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Raymond Ibrahim, a scholar of Islam and Islamic history who has a particular focus on Muslim persecution of Christians, has on his website - for which I also write - a new article, Islamic Forced Conversions — Past and Present, highlighting the astonishing similarities of past atrocities, which many people in the West believe to have been consigned to distant history (belief largely due to the mainstream media's "carpet non-coverage" and total neglect of these everyday slaughters, massacres, beheadings, torture and discrimination), to current ones. His piece was inspired by last Sunday’s canonization by Pope Francis I of the 813...

Pope Benedict XVI waves to the crowd after the canonization Mass, Oct. 21, 2012. Credit: Marianne Medlin and Emily Hazelbach/CNA. Vatican City, Oct 21, 2012 / 09:37 am (CNA/EWTN News).- Pope Benedict XVI has canonized seven new saints and prayed that their intercession may “strengthen and sustain� the Church “in her mission to proclaim the Gospel to the whole world.� The Pope addressed a crowd of tens of thousands on a sunny, Oct. 21 Mass at St. Peter's Square, raising seven men and women to the altars. Those included Jacques Berthieu, Pedro Calungsod, Giovanni Battista Piamarta, Marìa Carmen Sallés...

An 11-year-old boy's survival from a near-fatal battle with a flesh-eating bacteria has been declared a miracle by the Vatican. Jake Finkbonner, of Ferndale, Washington, made a stunning recovery from a tissue-destroying disease that gnawed away at his young face and nearly took his life in 2006. Pope Benedict XVI attributed the miracle attribute to The Blessed Kateri Tekakwitha, clearing the way for the 17th century Mohawk-Algonquin woman to become the first American-Indian saint. She could be canonised as early as February, becoming America's first indigenous saint. Mrs Finkbonner told MSNBC her son, meanwhile, is 'doing fantastic' and is playing...

Pope Benedict XVI, seated at right, watches the Polish-produced documentary, "John Paul II: I Kept Looking For You," at the Vatican April 9. After watching the film about his predecessor, Pope Benedict said "John Paul II was a great contemplative and a great apostle." (CNS/L'Osservatore Romano) By Cindy WoodenCatholic News Service VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- The slight differences between a beatification and a canonization are easy to miss, especially when one pope beatifies another pope. Just three weeks before Pope Benedict XVI was to beatify Pope John Paul II, the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Sacraments issued a...

On April 2, 2005 at 9:37 p.m. the Venerable Pope John Paul II died. In April of 2009 his beloved successor, Pope Benedict XVI, told Pilgrims gathered in Rome "With you, I pray for the gift of beatification". That prayer has been answered. Friday, January 14, 2011 the Holy See released the "Decree for the Beatification of the Servant of God John Paul II". ...The choice of the Feast of Divine Mercy, May 1, 2011 is not accidental. He had a deep devotion to his fellow Pole Sr. Faustina Kowalska and to the Divine Mercy devotion identified with her. ...Pope...

Venerable Pope John Paul II Vatican City, Jan 12, 2011 / 02:39 pm (CNA/EWTN News).- Vatican officials have concluded that a miraculous healing credited to the intercession of Pope John Paul II is authentic. The decision clears the way for the Church to declare the late Pope “blessed,” the final stage on the road to sainthood. The Pope’s beatification could take place as early as April 2, the sixth anniversary of his death, according to veteran Vatican analyst Andrea Tornielli, who broke the news in the Jan. 12 edition of the Italian newspaper, Il Giornale. Tornielli reported that cardinals...

Father Claude Grou stands in front of a statue of Brother Andre at St. Joseph's Oratory. The humble hero would have been comfortable with canonization, the oratory rector argues, "if this can help people to love St. Joseph better, if this can help people come closer to God." Before recognizing a saint, the Catholic church says it thoroughly investigates the subject to ensure he or she led a remarkable and exemplary Christian life. The subject must also have at least two miracles recognized as taking place through his or her intercession. The Vatican says it must confirm that "the act...

Vatican City, Jul 5, 2010 / 01:02 pm (CNA/EWTN News).- Pope Benedict XVI has accepted the invitation of Queen Elizabeth II and the episcopal conferences of the United Kingdom to visit in September, according to the spokesman of the Holy See. While the Pope's stop in the house of parliament has been confirmed, the most anticipated moment of the apostolic visit will take place on its final day.The Holy See's spokesman, Fr. Federico Lombardi, officially announced the trip in a Monday statement from the press office. This confirms what Pope Benedict had already told the bishops of England and Wales...

