Canonization of John Paul II
Canonization of John Paul II will take place on April 27 next year. Finally the Pope Francis officially announced the date. The ceremony has no precedent in the history of the Catholic church, because two popes will be canonized together – John Paul II and Pope John XXIII. The ceremony will surely brings thousands of pilgrims to the Eternal City.
The Polish Pope John Paul II and his Italian predecessor, known as “Good Pope John” are two contemporary figures of the Catholic world. This double canonization is seen as an attempt to abandon the traditional distinction between “liberal” and “conservative” sides in the Church. John XXIII had a reputation for being a less radical pope, while John Paul II was one of the conservatives.
Pope John Paul II served as pope from 1978 to 2005. The first miracle due to his intercession occurred when a French nun named Marie Simon Pierre was cured from Parkinson’s disease, after praying to pope John Paul II. The second miracle took place in Costa Rica after the ceremony of beatification in 2011, a local woman while praying to blessed JPII was healed from a serious brain disease.
The Polish pope John Paul II was very beloved and respected. His warm personality with a unique natural spirituality makes this pope still present in the memory of the faithful. At his funeral in 2005, crowds shouted: “Santo subito!”. This pushed the Vatican to speed up the path to holiness, which usually begins five years after death of person.
Pope John XXIII was pope from 1958 till 1963 he’s known for convening the historic Second Vatican Council. Miraculous healing of an Italian nun who had severe internal bleedings was attributed to the intercession of Pope John XXIII and this was the cause of his beatification.
Many people compare the Italian pope John to the current one – Francis, similar attitudes, pastoral simplicity, open manner and sense of humor. Pope Francis “fried” Pope John XXIII from the second miracle, his canonization in fact was promoted by the participants in the Second Vatican Council in 1965 , who thus wanted to pay a tribute to the man who started create the church in modern times.
