Archbishop Sheen’s beatification to be rescheduled?
August 31, 2023
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CWN Editor's Note: The beatification of Archbishop Fulton Sheen should no longer face roadblocks, reports Msgr. Jason Gray, the executive director of the Archbishop Fulton Sheen Foundation.
The cause for Archbishop Sheen, a renowned evangelist who commanded an enormous American television audience, was delayed by a legal battle between the Archdiocese of New York, where he had been buried, and the Diocese of Peoria, where he was ordained. That dispute was resolved in 2019, when his remains were transferred to Peoria, and his beatification was scheduled for December of that year.
However, as the date approached, the Vatican announced that the beatification ceremony had been postponed, at the request of some American bishops. Although the reason for that request was never announced, the bishops were apparently concerned that new inquiries into the handling of sex-abuse cases might produce negative findings about the deceased prelate, who had served as Bishop of Rochester from 1966 to 1969. Those inquiries have now been completed, with no significant criticism of Bishop Sheen’s conduct or his handling of abuse complaints.
“I think it’s safe to say that I don’t think any cause for beatification has been subjected to more scrutiny than Archbishop Sheen, both ecclesiastically and civilly,” Msgr. Gray told Raymond Arroyo of ETWN.
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