a saint
Vatican CityRNS Pope Francis will canonise a 19th-century bishop known as “the father of migrants” on Sunday, sending a message to Catholic leaders of the importance the pontiff places on the care of refugees at a time when immigration is roiling politics, including in the Italian government at the Vatican’s doorstep. Giovanni Battista Scalabrini, bishop […]
Russian defender of 18th-century Crimea proposed for sainthood
Reuters Russia’s defence minister has proposed that 18th-century tsarist general Alexander Suvorov, revered for repelling Turkish attacks against Crimea and crushing a revolutionary movement in Poland, be made a saint in the Russian Orthodox Church. The proposal comes as Russia marks three months since it sent its armed forces into Ukraine, saying it needed to […]
Kansas priest considered for sainthood is buried in Wichita
Wichita, Kansas, USAP Thousands of people turned out Wednesday in Wichita to honour a Kansas priest as he was laid to rest 70 years after he died in a prisoner of war camp during the Korean War. Mourners filled Hartman Arena for a funeral service for Rev Emil Kapaun and later lined streets to watch […]
Judge slain in Sicily by mafiosi put on path to Catholic sainthood
Rome, ItalyAP A magistrate slain by mobsters in Sicily and praised by two popes has been beatified by the Roman Catholic church on Sunday in the last formal step before possible sainthood. Rosario Livatino was gunned down on a Sicilian highway outside Agrigento as he drove to work in 1990. Three years later, during a […]
Venezuela’s beloved ‘Doctor of the Poor’ to be beatified
Caracas, VenezuelaAP With the austerity of a monk, a vocation to seek the good of others and a bright scientific mind, Jose Gregorio Hernández won the affection of those who called him “the doctor of the poor”. He became a religious icon after his death in 1919, and since then millions of Venezuelans have fervently […]
Remains of US priest who died in Korean War identified
Wichita, Kansas AP The remains of a US priest who is being considered for sainthood by the Roman Catholic Church for his ministry during the Korean War have been identified, US military officials said. Rev Emil Kapaun, of Pilsen, Kansas, died on 23rd May, 1951, as a prisoner of war during the Korean War. The […]
New US coalition seeks sainthood for five African-Americans
RNS The founders of two religious orders and an African-American priest who had to train in Rome because no US seminary would accept him are among five candidates being supported for sainthood by a new coalition of black Catholic organisations. The initiative was announced on Tuesday at Xavier University in New Orleans, where a new […]