April 28, 2014 - With Sunday’s canonization, the feast days of Saints John XXIII
and John Paul II are now officially in the liturgical calendar of the Catholic Church
for universal veneration. When at the canonization Mass Pope Francis pronounced
the words in Latin, "We declare and define Blesseds John XXIII and John Paul II be
saints" and "they are to be venerated as such by the whole Church," their October
feast days automatically could be celebrated at Masses around the world. St. John
XXII’s feast day is Oct. 11, the anniversary of the day that he inaugurated the Second
Vatican Council in 1962. St. John Paul II's feast day is Oct. 22, the anniversary
of the inauguration of his pontificate in 1978. After the beatification of Pope
John XXIII in 2000 and Pope John Paul II in 201, special Vatican permission was required
to publicly celebrate their feast days outside the Diocese of Rome, where they served
as bishop and pope, and their home dioceses. Vatican permission also was required
to name parishes after them, but with their canonization, that is no longer necessary.