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SPECIAL EDITION • October 2026

EDICIÓN ESPECIAL • Octubre de 2026

Blessed Fulton J. Sheen Beato Fulton J. Sheen

Photo: OSV News

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The Sheen Center’s Executive Director Talks About ‘A Man for All Media,’ The Center’s Exhibition on Fulton Sheen’s Ministry By: Patrick Grady

aryLou Pagano spoke with The Good Newsroom to share her excitement for Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen’s upcoming beatification, and what the Sheen Center for Thought and Culture will be doing for this historic time.

It’s our job to evangelize the way he did. He used media in such a beautiful way, and we are thrilled to be continuing that legacy. – MaryLou Pagano

Executive Director, Sheen Center for Thought and Culture

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Katie Prejean McGrady on Archbishop Sheen: ‘This Catholic Guy in the Cape Gets It’ The Catholic Channel and Celebrate Sheen pre-Beatification Mass show host talks with The Good Newsroom about Fulton Sheen’s legacy, his influence on Catholic broadcasting, and the moment during the St. Louis event when she expects to cry By: Steven Schwankert

head of the beatification of Archbishop Sheen in St. Louis next week, The Good Newsroom’s Senior Editor Steven Schwankert spoke with The Catholic Channel and the Celebrate Sheen pre-Beatification Mass show host Katie McGrady via Zoom about Sheen’s legacy, his influence on Catholic broadcasting, and the moment during the St. Louis event when she expects to cry. The Good Newsroom (TGN): When you first became interested in broadcasting, did you have an awareness of Archbishop Sheen? What did you know about him? Had you heard any of his programming? Katie Prejean McGrady (KPM): When I was in fourth grade, my grandmother became Catholic. I’d spend a few weeks every year with my grandparents in Pineville, La., and we went to the Rapides Parish Library, where she walked up to the front desk and asked, “Do you have anything Catholic?” This is the Bible Belt of Louisiana, so they had about two things, and one of them was a collection of VHS tapes of Fulton Sheen. He became the soundtrack to my summer. I’d come in and out of the living room, and she’d just have these tapes playing. That was my first exposure as a nine- or 10-year-old kid. Then in college, I had a spiritual director who pointed me to what’s become my favorite Fulton Sheen book, “The Divine Romance.” I was studying theology, and you get very in the weeds. He told me Sheen wrote it when he was a professor of theology at Catholic University of America, about God’s love, which of course became the central theme of everything Sheen said. That’s how he ended every broadcast: “God love you.” That book changed my life. I don’t say that lightly. There’s a small stack of books I keep to give away: “Theology for Beginners” by Frank Sheed and “The Divine Romance” by Fulton Sheen. That was my standard graduation gift when I taught high school, and for my youth group kids. So, I always knew he existed.

Emcee Katie Prejean McGrady speaks during a July 19, 2024, impact session at Lucas Oil Stadium during the National Eucharistic Congress in Indianapolis. (OSV News photo/Bob Roller)

When I entered Catholic media and broadcasting, he became what we’d call a “saintly friend.” TGN: How do you see the Catholic broadcasting landscape now, and how did Fulton Sheen help shape it? If he were alive today, where would he fit into it? KPM: He was up against Milton Berle. They had the same time slot: Uncle Miltie and, as people liked to say, “Uncle Fultie.” The fact that his show was more popular, that he won the Emmy over Lucille Ball at the height of “I Love Lucy,” an archbishop in a cape with piercing eyes and an Irish lilt beating that, says everything about what people were hungry for. Building up to the beatification, I’ve heard a lot of “we could never do that today.” I actually think you could do more of it today. You could put a bishop on primetime TV and

