Two 20th-century popes who changed the course of the Catholic Church became saints Sunday as Pope Francis honored John XXIII and John Paul II in a delicate balancing act aimed at bringing together the conservative and progressive wings of the church.
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In this photo provided by the Vatican newspaper L'Osservatore Romano, Pope Francis, right, embraces his predecessor Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI, during a ceremony in St. Peter's Square at the Vatican, Sunday, April 27, 2014. Pope Francis has declared his two predecessors John XXIII and John Paul II saints in an unprecedented canonization ceremony made even more historic by the presence of retired Pope Benedict XVI.
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Pilgrims gather in via della Conciliazione, in front of St. Peter's Square, as they wait to attend the ceremony for the canonization of Pope John XXIII and Pope John Paul II, in Rome, early Sunday, April 27, 2014. Pilgrims and tourists streamed into Rome to participate in the ceremony in St. Peter's Square that will see two popes, John XXIII and John Paul II, be proclaimed saints.
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A devotee touches to pray at the statue of Roman Catholic Pope John Paul II on display with other relics of the late Pope as well as Pope John XXIII in celebration of their canonization or the elevation to sainthood Sunday, April 27, 2014, at suburban Quezon city, northeast of Manila, Philippines. Pope Francis declared his two predecessors John XXIII and John Paul II saints on Sunday before hundreds of thousands of people in St. Peter's Square, an unprecedented ceremony made even more historic by the presence of retired Pope Benedict XVI. The predominantly Roman Catholic Philippines joins several nations worldwide in the celebration of canonization of the two Popes.
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A boy dressed as a Pope, yawns as he prepares to join a parade in celebration of the canonization or the elevation to sainthood in the Vatican of Roman Catholic Pope John Paul II and Pope John XXIII Sunday, April 27, 2014, at suburban Quezon city, northeast of Manila, Philippines. Pope Francis declared his two predecessors John XXIII and John Paul II saints on Sunday before hundreds of thousands of people in St. Peter's Square, an unprecedented ceremony made even more historic by the presence of retired Pope Benedict XVI. The predominantly Roman Catholic Philippines joins several nations worldwide in the celebration of canonization of the two Popes.
