St. Peter's Square in the Vatican on Sunday, Oct. 19, 2025 Foto: Massimo Percossi/EFE.
On Sunday, Pope Leo XIV canonized seven new saints of the Catholic Church, including the first two Venezuelan saints: Dr. José Gregorio Hernández and Mother Carmen Rendiles. The canonization mass celebrated in St. Peter’s Square, the Vatican, was attended by over 55,000 people. There, the Pope said that “material, cultural, scientific, and artistic goods” lose meaning if there is no faith, and highlighted the testimony of the new saints, who have been able to “keep the lamp of faith burning.”
He also recalled the importance of prayer, comparing it to the breath that sustains the body’s life, and warned against temptations that test faith.
Faith
“Today, before us are seven witnesses, the new saints, men and women, who, with the grace of God, have kept the lamp of faith burning. Indeed, they have themselves been lamps capable of spreading the light of Christ,” the Pope added. He emphasized that the newly proclaimed saints are not “heroes” or “champions of any ideal,” but rather “authentic men and women.”
Referring specifically to the new saints, Leo XIV called José Gregorio Hernández a “benefactor of humanity with a heart ablaze with devotion” and Carmen Rendiles a “charismatic founder” who dedicated her life to education and service to others.
Among the attendees, the large number of Venezuelans stood out, holding national flags and wearing t-shirts with images of the new saints, EFE reported.
Along with Venezuelans José Gregorio Hernández (1864-1919) and Carmen Rendiles (1903-1977), the Pope also canonized the Armenian Catholic Archbishop of Mardin, Turkey, Ignatius Choukrallah Maloyan; the layman from Papua New Guinea, Peter To Rot; the Italian nuns Vincenza Maria Poloni, founder of the Institute of the Sisters of Mercy of Verona, and Maria Troncatti of the Congregation of the Daughters of Mary Help of Christians; and the Italian layman Bartolo Longo.
As is traditional during the ceremony, the prefect of the Dicastery for the Causes of All Saints read the biographies of the blesseds and requested that their names be inscribed in the Book of Saints. Afterwards, the Latin formula of canonization was read by the Pope.
Baltazar Porras and far-right Venezuelans
On Monday, President Nicolás Maduro mentioned Monsignor Baltazar Porras and his brotherhood for conspiring against the canonization of José Gregorio Hernández. He said this during a public event on communes, as reported by Ultimas Noticias.
“Monsignor Porras dedicated his entire life to preventing the sanctification of the saint of the poor, but he was defeated by God, despite your followers and your brotherhood,” the president said about the Venezuelan cardinal.
President Maduro stated he “knows much more about the case.” He asserts that the canonization process for the saint of the poor was sabotaged for many years by these elitist religious groups.
He recalled that the canonization process for José Gregorio Hernández began between 1949 and 1957, “but the curia conspired to stop it. Baltazar Porras dedicated his life to stopping it.”
The canonization of the Doctor of the Poor was achieved despite internal opposition, and the people need to know that. “Now, we have Saint José Gregorio Hernández, much to the chagrin of Baltazar Porras and his brotherhood,” President Maduro said. “Today, Venezuela is happy because we now have our two saints, José Gregorio Hernández and Mother Carmen Rendiles.”
During the canonization ceremony and activities in Rome, far-right Venezuelan groups attempted to sabotage religious and cultural activities, with most of them demanding a US invasion against their own country.
(Alba Ciudad) with Orinoco Tribune content
Translation: Orinoco Tribune
OT/JRE/SF
