30 May 2020

Word of the Day: Congregation for the Causes of Saints

CONGREGATION FOR THE CAUSES OF SAINTS. Created by Pope Paul VI in 1969, as one of two derivatives (along with the Congregation for Divine Worship) of the Congregation of Rites. Its function is to supervise the canonical process for persons whose cause for beatification and canonization has been introduced to the Holy See. It became an independent congregation in 1975.

The predecessor of the congregation was the Sacred Congregation for Rites, founded by Pope Sixtus V on 22 January 1588 in the bull Immensa Aeterni Dei. The congregation dealt both with regulating divine worship and the causes of saints.

On 8 May 1969, Pope Paul VI issued the Apostolic Constitution Sacra Rituum Congregatio, dividing it into two congregations, the Congregation for the Divine Worship and one for the causes of saints. The latter was given three offices, those of the judiciary, the Promoter General of the Faith, and the historical-juridical.

With the changes in the canonization process introduced by Pope John Paul II in 1983, a College of Relators was added to prepare the cases of those declared as Servants of God. In January 2014, the Prefect of the Congregation announced that at the direction of Pope Francis those working on canonizations must adhere to financial guidelines to eliminate unfairness in the treatment of cases based on the financial resources provided. According to L'Osservatore Romano, Pope Francis hoped to promote the causes of those less well-known, those from poorer regions, and those who were victims of 20th-century totalitarian persecutions.

The current Prefect (appointed 31 August 2018) is Cardinal Giovanni Angelo Becciu, while the current Secretary (appointed 29 December 2010) is Archbishop Marcello Bartolucci. The current Under-Secretary is Fr. Bogusław Turek. The current Promoter of the Faith (Prelate Theologian) is Monsignor Carmelo Pellegrino, formerly a Relator in the Congregation.

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