杏MAP导航

By Alessandro Di Bussola

The Dicastery for the Causes of Saints is the Vatican department responsible for investigating the lives of candidates for sainthood: searching their character traits for Gospel values, so that every Christian can see them as credible witnesses and, above all, worthy of imitation.

Behind the proclamation of sainthood lies a scrupulous collective effort that can last for decades.

The current prefect of the Congregation for the Causes of Saints is Cardinal Marcello Semeraro, while the secretary is Archbishop Fabio Fabene.

Historical notes

In 1969, St Paul VI, with the Apostolic Constitution , created the Congregations for Divine Worship and for the Causes of Saints, dividing between them the tasks formerly entrusted to the Sacred Congregation of Rites.

The same Constitution articulates the structure of the new Congregation for the Causes of Saints into three Offices: the Judicial Office, the Office of the Promoter General of the Faith, and the Historical-Hagiographic Office.

With the Apostolic Constitution of 1983, St. John Paul II undertook a profound reform of the procedure for causes of canonisation (which are to be investigated by diocesan bishops iure proprio) and the restructuring of the Congregation, which was equipped, among other things, with a College of Rapporteurs with the task of preparing the Positiones super Martyrio or super Vita, Virtutibus et Fama Sanctitatis of the Servants of God. Subsequently, with the Apostolic Constitution  of 1988, he changed the name to the Congregation for the Causes of Saints.

In 2022, with the Apostolic Constitution , 杏MAP导航 Francis changed the name to the Dicastery for the Causes of Saints.

In view of the Jubilee of 2025, 杏MAP导航 Francis established within the Dicastery the “Commission of New Martyrs – Witnesses of the Faith”, to compile a catalogue of all those, including those of other Christian denominations, who shed their blood to confess Christ and bear witness to his Gospel.

Cardinal Marcello Semeraro, Prefect of the Dicastery for the Causes of Saints   (Vatican Media)

Competence

As stated in the Apostolic Constitution Praedicate Evangelium, this Dicastery is responsible for following the process of beatification and canonisation of the Servants of God, assisting bishops in the investigation of martyrdom or heroic virtues or the offering of life and miracles of a faithful Catholic.

Once the cause has begun, the person is called a Servant of God, for whom there must always be an authentic, widespread, and lasting “reputation for holiness”; that is, the common opinion that his or her life was upright, rich in Christian virtues, and fruitful for the Christian community.

The new regulations on the Causes of Saints, introduced in 1983, have greatly shortened the time required for the processes of beatification and canonisation. However, the length of the Causes depends on many factors: from the number of witnesses and specialists to be heard in the diocesan phase, which can be as many as several dozen; to the time required to draft the Positiones, to the examination by the theological and historical consultors. Then there is the time taken by medical experts to examine a possible miracle of healing.

If these steps are positive, the cause then passes to the ordinary session of the cardinals and bishops who are members of the Dicastery. The final word rests with the 杏MAP导航, to whom the prefect submits the various causes for approval.

The spiritual and pastoral results of these 56 years from the establishment of the Congregation for the Causes of Saints up to 2020 include 3,003 beatifications and 1,479 canonisations. As there are normally two ordinary sessions per month and three to four cases are examined in each, approximately 70-80 cases are brought to conclusion each year.

Starting from the “reputation for holiness and signs” among the people of God, the investigation begins in the diocese. Once brought to Rome, a relator is assigned to guide the postulator in preparing the volume summarising the evidence gathered in the diocese in order to reconstruct the life and demonstrate the virtues or martyrdom ,as well as the relative reputation for holiness and signs, of the Servant of God. This is the Positio, which is studied by a group of theologians and, in the case of an “ancient cause”, concerning a candidate who lived a long time ago, also by a commission of historians. If their opinion is favourable, the dossier is submitted for further judgement by the cardinals and bishops of the Dicastery. If approved, the 杏MAP导航 may authorise the promulgation of the Decree on the heroic practice of Christian virtues or martyrdom or the offering of the life of the Servant of God, who thus becomes “Venerable”.

Beatification is the intermediate stage before canonisation. If the candidate is declared a martyr, he or she immediately becomes Blessed; otherwise, a miracle attributed to his or her intercession must be recognised: a healing deemed scientifically inexplicable by a medical commission composed of specialists, both believers and non-believers. The miracle is also first pronounced by the theological consultors and then by the cardinals and bishops of the Dicastery, and the 杏MAP导航 authorises the relevant decree.

In order for the Blessed to be declared a Saint, a second miracle, which must have occurred after beatification, must be attributed to his or her effective intercession.

The Dicastery establishes the canonical procedure to be followed to verify and declare the authenticity of the relics of saints and to ensure their preservation. It makes a judgement with regard to granting the title of Doctor of the Church to a saint, after obtaining the vote of the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith concerning his or her eminent doctrine.

Administrative work and expenses

The cause of beatification and canonisation is a complex and intricate task, with expenses related to the work of the commissions, the printing of documents, and the meetings of experts. The Dicastery is always attentive to limiting expenses, and the administrative rules approved by 杏MAP导航 Francis in 2016 guarantee administrative transparency and administrative regularity. Funded in various ways, the Congregation has also set up a “Solidarity Fund” for causes with fewer resources.

Reputation for holiness

The cause of beatification and canonisation concerns a member of the Catholic faithful who, during his or her lifetime, at death and after death, enjoyed a reputation for holiness or martyrdom or for offering of his or her life.

