Pope Francis canonizes 10 new saints of the Catholic Church

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Pope Francis celebrates mass of canonization for 10 people on May 15, 2022. / Hannah Brockhaus/CNA

Vatican City, May 15, 2022 / 03:00 (CNA).

Pope Francis on Sunday recognized 10 new saints of the Catholic Church during a canonization mass in St. Peter’s Square.

It was the Church‘s first canonization since that of St. John Henry Newman and four others in October 2019.

Religious men and women, priests and a lay person are among the 10 people who are recognized to be in heaven after having lived an exemplary life of holiness on earth.

“Holiness does not consist of a few heroic gestures, but of many small daily acts of love,” Pope Francis said during his homily on May 15, a sunny and warm day in Rome.

The Mass began with the rite of canonization, which included the reading of short biographies of each blessed, read by Cardinal Marcello Semeraro, prefect of the Congregation for the Causes of Saints.

A litany of saints was sung before Pope Francis recited the canonization formula.

He said: “For the honor of the Holy Trinity, the exaltation of the Catholic faith and the growth of Christian life, by the authority of Our Lord Jesus Christ and the holy Apostles Peter and Paul, and ours, after time deliberation and frequent prayer for divine assistance, and after asking the advice of several of our brother bishops, we declare and define blessed Titus Brandsma, Lazare dit Devasahayam, César de Bus, Luigi Maria Palazzolo, Giustino Maria Russolillo, Charles de Foucauld, Marie Rivier, Maria Francesca di Gesu Rubatto, Maria di Gesù Santocanale and Maria Domenica Mantovani as saints and we inscribe them among the saints, decreeing that they must be venerated as such by the whole Church. In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.

“To serve the Gospel and our brothers and sisters, to offer our lives without expecting anything in return, nor any worldly glory: such is our vocation. This is how our canonized fellow travelers today lived out their holiness,” Pope Francis said.

“Enthusiastically embracing their vocation – as a priest, also as a consecrated woman, even as a layperson – they dedicated their lives to the Gospel,” he said. “They discovered an incomparable joy and they became shining reflections of the Lord of history.”

“May we strive to do the same, because each of us is called to holiness, to a form of holiness that is unique to us…”, he added.

The new saints are:

-Charles de Foucauld: A French soldier and explorer who became a Trappist monk and Catholic missionary to the Muslims of Algeria. Known as Brother Charles of Jesus, he was killed in 1916 at the age of 58.

-Titus Brandsma: A Dutch priest, professor and journalist who opposed Nazi propaganda in Catholic newspapers. He was killed by lethal injection at Dachau in 1942.

– Devasahayam Pillai: A layman from India who was tortured and martyred after converting from Hinduism to Catholicism in the 18th century.

-Marie Rivier: The founder of the Congregation of the Sisters of the Presentation. La Française founded the order in 1796, at the age of 28, during the Reign of Terror.

-Maria Francesca of Jesus: A 19th century missionary founder who crossed the Atlantic Ocean by boat seven times to establish an order of Capuchin nuns in Uruguay, Argentina and Brazil.

-Maria Domenica Mantovani: First Superior General of the Institute of the Little Sisters of the Holy Family, which she co-founded to serve the poor, orphans and sick in Italy in 1892.

-Mary of Jesus Santocanale: The foundress of the Capuchin Sisters of Mary Immaculate of Lourdes in Sicily in 1910. She spent most of her free time, day and night, in front of the tabernacle.

-Caesar of Bus: French Catholic priest who founded two religious congregations in the 16th century. He was a zealous preacher and catechist, who did many works of charity.

-Luigi Maria Palazzolo: An Italian priest who is known for founding the Sisters of the Poor, opening an orphanage and working for the poor.

Giustino Maria Russolillo: The founder of the religious congregations of the Vocationist Fathers, the Vocationist Sisters and the Secular Institute of the Apostles of Universal Sanctification in Italy. The priest devotes himself to the education of young people and the cultivation of their vocations.

The canonization mass was attended by around 45,000 people, many of whom came from outside Italy.

Those present in St. Peter’s Square also included Italian President Sergio Mattarella, French Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin, Dutch Foreign Minister Wopke Hoekstra, Indian Minister for Minorities Gingee KS Mathan and Algerian President of the Bouabdellah Ghoulamallah Islamic High Committee.

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