The controversy over Pope Pius XII's actions during World War II was recently reignited when... Riccardo Pacifici, president of Rome's Jewish community, told [Pope Benedict] : "The silence of Pius XII before the Shoah still hurts because something should have been done." [snip] To what extent, if any, does the evidence back up these allegations, which have been repeated since the early 1960s? On April 4, 1933, Eugenio Cardinal Pacelli, the Vatican secretary of state, instructed the papal nuncio in Germany to see what he could do to oppose the Nazis. On behalf of Pope Pius XI, Cardinal Pacelli drafted...

CANONIZATION OF BLESSED DAMIAN DE VEUSTER, JEANNE JUGAN AND OTHERS - LIVE (2 1/2 hr) and Mary of The Cross (Jeanne) Jugan. Sun 10/11/09 4:00 AM ET / 1 AM PT Sun 10/11/09 12:00 PM ET / 9 AM PT

Peggy Chun's portrait of Blessed Father Damien Rome, Italy, Oct 9, 2009 / 06:24 am (CNA).- As the October 11 canonization of the Fr. Damien de Veuster approaches, an art teacher is leading a small group from Hawaii to Rome to present Pope Benedict XVI with a portrait of the saint painted by an artist paralyzed by Lou Gehrig’s Disease, also known as ALS.Fr. Damien, a hero to Hawaiians, ministered to a major leper colony on Molokai where he contracted and eventually succumbed to leprosy in the late nineteenth century.The late artist Peggy Chun had created the artwork with...

On April 26 in St. Peter's Square, Pope Benedict XVI will canonize a Portuguese national hero who toward the end of his life became a Carmelite monk and served the poor, Nuno de Santa Maria Àlvares Pereira, O. Carm. (1360-1431), the Condestável ("Constable," meaning General) known in Portugal as "the Father of the Nation.”" Almost a century ago, Pope Benedict XV beatified Nuno (January 23, 1918), and proposed him as a model for the Catholic soldiers then engaged in combat during World War 1. So one Pope Benedict, the 15th, beatified Nuno, and a second, Benedict XVI, will canonize him....

ROME, OCT. 10, 2008 (Zenit.org).- As Christians in India continue to face persecution for their faith, they will have a new advocate in the figure of soon-to-be St. Alfonsa of the Immaculate Conception.Blessed Alfonsa (born Anna Muttathupadathu) is one of four people to be canonized by Benedict XVI this Sunday. The other three are Maria Bernarda Butler, from Switzerland; Narcisa de Jesús Martillo Morán from Ecuador; and Father Gaetano Errico from Italy.Blessed Alfonsa will be the first woman from India to be canonized. She was a religious of the Poor Clares.Anna Muttathupadathu was born in the Indian state of Kerala...

Cardinal Newman, the Anglican cleric whose conversion to Roman Catholicism scandalised Victorian Britain, appeared closer to sainthood today after his case was backed by a senior Vatican official.   Cardinal Newman The head of the Vatican department that examines the causes of saints said that he would like the Cardinal's beatification - the step before canonisation - to take place very soon. His comments suggest that the Vatican is close to attributing a miracle to Cardinal Newman, which means that the 19th century cleric could be beatified before the end of the year. The controversial theologian and writer of the...

VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- The Vatican is preparing to issue a set of instructions to promote "greater caution and more accuracy" in the opening of new sainthood causes by local dioceses, a top Vatican official said. Cardinal Jose Saraiva Martins, head of the Congregation for Saints' Causes, said the instructions were needed to reflect the "new spirit introduced by Pope Benedict XVI in beatification procedures." The cardinal spoke in an interview published Jan. 8 by the Vatican newspaper, L'Osservatore Romano, under the headline: "More precision will be asked in diocesan canonization processes." Cardinal Saraiva Martins said the new document will...