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people would watch. He’d probably get debated more than Sheen ever was, and questioned more. I think of Bishop Barron’s “Catholicism” series on PBS, with hugely successful ratings, because there was a hunger. I think of my own show, and all the great shows, on the Catholic Channel on SiriusXM, which has so much content available, and yet the channel has stuck around for 20 years because people want not just comfort but companionship on this journey of faith. Sheen set all of us up for that by being excellent, diligent, and warm. There are so many stories of him walking into the studio knowing people’s names, knowing about their kids, checking in on how things were going. Many people on his crew converted because they thought, “This Catholic guy in the cape gets it, and gets me.” TGN: If Fulton Sheen were alive today, where would he fit in Catholic media today? KPM: I think he’d be everywhere. He’d be on YouTube, which shows my age, that I say “the YouTube.” He’d have the SiriusXM show, he’d be a cable news commentator, and he’d have movies in theaters the way Bishop Barron has done with some of his film projects. He’d be a dynamo on social media, going viral, the way Cardinal [Timothy] Dolan and other bishops post things that are relevant to the moment. He’d travel and speak at every conference, even ones some people turn their nose up at, and he’d probably still do the parish mission at St. Agnes and the Seven Last Words at St. Patrick’s on Good Friday. He’d be everywhere, the way he was then. TGN: The Good Newsroom will be in St. Louis covering the beatification Mass. What can we expect from the pre-Mass show, which you are hosting? KPM: We could just open the doors at noon and tell everyone to find a seat, but we have to take a football stadium and transform it into a place of worship and prayer. What better way than to celebrate the life of Fulton Sheen, who can speak for himself? The doors open at 8 a.m., and people can start coming into the dome around 8:30 to 9 a.m. We’ll have a concert kickoff around 9:30 to 9:40 with music to welcome everyone, not laser lights and a smoke show, just Catholic music. We’ll pray the World Mission Rosary. From there, we’ve got a series of talks: Sister Josephine Garrett speaking on prayer, Cardinal Dolan on Mary and the Eucharist, and others reflecting on Sheen and the media, drawing on their own experience in Catholic and secular media and Hollywood. We’ll have a fireside chat with Bishop of Peoria Lou Tylka and Msgr. Jason Gray, sharing about the Peoria roots of Fulton Sheen, as well as a video of Bishop Jenky reflecting on the cause. We’ve got a ton of Fulton

Sheen clips, major credit to Sister Jude Andrew of the Sisters of Mary, Mother of the Eucharist, who’s been our program director. Since we have thousands of hours of Sheen’s video and audio, she’s spent weeks combing through it for the best gems, which will act as our transitions and movement through the morning.

The fact that ... he won the Emmy over Lucille Ball at the height of ‘I Love Lucy,’ an archbishop in a cape with piercing eyes and an Irish lilt beating that, says everything about what people were hungry for.

The hope is that by the time Mass begins at 2 p.m., essentially a papal liturgy without the pope, since this is a Vatican event, with a beatification rite, a reading of the biography, and a procession of the relic, people will have had their hearts prepared. TGN: Is there a particular moment of the beatification to which you’re looking forward? KPM: The relic will be carried by the boy who received the miracle attributed to Sheen’s intercession, James Fulton Engstrom, who was born with no heartbeat and no signs of life and came back at the 61st minute, which is notable because Fulton Sheen loved making a 60-minute holy hour. I’ll be in the SiriusXM booth calling the Mass as we air it, having been on stage all morning, and I’ll get a view of James Fulton walking in with the relic. That’s the moment I think I’ll finally cry. This interview has been edited for length and clarity. Listen to The Katie McGrady Show on SiriusXM’s The Catholic Channel, Ch. 129.

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What Fulton Sheen’s Media Evangelization Can Teach the Church Today By: Fernanda Pierorazio

rchbishop Fulton J. Sheen reached millions through radio and television, using the dominant media of his era to bring the Catholic faith to a broad American audience. In this interview, Bishop Joseph A. Espaillat discusses Sheen’s approach to evangelization and what it might teach the Church as it navigates today’s rapidly changing media landscape.

It is very important for us to be able to reach the young people where they are, particularly through podcasts and social media. – Bishop Joseph A. Espaillat

Auxiliary Bishop of the Archdiocese of New York

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Paley Center for Media’s Senior Curator Revisits Fulton Sheen’s Broadcast Career Ahead of Beatification By: Patrick Grady

ith Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen about to be beatified, The Good Newsroom asked Ron Simon, senior curator of The Paley Center for Media in Manhattan, to set the scene regarding the archbishop’s renowned broadcasting career.

[Sheen] was speaking from the heart, directly to the viewer. – Ron Simon

Senior Curator, Paley Center for Media

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Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen Beatification: By The Numbers As Sheen nears beatification, a look at the numbers behind his life, ministry, and legacy By: The Good Newsroom

enerable Fulton J. Sheen, remembered as one of the most influential and innovative evangelists in American history, will be beatified on Thursday, Sept. 24. As pilgrims make their way to St. Louis, where the beatification Mass will be celebrated, The Good Newsroom looks at the statistics and figures that will bring Archbishop Sheen’s work, and this week’s event, to life.

8,500:

Letters received per week from viewers at the height of “Life Is Worth Living,” Sheen’s prime-time television program.

6,000:

Letters received per week from listeners of “The Catholic Hour,” his earlier NBC radio program.

30 million:

Estimated weekly viewers of “Life Is Worth Living” at its peak, roughly one in five Americans at the time.

169:

Television stations that carried “Life Is Worth Living,” reportedly more than any other regularly scheduled DuMont Network program.

3 to 15:

The jump in stations airing the show within its first two months on air, after a feature in Life and Time magazines.

22:

Years Sheen hosted “The Catholic Hour” on radio, from 1930 to 1952.

