Death and Canonization
1975-2002On June 26, 1975, St. Josemaria gave up his soul to God after suddenly collapsing on entering the room where he worked. He passed away with the same simplicity that had characterized his life. The fame of the heroic virtues of St. Josemaria soon extended around the world, and countless people turned to his intercession, asking for both material and spiritual favors.
On February 19, 1981, the Congregation for the Causes of Saints opened St. Josemaria’s Cause of Beatification and Canonization in Rome. After a rigorous study of his life and his writings, and with the proof of a miraculous cure of Sister Concepción Boullón Rubio, a Carmelite nun, brought about through his intercession, Pope St. John Paul II beatified him on May 17, 1992 in Rome. [Read the Process of Canonization for Josemaria Escriva]
After the approval of a new miracle, the miraculous cure of an orthopedic surgeon, Dr. Manuel Nevado Rey, St. Josemaria was solemnly canonized by Pope St. John Paul II on October 6, 2002 before an immense crowd of nearly half a million people. [Read the Homily of John Paul II at the Canonization] This figure bears witness to the widespread devotion to St Josemaria Escriva, a man who proclaimed that every person has the ability and responsibility to seek God in their ordinary work and lives. [Read the Decree of Canonization of St. Josemaria Escriva]