Confirmed: April 27 for Canonizations of Popes John XXIII and John Paul II
Blessed Popes John XXIII and John Paul II will be canonized on April 27th 2014, Divine Mercy Sunday, the Vatican confirmed this morning.
The news was announced in the following statement:
"CONSISTORY TO VOTE ON THE CAUSES OF CANONIZATION OF BLESSEDS JOHN XXIII AND JOHN PAUL II
This morning, at 10 o'clock in the Consistory Hall of the Vatican Apostolic Palace, during the celebration of mid-morning prayer, the Holy Father Francis held the Ordinary Public Consistory for the Canonization of Blesseds:
- John XXIII, Pope
- John Paul II, Pope.
During the Consistory, the Pope decreed that the Blesseds John XXIII and John Paul II will be enrolled among the saints April 27, 2014, the Second Sunday of Easter, of the Divine Mercy."
The news was widely expected. The Register was among the first to report the high probability of Divine Mercy Sunday as the chosen date when Pope Francis revealed it in a conversation earlier this month. Although cardinals and bishops vote on the canonization, the date is the Pope's alone to make in accordance with his calendar and schedule.
Vatican and Rome authorities will now set to work, preparing for what is expected to be an enormous number of pilgrims from all over the world.
Edward Pentin Edward Pentin is the Register’s Senior Contributor and EWTN News Vatican Analyst. He began reporting on the Pope and the Vatican with Vatican Radio before moving on to become the Rome correspondent for EWTN's National Catholic Register. He has also reported on the Holy See and the Catholic Church for a number of other publications including Newsweek, Newsmax, Zenit, The Catholic Herald, and The Holy Land Review, a Franciscan publication specializing in the Church and the Middle East. Edward is the author of The Next Pope: The Leading Cardinal Candidates (Sophia Institute Press, 2020) and The Rigging of a Vatican Synod? An Investigation into Alleged Manipulation at the Extraordinary Synod on the Family (Ignatius Press, 2015). Follow him on Twitter at @edwardpentin.
