Pope Francis canonized several saints to the Catholic Church on Sunday, Oct. 14, 2018.
Here’s some information about these amazing witnesses of holiness, and some of the miracles attributed to their intercession:
Blessed Pope Paul VI
Born Giovanni Battista Montini in Italy in 1897, Pope Paul VI was pope from 1963-1978.
Closing the Second Vatican Council was his primary task in 1965. He also wrote the famous encyclical, Humanae Vitae, or, Of Human Life, in July 1968.
Two miracles are attributed to Pope VI’s beatification and canonization.
Since this year is the 50th anniversary of Humanae Vitae, it is fitting that both miracles involve unborn children.
Upon visiting Paul VI’s birthplace in Brescia, Italy, a pregnant woman prayed for her ill child’s recovery. This baby was completely healed in her mother’s womb, despite negative medical predictions.
Another miracle also involved an unborn baby’s healing.
Blessed Oscar Romero
Born in El Salvador in 1917, Oscar Romero was the Archbishop of San Salvador.
He is known for his speeches against all war, guerrilla and oppression against the people of God. He condemned all violence resulting from politics.
Archbishop Romero was killed in 1980 by a sniper while celebrating Mass in the Chapel of the Divine Providence Hospital, just moments before the consecration.
One incredible miracle attributed to Romero’s intercession is this woman’s recovery from a life-threatening condition.
Cecilia Flores suffered from internal hemorrhages and kidney failure resulting from an infection after having her third baby via Caesarean section. She was dying.
After her husband asked for Romero’s intercession, Cecilia miraculously healed.
At the Divine Providence Hospital, Cecilia said, “We know that Romero is a saint, a man of God, who as a pastor defended his flock, defended the poor, the most needy, the victims.”
Blessed Vincent Romano
Vincent Romano, born in 1751, was an Italian diocesan priest and pastor in Naples Italy.
The ministry of the word and the gospel of charity were the pillars of his Christian activity.
He worked tirelessly to help the poor and the sick.
He is also well-known for rebuilding his church in Naples after the eruption of the Mt. Vesuvius in 1794.
Miracles through Blessed Vincent Romano’s intercession
The first miracle occurred in 1890 when Maria Carmela Restucci recovered from a tumor in her breast, which later turned into ulcers and lesions.
She invoked Romano’s intercession, and she was healed. Her doctor said this was an unexplainable phenomenon.
Another miracle occurred in 1940. Sr. Maria Carmela Cozzolino was diagnosed with throat cancer.
After praying a novena to Romano, she was healed. Her doctor also said there was no medical explanation for this healing.
Blessed Francesco Spinelli
Blessed Francesco Spinelli was born in Milan, Italy in 1853. He dedicated his life in service to the poor, was a spiritual director, and a seminary professor.
He co-founded the Sisters Adorers of the Blessed Sacrament, in which this congregation of sisters dedicated their lives to Eucharistic Adoration.
Blessed Francesco Spinelli’s Canonization Miracle
Catholic News Agency reported that his canonization comes as a result of a newborn’s complete healing after suffering a severe hemorrhage.
After trying to save the baby, the doctors decided that there was nothing they could do. They expected the baby to die.
Sister Antonietta Musoni, the superior of the Adoration sisters, entrusted the child to Blessed Francesco Spinelli’s intercession.
Doctors then successfully completed a blood transfusion and the baby survived. This child is now healthy and complication-free!
Blessed Nunzio Sulprizio
Nunzio Sulprizio was born in Naples, Italy in 1817 and was only a teenager when he died.
This future saint suffered immensely throughout his life.
He was orphaned at age 6. His uncle abused him as a child, beating, starving, and sending him on dangerous assignments.
His leg was also infected by decay and his body had constant fatigue. Eventually, he lost his leg through bone cancer.
Even so, he never complained and offered his pain and loneliness to the Lord. He always spoke about him and about his compassion. He died in 1836, at 19 years old.
Blessed Nunzio Sulprizio’s Canonization Miracle
The canonization comes as a result of the healing of a boy in a coma, and who eventually went into a vegetative state after a bicycle accident.
After his parents Nunzio’s relic from the Church of San Domenico Soriano in Naples, they put the relic in his intensive care unit.
The boy’s father also wet the boy’s head with the water of Blessed Nunzio.
After praying for his intercession, the boy came out of the vegetative state within four months, “with a rapid and stable recovery of the neurological and mental functions, without reporting invalidating results.”
Blessed Nazaria Ignacia March Mesa
Beatified by St. Pope John Paul II in 1992, this soon-to-be saint is also known as Nazaria Ignacia of Saint Teresa of Jesus.
She was born in Madrid in 1889.
Her family later moved moved to Mexico for economic reasons where she entered Congregation of the Little Sisters of the Abandoned Elderly at age 19.
Ignacia later left this congregation and founded the Missionaries of the Crusade in 1926. She died in 1943 in Argentina as a result of hemoptysis.
St. Pope John Paul II also confirmed her heroic virtue. Her remains lay in Oruro, Bolivia.
Miracle Attributed to Blessed Nazaria Ignacia’s Intercession
According to this article, an 82-year-old religious sister suffered a stroke, losing her ability to speak, amongst other complications.
The Cross Missionaries Sisters of the Church united in prayer for 12 days to Blessed Nazaria, asking that their dear sister be healed of her infirmities.
At the end of the 12 days, the sister “began to speak, walk and regained consciousness, returning to herself and without denoting any sequelae of the stroke.”
Blessed María Catalina Kasper
María Catalina Kasper was born in Germany in 1820 and was daughter of humble peasants. She founded The Poor Handmaids of Jesus Christ, which is a religious congregation dedicated to serving the poor.
Maria died of a heart attack in 1898.
Miracle attributed Maria Catalina Kasper’s Intercession
Sr. Maria Herluka, a member of the Poor Handmaids of Jesus Christ, was instantly healed in 1945 of tuberculosis through María Catalina Kasper’s intercession. This miracle allowed her beatification in 1978.
[See also: 6 Incredible Saints Whose Bodies Are Incorrupt & Where You Can Find Them]
[See also: The Powerful Weapon These 12 Saints Used to Conquer Satan]