Statement Regarding the Beatification of Blessed Fulton J. Sheen

PEORIA, IL – “The Church in the Diocese of Peoria, IL rejoices today in the Beatification of our own Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen, now Blessed Fulton J. Sheen.

We join with the Church throughout the world in celebrating this extraordinary moment and giving thanks for the heroic witness of faith that Blessed Fulton Sheen offered throughout his life. Through his life, he brought the Gospel to millions of people and continually pointed them to Jesus Christ in many varied ways.

As a diocese, we are especially grateful for the gift of Archbishop Sheen, and for the way his life and ministry continue to inspire us. His witness reminds us of our own call to evangelize — to share the Gospel with courage, to invite others into a relationship with Jesus Christ, and to live our faith in a way that draws others toward Him.

We are deeply grateful to the Holy Father, Pope Leo XIV, for approving the Beatification of Fulton Sheen, and to Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle, who represented the Holy Father at this celebration. We are grateful to Archbishop Gabriele Caccia, the Apostolic Nuncio to the United States, and to all the cardinals, bishops, priests, religious, and lay faithful who gathered with us in St. Louis, as well as the thousands around the world who joined us in prayer and celebration.

As we return home, I extend a special invitation to all: come and visit the tomb of Blessed Fulton Sheen at the Cathedral of St. Mary of the Immaculate Conception in Peoria. Come learn more about his life, his ministry, and his deep love for Jesus Christ. May his witness continue to inspire us to become the missionary disciples that Christ calls us to be.

Today we rejoice in the Church's recognition of this great son of Peoria. And we look with hope toward the day when, God willing, Blessed Fulton Sheen will be declared a saint of the universal Church. Blessed Fulton Sheen, pray for us!”

+Bishop Louis Tylka, Diocese of Peoria