1953:

Year Sheen won an Emmy Award for most outstanding television personality, beating out Lucille Ball and journalist Edward R. Murrow.

Venerable Fulton J. Sheen, pictured in an undated photo, is remembered as one of the most influential and innovative evangelists in American history. (OSV News photo/Sheen Foundation)

73:

Books written by Sheen over his lifetime, by some counts; the Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen Foundation cites more than 50 published works.

1919:

Year Sheen was ordained a priest for the Diocese of Peoria.

1951:

Year Sheen was consecrated a bishop and named auxiliary bishop of the Archdiocese of New York.

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15:

Years Sheen served as auxiliary bishop of New York, from 1951 to 1966.

Years Sheen served as bishop of Rochester, from 1966 to 1969.

84:

2012:

Year Pope Benedict XVI declared Sheen venerable.

24:

Years between the opening of Sheen’s cause in 2002 and his beatification in 2026.

12,000:

Sheen’s age at death; he was born May 8, 1895, and died Dec. 9, 1979.

Seating capacity of the largest available venue in Peoria, Illinois, too small for the crowd that organizers expect.

2002:

67,000:

Year the Diocese of Peoria formally opened Sheen’s cause for canonization.

22:

Volumes of testimony and evidence sent to the Vatican in 2008, closing the cause’s diocesan phase.

Reported capacity of the Dome at America’s Center in St. Louis, the venue that will host the beatification Mass.

112,000:

Approximate population of the city of Peoria.

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Monseñor Espaillat recuerda la vida y el legado de Fulton J. Sheen Por: Fernanda Pierorazio

onseñor Joseph A. Espaillat, obispo auxiliar de la Arquidiócesis de Nueva York, nos invita a recorrer la vida y el legado del arzobispo Fulton J. Sheen, reconocido por su extraordinaria capacidad para comunicar la fe. En este recorrido, monseñor Espaillat destaca la figura de un gran comunicador cuya voz sigue inspirando a la Iglesia y a todos los que comparten su fe en el mundo actual.

Él [arzobispo Sheen] evangelizaba como nuestro Señor Jesucristo ... utilizaba historias de su tiempo. – Monseñor Joseph A. Espaillat

Obispo auxiliar de la Arquidiócesis de Nueva York

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Cardinal Timothy Dolan Shares Archbishop Fulton Sheen’s Beliefs on Preaching Through ‘Soul, Heart, Mind, Lips’ By: Patrick Grady

rchbishop Emeritus of New York, Cardinal Timothy Dolan, spoke with The Good Newsroom about the upcoming beatification of Venerable Fulton J. Sheen.

I keep reading his books. His best book is ‘The Life of Christ.’ – Cardinal Timothy Dolan

Archbishop Emeritus of New York

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Before ‘Seinfeld,’ There Was Bishop Sheen Decades before shows like “Seinfeld” and “Friends” topped the ratings, a Catholic bishop was pulling in 30 million viewers per week and trading jokes with the biggest names in television What’s My Line?

(Airdate: Oct. 21, 1956) Bishop Sheen appeared as the mystery guest on “What’s My Line?,” one of the most popular early game and interview shows, where a celebrity panel attempted to tease out the guest’s identity through a series of questions. Sheen gives most of his responses in French because his voice was simply too recognizable at the time.

Life Is Worth Living Fulton J. Sheen, pictured in an undated photo, is remembered as one of the most influential and innovative evangelists in American history. (OSV News file photo)

By: Steven Schwankert

ho was Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen? To many, he was a successful broadcasting personality who competed against and was admired by television legends including Milton Berle and Lucille Ball. At his peak, 30 million Americans tuned in to watch his show, audience numbers that “Seinfeld” and “Friends” drew at their own height, numbers that only some NFL broadcasts can now boast. Throughout his television career, then-Bishop Sheen appeared on some of the best-known shows of their time, in addition to his own award-winning programs. Below is a sample of some of his most famous appearances. Click the title of each clip to view the segment.

The Friars Club Roast of Milton Berle

(Airdate: Oct. 1, 1969) On Oct. 1, 1969, Bishop Sheen was one of the first guests to take a few good-natured jabs at “Uncle Milty,” against whom the bishop had won his time slot when both were among the best-known early television stars. This clip includes Sheen’s famous quote about having better writers than Berle: “Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John.” Bishop Sheen is introduced at about the 01:50 mark in this video.

(Airdate: 1952) In the final episode of his first television series’ first season, we see Bishop Sheen wearing his full episcopal vestments, writing on a chalkboard, and presenting material extemporaneously in a dramatic, theatrical style, all of which became hallmarks of this and his future shows. He rails against communism, which the bishop saw as an affront to God and a threat to the Church and the world.

