THE MAIN STAGES OF THE PROCESS FOR CANONIZATION CAUSES

The following are the three stages required to proceed in a canonization cause as outlined in the new Code of Canon Law of 1983 and the subsequent documents of the Holy See as well as the role of the Congregation for the Causes of Saints.

1. a diocesan investigation, with the purpose of collecting all the evidence concerning the life, activity, death, fama sanctitatis (fame of holiness) and the basis for this fame (i.e. heroic virtues) of the candidate for promotion and to collect the proof of eventual miracles;
   
2. a study of the Congregation for the Causes of Saints regarding the collected documentation and the testimonies of the witnesses. This is followed by the preparation of the positio about the life and heroicness of the virtues of the Servant of God; later, there is the preparation of the positio about the miracles under the direction of the relator appointed by the Congregation for the Causes of Saints;
   
3. discussions on the theological sessions, first from the part of the consultors under the chairmanship of the Promotor of the Faith, and then under the chairmanship of the cardinals and bishops – members of the Congregation for the Causes of Saints.

FUNDAMENTAL CONDITIONS FOR OPENING A CAUSE

Collecting the data about the existence of preliminary conditions for the eventual opening of a cause is the fundamental duty of the diocese, the institute for consecrated life or another legal or physical entity in the church, which is the author of the cause. Above all, the persons interested in the opening of a cause should be convinced that the candidate being promoted has a fame of holiness, receives the private cult and God grants different graces through his/her intercession. Moreover it should be determined if the eventual canonization cause will have a pastoral and mission meaning for the church. If this information has a positive result, it is then necessary to collect all data possible about the life and activity of the candidate to the altars and to consider potential obstacles which could make proceeding with the cause impossible. All of these actions should be accomplished before the postulator asks the diocesan bishop to open the canonization cause.

The fame of holiness (fama sanctitatis) is the peoples’ general recognition of the holiness of the life, martyrdom or miracles of the candidate to the altars, which provides a beginning for a private cult and nourishes such a cult. It is important that this recognition of the people refers to a higher degree of the practise of virtue or in martyrdom. The fame of holiness should be characterized by spontaneity, i.e. it is good if it is present already during the life or immediately after the death of the candidate to the altars; moreover, it is important that this fame continues, increases with time and has a relatively wide range.

Actually, for beatification to take place, the approval of one miracle and the approval of the fame of special graces (fama signorum) are necessary. Thus, before the opening of the cause, the author should be convinced not only of the true fame of holiness, but also of the existence of the fame by way of special graces granted through the intercession of the candidate to the altars. In a particular way, the fame of miracles or graces completes the fame of holiness, since it contributes to its growth and diffusion in the church and in society. It is important for the author or the postulator to collect any letters with thanksgiving for graces that have been received and for reports about these graces. If the grace is very special, the people who received it should be asked for a more precise report, because among the special graces there may be some that might be presented later to be investigated as miracles.

The fame of holiness, of miracles and of graces gives birth to a private cult. This should be a natural consequence of the fame of holiness. The author of the cause – being careful that it not appear to be a public cult – should contribute to the diffusion of the private cult of the candidate to the altars, especially through the promotion of his/her person to the widest circle of people.

Another condition necessary for opening a cause is its ecclesiastical value, i.e. the meaning of the eventual saint for the church. The legislation decrees that the postulator present to the bishop reasons that seem to support the opening of the cause. Moreover, a bishop who intends to open a canonization cause should first ask the Conference of Bishops in his country whether it is proper to open such a cause. It could be said that the meaning of the cause for the church is its actuality and its potential to affect the modern person.

THE DIOCESAN INVESTIGATION

1. The request of the postulator to open the cause
   
   The law regulates that one who wishes to open a canonization cause must present to the competent bishop – through the postulator – the proper request (supplex libellus), in which he asks to open and proceed with a cause. The request of the postulator must contain a short profile of the candidate to the altars, the reasons which lead him to open the cause and information about the state of the preparations thus far.
   The following enclosures should be attached to the postulator’s request:
   
• A copy of the postulator’s nomination that has been authenticated by the competent person;
  
• A printed biography that is historically valuable of the candidate to the altars;
  
• All the printed writings of the candidate to the altars, either in the original or an authenticated copy, together with the opinion of a theologian (if such an opinion were made);
  
• A list of witnesses who could testify about the virtues or the martyrdom, and also about the fame of holiness, miracles and graces.
  
