POPE JOHN PAUL II could be made a saint by the end of the year.
The Vatican has has now recognised a second miracle by him, leaving just a papal signature necessary to authorise the former pope’s canonisation.
The long road to sainthood requires two confirmed miracles, the first of which is necessary for beatification, a hurdle the Polish pope cleared just six months after his death in 2005.
That was the healing of a French nun, Sister Marie Simon-Pierre, whose recovery from Parkinson’s disease after praying for the late John Paul II’s “intercession” had no medical explanation.
The second miracle reportedly took place on the very day that John Paul II was beatified in a lavish ceremony in St Peter’s Square on May 1, 2011, and was the healing of a woman from Costa Rica.
The go-ahead from the Vatican’s Congregation for the Causes of Saints must be followed by a written decree, signed by Pope Francis, to authorise the Polish pontiff’s canonisation and announce the date it will take place.
For healings to be officially certified as miracles, they must be instantaneous, permanent and with no scientific explanation.
John Paul II was hugely popular through his 27-year papacy, and at his funeral in 2005, crowds of mourners cried “Santo Subito!”- which roughly translates as “Sainthood Now!”
- Additional reporting AFP, 2013
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