The Fulton Sheen Program

(Airdate: 1961-1968) Like television in general, Bishop Sheen made the transition to color. Although the background has changed somewhat from the earlier iterations of his program, he continues to present in front of a live studio audience with no notes. “The Fulton Sheen Program” was a nationally syndicated show.

Firing Line With William F. Buckley

(Recorded Jan. 6, 1970) “[Bishop Sheen] is, in my opinion, the greatest preacher in English,” said conservative commentator, lifelong Catholic, and New York native William F. Buckley, introducing Bishop Sheen on his show, recorded in January 1970. In addition to his own show, Bishop Sheen appeared regularly on public affairs programs to discuss matters of faith and policy, in this case joining the host of one of the longest-running interview shows in television history.

All videos are the sole property of their copyright holders.

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Archbishop Ronald Hicks Looks Ahead to the Beatification of Venerable Fulton Sheen By: Patrick Grady

he Archbishop of New York spoke of his first reaction to Archbishop Sheen’s work and the need for more American-born and more contemporary saints.

I’ve been to a few beatification ceremonies in my life and what I’ve seen is they are beautiful opportunities for the people of God and for the Church to come together as a community ... – Most Reverend Ronald A. Hicks Archbishop of New York

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Prelates process out at the conclusion of the vespers for Venerable Fulton J. Sheen Sept. 23, 2026, at the Cathedral Basilica of St. Louis, the eve of his beatification. Archbishop Sheen is remembered as one of the most influential and innovative evangelists in American history. (OSV News photo/Bob Roller)

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St. Louis Vespers Sets Tone for Sheen Beatification Archbishop Rozanski presides as Bishop Barron preaches on Sheen’s holiness and mission By: Steven Schwankert

rchbishop Fulton J. Sheen would have been pleased. The Evening Prayer, or Vespers, held on Wednesday, Sept. 23, was long on superlatives. A mix of superior beauty, maximum reverence, and profound spirituality, about 1,500 cardinals, archbishops, bishops, and other clergy gathered with seminarians, religious brothers and sisters, and lay faithful to prepare for Archbishop Sheen’s beatification on Thursday. The ticketed event was held at the Cathedral Basilica of St. Louis, a breathtaking setting that made its only appearance during the Celebrate Sheen festivities. Archbishop Mitchell T. Rozanski of St. Louis presided. Bishop Robert E. Barron of Winona-Rochester, Minn., said in his almost 19-minute reflection, “I consider it one of the single privileges of my life to be able to preach this homily on the vigil of Fulton Sheen’s beatification.” In a thorough but concise review and assessment of Archbishop Sheen’s career, Bishop Barron, who has followed the archbishop’s lead, said, “From the very beginning of my own work in evangelization, Sheen has been my model and inspiration. I do indeed consider him one of the pivotal players in the modern history of the Catholic Church, for he opened the door to evangelizing the world through electronic media.” “Since he always wanted his teaching to have an outward-looking mission orientation, he enthusiastically responded to the invitation to be a principal speaker during the Catholic Hour radio broadcast. Why? He knew this would expand the walls of his classroom exponentially,” Bishop Barron said, noting Archbishop Sheen’s leadership, from 1950 to 1966, of the Society for the Propagation of the Faith, part of what is now the Pontifical Mission Societies USA. “What we do tomorrow does nothing to increase Fulton’s sanctity. It doesn’t make his place in heaven any higher. Rather, what we do tomorrow affects the Church, for it brings this holy man in a powerful way before the attention of the world,” Bishop Barron said, calling Archbishop Sheen “the saint of the new evangelization.” Also reminiscent of Archbishop Sheen, the event was relatively quick and to the point, concluding after

55 minutes, including procession in and out of the celebrants, and Bishop Barron’s reflection. The Cathedral Basilica of St. Louis began construction in 1907, to replace what is now called The Old Cathedral near St. Louis’ Gateway Arch and the west bank of the Mississippi River. That church remains active and was the site of a young people’s holy hour attended in the evening by some of the Sisters of Life, Franciscan Friars, and lay people. The new cathedral hosted its first Mass in 1914, and was completed in 1926. Work on the mosaics that adorn its ceiling and walls continued until 1986. On Thursday, Celebrate Sheen moves to the Dome at America’s Center in central St. Louis, an allpurpose venue that will host the beatification Mass, the beatification pre-show, and the Celebrate Sheen expo.