Today's canonization was marked by heavy rain: The rain was the most obvious protagonist of this morning’s canonization of 4 new saints, as it poured down relentlessly on the ocean of coloured umbrellas, on the sick, on the ministrants and bishops gathered in St Peter’s square. Every step of the ceremony, the readings, processions – with the exception of the rites preformed around the papal altar – were hindered by the opening and closing of the multi coloured umbrellas as they were passed from hand to hand, covering heads but drenching the shoulders and robes of the cardinals and 40...

Today, Pope Benedict continues his apostolic journey to Brazil for a third day, celebrating the canonization Mass of Brazil's first native-born saint (Bl. Fr. Antonio Galvao) and then spending the night near the famous Shrine of Aparecida. Once again, this post will be updated and expanded throughout the day, so keep visiting! NB: Complete roundup of my coverage here, the best photos from the trip here. Highlights of Friday's papal itinerary (all times EST): 8:30 AM Canonization Mass of Blessed Frei Galvão at Campo de Marte in São Paulo3:00 PM Vespers with the Bishops of Brazil in the Catedral...

Roman Catholic Church officials passed a key milestone in the drive to make Pope John Paul II a saint Monday, closing an investigation into his life during a ceremony on the second anniversary of the beloved pontiff's death.Also Monday, church officials from France delivered to the Vatican a dossier detailing the purported miraculous cure of a nun who prayed to John Paul — a key requirement for beatification, the last step before possible sainthood.The remarkably fast pace underscores the Church's keen interest in beatifying John Paul and responding to the calls of "Santo Subito" or "Sainthood Immediately!" that erupted after...

PARIS (AP) — Sister Marie-Simon-Pierre is the French nun whose testimony of a mystery cure from Parkinson’s disease will likely be accepted as the miracle the Vatican needs to beatify Pope John Paul II, an official at the Paris maternity hospital where she works said Wednesday. The identity of the nun has been one of the Catholic Church’s most closely guarded secrets. The nun says that she was cured of Parkinson’s after she and her community of nuns prayed to John Paul. The nun, a member of the ‘‘Congregation of Little Sisters of Catholic Motherhood’’ in Aix-en-Provence in southeast France,...

THE VATICAN is close to making the late pope John Paul II a saint after investigating three "miracles" attributed to him. John Paul had already been credited with curing a nun of Parkinson's disease and now it has emerged he has been credited with two other cures, proof of which will confer on him beatification and then canonisation.This weekend the cardinal in charge of the process said he expected the checks performed by the local dioceses on all three miracles to be complete by April. A formal announcement is expected on April 2, the second anniversary of John Paul's death,...

The late Pope John Paul II praying in front of the remains of Blessed Gorg Preca at the MUSEUM chapel in Blata l-Bajda in May 2001 The Congregation for Sainthood Causes in Rome has approved a second miracle that should lead to the canonisation of the Blessed Gorg Preca, the Archbishop's Curia said yesterday. The decision was taken following a discussion held at the Apostolic Palace in the Vatican headed by Cardinal José Saraiva Martins on Tuesday. The decision was originally expected in the middle of last year but was delayed. Pope John Paul II beatified Dun Gorg in...

Pope Benedict XVI gave Catholics four news saints Sunday, bestowing the honor on a 19th century nun who struggled in the American frontier, a bishop who tended to the wounded during the Mexican Revolution and two Italian clergy.French-born Mother Theodore Guerin endured harsh conditions on the American frontier and resisted the objections of a local bishop in pursuing her dream of establishing Catholic education for pioneers. She established a college for women in Indiana, which enrolled its first student in 1841.Among those at the ceremony on the steps of St. Peter's Basilica were ailing Chicago Cardinal Francis George and five...

Interesting article on Phil McCord the currently non-Catholic whose miraculous healing of his eye is attributed to Blessed Mother Theodore Guerin and was used as proof for the second miracle leading to her canonization this Sunday. He was the son of a Baptist lay minister and he worked for nuns, overseeing the facilities owned by the Sisters of Providence, composting and all. McCord was never much of a praying man. But concern for his eye and the notes from an organ brought him into the Church of the Immaculate Conception, the large, ornate church on the St. Mary-of-the-Woods campus. He...

