In early 2023, after decades of work, with the sainthood cause of Servant of God Cora Louise Evans off to the Vatican Dicastery for the Causes of Saints, Michael McDevitt could finally take a step back and assess the bigger picture.
There was, McDevitt realized, a role he could play in helping laity in the United States better understand the crucial role they play in advocating for a sainthood cause, as well as helping them navigate what can be a challenging process. In turn, McDevitt said, those efforts could then help advance American sainthood causes.
RELATED: Rhode Island Celebrates Pope’s Advancement of Sainthood Cause for Spanish Priest
Representatives from the Archdiocese of San Francisco and St. Patrick’s Seminary & University in Menlo Park agreed, and in June, the first-of-its-kind in the United States, the Center for Sainthood Studies, was launched.
The center’s aim, as described in a June 4 press release from the seminary, is “providing a roadmap for the challenging journey of advancing candidates for canonization and increasing American odds for such honor.”
The center’s inaugural course — open to clergy, religious, and laity — will be held from Feb. 16 to 21 at the Vallombrosa Retreat Center in Menlo Park. The course, for which participants will earn a certificate of completion, was designed by Dr. Emanuele Spedicato and Dr. Waldery Hilgeman, two postulators and canon law experts from Rome with extensive experience in presenting cases for sainthood.
In addition to the course, the center will house relics and other archival materials, provide resources, and offer networking opportunities, according to the seminary.
“The [sainthood] process seems mysterious. It seems daunting at times,” McDevitt told The Tablet. “And I think it was through our own personal experience of bringing Cora’s cause forward that we learned by doing and felt like this would really be helpful in our country to bring more sainthood causes forward.”
The seminary currently has a designated location to house archives related to Evans’ cause. They’re in the beginning stages of repurposing a building on the campus to become the full-time home of the center, where relics will be displayed, and exhibits for different sainthood causes shown, McDevitt said.
In fact, the final form of the center was actually born out of discussions McDevitt had with the seminary about housing Evans’ archives. Evans (1904-1957) was a Catholic convert and mystic, known for the visions she had of Jesus and the saints, which she promoted as the “Mystical Humanity of Christ.”
McDevitt said that he and several others approached St. Patrick’s Seminary & University with the idea of creating an archive to preserve all of the writings and materials related to Evans. According to McDevitt, they believed it was a valuable initiative. With his passion for the cause and their collective efforts, they aimed to assist others in promoting sainthood causes, which ultimately led to the establishment of the center.
Another supporter of the new center is Archbishop Salvatore Cordileone of San Francisco. Archbishop Cordileone signed off on the center in an April 14 decree, where he described its goal as “fostering a deeper understanding of the process involved in recognizing the holiness of individuals and their potential for sainthood.”
Though he wouldn’t admit who, McDevitt acknowledged that people have already inquired about specific American sainthood causes they think the center can help with.
RELATED: Beatification Cause for Minnesota Benedictine Sister Opens
“We’ve received inquiries,” McDevitt said. “There’s things that are happening out there that people are beginning to think aren’t as daunting, as complicated, and that these people can help move this forward. There are situations like that out there.”