Denver, Colo., Jan 14, 2011 / 18:02 pm
Polish Catholic leaders reacted to the announcement of John Paul II’s beatification with enthusiasm and gratitude, praising the late Pope’s example to Poland and to the Church. The Archbishop of New York also reacted with “great joy” as he recalled memories of the Pope’s visits.
In a Jan. 14 audience Pope Benedict XVI approved the decree for the beatification of his predecessor. Doctors studied the miraculous healing of Sr. Marie Simon Pierre Normand and ruled it was “scientifically unexplainable.” Following approval from theologians and church officials, Pope Benedict promulgated the decree.
Cardinal Stanislaw Dziwisz, John Paul II’s longtime personal secretary, expressed the “great pleasure” of the entire Archdiocese of Krakow and of the entire Polish people. He expressed “a huge thank you” to Pope Benedict XVI for the decree confirming the miracle.
He invoked the Italian phrase “santo subito,” which roughly means “saint now.” It was a phrase on the lips of many of John Paul II’s mourners who wanted him declared a saint immediately after his death. This phrase has been “fulfilled,” the cardinal said in a statement from the archdiocese.