More Young and Lay Faithful Rise Toward the Altars
Dicastery undersecretary Fr. Bogusław Turek links the phenomenon to the universal call to holiness, citing Acutis, the Ulmas, and Poland’s many causes.
On November 1, 2026, Fr. Bogusław Turek, undersecretary of the Dicastery for the Causes of Saints, said lay people, young people, and married couples are increasingly among candidates proposed for the altars. He described the shift as a sign of deeper awareness of the universal vocation to holiness.
Requests to open causes for young people are growing, he said. “It is no longer a question of isolated cases. Certainly, one cannot say they are very numerous, but they are definitely more numerous than a few years ago.” He cautioned that a premature death, especially from illness, can move people deeply but cannot, by itself, serve as a serious evaluation of a candidate’s life and virtues. He pointed to Carlo Acutis as a significant contemporary example and added that “the best catechesis is to show the figures of the saints.”
Lay Witnesses and Professional Holiness
Among lay candidates he named Robert Schuman, Alcide De Gasperi, Jérôme Lejeune, and Antoni Gaudí. Groups of professionals, he noted, are discovering that holiness is possible in their work—being “the best among the best” in their profession—though “adherence to the Gospel sometimes requires refusing to compromise.”
On families he cited the Ulma family in Poland and Louis and Zélie Martin, the parents of St. Thérèse of Lisieux. “Where today’s world faces particular trials, God’s Providence leaves a concrete indication,” he said.
Martyrdom, New Frontiers, and the Call of Vatican II
On martyrdom, Fr. Turek said its essence remains unchanged even as persecution takes new forms. He cited Blessed Rosario Livatino, the Italian judge killed by the mafia, whose words “A Christian must be just” reflected his conscience. Persecutors, he observed, often present martyrs as political opponents rather than witnesses of Christ.
The Dicastery also sees growing interest from African Churches and from Brazil and Argentina in Latin America. Poland has more than one hundred causes under way—what Fr. Turek called “one of the leading countries” alongside Spain and Italy. He recalled Blessed Hanna Chrzanowska, Stanisława Leszczyńska, and Dr. Wanda Błeńska, who cared for the sick.
Asked whether too many people are being raised to the altars, he replied that the growing number is not “excessive” but reflects the call to holiness recalled by the Second Vatican Council. “Each of us is called to take part in the holiness of the Church through the holiness of our own life.”