Evening star., 1902-03-22
THEMAKING0F A SAINT
IT Is HD1FF1cu1r, SLOW AND Elk,
PENs1vE PROCEDURE.
Bull of canonization of Jeanne dare
to Be Observation-Disclosures
Made by Vatican Journal.
"a
From the London News.

Joan Of Arc has long been popularity en-
shrined In the hearts of. the French people
as saint, coming second to the official pa
tron saint, Ste. Genevieve, though, as a
matter Of fact, this decided femme incom-
prise has never even reached the first step
of the sanity hierarchy-beati tification.
However. the official journal of the Vatican
announces that the formal bull of canoniza-
tion of Jeanne dare will shortly be promul-
gated. At the present juncture this step
comes. indeed. rather as surprise to
French Catholics, as her popularity has
distinctly declined within the last few
years. The insertion of a new saint in the
calendar (duly followed by>its inclusion in
the indispensable Whitaker'D is certainly
little regarded by the ordinary reader. Even
those who give a second thought to the
question of the origin of these saints have
probably some vague notion that the inclu
sion of the name of a new saint is fortui-
tous and arbitrary, and imagine that the
vacancies in this hagioiogical livre dor are
in the gift of the pope and the sacred col
lege. In short. it is supposed that the
honor of Sanctity is a kind of sa cred ana
logue of the lay orders of knighthoOd The
average layman naturally fails to appre-
ciate the significance of the numerous
stages of the two processes-bea tification
and canoniZatiOn-which have to be passed
through before a candidate for santship
can become duly accredited saint.
The Sanity Hierarchy.
Very few of those who admitted into
the lower grade of the sanity hierarchy
beat1hcatlon-aCtually reach the stage of
canonlZatlon, and on what principle selec-
ton is made from the ranks of the venerat-
ed for full saintshp is known only to the
pope and the sacred college. At all events,
centuries usually elapse before the apo
theoSlS OF Il beatified takes place For in
stance, st. Vincent de Paul one of the most
famous saints in the calendar the founder
of the order of Little Sisters of the Poor"
who was born in 1916, did not attain full
salntsh1p till 11F. Originally martyrdom
was an essential qualifca tion for canoniza-
ton, those whose claims were based chiefly
on miracles seldom rea ching a higher stage
than Qualification. OF these miracles two
We're considered the "irreducible minimum. >
Perhaps the most famous Law saint i'm the
hagiological calendar is Louis TX But
though the claims of the king who built the
Sainte Chapelle and brought the sacred
crown of thorns to France might be sup
posed to be sufficiently strong, yet the bull
OF canoniZatfon was only granted after a
most searching inquiry into the veracity of
the ffty-seven miracles attributed to his
relics.
Trying Saints Claims.
The procedure in the inquiry into a
saints claim to canOnization is curious 1t
is submitted to as searching examination
and scrutiny as are those Of claimant to
lapsed peerage in the English house of
lords. In fact, before the saint can be for
mally inscribed on the canon sanctorum he
must survive the ordeal of tWenty-siX pro-
cesses. including those Tor the preliminary
stage of beatification. In the first instance
commissioners are appointed by the pope
to institute preliminary inquiries Their re-
port is submitted to a special tribunal of
ri rhn d.
worthy of the first degree of hierarchcal
rank. which is called beatification sec
ond tribunal, after a considerable interval
In the case of the latest canoniZed saint
rita de Cascla, over 21o years-then consid-
erS the question of the admitance of the
saint to full canonizatiOn. At this trial the
candidates interests are looked after by an
ofhclal who is styled the del advocatus. who
IS opposed by the promoter fidei, popularity
known as the dia boil advocatus PrOba blv
many persons who use the phrase are una
ware that the familiar expression devils
advocate owes it's origin to a Roman
Catholic ceremony. After the decision
of this tribunal in the candidates favor the
final ratification by the pope is alone re-
CURED tor the admittance of the saint int
the Roman Catholic calendar
Cost of Canonization.
Since the reformation the admittance of
fresh saints into the calendar is compar-
paucity of claimants for canonization is
said to be the enormous cost of the pro-
cedure. A curious example of this IS to
be found in the BOrromeO family of Milan
1t was found that the cost of obtaining tn,
bull of canonZation for the famous 81
Charles Borromeo was great that tn,
family refralned from pressing the claims O.
another sanity parsonage, q cousin of St
Charles on account of the expense. Then
1t must be remembered that In q less cred,-
lous and superstitious age more search
ing examination into the antecedents and
alleged mira cles of saints is now insist ed
upon 1t is also said that the concentrations
which have been granted by the Vatican
have to some extent been Influenced by mo-
tives of public interest and church policy
The canonization of the Jesuit martyrs in
Japan, the victims of the religious persecu-
tiOn early in the seventeenth century, for
instance, was said to he prompted by de-
sire to encourage the zeal of the church at
a time when the temporal power was
threatened.