POPE Benedict XVI is poised to move his predecessor John Paul II a step closer to sainthood in the coming days by declaring the late pontiff "venerable".The decision would pave the way for the late pope to be beatified at a ceremony planned for next year in Rome, Italian magazine Panorama magazine said today.
Beatification would leave the late pontiff just one step from canonisation and full sainthood.
A beatification ceremony in the capital, which could attract crowds of up to one million people, is being planned for October 16, the magazine said.
The date has been chosen to mark the anniversary of John Paul's election to the papacy on October 16, 1978.
The path to sainthood usually takes decades if not centuries but Benedict launched the beatification process for John Paul just two months after his death in April, 2005.
Two stages must still be completed for John Paul to be beatified. First, his "heroic virtues" must be recognised, which the Vatican's Congregation for the Causes of Saints last month agreed to approve.
Benedict must now agree with this and then John Paul will be proclaimed "venerable."
The final stage for beatification is providing evidence of a miracle, usually a medical cure with no scientific explanation which is reviewed by several commissions.
In John Paul's case, the miracle is said to have taken place when a French nun was cured of Parkinson's disease in 2005.
Benedict will once again have to give the final approval on the miracle. +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
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