Year of Faith could see beatification of John Paul I, Paul VI

Rome, Italy, Jul 10, 2012 / 11:11 am

A former head of the Vatican's congregation on saints' causes says Pope Benedict XVI could beatify his predecessors Pope John Paul I and Pope Paul VI during the upcoming Year of Faith.

Although the process of beatification is "generally very complex, in this case, the phases have been moving ahead," Cardinal Jose Saraiva Martins, prefect emeritus of the Congregation for the Causes of the Saints, told Italian newspaper Corriere delle Alpi June 25.

After the beatification of John Paul II in May of 2011, Pope Benedict's possible beatifications of John Paul I and Paul VI would be the first time in history that a Pope has beatified three of his predecessors.

Pope Benedict's Year of Faith is slated to begin on Oct. 11 and will serve to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the Second Vatican Council.
 
On July 6, Msgr. Enrico Dal Covolo – the postulator of the cause for Servant of God John Paul I's beatification – said documents for the late pontiff have been completed and will be delivered to the prefect of the Congregation for the Causes of the Saints, Cardinal Angelo Amato.

Monsignor Dal Covolo, who is also rector of the Lateran Pontifical University in Rome, said the document, or "positio" is divided into two volumes. The first focuses on the heroic virtues of the pontiff, and the second is an account of his life.

Although it is not yet official, the miracle that could lead to John Paul I's beatification is the healing of Giuseppe Denora, an Italian man who was cured of a severe gastric tumor after praying to the late Pope.

The miracle attributed to the Servant of God Paul VI – who made Joseph Ratzinger a cardinal – is the healing of a baby inside its mother's womb.