Pope authorizes canonization of “doctor of the poor”, revealed José Gregorio Hernandez
Pope Francis, hospitalized since February 14 following pneumonia, authorized the canonization of the Venezuelan “doctor of the poor,” José Gregorio Hernandez, who will be Venezuela’s first saint .
“ The long-awaited day has arrived . Pope Francis has signed the decree of canonization of our Blessed José Gregorio Hernandez ,” announced Venezuelan Cardinal Baltazar Porras in a video published on social media this Tuesday.
The day we waited for has arrived. Pope Francis has signed the decree of canonization of our Blessed José Gregorio Hernández. We can call San José Gregorio Hernández.
May the Lord and the Virgin bend us. pic.twitter.com/cFf6TWyVWt
— Cardenal, Baltazar Enrique Porras Cardozo (@bepocar) February 25, 2025
The date of the canonization has not yet been decided in a consistory, but the Venezuelan Catholic Church already designates Hernández as “Saint José Gregorio ”.
In Venezuela, José Gregorio Hernandez (1864-1919) is considered a national hero, and arouses devotion that transcends political, religious and social divides.
The Venezuelan doctor distinguished himself by helping those most in need during the Spanish flu epidemic at the beginning of the 20th century , which killed around 1% of the population.
José Gregorio Hernandez died in 1919, at the age of 54, after being hit by a car in Caracas.
Images and statuettes of the blessed, accompanied by candles and a glass of water, are common in Venezuelan homes.
Hernandez was beatified in April 2021 before a reduced committee due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The Catholic Church beatified Venezuelan José Gregorio Hernández, “the doctor of the poor”
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The Catholic Church considered that he could be attributed with performing a miracle , namely for having cured a 10-year-old girl who had been shot in the head in 2017.
According to the Church, the child survived after the mother prayed to the deceased doctor.
Pope Francis was well enough on Tuesday to meet with Vatican Secretary of State Cardinal Pietro Parolin and his deputy at Rome's Gemelli Hospital to approve new decrees on candidates for possible sainthood, the Holy See said.
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