Update: On October 13, 2021, Pope Francis authorized the Congregation for the Causes of Saints to promulgate a decree concerning the recognition of a miracle attributed to the intercession of Venerable John Paul I, thus paving the way for his beatification.
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Pope John Paul I, who was Successor of Peter for only 33 days before suffering a fatal heart attack in 1978, will be beatified by next Easter, according to reports.
Il Messaggeroreports that all that remains in the process is the final approval of Pope Francis, and a date can be set.
Interestingly, the miracle that would pave the way for John Paul I’s beatification took place in the home country and diocese of the present Pontiff. A girl was healed in 2011 from encephalopathy in the Diocese of Buenos Aires.
As is always the case in causes of beatification, a thorough investigation was needed to advance John Paul I’s case. Among those who were consulted was Benedict XVI.
Born Albino Luciani on October 17, 1912, he became a priest of the Diocese of Feltre, Italy in 1935. In 1958, he was made a bishop and went on to be named the Patriarch of Venice. He was made a cardinal in 1963, and elected to the See of Peter at the death of Paul VI on August 26, 1978. Though he was only 65 years old, he had a heart attack less than a month later and died on September 28 of that year. Pope John Paul II was elected to succeed him.
