‘America’s Bishop’ Was Beatified. 50,000 Catholics Showed Up.
The New York Times • • general
Key Points:
- Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen, a prominent 20th-century American Catholic clergyman known for his widespread television audience and credited with 42,000 conversions, was beatified in a ceremony in St. Louis.
- The beatification ceremony, attended by around 50,000 Catholics, included a Mass presided over by Cardinal Luis Tagle and a procession of approximately 1,000 priests and 90 bishops.
- Pope Leo XIV formally declared Archbishop Sheen "blessed," making him the first American-born bishop to receive this honor, which is a key step toward sainthood.
- The beatification followed recognition of a miracle attributed to Archbishop Sheen's intercession, involving the 2010 healing of a stillborn boy in the Peoria, Illinois diocese after prayers to Sheen.
