Causes for Canonization

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How would one go about learning if a cause for canonization for an individual is open? Or if there is none open, how would one go about trying to get it open?
 
Causes for canonization are opened in the first instance by the person’s diocese. You can check with the chancery office. To initiate the cause yourself, again I would contact the person’s diocese and inquire.
 
Spirithound said:
Causes for canonization are opened in the first instance by the person’s diocese. You can check with the chancery office.
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Is that the person’s diocese at the time of death, or his diocese where he was born or baptized, or the diocese where he lived most of his life…:confused:
 
Digitonomy said:
Is that the person’s diocese at the time of death, or his diocese where he was born or baptized, or the diocese where he lived most of his life…:confused:
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I hadn’t thought of this! It seems that the right to open the cause belongs to the diocese where the person died (but maybe the diocese where the person had their main residence at time of death?).

Pope John Paul II’s cause was opened by Cardinal Ruini, who is responsible for promoting the cause of anyone who dies in the Archdiocese of Rome.

Archbishop Fulton Sheen’s cause is now open (he is styled Servant of God). Permission was granted by the Archdiocese of New York, but the cause is currently under the authority of the Diocese of Peoria, where he was ordained a priest.
 
JMJ_coder said:
How would one go about learning if a cause for canonization for an individual is open? Or if there is none open, how would one go about trying to get it open?
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This site newsaints.faithweb.com/ is good at covering canonisation causes that have been opened. They’re low on details of the candidates’ lives, but they do give pertinent information like dates, places, religious orders and the party in charge of promoting the cause. The site also has info on how causes are opened.

To open one, it’s started with an organisation or person who wants to promote it, like a parish, association or religious order if the person was in one. Then the local bishop (I read that it’s supposed to be from where the person dies, but I think the cause for Saint Damien was handeled in Belgium and not Hawaii for some reason) makes the decision.
 
Off topic, but I’ve been unsure about this – are we supposed to ask Servants of God for their intercession? I think I heard someplace praying to SoG’s is only allowed in their “home” diocese.
 
didymus said:
Off topic, but I’ve been unsure about this – are we supposed to ask Servants of God for their intercession? I think I heard someplace praying to SoG’s is only allowed in their “home” diocese.
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Close.

Publically, there can be veneration of a Blessed only in the related home diocese or religious order.

But actually, you *should *be asking a Servant of God for his or her intercession. If nobody did that, there wouldn’t be any miracles so beatifications wouldn’t happen either.
 
JesuXPIPassio said:
Publically, there can be veneration of a Blessed only in the related home diocese or religious order.
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Do you have any documentation to back that up? A Blessed has been raised to the honors of the altar, and you can celebrate their feast day anywhere.
 
JMJ_coder said:
Do you have any documentation to back that up? A Blessed has been raised to the honors of the altar, and you can celebrate their feast day anywhere.
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No, you can’t.

On one level, you can actually venerate anyone anywhere, but not publically. Beatified people can be venerated publically only in limited places. Canonised people can be venerated publically anywhere. This is why today, beatifications are today are often celebrated locally and never by the Pope. The Pope does canonisations to signify that then it is for the universal Church.

Here’s one source ewtn.com/MotherTeresa/Beatification.htm

Scroll down to “Cause for Beatification/Cause for Canonization.” It’s in the first paragraph.

Fun topic, isn’t it? Got any other questions? I love discussing how this works.
 
JesuXPIPassio said:
This is why today, beatifications are today are often celebrated locally and never by the Pope. The Pope does canonisations to signify that then it is for the universal Church.
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MarkThompson said:
Close. Beatifications are celebrated locally, including sometimes by the Pope. See Pope will beatify Cardinal Newman in England during September visit.
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Plus, don’t forget Bl. Jacinta Marto and Bl. Francesco Marto, beatified by Pope John Paul II at Fatima in 2000.

I have a devotion to Fr. William J. Doyle, S.J., known as the “Trench Priest” – served with the Royal Dublin Fusiliers, 16th Irish Division, on the Western Front in World War I and was killed at the Battle of Ypres in 1917, so I hope it’s okay to pray to Servants of God. (By the way, here is his biography, in full, and available in PDF format.)
 
Victorious said:
Plus, don’t forget Bl. Jacinta Marto and Bl. Francesco Marto, beatified by Pope John Paul II at Fatima in 2000.
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That’s why I wrote, “This is why today” about beatifications not being celebrated by the Pope. John Paul II did celebrate beatifications; Benedict XVI does not, with the sole exception that MarkThompson brought up.
 
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