Pope Announces India’s First Woman Saint
India’s Christians have something to celebrate today: At St. Peter’s Square Pope Benedict XVI declared four new saints to the Roman Catholic church including an Indian woman. Her canonization is a morale boost to Christians in India. Catholics are a tiny minority in India and they often suffer violence at the hands of the Hindu peoples.
The Vatican announced that the honor was given to Sister Alphonsa of the Immaculate Conception. She is the first Indian woman to become a saint. Alphonsa was beatified by Pope John Paul II when he made a pilgrimage to India in 1986. Beatification is the last formal step before sainthood. Sainthood is the Church’s highest honor. Alphonsa was a nun from southern India. She died at age 35, in 1946.
Source: CNN


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