Worldhotel Ripa Roma customers visiting Italy’s capital in late April will have appreciated the unique opportunity to witness the canonization of not one, but two recent Popes.

The long-planned ceremony elevating popes John XXIII and John Paul II to the statute of saints took place on April 27, in Vatican City, in front of an estimated 800.000 devout Catholics and curious bystanders who queued up since before dawn. Another half a million people were reported by Vatican Radio to have witnessed the event from outside the limits of the Vatican, through giant screens set up across Rome.

In what was a defining moment in Church history, the ceremony was also attended by two living popes, with current Pope Francis being joined by Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI, who resigned from the chair last year, citing health reasons. Benedict was enthusiastically received by both the crowd and his successor.

Pope Francis himself gave a homily to the men being canonized, against a background of giant banners depicting each of their faces. Each of the former Popes being paid homage was then symbolised through a relic, formally presented to the crowd in attendance. After the ceremony was concluded, Pope Francis took a tour among the faithful gathered in St Peter’s Square, on board the Popemobile.

This double canonization marked several firsts for the Catholic Church, most notably being the first time two popes have been sanctified at the one time. After this ceremony, John Paul II also becomes the Pope with the most rapid succession to canonization, with the statute being granted to him only nine years after his death. This was made possible by his successor, Benedict, who waived the five-year waiting period for a beatification that was previously in place.

The double canonization is also seen as an attempt by the Vatican to unite the Catholic Church, since it brought together two Popes of very different persuasions — one a reformer and the other a conservative. Both were labelled ‘men of courage’ by Pope Francis, due to their valiant efforts to restructure the Catholic faith.

Many travellers who booked in to city hotels like Worldhotel Ripa Roma may well have been unaware of the auspicious occasion prior to their arrival, however they certainly will not have missed it!

About WorldHotel Ripa Roma::

WorldHotel Ripa Roma is a WorldHotels partner hotel offering 4-star accommodation in the historic Rome district of Trastevere. To find out more about it, visit www.wordlhotelriparoma.com

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