Pope Leone XIV presided over a significant canonization ceremony at St. Peter's Square on Sunday, elevating seven individuals to sainthood including Venezuela's first two saints. The ceremony, marked by the ringing of bells and attended by approximately 55,000 people, saw the canonization of Venezuelan physician José Gregorio Hernández and nun Carmen Rendiles, making them the first saints from the Caribbean nation.
The Vatican ceremony featured elaborate displays honoring the new saints, with enormous portraits of all seven individuals unveiled as the American-Peruvian pope emerged from the basilica wearing ceremonial white vestments. Cardinal Marcello Semeraro, prefect of the Dicastery for the Causes of Saints, read aloud the profiles of each new saint to applause from the gathered crowd before Pope Leone XIV formally declared them saints through the canonization decree.
In Venezuela, the historic moment was met with widespread celebration as thousands of people stayed awake through the night in Caracas to witness the event. The celebrations included cheers, tears, laughter, and fireworks, with many Venezuelans describing the dual canonization as particularly meaningful for a country that has experienced difficult circumstances in recent years.
The canonization group also included an Italian former "satanic priest," the first saint from Papua New Guinea, an Armenian bishop, and two Italian nuns. Pope Leone XIV described the seven new saints as "witnesses who, with God's grace, have kept the lamp of faith burning." The event marks a significant milestone for Venezuela's Catholic community, which has long venerated José Gregorio Hernández, with his relics housed at the Church of Our Lady of La Candelaria in Caracas.
The Spanish National Markets and Competition Commission (CNMC) has approved Neinor Homes' public takeover offer for Aedas Homes, clearing a key regulatory hurdle for the €1.07 billion transaction. The regulator authorized the deal "in first phase and without commitments" on September 25,...
A Madrid court has initiated an investigation into former PSOE organizational secretary Santos Cerdán for alleged false testimony during a Senate hearing about the 'Koldo case.' The Investigating Court Number 24 of Madrid admitted a complaint filed by the organization Hazte Oír, finding...
The highly anticipated ticket sales for Spanish band La Oreja de Van Gogh's upcoming tour were unexpectedly postponed on Monday due to a widespread technical failure affecting Amazon Web Services. The band had scheduled ticket sales for 12:00 hours on October 20th for concerts marking the...
Pope León XIV presided over the canonization of seven new saints during a ceremony in St. Peter's Square on World Mission Sunday. The newly recognized saints include Ignacio Maloyan, an Armenian Catholic archbishop and martyr; Peter To Rot, the first saint from Papua New Guinea; Vincenza...
FC Barcelona has released its latest financial results, revealing a complex picture of record-breaking commercial performance coupled with significant asset devaluations. The Catalan club reported extraordinary sponsorship and commercial revenue of €429 million for the previous fiscal year,...