Canonization date setOctober 15 chosen for canonization of Blessed Mother Theodore Guerin By Robert L. Flott WVJB Editor Even before Sister Ann Margaret O'Hara took the stage, the room sparkled with excitement. As Superior General of the Sisters of Providence of St. Mary-of-the-Woods took the stage, Sr. Ann Margaret had an important announcement to make, however, and the Sisters of Providence are disciplined. Quickly, the room went silent. "It is October 15." The room exploded with cheers and applause--even on "Go Girl!" For the 300 or more members of the Sisters of Providence gathered in O'Shaunnesy Hall on the St....

The Vatican has announced that the next Consistory, a meeting between the pope and cardinals in Rome during which significant papal matters are considered, is scheduled for Saturday, July 1. The date for the canonization ceremony for Blessed Mother Theodore Guerin, foundress of the Sisters of Providence of Saint Mary-of-the-Woods, Ind., will be set at that time. Mother Theodore was beatified in October, 1998, and in April of this year, Pope Benedict XVI signed a decree acknowledging a second miracle healing attributed to her intercession through prayer. She founded the Sisters of Providence in 1840. She died in 1856. Sister...

Vatican City, Apr. 27, 2006 (CNA) - As the world watches the Catholic Church in its process for the beatification of John Paul II, the Vatican has released a message from Pope Benedict to the Congregation for the Causes of Saints, which just finished its plenary assembly. In it, the Pope clarifies the Church’s stance and means for assessing sainthood. The message, released today, was addressed specifically to Cardinal Jose Saraiva Martins C.M.F., prefect of the Congregation. The Holy Father wrote that ''From her beginnings, the Church has dedicated great attention to the procedures that elevate Servants of God to...

The inexplicable healing of a French nun could be the miracle that paves the way for beatification of Pope John Paul II. The Roman news agency I Media has learned that a French nun who was dying of cancer experienced a sudden and complete cure in October, after the members of her community prayed for the intercession of the late Pope John Paul. In accordance with Vatican rules, the identity of the nun is not being revealed, as doctors conduct a thorough study of her case. If a miracle is confirmed, it would speed the cause for the Polish Pontiff's...

VATICAN CITY -- Tens of thousands of pilgrims gathered in St Peter's Square early Sunday as Pope Benedict XVI began a ceremony canonizing the first saints of his pontificate -- two Polish-born Ukrainians, two Italians, and a Chilean.Flag-waving pilgrims packed the giant Vatican square as the 78-year-old pontiff began the ceremony in bright sunshine which burned off the mist that had earlier obscured the dome of St Peter's basilica.Choirs sang hymns in English, French, German, Italian, Polish, and Spanish. During the two-hour ceremony, the pope was to proclaim the canonization of Polish Archbishop Jozef Bilczewski (1860-1923), diocesan priest Zygmunt Gorazdowski...

Sometime in the next few days, Andrea Ambrosi, a Vatican lawyer specializing in the arcane ways of canonization, will leave New Orleans for Rome with a precious cargo: 2,918 pages of memories, testimonies and historical and theological arguments in support of sainthood for his new client, Henriette Delille, the 19th century woman of color who spent a lifetime ministering to slaves in antebellum New Orleans. The thick files are the product of 16 years of prayers, promotion and scholarly research by modern admirers of Delille in and out of the Sisters of the Holy Family, the religious order she founded....

ROME (AP) - The so-called "devil's advocate" in Pope John Paul II's beatification process, who must investigate any possible doubts about the late pontiff's saintliness, pledged Monday to remain objective but hinted that he supported the cause. The Rev. Giuseppe D'Alonzo, the promoter of justice in the Diocese of Rome, said he was neither for nor against beatification for the late pope, who was considered a saint by many even before he died April 2. "It's not for me to decide," D'Alonzo said in an interview with The Associated Press in his office, which had a photo of the late...

The Pope starts Wojtyla beatification The Pope has arranged the immediate beginning of the cause of beatification of Pope Wojtyla, dispensing from the wait of the five years from the dead women previewed from the code. Benedict XVI has announced personally the roman clergy, reading, in Latin, a communication in such sense of cardinal Josè Saraiva Martins, prefetto of the Congregation for the causes of knows to you. The communication has been received a longest applause of present clergymen, raised in feet, therefore like the Pope and Ruini cardinal.