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Las vísperas de San Luis marcan el tono de la beatificación de Sheen El arzobispo Rozanski presidió la Misa, mientras que el obispo Barron predicó sobre la santidad y la misión de Sheen Por: Buenas Noticias

l arzobispo Fulton J. Sheen le habría encantado. La oración vespertina, o vísperas, celebrada el miércoles 23 de septiembre, estuvo llena de superlativos. En un acto de belleza excepcional, máxima reverencia y profunda espiritualidad, alrededor de 1.500 cardenales, arzobispos, obispos y otros miembros del clero se reunieron con seminaristas, religiosos y religiosas, y fieles laicos para prepararse para la beatificación del arzobispo Sheen el jueves. El acto, para el que era necesaria una entrada, se celebró en la Catedral Basílica de San Luis, un escenario impresionante que se presentó por única vez durante las festividades de “Celebra a Sheen”. El arzobispo Mitchell T. Rozanski, de San Luis, fue el encargado de presidir el acto. El obispo Robert E. Barron, de Winona-Rochester, Minnesota, afirmó en su reflexión de casi 19 minutos: “Considero que es uno de los mayores privilegios de mi vida poder predicar esta homilía en la vigilia de la beatificación de Fulton Sheen”. En un análisis y una valoración exhaustivos, aunque concisos, de la trayectoria del arzobispo Sheen, el obispo Barron —que ha seguido sus pasos— afirmó: “Desde el principio mismo de mi labor de evangelización, Sheen ha sido mi modelo e inspiración. De hecho, lo considero una de las figuras clave de la historia moderna de la Iglesia católica, ya que abrió la puerta a la evangelización del mundo a través de los medios electrónicos”. “Dado que siempre quiso que su labor docente tuviera una orientación misionera abierta al exterior, aceptó con entusiasmo la invitación para ser el ponente principal en el programa de radio “Catholic Hour”. ¿Por qué? Sabía que esto ampliaría exponencialmente los límites de su aula”, afirmó el obispo Barron, destacando el liderazgo del arzobispo Sheen al frente de la Sociedad para la Propagación de la Fe entre 1950 y 1966, que forma parte de lo que hoy son las Obras Misionales Pontificias de EE. UU. “Lo que hagamos mañana no contribuye en nada a aumentar la santidad de Fulton. No eleva en absoluto

Los prelados salen en procesión al término de las vísperas en honor del venerable Fulton J. Sheen, el 23 de septiembre de 2026, en la Catedral Basílica de San Luis, en la víspera de su beatificación. El arzobispo Sheen es recordado como uno de los evangelizadores más influyentes e innovadores de la historia de Estados Unidos. (Foto de OSV News/Bob Roller)

su lugar en el cielo. Más bien, lo que hagamos mañana afecta a la Iglesia, pues pone a este hombre santo de manera impactante ante la atención del mundo”, afirmó el obispo Barron, al tiempo que se refería al arzobispo Sheen como “el santo de la nueva evangelización”. El acto, que también rendía homenaje al arzobispo Sheen, fue relativamente breve y conciso, y concluyó tras 55 minutos, incluyendo la procesión de entrada y salida de los celebrantes y la reflexión del obispo Barron. La Catedral Basílica de San Luis comenzó a construirse en 1907 para sustituir a la que hoy se conoce como la Antigua Catedral, situada cerca del Gateway Arch de San Luis y de la orilla oeste del río Misisipi. Esa iglesia sigue en activo y fue el escenario de una hora santa para jóvenes, en la que participaron por la tarde algunas Hermanas de la Vida, frailes franciscanos y laicos. La nueva catedral acogió su primera Misa en 1914 y su construcción finalizó en 1926. Los trabajos de los mosaicos que adornan su techo y sus paredes continuaron hasta 1986.

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New York Church Leaders Join Historic Beatification of Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen By: Fernanda Pierorazio

he former auxiliary bishop of New York and Bishop of Rochester moved one step closer to sainthood, a milestone that invites the faithful to rediscover the legacy of an evangelist who spent his life proclaiming the Gospel from the pulpit and on radio and television.

... we were called to bring the gospel alive to the ends of the earth and today was a great sign that that continues along with the renewal that we are seeing in the Church right now. – Bishop Edmund Whalen

Vicar General, Archdiocese of New York

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Live the Gospel as Blessed Fulton Sheen Did, Archbishop Ronald Hicks Tells Peoria Pilgrims At a Mass of Thanksgiving close to Blessed Sheen’s tomb, the archbishop pointed to the newly beatified as a model of evangelization

Archbishop Ronald Hicks prays at the tomb of Blessed Fulton Sheen at the Cathedral of St. Mary of the Immaculate Conception in Peoria, Ill., Sept. 25, 2026. Photo by Steven Schwankert/The Good Newsroom.

By: Steven Schwankert

rchbishop Ronald Hicks exhorted pilgrims in Peoria, Ill., to embrace Blessed Fulton Sheen’s commitment to evangelization and living the gospel during a Mass of Thanksgiving for the newly beatified on Friday morning.

