The Catholic Parish of
Saint John Henry Newman
Covering most of East Leeds
Get to know our Parish Saint – Who was Cardinal Newman?
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In our Eleventh instalment of Newman's life, we examine Newman's crisis of faith..
The Church has different classifications for its saints. "Martyr" saints are those who
died for the Faith, whereas a "confessor" saint is someone who bears witness by their lives rather than by their deaths. There also exist other titles such as Virgin, Pastor, Bishop, Monk, Priest, Founder, Abbot, Apostle, and Doctor of the Church. Cardinal Newman was therefore a Confessor, Pastor and (potentially) Doctor of the Church.
The path to sainthood is a multi-stage process requiring ongoing dialogue between the bishop of the diocese in which the possible saint lived and the Congregation for the Causes of Saints in Rome. The 1st stage is gauging local interest - examining whether people who knew the person or knew of his or her life believe that the individual ‘gave an example of holiness that we can follow with confidence'. The 2nd stage is an Examination by the Holy See which might lead to issuing a Decree of Heroic Virtue by which the candidate is declared ‘Venerable'. The 3rd stage is establishing whether a miracle is scientifically verifiable as ‘beyond human capability and inexplicable other than in terms of the miraculous'. If this is satisfied, the person is declared a "blessed" as Newman was in 2010 at a Beatification Mass in Birmingham following the inexplicable healing of Deacon Jack Sullivan's crippling spinal condition.
Episode 11 - Newman's process towards sainthood (PART 1)
The Church has different classifications for its saints. "Martyr" saints are those who
died for the Faith, whereas a "confessor" saint is someone who bears witness by their lives rather than by their deaths. There also exist other titles such as Virgin, Pastor, Bishop, Monk, Priest, Founder, Abbot, Apostle, and Doctor of the Church. Cardinal Newman was therefore a Confessor, Pastor and (potentially) Doctor of the Church.The path to sainthood is a multi-stage process requiring ongoing dialogue between the bishop of the diocese in which the possible saint lived and the Congregation for the Causes of Saints in Rome. The 1st stage is gauging local interest - examining whether people who knew the person or knew of his or her life believe that the individual ‘gave an example of holiness that we can follow with confidence'. The 2nd stage is an Examination by the Holy See which might lead to issuing a Decree of Heroic Virtue by which the candidate is declared ‘Venerable'. The 3rd stage is establishing whether a miracle is scientifically verifiable as ‘beyond human capability and inexplicable other than in terms of the miraculous'. If this is satisfied, the person is declared a "blessed" as Newman was in 2010 at a Beatification Mass in Birmingham following the inexplicable healing of Deacon Jack Sullivan's crippling spinal condition.
Next week: Newman's process towards sainthood (Part 2)
Published Sat 5th Oct 2019 16:43:15
Last Modified on Sat 5th Oct 2019 16:43:15
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