Monday, October 20, 2014

Blessed Paul VI and Venerable Matt Talbot



2014 has been an eventful year for Popes who knew of Matt Talbot.  Earlier this year Pope John Paul II and Pope John XXIII were both declared saints.
And yesterday, 19 October 2014, Pope Francis beatified Pope Paul VI (1897-1978), the pope who declared Matt Talbot as “Venerable” on 3rd October 1975, fifty years after Matt’s death.

In a 1974 address in Rome to Calix Society members on the occasion of their twenty-fifth anniversary, the now “Blessed Paul VI” stated: “You have chosen to look upon Matt Talbot as an admirable exemplar of discipline and supernatural virtue. It is our hope that his success will encourage countless men and women throughout the world to realize the need for conversion, the possibility of real rehabilitation, the serenity of Christian reconciliation, and the peace and joy of helping others to overcome abuses, disorders and sin.” (http://venerablematttalbotresourcecenter.blogspot.com/2008/03/pope-paul-vi-calix-society-and-matt.html)