Vatican’s briefing on canonisation - postulators talk about the two Popes

April 23, 2014:.Why are Popes John XXIII and John Paul II saints? That was the key question being asked at a briefing in the Vatican’s Press Hall on Tuesday that was attended by the postulators for the two Popes’ sainthood causes. The briefing kicked off a week of events in the Vatican leading up to Sunday’s canonization of Blessed John XXIII and Blessed John Paul II. Father Giovangiuseppe Califano, the postulator for John XXIII, said as a 15 year old seminarian Angelo Roncalli was already making resolutions that were intended to help him become a saint for real. He said Pope John’s sainthood was characterized by a deep humility and he was both a shepherd and a father.
Roncalli, he said opened new horizons to the Church by convening the Second Vatican Council. He was a capable communicator, who by using simple every-day expressions succeeded in entering immediately into the hearts of people. Father Califano went on to explain how the words “obedience and peace” were not just Roncalli’s episcopal motto but were at the root of his sainthood, as they characterized his life at the service of the Church.
The postulator for Pope John Paul II’s cause, Monsignor Slavomir Oder, spoke at the briefing of how the friends of Karol Woytyla at university, described him as a “future saint” because they were so struck by his prayer habits and his reflections on the value of life. He said John Paul’s profound mysticism, encouraged him to personally live out the mystery of God in his own life.
Monsignor Oder said “Man of God,” is the word that truly characterizes a saint and this applies to Woytyla. He was a man who found the source of his life in God . Prayer for Karol Woytyla was his air, his water and his daily bread, he said.