• If the cause is presented more than 30 years after the death of the candidate to the altars, the bishop cannot move the cause ahead before he makes a preliminary investigation and reaches the conviction that the delay in the opening of the cause was not the result of any deceit or trickery on the part of the author of the cause. In such a case the bishop should issue a declaration that there was neither negligence nor trickery on the part of the author.
2. The opinion of the Conference of Bishops
   
   The bishop, after having received the request of the postulator, does not begin the cause, but instead asks the Conference of Bishops in the country where the cause is being opened for its opinion about whether it is appropriate to open such a cause. It is obvious that before he makes this step he, or his delegate, must analyze the canonization cause.
   
3. The announcement of the postulator’s request
   
   After receiving the opinion of the Conference of the Bishops, the diocesan bishop announces his intention to open the cause. He can make it via a communication posted in the churches, an announcement published in the official publication of the diocese and in the newspapers present in the diocese and on radio or TV. In this announcement he invites the faithful of his diocese – and if it useful, of other dioceses (with the agreement of their proper ordinaries) to relate to him any information – both positive and negative – which refers to the cause.
   
4. The censure of the candidate’s printed writings
   
   It is the duty of the postulator to collect the printed writings of the candidate to the altars. He then presents them together with the request to open the cause. These writings are submitted for censure regarding the purity of faith and customs.
   
5. The collecting of the not-printed writings and of all documents
   
   If the opinions of the theologians, who made the censure of the printed writings, are positive, the bishop officially entrusts to the experts in history and archival research the task of collecting all the non-published writings of the Servant of God and all those written sources that in any way refer to the cause. These experts then form an Historical Commission, and as the cause proceeds they will testify as ex officio witnesses.
   
   All the documentation collected in these proceedings should be critically developed. If there are already some critical developments that could directly or indirectly help in the knowledge of the life, the environment of the Servant of God and his/her activity, they should be gathered and attached to the documentation of the cause. However, if some problems occur which require further study, this study is necessary before the documentation is presented.
   
   The experts who collected all the documentation should prepare a report about the investigation they made and about the historical value of the collected documents. To that report they should attach their opinions about the personality, especially about the moral conduct, of the candidate to the altars. Moreover, an evaluation of the non-printed writings is also required. This evaluation especially pertains to faith and customs.
   
6. The notification to the Holy See
   
   The bishop is obliged to inform the Holy See about every cause that is opened in his diocese. The purpose of this notification is to see whether there might be any obstacle from the part of the Holy See.
   
7. The introduction of the cause
   
   If the bishop decides to open the canonization cause, he either issues a special decree or he immediately establishes a tribunal. The effects of this act of the bishop are: 1) that further actions leading to the canonization have legal value; 2) the title “Servant of God” may then be used in reference to the candidate to the altars, although it does not imply that he/she can be worshipped publicly.
   
   In the decree, which establishes the tribunal, the bishop nominates his delegate, a promotor of justice and a notary. In the same decree the bishop also sets a place and a date for the introductory public session, which is dedicated to the acceptance of offices and the taking of oaths.
   
8. The preparation of questions for the witnesses
   
   While waiting for the response of the Holy See, the questions for the witnesses can be prepared. These questions should be prepared on the basis of actually collected documentation. The bishop entrusts the elaboration of these questions to the person who will act as the promotor of justice or to other experts.
   
9. The questioning of witnesses in the diocese
   
   The questioning in the causes called “ancient” (to which belongs the cause of our Founder) refers to the actual fame of holiness or the actual cult of these Servants of God. Normally there is a list of witnesses prepared by the postulator. In the case of the investigation of the heroic virtues, the fame of holiness and the fame of miracles or graces of a Servant of God who belonged to an institute of consecrated life, a significant number of witnesses (2/3) should come from outside of this institute.
   