VATICAN CITY - The private secretary of the late Pope John Paul II saw the pontiff perform what could be claimed as a miracle, one of the key stages to becoming a saint, Italy’s La Stampa newspaper reported Sunday.It quoted Archbishop Stanislaw Dziwisz as relating how an American who was seriously ill received communion from the pope, and was cured.The incident happened in 1998, but Dziwisz, who was John Paul II’s closest confidant for 40 years, spoke of the incident three years ago to reporters, who revealed it Sunday.According to the report, Dziwisz told how an acquaintance had asked him...

Lisbon, Feb. 22 (CNA/CWNews.com) - The Portuguese EFE news agency is reporting that the Diocese of Leiria-Fatima has sent the final documents for the canonization of Jacinta and Francisco Marto to the Vatican. The announcement came just days after the death of their cousin, the third seer of Fatima, last week at the age of 97. "I can confirm that the so-called 'Positio,' the final document for the canonization of the two shepherd children, has been sent," said Bishop Serafim Ferreira e Silva during a Mass dedicated to the visionaries of Our Lady of Fatima. He also said the Portuguese...

Newsflash > "I will not die before I canonize Pope Pius XII “I will not die before I canonize Pope Pius XII” Five days ago, we reported that Pope John Paul II was 10 minutes from death the night he was hospitalized (February 1).Now, in the very different context of an 84-year-old Pope on the mend, we consider one of the most controversial issues he will have to face in the months ahead, and reveal that he himself has already, according to our sources, made up his mind on the matter.Our sources tell us they believe that John Paul...

Jan. 31 issue - Giuseppe Frassinetti (died 1868), a holy priest and founder of a religious order, would be a saint today—like his sister, Paola—except for one thing: he lacks two miracles credited to his intercession. The Vatican's Congregation for the Causes of Saints has a list of several hundred candidates who need one or more of the miracles required for canonization. Some are recent and sure to be saints, like Pope John XXIII and Mother Teresa, who already has 600 "divine favors" (unverified, possible miracles) credited to her intercession. Other candidates, like Jesuit Father Miguel Pro, who was executed...

Saturday, January 1, 2005; Page B07 Role of Miracles In Sainthood Eyed Pope John Paul II is reported to be considering a proposal to abolish miracles as a requirement for sainthood. Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone, archbishop of Genoa, told the Genoa newspaper Secolo XIX recently that there is a growing feeling that the key requirement for sainthood is a life of "heroic virtue" and that miracles are "anachronistic." Bertone said the proposal was sent to the pope by the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith. Until two years ago, the cardinal was secretary of the congregation, the Vatican's arbiter on...

CANDIDATES for sainthood will be exonerated from the requirement to have performed a miracle under guidelines being considered by the Pope. Already under fire from some Roman Catholics for running a “saint factory”, the Pope is preparing to overturn a centuries-old rule that candidates for canonisation must have performed “medically inexplicable” posthumous miracles. The Pope, 84, has created 482 saints in his 26 years as pontiff — more than all his predecessors put together — and has beatified 1,337 people. He believes that “latter-day saints” offer a much-needed example at a time when Christianity is under threat from secularism and...

It was very encouraging news to hear of plans for the beatification of Pope Pius IX, the Pontiff who declared the dogmas of the Immaculate Conception and papal infallibility, the Pope of the dogmatic Council Vatican I, which reaffirmed the teachings and traditions of the Magisterium of the Holy Catholic Church. The accompanying news of the beatification of Pope John XXIII, the Pope of the pastoral Council Vatican II, which worked a real revolution in the largest religious body in the world, rightfully raises concern and questions in the minds of a number of good Catholics. Let’s put aside the...

Pressing Sainthood for a Beloved Archbishop By MAREK FUCHS Published: December 12, 2004 A long line of priests, nuns, deacons, relatives and fans wound its way into the crypt beneath the altar of St. Patrick's Cathedral. Their mission: the canonization of Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen, one of the first priests to use TV to educate, inspire and even convert. Twenty-five years after the archbishop was buried in the crypt, a Mass was celebrated in his honor. The people who gathered at St. Patrick's on Thursday wanted to persuade the Vatican to declare the archbishop a saint. "It's like a kickoff,...

