New York’s supreme court has ruled that the remains of Archbishop Fulton Sheen should be moved from St Patrick’s Cathedral in New York to the Illinois city of Peoria, settling a two-year dispute.
The court ruled in favour of a request from the Sheen family, who wanted his remains to be moved to Peoria, where he was raised and ordained a priest.
The ruling may lead to the restarting of Sheen’s Cause, which was suspended because of the dispute in 2014.
The court heard arguments in favour of the transfer from lawyers for Archbishop Sheen’s niece, Joan Sheen Cunningham, as well as those from the Archdiocese of New York, which sought to keep the remains of the media pioneer at St Patrick’s Cathedral in New York City, where he was entombed following his death in 1979.
The Diocese of Peoria has been a promoter of Archbishop Sheen’s Cause for more than 14 years. The ruling is seen as a major factor in allowing his Cause to move forward. The New York Archdiocese has decided to appeal the decision.
Among the reasons cited for disinterment is that the move would aid in the canonisation process, that Archbishop Sheen’s parents are buried nearby in Peoria, and that the city’s St Mary’s Cathedral is where Archbishop Sheen was ordained a priest and a place he visited often.
Archbishop Sheen’s heroic virtue and life of sanctity were recognised in 2012 by Benedict XVI, who granted him the title “Venerable”. The Diocese of Peoria has said that, with progress already made in the Cause and pending the approval of Pope Francis, a beatification could be celebrated in the near future after the arrival of the remains at St Mary’s Cathedral, where a crypt is being prepared for his reinterment.
“It is our intention to begin working with the Archdiocese of New York to make this process happen as soon as possible,” a statement from Peoria Diocese said.
Vatican officials are investigating a possible miracle that would pave the way for beatification. In 2011, the diocese submitted the case of a child, born without heartbeat or respiration, who revived after 61 minutes through the intercession of Archbishop Sheen.
The archbishop, who wrote dozens of books, including his autobiography Treasure in Clay, is most famous for his television show Life Is Worth Living. He was an auxiliary bishop of New York Archdiocese from 1951 to 1966, and the Bishop of Rochester, New York, from 1966 to 1969.
LA archbishop to speak up for Latinos in new role
A cardinal and a Mexican-born archbishop were elected as president and vice-president of the US Bishops’ Conference last week.
Cardinal Daniel DiNardo of Galveston-Houston succeeded Archbishop Joseph Kurtz as president, while Archbishop José-Gómez of Los Angeles is his number two.
Archbishop Gómez said his election might have more to do with the “diversity” of his archdiocese than anything else. Seventy per cent of the five million Catholics in the archdiocese are Latino.
“Really, the presence of Catholics from all over the world is there,” he said, adding that the bishops recognised that the archdiocese represents “our Church in the United States becoming more and more diverse”. They are also recognising the “reality of the Latino presence” in the US, particularly in the Church, he said.
The archbishop also said he would continue to speak in defence of migrants. At a special service after the election of Donald Trump as President, he lamented the fear that Trump’s deportation rhetoric had caused in Latino communities. “Men and women are anxious, thinking about where they can hide,” he said.
Faithful to president: step down
At least 10 dioceses in South Korea have called for the country’s president to resign amid an embezzlement scandal.
About 850,000 South Koreans attended a rally demanding the resignation of President Park Geun-hye after it emerged that a close friend had manipulated her so she could gain access to secret papers and embezzle funds from charities.
Bishops have celebrated Masses praying for the recovery of democracy and asking the president to resign.
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