Could Saint John of London soon be on the shop shelves with Saint Child of Prague, Saint Teresa of Calcutta, Saint Mary of Lourdes and Saint Pio of Montalcino? Photograph: Marianna Bertagnolli/AP
Is it a little parochial to care which nationality saints are? It may not cut much ice in any kingdom of heaven, but Catholics down in the United Kingdom can cross their fingers for the first new British saint in 40 years.
The claim to sainthood of John Henry Newman, a London-born 19th century cardinal, is currently being examined by a Vatican committee, the Congregation of the Causes of the Saints in Rome.
So how do would-be saints get to be in that number?
First up, you need to be officially venerable. Good works, good life, man of God. (Newman was proclaimed venerable in 1991.)
Crucially, though, you need to work a miracle. Newman's miracle is alleged to have occurred in Massachusetts, curing a 68-year-old deacon of a crippling spinal condition after he prayed to the cardinal in 2001. Supporters reckon he got a
second miracle in too, after the deacon passed on the news of his cure to a car crash victim, who then also prayed to the cardinal.
But why was the deacon praying to Newman in the first place? Because, he said, a TV programme urged him to do so.
Without wanting to blow the chances of our man, you wonder just how many other viewers might have prayed without result - especially given that some Catholics have been calling for "an organized and concerted attempt to secure the necessary miracle" for Newman's canonisation for many years. A bit like monkeys and typewriters?