“My friends, one of the many reasons that Fulton Sheen is now Blessed is because he lived this Gospel. He understood this Gospel, and he took it to heart. When Jesus says, ‘Go out and preach the Gospel to the entire world,’ he did it,” the Archbishop of New York said. Following Thursday’s beatification Mass in St. Louis, the site of the Celebrate Sheen festivities shifted to

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My friends, one of the many reasons that Fulton Sheen is now Blessed is because he lived this Gospel.

the Diocese of Peoria, where Sheen was ordained and incardinated for more than 30 years, and where he is now entombed. Archbishop Hicks celebrated the Mass and gave his homily just feet from Blessed Sheen’s tomb, which resides in the Cathedral of St. Mary of the Immaculate Conception, the diocesan seat of Peoria. A steady stream of faithful visited the tomb throughout the Mass.

A missionary church, not a club

“Fulton Sheen is a son of the world, which reflects today’s Gospel. Jesus invites his disciples, and he invites us, to go out to the world and preach the Gospel, living out the mission of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. When he’s preaching like this, to go out to the world, what he’s sharing with us is that he does not want our Church to be a club, a club that only cares for its members,” Archbishop Hicks said, returning to one of his regular themes. “He wants us to be a missionary Church, a Church on mission, a Church that loves its faith, loves Jesus, loves the Church, loves the salvation that comes through the life, suffering, and death of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, and then goes out there, shares that faith with the world, and puts that faith into action for the mission of the Church.” “Today, and for the days to come, let us continue following the example of holiness and evangelization, and living the mission of our Church, according to Blessed Fulton Sheen. And just as he taught us, let us do everything in the name of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ,” Archbishop Hicks concluded.

At the beginning of Mass, Bishop Louis Tylka of Peoria, who celebrated the first of four Masses of Thanksgiving at the Peoria cathedral earlier in the morning, welcomed Archbishop Hicks, along with his concelebrants, including Archbishop Mitchell T. Rozanski of St. Louis, Archbishop of St. Paul and Minneapolis Bernard A. Hebda, and Bishop John J. Gomez of Laredo, Tex. Two more Masses of thanksgiving were scheduled for the afternoon, including a 1 p.m. CDT liturgy to be celebrated by Bishop of Rochester John Bonnici, also a former auxiliary bishop of the Archdiocese of New York.

Archbishop Hicks prays at Blessed Sheen’s tomb

Following the Mass, Archbishop Hicks took time to pray at the tomb of Blessed Sheen, touching the new “Blessed” placard affixed to its front. “It just seemed like the right thing to continue giving worship, glory, and praise to God for giving us Blessed Fulton Sheen, and to do so once again. This was a beautiful Mass, and so many people of faith gathered together. I could not be happier,” Archbishop Hicks told The Good Newsroom after the Mass. On Oct. 1, Bishop Tylka will present a first-class relic of Blessed Sheen to the Archdiocese of New York, in recognition of his long residence in the archdiocese and service as an auxiliary bishop. Bishop Tylka will make a similar presentation in Rochester, where Blessed Sheen served as bishop before his retirement.

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El arzobispo Hicks celebra Misa de Acción de Gracias en Peoria Por: Fernanda Pierorazio

n día después de la beatificación de Fulton J. Sheen en San Luis, el arzobispo Ronald A. Hicks celebró una Misa de Acción de Gracias en la Catedral de Santa María de la Inmaculada Concepción, en Peoria. El arzobispo Hicks habló sobre el significado de celebrar la Misa en Peoria al día siguiente de la beatificación y explicó por qué considera importante incluir el español en la celebración como una expresión de la unidad de la Iglesia y de la participación de la comunidad hispana en su misión.

... y estamos dando gracias a Dios por darnos al beato Fulton Sheen, por ser Iglesia y por el mandamiento de ser discípulos misioneros. – Reverendísimo Ronald A. Hicks Arzobispo de Nueva York

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The Birth of Blessed: Illinois Parish Rejoices Over Beatification St. Mary’s Church in El Paso, where Fulton Sheen was baptized, will be renamed in his honor in December Turning off Hwy. 24, a left and two rights bring the driver to the corner of East Third St. and North Elm St., where St. Mary’s Church, a red brick structure with a single steeple, stands, flanked by a rectory and separated only a short way from the church hall. It was on that site that Peter John Sheen, now Blessed Fulton Sheen, was baptized. “Baptismal site of Archbishop Fulton Sheen,” says the church’s sign, along with the name of its pastor, Fr. Justin Ramza, and the times for its two weekend Masses: Saturdays at 5 p.m. and Sundays at 10 a.m. Inside the well-maintained sanctuary, the parish’s fondness for Blessed Sheen is obvious. Prayer cards featuring Sheen greet the visitor, standing just above the parish’s guest book. On both sides of the vestibule are Sheen-related photographs of him and the original church building, and now second-class relics, including a letter from the newly blessed.

