Fr. Jakub Ostrożański RCI
The beatification process of the American prelate, who became famous as the author of dozens of books and host of radio and television programs, has been ongoing since 2002, Vatican News recalls.
Life of the Future Blessed
Fulton John Sheen was born on May 8, 1895, in El Paso, Illinois, United States. Five years later, due to financial reasons, the family moved to the vicinity of Peoria. There, the boy successfully attended primary and secondary school. On September 20, 1919, he was ordained a priest, and in 1924, he defended his doctorate in theology at the Pontifical University of Saint Thomas Aquinas in Rome. On May 28, 1951, he was appointed auxiliary bishop of the Archdiocese of New York. He received episcopal ordination on June 11 in Rome, in the Basilica of Saints John and Paul. In 1966, St. Paul VI appointed him bishop of the Diocese of Rochester; he served in this capacity until 1969. He died with a reputation for holiness on December 9, 1979, in New York.
An Effective Communicator
In 1925, he published the first of dozens of books, and in 1930, he began hosting the radio program “The Catholic Hour.” He quickly gained a large audience and achieved extraordinary success, leading to numerous conversions to the Catholic faith. From 1951, he hosted the television program “Life Is Worth Living.” In 1953 and 1953, he received an Emmy Award for the most popular television personality. From 1950 to 1966, he served as the national director of the Society for the Propagation of the Faith, contributing to the development of the Church’s missionary activities.
Path to Beatification
The beatification process for Archbishop Sheen was officially opened in 2002. In June 2012, Pope Benedict XVI authorized the Congregation for the Causes of Saints to issue a decree on the heroic virtues, granting him the title of Venerable Servant of God. On July 5, 2019, Pope Francis approved a miracle concerning James Fulton Engstrom, born in 2010, who showed no signs of life for the first 61 minutes. After prayers through the intercession of the Servant of God, the child began to breathe, and after several months, he was declared completely healthy.
