Noen husker kanskje at menneskemengden ropte «Santo subito!» under pave Johannes Pauls begravelse for nesten to år siden. Ordene betyr «(Må han bli) helgen straks!», og pave Benedikt var enig med folkemengden, satte til side den fem års venteperioden som man vanligvis har før man begynner på prosessen som kan lede fram til salig- og helligkåring.
Og i dag ble den første (lokale, i bispedømmet) fasen av saligkåringsprosessen avsluttet i en seremoni i Laterankirken, akkurat to år etter pave Johannes Pauls død.
The diocesan phase was closed by Cardinal Camillo Ruini, His Holiness’ vicar general for the diocese of Rome, with an address focusing upon the portrayal of the spiritual qualities of John Paul II. «At the beginning, at the center and at the peak of such a portrait,» said the cardinal, «we cannot but put Karol Wojtyla’s personal relationship with God. A relationship that was already strong, intimate and profound in his boyhood, and that never ceased to develop and grow stronger, producing fruits in all dimensions of his life.
«Here, we are in the presence of the Mystery,» he added. «In the first place the mystery of the preferential love with which God the Father loved this Polish boy, united him to Himself and then maintained this union; not saving him from the trials of life – on the contrary, associating him ever and anew to the cross of His Son – but also giving him the courage to love the cross, and the spiritual intelligence to see, through the cross, the face of the Father. … …
The opening session of the diocesan investigation took place in the same basilica on June 28 2005, less than three months after John Paul II’s death, thanks to the fact that Benedict XVI waived the normal waiting period of five years after the death of a Servant of God.
Når den første undersøkelsen i bispedømmet nå er over, blir materialet overlatt til Vatikanets kongregasjon som har med salig- og helligkåringer å gjøre, og disse vil arbeide videre og evaluere materialet.