The upcoming beatification of Archbishop Fulton Sheen has taken the world by storm.
This is not a surprise, since Bishop Sheen drew an audience of 30 million persons when his famous show, “Life is Worth Living,” was broadcast weekly in the 1950s. Even today, Sheen continues to inspire both Catholics and non-Catholics alike who have discovered wisdom and insight in his books and video or audio recordings.
Many people ask: What is beatification and canonization? How can it be explained? Those who are beatified are called a Blessed which is the step before canonization when a person is called a Saint.
Put simply, Blesseds and Saints make up the Hall of Fame for Catholics.
People admire athletes with outstanding ability and are inspired by them to practice and play their sport with greater skill. Likewise, the Blesseds and Saints are heroes in the faith. They are known for their virtues that go above and beyond the ordinary. These holy men and women inspire us to be better people, to live holier lives, and to follow Jesus Christ more intensely.
Sheen will be beatified because he was a man of virtue who inspires us to believe more deeply in God. When his television shows were on the air, Sheen was in the same time slot as Milton Berle who was known as “Mr. Television.”
As Sheen grew in popularity, his audience became the larger of the two. Remarkably, Sheen did this with a simple set of bookshelves, a crucifix, a statue of Mary, and an ordinary chalkboard. His set was ordinary, but his message was extraordinary. People could watch Milton Berle and be entertained. People watched Sheen because they were inspired to change their lives.
I was not surprised when I received the news about Sheen’s upcoming beatification on Sept. 24, 2026, in St. Louis. I’ve been with the Sheen Cause from the beginning when it was opened in 2002. The first oaths were taken by the first officials responsible for investigating Sheen’s life and virtues. Everything Sheen wrote had to be gathered and examined. Every eyewitness with knowledge of Sheen’s life had to be asked a lengthy series of questions to learn about his qualities, whether good or bad. It was a titanic amount of work and took six years to complete.
Later, I was privileged to be appointed in 2011 to carry out the investigation into the miracle attributed to Sheen’s intercession. I gathered the medical evidence and witness testimony about a newborn child who showed no signs of life after he was delivered at home. Born without heartbeat or respiration, the family called an ambulance to come to their distant home in the country. A total of 61 minutes passed between the time he was delivered and the time in the ER where his heart started beating again.
I heard the testimony of family members who prayed to Sheen, and the doctors and nurses who cared for the child. My job was to gather evidence to show that the alleged miracle was not just improbable; it must be beyond natural explanation. No one could survive without oxygen for 61 minutes without brain damage and organ failure. In this case, the child developed normally and had no deficits. Science cannot explain how this occurred, and this was the miracle recognized by Pope Francis.
After doing this investigation, I was invited to work in the Dicastery for Saints in Rome, which I did from 2012 to 2015. I think people would be surprised to learn that this office in the Roman Curia only has about 35 full-time employees to manage the cases. They are assisted by outside experts in theology, history, or medicine. I read through about 150 cases during my time of service. It was meticulous work. I examined cases to be sure the canonical procedures were followed. I reviewed the evidence to make sure the investigation was thorough. Others prepared the comprehensive reports that were submitted to the experts, the other bishops and cardinals, and finally to the Pope.
It’s been my privilege to have worked on the Cause for Fulton Sheen and to have served in Rome studying saints. I am happy that the man I’ve come to deeply admire, Archbishop Sheen, will now be shared with the world.
Monsignor Jason Gray is the executive director of the Fulton Sheen Foundation and is helping to plan the beatification on Sept. 24, 2026.
This article originally appeared on Journal Star: What is beatification? An explanation and history lesson on Fulton Sheen
Reporting by Monsignor Jason Gray, Catholic Diocese of Peoria / Journal Star
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
