ST. LOUIS — For Bonnie Engstrom, who witnessed her newborn child miraculously healed through the intercession of soon-to-be Blessed Archbishop Fulton Sheen, the journey to the prelate's beatification has been an "emotional roller coaster."
The Sept. 24 Mass will be "a foretaste of heaven," she predicted, "where we are all going to be worshipping God together and celebrating the Church as a whole, and the power of the body of Christ and every good grace that God has given us. I am so looking forward to it," Engstrom said at a Thursday morning press conference.
Engstrom spoke to the media along with Bishop Louis Tylka of the Diocese of Peoria, Illinois, and Monsignor Jason Gray, executive director of the Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen Foundation in Peoria. Gray said it is a relief, after years of technical investigations and paperwork, to see their work finally come to fruition and be able to join in the celebration of Sheen with the faithful.
That said, Gray admitted he has been surprised during the process at how much attention Sheen has attracted, particularly among young people.
"One question that came up early on [was]: Who's going to care? All the people who knew him when his program was on are very old. But we've discovered young people are inspired by Sheen, because he's a voice of integrity that inspires people who did not know him in life, that have discovered him in the years since," Gray said. "So it's just exciting to see how much enthusiasm there is,"
Tylka agreed, highlighting the fact that Sheen pioneered "new media" in his day — attracting wide attention, including from non-Catholics — serving as an inspiration to those looking to do the same in 2026. He also showed how to bridge divisions in the Church and in the world because he "always spoke with the truth of the Gospel, with charity and with clarity."
"Sheen's message is timeless because he spoke the truth and he spoke the truth with clarity and charity. I think a lot of people in the world, especially young people, are searching for purpose and meaning and to have a voice that so convicted, he presents the truth of our faith, our belief in Jesus Christ, the truth that God loves us and that life is worth living. I think that's very appealing," Tylka said.
'Local boy'
The beatification Mass Thursday afternoon will include 89 bishops, about 1,000 priests, about 850 each of seminarians and religious, and 250 deacons, along with about 50,000 total attendees, Gray said. The Mass, which can be viewed live on EWTN with coverage beginning at 2:30 p.m. ET, will be celebrated by Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle, Pope Leo XIV's representative.
James Fulton Engstrom, the third of Bonnie and Travis' eight children and the recipient of the confirmed miracle that led to Sheen's beatification, will play a part in the Mass by presenting several relics of Sheen onstage. Gray and Tylka both displayed two of the relics during the press conference: one of Sheen's zuchettos — the reddish-purple skullcap worn by archbishops — and Sheen's pectoral cross.
James Fulton, who was born in 2010, spent 61 minutes without a heartbeat while his mother prayed fervently to Sheen to help her child — whom she and her husband had already named after the famous archbishop. Almost exactly 16 years later, James is a happy and healthy teenager. The fact that James' healing was a miracle was attested to unanimously by the medical experts, cardinals and others at the Vatican tasked with investigating it. In a later on-air interview with EWTN on Thursday, his mother said she sees a connection between Sheen's devotion to spending an hour before the Blessed Sacrament every day and the 61 minutes her son lie lifeless.
"As a laywoman, I was so impressed with how thorough the investigation was. And Travis and I felt very reassured that, wow, when the Catholic Church says something is a miracle, it is a miracle," Engstrom commented during the press conference.
When asked why she chose to call upon Sheen specifically in such a dire moment, Engstrom noted that Sheen had been a favorite of their family for years — a "local boy" with a down-to-earth Midwestern air, a "warm character" who reminded Engstrom of her own grandfather and great-grandfather. In that context, calling on Sheen during the worst hour of her and her husband's life made complete sense, she said.
Despite his highly unusual birth story, James himself is an ordinary kid, a "punk teenage boy," Engstrom joked, who didn't ask to be thrust into the spotlight. Nevertheless, he is also a "delightful young man" who is excited — albeit a little nervous — to play a part in the beatification Mass for the intercessor who helped save his life, Engstrom continued.
"For all of our children, we've put all of our kids under the patronage of a saint and have really built a culture where we are celebrating feast days. We are calling on their intercession. I want all of my kids to feel like they have a squad that surrounds them, that is following them through life, praying for them, interceding, cheering them on," she said.
Gray noted that because the late Pope Francis originally announced Sheen's beatification in July 2019, any purported miracle attributed to his intercession that has taken place since then can count toward his eventual canonization, which typically requires a second miracle to move forward. Gray said the Vatican is considering six different potential miracles involving Sheen's intercession, including an alleged instantaneous healing from cancer and a healing of another newborn from a condition similar to James'. Pope Leo, a native of Illinois like Sheen, is well aware of the archbishop's cause, Tylka added.
Both Tylka and Gray said they have no doubt that Sheen will one day be canonized.
"America's bishop, as Sheen was known, is being beatified during the 250th anniversary of our nation," Tylka said. "And we have a pope from Chicago, a native son of Illinois, who gave the green light for this to move forward. So I think all of those things say it's pretty opportune … I hope that the time between now and actual canonization won't be that long."