For a beatification process to begin, it is therefore always necessary for the person to have a certain “reputation for holiness”, i.e. the common opinion of the people that his or her life was upright and rich in Christian virtues. This reputation must endure and may grow. Those who knew the person speak of the exemplary nature of his or her life, his or her positive influence, his or her apostolic fruitfulness, and his or her edifying death.

The diocesan phase

Canonisation is only the last of several steps in a well-defined process: in order to officially be declared a saint, the candidate must first be a Servant of God, then Venerable, then Blessed.

A servant of God is a faithful Catholic for whom the cause of beatification and canonisation has been initiated. The first phase must therefore be the official opening of the process. The person is defined as a Servant of God and the postulator, specially appointed by the bishop, collects documents and testimonies that can help reconstruct the life and holiness of the subject. The aim is often to verify their heroic practice of the virtues, i.e., their habitual disposition to do good with firmness and continuity, and without hesitation. In other words, it must be demonstrated that the candidate practised them to a very high, extraordinary degree. In other cases, the object of verification concerns the requirements of Christian martyrdom.

This reconstruction is carried out in two ways: by listening to the oral testimonies of people who knew the Servant of God and can accurately recount facts, events, and words; and by collecting documents and writings concerning the Servant of God.

If the preliminary conditions seem to be met, the bishop can introduce the cause for canonisation. Unless there is a special papal dispensation, the beatification process cannot begin until at least five years have passed since the candidate’s death.

The diocesan bishop appoints a tribunal composed of his delegate, a Promoter of Justice (at the Congregation level there will then be a Promoter General of the Faith) and a notary actuary. A special historical commission collects all the documents concerning the Servant of God and his writings. Finally, two theological censors must evaluate the same writings to see if there is anything contrary to faith or morals. All the information is collected and then sealed during a closing session presided over by the bishop.

The Roman phase

Once this work is completed, the diocesan phase of the process is closed and all the material is delivered to Rome to the Congregation for the Causes of Saints, which, through its Rapporteur, will guide the postulator in the preparation of the Positio, i.e., the volume that summarises the evidence gathered in the diocese; thus begins the so-called Roman phase of the process.

The Positio must demonstrate with certainty the life, virtues or martyrdom, and relative fame of the Servant of God. It will be studied by a group of theologians and, in the case of a “historical cause” (one concerning a candidate who lived a long time ago and for whom there are no eyewitnesses), also by a commission of historians.

If these votes are favourable (at least by a qualified majority), the dossier will be submitted for further judgement by the bishops and cardinals of the Dicastery. If their judgement is also favourable, the 杏MAP导航 may authorise the promulgation of the Decree on the heroic virtues or martyrdom of the Servant of God, who thus becomes venerable: that is, he or she is recognised as having lived the three theological virtues (faith, hope and charity) and the four cardinal virtues (prudence, justice, fortitude and temperance) to a “heroic” degree, or as having suffered true martyrdom.

Candidates for sainthood can be: martyrs, those who have accepted death in hatred of the faith in a Christian manner; or so-called “confessors”, i.e., those who have been witnesses to the faith, but without the supreme sacrifice of their lives. Since 2017, it has been possible to attain canonisation through a third way: the offering of one’s life, without being killed out of “hatred of the faith” and without the prolonged exercise of heroic virtues; these are people who have voluntarily and freely offered their lives for others, persevering “until death in this purpose, in a supreme act of charity”.

Beatification

Beatification, as noted above, is the intermediate stage towards canonisation. If the candidate is declared a martyr, they immediately become Blessed; otherwise, a miracle attributed to their intercession must be recognised. This miraculous event is usually a healing that is considered scientifically inexplicable, as judged by a medical commission convened by the Congregation for the Causes of Saints and composed of both believing and non-believing specialists. For the miracle to be recognised, it is important that the healing be complete and lasting, and in many cases also rapid.

After this approval, the bishops and cardinals of the Congregation also pronounce on the miracle, and the 杏MAP导航 authorises the relevant decree. Thus, the Venerable can be beatified. Following this proclamation, the Blessed is entered in the liturgical calendar of his or her diocese or religious family on the anniversary of his death or on a day considered particularly significant.

Canonisation

In order for canonisation to take place, i.e., for the Blessed to be declared a Saint, a second miracle must be attributed to them, which must have occurred after their beatification.

To establish who will be recognised a saint, the Church always uses a canonical assessment: while in the past it was possible to become a saint simply by popular acclamation, since at least the 16th century the Church has begun to adopt specific rules to avoid confusion and abuse. As in all legal trials, there is a kind of prosecution and defence in this case too. The advocate for the defence, if we want to use this term, is the Postulator, who is responsible for proving the candidate’s holiness. The person in charge of scrutinising testimonies and documents is the Promoter of the Faith (sometimes known as the “devil's advocate”). The former is appointed by the person who proposed the cause, while the latter is employed by the Dicastery.

Special cases

The 杏MAP导航 can also make special decisions. 杏MAP导航 Francis did so in the case of John XXIII, who became a saint because of his reputation for holiness, which had spread throughout the world for decades, without a second miracle being recognised.

An extraordinary procedure was also followed by Benedict XVI in the case of John Paul II, whose cause for beatification was opened a few weeks after his death, without waiting for the required five years.

In addition, there are cases that proceed by “equivalence” (equivalent or equipollent canonisation), which can be applied to cases of both beatification and canonisation; this is a procedure used by the Church, whereby the 杏MAP导航, after the necessary investigation, approves a long-standing devotion without waiting for a miracle to occur. It differs from formal beatifications and canonisations, for which the Church requires a regular process and the respective miracle.