Kateri sainthood could take a miracle Supporters fear time is running out for Indian woman to be canonized AURIESVILLE -- Catholics worldwide have long prayed for a local Indian maiden to be made a saint.All that's needed is a miracle. Time may be running out though.Since Pope John Paul II elevated Kateri Tekakwitha to the ranks of "blessed," in June 1980, the "Lily of the Mohawks" has been a step away from becoming the first Native American woman to achieve sainthood.The Pope is strongly behind her. But at 84 and in frail health, the chances he'll be around to canonize...

Pope John Paul II has celebrated his 83rd birthday presiding over a special Mass in Saint Peter's square and canonizing four Roman Catholic saints. The pope elevated to sainthood two Italian and two Polish women - all founders of religious orders. Sunday's service drew tens of thousands of pilgrims, including a large number of worshippers from Poland, among them President Alexander Kwasniewski. Pope John Paul has now canonized 473 saints, more than any other pope in the history of the Roman Catholic Church. Earlier this month, he canonized five Spanish saints on a trip to Madrid. In a separate development,...

VATICAN CITY (Reuters) - Pope John Paul made a saint Sunday of Josemaria Escriva de Balaguer, the controversial founder of the conservative Roman Catholic group Opus Dei, before one of the biggest crowds ever to flood the Vatican. About 300,000 soberly dressed pilgrims from 80 countries filled St. Peter's Square and spilled into surrounding piazzas for the ceremony in front of Christendom's largest church. "We declare the blessed Josemaria Escriva de Balaguer a saint and include him in the annals of saints," the gold-robed Pope said, reading from a Latin formula.He urged the faithful to follow in Escriva's footsteps...

Letter to the Pope A LETTER TO HIS HOLINESS, JOHN PAUL II, FROM FORMER MEMBERS OF OPUS DEI, THOSE WHO HAVE BEEN HARMED BY OPUS DEI AND OTHER CONCERNED INDIVIDUALS WHO ARE DEEPLY APPREHENSIVE ABOUT THE IMMINENT CANONIZATION OF MONSIGNOR JOSEMARIA ESCRIVA Your Holiness, We ask you to open your heart and mind to us, and to believe that we are deeply in earnest, for we are aware that in asking you for a hearing on the grave matter of Opus Dei and the canonization of its founder, Monsignor Josemaria Escriva, we speak as witnesses before Truth itself-Jesus Christ, the...

The Formation of the Canon of the New Testament By B.B. Warfield Pub. 1892, by the American Sunday School Union, Philadelphia, Pa. IN ORDER to obtain a correct understanding of what is called the formation of the Canon of the New Testament, it is necessary to begin by fixing very firmly in our minds one fact which is obvious enough when attention is once called to it. That is, that the Christian church did not require to form for itself the idea of a "canon," - or, as we should more commonly call it, of a "Bible," -that is,...

MEXICO CITY (AP) - In a ceremony mixing Indian and European traditions, Pope John Paul II canonized the Roman Catholic Church's first Indian saint on Wednesday, calling Juan Diego a catalyst for converting the Americas to Christianity. The pope appealed to all Mexicans to help Indians rise from poverty and subjugation. Hundreds of thousands of jubilant believers lined the streets, singing, cheering and sobbing as they waved yellow-and-white flags. Some watched the ceremony on large screens mounted in the street, and leapt in excitement as Juan Diego was proclaimed a saint. Most caught only a quick glimpse of the pope...

Canonization of Juan Diego drawing Texans to Mexico CityBy RICHARD VARACopyright 2002 Houston Chronicle Religion Editor When Carmen Riojas Zapata was 6, her grandmother told her that if she prayed to the Lady of Guadalupe, everything would be all right. Almost seven decades later, Zapata still follows her abuela's advice. That's why she will be one of an expected 4.5 million pilgrims in Mexico City next week when Pope John Paul II proclaims sainthood for Juan Diego, the Indian visited in 1531 by apparitions of a black-haired, brown-skinned young woman now venerated as the Lady of Guadalupe. "Nearly 500 years...

Padre Pio's remarkable transformation A poster of Padre Pio in St Peter's Square By Peter Gould BBC News Online Among Roman Catholics in Italy, he is said to be second in popularity only to Pope John Paul II. For years, he has been regarded as "the people's saint" and the monastery where he prayed is a place of pilgrimage. Yet the object of this devotion is a humble monk, who for much of his life was regarded with deep suspicion by the Vatican. His name is Padre Pio, and on Sunday he officially joined the ranks of the saints. The...