Judge approves transfer of Archbishop Sheen’s remains to Peoria, to revive beatification cause

November 18, 2016

A New York judge has ruled that the remains of Archbishop Fulton Sheen should be transferred from New York to Peoria: a move that could re-start the cause for the American prelate’s beatification.

Judge Arlene Bluth ruled in favor of the late archbishop’s family, which had requested the transfer of his remains. The Archdiocese of New York had opposed the move. In her ruling, the judge ordered the archdiocese to cooperate with the transfer, which could be done immediately.

Archbishop Sheen is bured in the crypt of St. Patrick’s cathedral in New York, and the archdiocese had insisted that this was his wish. His family, however, showed that in his will the archbishop had indicated a desire to be buried in a cemetery in Queens, New York—a wish that the archdiocese had apparently ignored.

The judge said that it was “understandable and important” that the family now wished to have Archbishop Sheen buried in Peoria, since the move would resolve an ecclesiastical conflict that has blocked the cause for the archbishop’s beatification.

The Peoria diocese, where Fulton Sheen was born and ordained to the priesthood, had promoted the cause for his beatification. In April 2014, a Vatican panel approved the authenticity of a miracle attributed to his intercession, fulfilling the requirements for his beatification. However, the process ran into a roadblock when the Peoria diocese asked for the transfer of the archbishop’s body in preparation for the beatification ceremony, and the New York archdiocese refused.

 

---

For all current news, visit our News home page.

---

 
Further information:

• Judge: Archbishop Fulton Sheen's remains can be moved to Peoria (Journal-Star)
• Archbishop Sheen's family seeks to move his remains, re-start beatification process (CWN, 6/15)