The Vatican has announced that Pope John Paul will canonise Padre Pio. The mystic Italian monk died 33 years ago.
The ceremony to make him a saint will take place on 16 June in the Vatican, and is expected to draw hundreds of thousands of people. Padre Pio is said to have had stigmata, or the bleeding wounds of Christ, for 50 years.
The Pope will also canonise Josemaría Escrivá, the Spanish priest who founded the religious organisation, Opus Dei. The ceremony will take place on 6 October in the Vatican.