A small parish prepares to celebrate

A portrait of Blessed Fulton Sheen hangs near a statue formerly owned by Sheen’s mother, Delia, and later by Blessed Sheen himself, making it a second-class relic. Both are now on display at St. Mary’s Church in El Paso, Illinois, where Blessed Sheen was baptized in 1895, and which will be renamed for him on his feast day, December 9. Photo by Steven Schwankert/The Good Newsroom.

By: Steven Schwankert

bout 40 miles from Peoria, past farms of mostly corn and soybeans with a few dairy cows, sits El Paso. Not the Texas border city, but a town of 2,500, as the sign that welcomes entering traffic says. The Dairy Queen and the McDonald’s are there to serve drivers passing by on I-39, just west of El Paso, and Illinois State Hwy. 24, which runs through it, as much as they are for residents. The Diocese of Peoria stretches across northerncentral Illinois, from Missouri on its west, all the way to the Indiana border. El Paso is smack in the middle, in Woodford County.

When The Good Newsroom visited on Friday, Sept. 25, a day after Sheen’s beatification in St. Louis, volunteers were preparing for a Mass of Thanksgiving to be celebrated by Bishop of Peoria Louis Tylka, and concelebrated by Bishop John Barre of New York’s Rockville Centre, who was baptized by then-Bishop Fulton Sheen. St. Mary’s held a watch party for the beatification Mass on Thursday, Sept. 24. In one corner of the sanctuary stands a portrait of then-Archbishop Sheen, hung above another secondclass relic: a family heirloom, a statue of the Virgin Mary and Baby Jesus that first belonged to his mother and then passed to Blessed Sheen before becoming part of the church’s collection. About 160 families make up the St. Mary’s parish community, according to Jessica Heineke, parish secretary for that church and St. John’s Church in Benson nearby. Fr. Ramza, who was not available for interview, is the parish’s only priest; there are no deacons, she said. St. Mary’s will likely confirm eight young people in the coming year, with 37 enrolled in Confraternity of Christian Doctrine (CCD) classes, with more of each at the Benson church, Heineke said.

Remembering Sheen in El Paso

One parishioner recalled a visit to St. Mary’s by Blessed Sheen, in what would have been the final year of his life, 1979. “He stood there at the entrance and was totally surrounded by people,” said Paul Schmidt, a member of St. Mary’s for 47 years, with his wife, Beth. Sheen is also remembered in the name of the local Knights of Columbus council, which is named for him. The council has erected a memorial stone to Sheen outside the parish. Members of the extended Sheen family remained active in the parish for decades after Blessed Sheen and his immediate family relocated to Peoria around 1900, Schmidt said, including members of the Cleary family, cousins of the Sheens, and Merle Fulton, a cousin of Sheen’s mother, Delia. Elsewhere in town, a lopsided stone marker denotes 25 West Front St., where Blessed Sheen was born on May 8, 1895. The site is now occupied by a restaurant, Topsy’s Tavern. At the Mass of Thanksgiving on Saturday, Sept. 26, Bishop Tylka revealed that on Dec. 9, Blessed Sheen’s feast day, St. Mary’s Church would be renamed Blessed Fulton J. Sheen Church, the first in the world to bear his name.

— OSV News contributed to this report.

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Standing by Sheen: Msgr. Hilary Franco Remembers His Mentor and Friend The Bronx native recalls the saint he knew before the Church did

Msgr. Hilary Franco poses with some of his second-class relics of Blessed Fulton Sheen, with whom he worked directly for seven years and remained friends until Sheen’s death in 1979. Photo by Steven Schwankert/The Good Newsroom.

By: Steven Schwankert

f Blessed Fulton Sheen has a No. 1 fan on earth, it may be Msgr. Hilary Franco. Having returned from Sheen’s beatification Mass in St. Louis less than a week earlier, from the very beginning of a 90-minute interview at St. Theresa’s Church in Briarcliff Manor, Msgr. Franco couldn’t wait to talk about his former boss, mentor, and friend. He opened a thick red folder filled with letters, most carefully preserved in plastic sheets. “These are all relics now,” he said, thumbing through the pile. Not many people have a file cabinet full of second-class relics. Then again, most people

never spent years of their career working for and corresponding with someone recently beatified in St. Louis and now venerated at St. Patrick’s Cathedral. At 93, the Bronx native recalls his time with nowBlessed Fulton Sheen as if it were yesterday, and in voluminous detail. “To make a long story short” is one of his regular phrases because Msgr. Franco, author of the books “Bishop Sheen: Mentor and Friend” and “Six Popes: A Son of the Church Remembers,” has a lot of long stories and loves to tell them.

