Pope John Paul II Beatification Date?

The Pope has approved a miracle attributed to Pope John Paul II's intercession and is going forward with his beatification.

Italian news media have been reporting that in recent weeks Vatican-sponsored panels confirmed that a young French nun was miraculously cured of Parkinson's disease after praying to Pope John Paul II.

Benedict is expected to celebrate the beatification Mass himself, a much-needed bright spot in his papacy, which in recent months has been immersed in scandal.

What is the date of the beatification ceremony of Pope John Paul II? Will he also be named a saint?

John Paul II is expected to be beatified in Rome on May 1, 2011, a second miracle needs to be attributed to him before he can be made a saint.

The beatification is the culmination of a process that was initiated officially in June 2005, two months after the pope's death, but that had been called for by his faithful even before he breathed his last.

The process of beatification is usually lengthy. But in this case, the period between John Paul II's death and beatification is one of the shortest on record in Church history.

Pope John Paul II's beatification ceremony is expected to attract the biggest crowd in Rome since his death, and the election of Pope Benedict XVI, six years ago.