Dominican Sister Jude Andrew Link is encouraging Catholics to view the beatification of Venerable Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen as a chance to deepen their relationship with Christ rather than simply a historic celebration.
The 2 p.m. CT Sept. 24 ceremony at The Dome at America's Center in St. Louis will formally declare Sheen "blessed," bringing him one step closer to sainthood.
Link, programming director for the Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen Foundation, told Veronica Dudo on "EWTN News Nightly" on July 15 that pilgrims can arrive early for the broader celebration, which includes a nine-day novena of Holy Hours in Peoria, Illinois, leading up to the beatification, along with Masses of thanksgiving and the Sheen Awards Gala afterward.
Sheen was a pioneering television evangelist whose popular media ministry made him one of the most influential American Church figures of the 20th century.
"I think of someone who fell in love with Jesus Christ," said Link, with the Dominican Sisters of Mary, Mother of the Eucharist. "He knew Jesus Christ through his study. He knew Jesus Christ in the Church and in the liturgy. But in a really profound way, he knew Christ in the Eucharist. He knew Christ in prayer."
"He knew he was a child of God. He knew he was a priest of Jesus Christ," she said. "He knew that as a priest then that he was called to be a victim and to offer his life in union with the sacrifice of Christ."
Link also reflected on St. John Paul II's 1979 meeting with Sheen, when the pope embraced the archbishop and called him "a loyal son of the Church."
"John Paul II could see right into the heart of Fulton Sheen's identity there and just affirmed him at the deepest level," she said.
Encouraging the faithful to attend
Inviting Catholics to attend the beatification in St. Louis, Link called the celebration "a gift for the Church."
"Fulton Sheen doesn't need it. He's in heaven," she said. "But it's a gift that the Church gives to us."
At the beatification, Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle will serve as the papal representative. Before the liturgy, pilgrims can attend a morning program featuring Cardinal Timothy Dolan; Sister Josephine Garrett, CSFN; Matt Maher; Monsignor Roger Landry; and Katie McGrady.
The beatification Mass requires a ticket, which costs about $15 to $25. Organizers say the fee is intended to offset the high costs of hosting thousands of pilgrims in a stadium venue.
Organizers have stressed that the ticket charge is not a fee for attending Mass, which canon law prohibits. Instead, it is intended to help cover the costs of hosting the large-scale event, including security, crowd management, and stadium operations, while also helping make attendance possible for priests, religious, and school groups.