   Besides the list prepared by the postulator, the bishop or his delegate can call ex officio witnesses. These are eventually called to complete the investigation, especially if they were to testify against the holiness of the Servant of God. Also, all of the experts in the case are called to testify ex officio.
   
10. The rogatorial processes
    
    A rogatorial process happens when the tribunal, which conducts the cause, asks for help from another tribunal in whose territory there is part of the proof concerning the Servant of God. The institution of a rogatorial tribunal is designed for the convenience of the witnesses, who then do not have to travel long distances, and it is a result of the territorial authority of the tribunals.
    
11. The inclusion of the writings and documents to the acts of the cause
    
    After questioning the last witness, the postulator and the Historical Commission should present to the tribunal:
    
    1. all the writings of the Servant of God (scripta Servi Dei);
    
    
    2. all the personal documents of the Servant of God (documenta Servi Dei);
    3. all the documents about the Servant of God (documenta de Servo Dei).
    
    The inclusion of the documentation and the writings of the Servant of God takes place during a special session of the canonization tribunal.
    
12. The assertion of the lack of a public cult
    
    At the session, in which the documents and the writings of the Servant of God are submitted or at a separate session, the postulator asks the delegate of the bishop to organize a visit to the tomb of the Servant of God and to other places where he/she used to stay. The bishop or his delegate, together with the promotor of justice and the notary, go to the tomb and the mentioned places to monitor whether there is any testimony about a public ecclesiastical cult towards the Servant of God. After accomplishing this, the bishop or his delegate issues a proper declaration.
    
    If the tomb of the Servant of God is situated outside of the diocese where the cause is proceeding, the bishop can ask the ordinary of such a diocese to have a delegate act on his behalf. Also, the tribunal can go to the tomb and make appropriate conclusions concerning the lack of a public cult, but only with the approval of the local ordinary.
    
13. Publication of the acts of the process
    
    The prescriptions of the Code of Canon Law demand the publication of the acts in all the canonical processes, under the sanction of invalidity (can.1598, #1). For this purpose the bishop issues an adequate decree of the publication of the acts.
    
14. Recognition and transfer of the corpse
    
    It is not allowed to transfer the corpse of the candidate to the altars without the permission of the Congregation for the Causes of Saints. To receive such permission the postulator should make a proper request to the Congregation. It, giving the permission, also sends special instructions for recognition and transfer of the corpse of the Servant of God. The prescriptions of civil law concerning the exhumation should be observed as well.
    
15. Final investigations
    
    Almost always the diocesan investigation requires that some final investigations be made. The Norms of the Congregation for the Causes of Saints recommend that before the closing of the diocesan investigation all the documentation should be inspected by the promotor of justice for the purpose of eventually completing the research. Also, the postulator of the cause should examine the acts in order to learn what the difficulties are and what is lacking, so that he/she may be able to present new witnesses or provide new documentation to correct the problems.
    
16. The closing of the diocesan investigation
    
    After accomplishing everything necessary for collecting the proof, the closing of the diocesan investigation takes place. This happens when all sides declare that they do not have anything else to be presented or when the allotted time, established by the judge for the presentation of the proof, ends. If the judge states that the cause is sufficiently explained, he will issue a special decree.
    
    The diocesan proceedings in the cause end with two acts:
    
    1. The preparation of the transumptus (the authenticated copy of all the acts of the diocesan investigation), its comparison with the original acts and its translation into a language accepted by the Congregation for the Causes of Saints;
       
    2. The closing session of the diocesan investigation.
       According to law, the tribunal sends two copies of the transumptus to the Congregation for the Causes of Saints and attaches two copies of its translation into the language accepted by the Congregation.
       

    THE PROCEEDINGS IN THE CONGREGATION FOR THE CAUSES OF SAINTS
    
    The procedure in the Congregation follows three stages that are proper to the phases through which every canonization cause goes:

    1. Help for the diocesan bishop in collecting proof regarding the virtues or the martyrdom and the miracles as well;
       
    2. a study of the collected documentation and the preparation of the positio about the heroicness of the virtues or about the martyrdom and also about the miracles, under the control and direction of the Congregation;
       
    3. a content-related discussion of the cause.

