ROME (CNS): Italian Capuchin priests have submitted documents to the Vatican detailing the healing of an eight year-old boy which they hope will be the miracle accepted for the canonisation of Blessed Padre Pio.
A spokesman for the Capuchins in Foggia, the province to which Padre Pio belonged, said the documentation was delivered to the Congregation for Sainthood Causes in late October.
In conjunction with a television mini-series on the life of Padre Pio broadcast on November 12-13 by RAI, the Italian state television network, it and several Italian newspapers reported the priest could be canonised as early as 2001.
However, the Capuchin spokesman said there was no way to know how long the Vatican investigation would take.
If the congregation’s panel of physicians finds there is no natural explanation for the healing of the boy who had acute meningitis, the documentation will be turned over to a panel of theologians.
