The beatification of a Roman Catholic cardinal looks likely to take place within the next few months, a senior church figure has said. Cardinal John Henry Newman, who died in 1890, could become England's first saint since 1970.
Father Paul Chavasse, Provost of the Birmingham Oratory, spoke as a mosaic of the cardinal was dedicated at Westminster Cathedral.
Claims of two miracles by the cardinal are being investigated by the Vatican.
People in the US have claimed to have been cured after praying to the priest.
Cardinal Newman, who founded the Birmingham Oratory and was known for his work with the poor, converted to Catholicism in 1844.
Fr Chavasse said he was a giant in many ways and a model for the church today.
"Particularly in an age where the faith is so often under attack, belittled or ridiculed or just plain ignored," he said.
Cardinal Newman's remains, which are in a graveyard in Rednal, are to be exhumed privately before being placed in a sarcophagus at the Oratory.
The last time a Briton was canonised was in 1970 when 40 martyrs from England and Wales and from the Reformation were made saints. +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
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(Source: BBC)