A providential phone call

Msgr. Franco credits his first meeting with then-Bishop Sheen to “providence,” as he does for numerous events in

his life. He had studied and was ordained at the Pontifical Roman Major Seminary in Rome in 1955, before returning to the Bronx and Our Lady of Mount Carmel Church. Although Msgr. Franco had seen Sheen in person at an event, they had never met until one day the young Bronx priest called him. “I’m a priest of the archdiocese. I have some questions for the bishop,” he said, coldcalling the bishop’s office. “I have to talk to the bishop.” Ultimately, Msgr. Franco was granted 15 minutes with Sheen, which became 43 minutes and an invitation to lunch the following day.

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from a leper colony. … There was a beautiful young stewardess, and the bishop was looking at her. He said, ‘Young lady, you have something that God has given you. It would take only one minute of one of your smiles to make a difference in the lives of the people I just came back from.’” The flight attendant thanked the bishop for the compliment, but indicated she was not Catholic. About two weeks later at the bishop’s residence, the monsignor said, “The doorbell rings. … She said, ‘I am the young lady from the plane. I’m here to take instructions in the faith.’ After six months, the bishop received her into the Church. The following day, she left for that leper colony.”

Proximity to the tabernacle

The secret of whatever Fulton J. Sheen did was only one thing: the good Lord in the tabernacle.

The other guests at that lunch were the artist Salvador Dalí and his wife, Gala, Msgr. Franco said. After lunch and a return to Bishop Sheen’s chapel, the bishop asked him if he would help him with Latin for the upcoming papal council commissions that would become part of the Second Vatican Council.

Preparation, preparation, preparation

Msgr. Franco credits Blessed Sheen’s success as an evangelist to the amount of work he did ahead of each broadcast, and specifically, three types of readiness: “He spent 27 hours per week preparing 23, sometimes 25 minutes of television. … So the secret was remote preparation, immediate preparation, and then looking at the audience, understanding who you have in front of you. Unfortunately, I see some of my colleagues go on for 20 minutes, the usual thing. You have to tailor it to who is in front of you, so they bring home something that will stick in their minds. That’s essential, and that’s what he did. I learned from the best, and I’ve been trying to do it ever since,” he said. One example of this evangelization’s effectiveness, Msgr. Franco noted, was aboard a flight from Uganda back to the United States. “We were coming back

Another major source of Sheen’s success was his spiritual and physical closeness to Jesus, Msgr. Franco said. “Above all, he was a man of faith. In his study, he would sit there writing, but the doors would always be open, and he would always look at the tabernacle. The secret of whatever Fulton J. Sheen did was only one thing: the good Lord in the tabernacle.” That also applied to Blessed Sheen’s well-known practice of a daily holy hour in Eucharistic adoration. “The holy hour, so to speak, was not one hour for us; it was about three hours. But we enjoyed it immensely,” the monsignor said, recalling one particular occasion in Paris. “We arrived in Paris at 7:30 in the morning, tired. Usually he followed what I suggested; he was so humble. But that morning, near Saint-Sulpice, a beautiful church in Paris, he said, ‘Why don’t we do the holy hour here, since we’re here?’ I said, ‘Bishop, you must be kidding. We’re tired. Let’s go to the hotel.’ He insisted. “We went in, he knelt down, and he went to sleep. You can imagine me fuming in the back. He slept exactly one hour. Then he turned around, with the simplicity of the saints, smiled at me, and said, ‘Well, I guess the good Lord wanted us to have that holy hour this way,’” Msgr. Franco recalled, smiling broadly.

A saint then and now

Msgr. Franco attended the Sheen’s beatification in St. Louis on Sept. 24, sitting in a place of honor on the main stage. While he has been a leading proponent of the canonization cause, Msgr. Franco is not too concerned about the ultimate outcome. Speaking of St. Teresa of Calcutta, St. John Paul II, with both of whom he also worked, and Blessed Fulton Sheen, Msgr. Franco said, “These people, especially my mentor and friend [Sheen], were saints while I was working and living with them. The official declaration of the Church is all right, but for me personally, he was already a saint a long time ago in the broadest sense.”

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First-Class Relic of Blessed Fulton Sheen Received at St. Patrick’s Cathedral By: Patrick Grady

ishop Louis Tylka of Blessed Sheen’s home diocese of Peoria, Ill., presented the relic to Archbishop Hicks and St. Patrick’s Cathedral just one week after Archbishop Sheen’s beatification.

Photo credit: Jeffrey Bruno/OSV News

So many stories I hear as I travel tell me of how Fulton Sheen has been inspiring and interceding for so many people. – Most Reverend Louis Tylka Bishop of Peoria, Illinois

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