1. The preliminary actions after the conclusion of the diocesan investigation
   
   After receiving the acts of the diocesan investigation, the secretary’s office of the Congregation gives them a protocol number and confirms it with a special letter to the bishop who had sent the materials.
   
   At the same time, the Congregation accepts the postulator proposed by the author of the cause, who becomes the person to whom all questions concerning the cause should be directed. The postulator is the person from whom one may seek information. Thus the Congregation would contact the author of the cause through the postulator, who lives in Rome.
   
   The regulations of the Congregation also establish an order for the examination of the causes. Generally, the causes are examined according to their arrival at the Congregation. However, if there is a proved miracle, made through the intercession of the Servant of God, his/her cause accelerates and moves ahead.
   
   Before the Congregation will begin to study a cause, its undersecretary must verify the observance of the formal prescriptions of the diocesan investigation, i.e. the formal-legal validity of this investigation. The undersecretary informs the Ordinary Congress of the Congregation about the results of his research and, if his conclusions are positive, the Congregation issues the appropriate decree concerning the validity of the diocesan process and proceeds to the appointment of the relator of the cause.
   
2. The study of the proof and the preparation of the positio
   
   The Ordinary Congress of the Congregation entrusts the cause to a relator. First, the general relator proposes the name of the relator who is most suited to work on this cause. The factors that affect the decision about the relator are: knowledge of the language and cultural environment of the cause and the number and the state of the causes that have been already entrusted to the relator. The relator does not have to develop the positio by himself, but he controls the work of the external collaborator. The relator is, however, responsible for the content of the positio and reports on it at the meetings of the consultors. He is the person responsible ex officio for the preparation of the positio.
   
   A decision concerning the printing of the whole positio depends on the relator of the cause, who should not approve its publication until all the problems of the cause have been completely examined.
   
3. The discussion of the historical consultors
   
   The positio of an ancient cause, before it can move to the content-related assessment of the theologians (heroicness of the virtues or cult), first has to pass through an assessment by the historical consultors. The regulations require an assessment of at least five historians who are chosen by the secretary of the Congregation for this particular cause.
   
   The opinions of the historical consultors concern only the positio, i.e. its historical (scientific) value and its sufficiency with reference to the intended effects. If the positio receives a majority (2/3) of positive votes from the historical consultors, it is handed on to the theological consultors for their assessment.
   
4. The content-related discussions of the theologians
   
   The positio with the attached report of the discussion of the historical consultors is passed on for study to the promotor of the faith and eight theological consultors, who together form a “Particular Congress”. Their task is the consideration of the content-related assessment of the materials presented in the positio.
   
   The theological consultors, after an examination of the positio in its theological aspects (and not historical), send their opinions to the promotor of faith in written form. This will in turn be discussed at the theologians’ congress. The subject of this discussion is: the problem of proving of the fame of holiness and whether this fame has its basis in the heroicness of the virtues. The consultors attach specific justifications, i.e. the motivation of their standpoint to their conclusions.
   
   If 2/3 of the theologians who vote during the “Particular Congress” vote positively about the heroicness of the virtues of the Servant of God, then the cause passes on for an assessment by the congress of cardinals and bishops who are members of the Congregation for the Causes of Saints.
   
5. The discussion of the cardinals and bishops
   
   The cardinals and bishops, in their Ordinary Congress, listen to the report of the appointed “ponens” of the cause and express their content-related opinions. After the cardinals and bishops vote, the secretary of the Congregation prepares a written report for the Pope. The Supreme Pontiff has the exclusive right of approving the heroicness of the virtues of the Servant of God. When there is a positive opinion from His Holiness, a proper decree about the heroicness of the virtues is prepared. Its preparation is the responsibility of the Secretary of the Congregation for the Causes of Saints. A decree is then promulgated in the presence of the Pope. Now the candidate to the altars can be called “Venerable Servant of God”.
   
   What yet remains for beatification is the whole process of proving the miracle, made through the intercession of the Servant of God, beginning with the diocese where the eventually accepted miracle occurred and following almost the same procedure that is described above.