WATERBURY, Conn. – More than 1,000 people gathered in the rain on top of Holy Land USA as Archbishop Leonard P. Blair of Hartford celebrated Mass to honour Waterbury native Father Michael McGivney, a candidate for sainthood, founder of the Knights of Columbus, and two-time seminarian in Quebec. 

VATICAN – Pope Francis added an Italian teenager to the list of people he will formally recognize as saints Oct. 14 during the monthlong meeting of the world Synod of Bishops on young people.

MASKWACIS, Alberta – Young. Indigenous. Committed to the Catholic faith.

VATICAN – The general postulator of the Society of Jesus said he has begun compiling all of the writings of Jesuit Father Pedro Arrupe and seeking eyewitnesses who can attest to the holiness of order's late superior general.

VATICAN – The worst enemies in a young person's life aren't the problems they may face, Pope Francis said.

NEW YORK – The Superior Court of New York ruled Friday in favor of Joan Sheen Cunningham, who had petitioned to move the body of her uncle, Venerable Fulton Sheen, to the Cathedral of St. Mary in Peoria. The body of the late archbishop is currently in St. Patrick’s Cathedral in New York City.

NORTHAMPTON, England – As an investigation into the life of Catholic apologist G.K. Chesterton nears a close, admirers of the English writer voiced hope that his sainthood cause could soon be opened.

VATICAN – Cardinal-designate Giovanni Angelo Becciu is one of the very few new cardinals not completely surprised in late May when Pope Francis announced the names of the 14 churchmen he intended to induct into the College of Cardinals.

VATICAN – A life of holiness isn't defined by having visions or performing extraordinary feats of devotion, but by living with the hope of salvation promised by Christ, Pope Francis said.

London Ontario’s only candidate for sainthood, Henry Edward Dormer (1844-66) was a 21-year-old British Army ensign who only lived in London for a grand total of 220 days — the last seven months of his life — but left an indelible impression that still inspires his adopted townspeople a century and a half later. 

Pope Francis has long held in esteem the late Cardinal Francois-Xavier Nguyen van Thuan, the archbishop of Saigon who spent 13 years in a communist prison camp, including nine years in solitary confinement.

OTTAWA – The founder of the Sisters of Charity of Ottawa, who opened the first hospital and bilingual school in 19th-century Bytown, has been placed on the road to sainthood by Pope Francis.

As I approach the end of my time in university, I have been doing a lot of thinking about those who have played an important role in my life through these years. Among those who have supported, inspired and encouraged me, one who stands out is Bl. Pier Giorgio Frassati. 

VATICAN – Pope Francis will preside over a consistory to approve several canonizations, the Vatican announced.

VATICAN – God calls all Christians to be saints – not plastic statues of saints, but real people who make time for prayer and who show loving care for others in the simplest gestures, Pope Francis said in his new document on holiness.