Posted on 10/11/2009 2:06:58 PM PDT by Steelfish
Priest Who Lived With Leprosy Now A Saint Pope Benedict praises Father Damien, who died from leprosy in 1889
Audrey Toguchi, 80, from Hawaii, at right, with her doctor Walter Chang, looks on during a canonization ceremony in St. Peter's Basilica at the Vatican on Sunday.
VATICAN CITY - A 19th-century priest whose courageous work with leprosy patients in Hawaii has been likened to the efforts of those battling the stigma of AIDS was elevated to sainthood Sunday by Pope Benedict XVI, along with four other Catholics he hailed as heroes of holiness.
Among the 10,000 pilgrims packing St. Peter's Basilica was Hawaii resident Audrey Toguchi, an 80-year-old retired school teacher whose recovery from lung cancer a decade ago stunned her doctor and was ruled a miracle by the Vatican.
Toguchi has credited her survival to praying to Belgium-born Jozef De Veuster, also known as Father Damien, who himself died from leprosy in 1889 after contracting the disease while working with ostracized patients living on Molokai island.
Some 40,000 faithful who couldn't fit inside the vast church filled St. Peter's Square on a warm, sunny morning. Many women from Hawaii wore headpieces made of roses and large beaded necklaces over floral-print loose gowns.
Among the five Benedict added to the church's roll call of saints is French nun Jeanne Jugan, who helped the elderly, including some abandoned by their families. Jugan, also known as Marie de la Croix, was "an authentic Mother Teresa ahead of her time," Vatican Radio said. Her Little Sisters of the Poor order of nuns today runs homes for impoverished old people worldwide. She died in 1879.
‘The heroism of sanctity’ Toguchi and her doctor, Walter Chang, joined in one basilica procession, and two leprosy patients participated in another.
(Excerpt) Read more at msnbc.msn.com ...
Welcome, welcome and God Bless You!
To be a saint, you must become one before you die - afterwards, it ain’t happening. ...
How can someone be called a saint before they die. The occasion of sin can happen at any time in our lives.
Yes- God makes the saint- The Church merely provides the earthly evidence of confirmation via the two miracles test.
“The Church merely provides the earthly evidence of confirmation via the two miracles test.
According to the Bible, EVERY Christian who has trusted Christ for salvation IS a saint. No miracles required -
except for the incredible miracle of salvation, which
isn’t our doing, but His. Thank God!
Are you listening to what I am saying at all? You seem to be saying hell with scripture, I have my mind made up, don’t bother me with what the bible says. This is one reason I could never be a Catholic. They are so indoctrinated with church and rules they skip over what the bible says. Sorry but you are like talking to a brick wall.
This devalues the nature of sainthood.
Read below:
http://catholicsview.wordpress.com/2009/09/24/sainthood-explained-part-1/
“This devalues the nature of sainthood.
“Read below:
“http://catholicsview.wordpress.com/2009/09/24/sainthood-explained-part-1/
The fact that God calls Christians saints is good enough
for me. He doesn’t play favorites or devalue any saint -
He recognizes them all.
Instead, having paid the complete price for the sins of mankind,
He gives believers the righteousness of His Son, Jesus
Christ. For this reason alone, He calls them saints. And
so they are to Him and to His Church.
The simple fact that any earthly Church doesn’t say the same
thing God does is a real problem - but not for God.
best,
ampu
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