Fulton Sheen to be Beatified in St. Louis, a Step Away from Sainthood
Tens of thousands of Catholic devotees are converging on St. Louis for the formal ceremony honoring the famed radio and television priest.
Archbishop Fulton Sheen, once a prominent figure on American television, is set to be beatified in St. Louis, a religious designation that brings him one step closer to sainthood. The ceremony, taking place at the Dome at America's Center, is expected to draw tens of thousands of Catholic devotees.
The venue was chosen due to its capacity, as the Diocese of Peoria, Illinois, where Sheen was based, lacks a facility large enough to accommodate the anticipated attendees. Approximately 48,000 tickets have been distributed, according to organizers from the diocese and the Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen Foundation.
Sheen, born in 1895 in El Paso, Illinois, was a pioneering radio priest who embraced television in the 1950s. His program, "Life is Worth Living," featured him delivering moral and religious lessons without a narrow Catholic focus. Dressed in his characteristic attire, he engaged audiences, with his show often competing against popular entertainers of the era.
Pope Francis, who as a youth watched Sheen's broadcasts growing up in Chicago, approved Sheen's beatification. The Vatican attributed the resuscitation of an infant born in 2010 without a pulse to Sheen's intercession. The child, James Fulton Engstrom, is expected to present relics of Sheen at the ceremony with his family.
Sheen's journey to beatification faced delays, including a postponement in 2019 by the Vatican pending investigations into clergy abuse oversight in New York. However, church officials later determined that Sheen's record did not warrant further delay, and the beatification process resumed. Pope Francis approved the ceremony earlier this year.
After his death at 84, Sheen was buried at St. Patrick's Cathedral in New York. In 2019, his body was moved to the Cathedral of St. Mary of the Immaculate Conception in Peoria, where pilgrims now visit his tomb. He served as a bishop in New York state and retired as an archbishop, having also headed The Pontifical Mission Societies in the U.S. for 16 years. Sheen was known for his evangelizing work through media and his plainspoken addresses, often signing off with "God love you."