Canonization preview

ROMERO CANONIZATION: ROME, OCTOBER 14, 2018 JUBILEE YEAR for the CENTENNIAL of BLESSED ROMERO, 2016 — 2017
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#BlessedRomero #Beatification

In this post, we preview what the canonization ceremony for Archbishop Oscar Romero and six other saints on October 14, 2018 might look like. A canonization is a Mass. True, it is more solemn and grandiose than other Masses, because it includes a sumptuous choir, with the presence of the church’s high brass and thousands of faithful. It will begin at 10:15 in the morning Rome time (2:15 am in El Salvador) and will last approximately two hours. Most of the ceremony will be in Latin, with some segments in Italian (and perhaps Spanish).

The Rite that lets us know that that this is not a regular Mass will begin after the entrance procession and after the “Lord, have mercy.” The choir will intone the Litany of the Saints, invoking the names—in Latin—of the most ancient saints of the Church, followed by the sung responsorial, “Ora pro nobis” (pray for us). Then we turn to the canonization of the new saints. First, the Prefect of the congregation of saints, Cardinal Angelo Becciu, will read profiles of the seven saints in Italian, and formally ask for their canonization.

Then the Pope, wearing his miter and holding his crozier, will intone in Latin the canonization formula through which he will formalize the introduction of the seven names in the book of saints. After the customary applause, the Mass resumes its normal rhythm, with the singing of the “Gloria”.

The biblical readings will be those indicated for the Mass of that day, the 28th Sunday in Ordinary Time: Wisdom 7:7-11, Psalm 90:12-13,14-15, 16-17, Hebrews 4:12-13, and Mark 10:17-30.  (These will be read in various languages.)

In the Gospel, a young man asks Jesus what he must do to enter the Kingdom, apart from obeying the commandments, which he says he has fulfilled. “You are lacking in one thing. Go, sell what you have, and give to the poor and you will have treasure in heaven,” Jesus tells him. The young man is dejected when he hears the advice, because he is rich and owns many possessions. Jesus then turns to his disciples and warns them, “It is easier for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle than for one who is rich to enter the kingdom of God.” (Mark 10:17-30.) In the Alleluia, we hear the proclamation, “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven” (Matthew 5:3).

In his homily, Francis could analogize the young man who asks Jesus how to save his soul with the young people of today, who are the subjects of the synod. And the response that the Church gives them, the vocations that she offers them are reflected in the seven saints that she is presenting to the world. “The propers for the day relate to all those pledged to poverty and service,” says Dr. Duane Arnold, a church historian and consultant to this blog.

The New Saints

• Paul VI (1897-1978)
• Óscar Arnulfo Romero y Galdámez (1917-1980)
• Francesco Spinelli (1853-1913)
• Vincenzo Romano (1751-1831)
• Maria Katharina Kasper (1820-1898)
• Nazaria Ignacia de Santa Teresa de Jesús (1889-1943)
• Nunzio Sulprizio (1817-1836)

One of the new saints committed himself to the Church in such a way that he ascended to the top of the hierarchy as Supreme Pontiff (Paul VI). Another committed himself so completely that he surrendered his life in a bloody way at the altar (Romero). It is also worth mentioning the prayer of Romero the young man as reference for the synod: “You are everything; I am nothing. And yet, your love wants me to be a lot ... With your everything and with my nothing, we will do a lot.”

The coincidence of the synod of youth with the canonization of seven saints presents the possibility of a large turnout at the ceremony. The new saints include two Italians, one German, and one Spaniard, and could attract pilgrims from various points in Italy and Europe who would travel by land to the canonization. The Romero Trust in London has accounted for at least 150 pilgrims arriving from England alone. The Salvadoran Church has registered more than three thousand pilgrims from 31 different countries who will attend the ceremony for Romero.

And so will go the only canonization Mass the Church will celebrate this year, which will produce two new saints who will join the elite group of the most distinguished saints of the Bergoglian pontificate (along with Saint John Paul II, Saint John XXIII and Saint Teresa of Calcutta).

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