Father Capodanno lived out the universal call for holiness. Regardless of status or station in life, rank or vocation, the Servant of God’s life proved that every Christian can and should live the Gospel. To become an image of Christ, to radiate Christ, isn’t just about one heroic action. Rather, it’s about a life of dedication to the love of God and the love of others.
Throughout his life, Father Capodanno strove for magnanimity, a virtue our world desperately struggles with today. What began as dreams of personal glory in youth was formed and molded by his Faith and family into glory for God.
Throughout his years as a missionary priest and then a Navy Chaplain, Father Capodanno made numberless personal sacrifices. He lived as his flock lived and suffered as they suffered, never considering the costs to himself. He was an ideal model of perseverance, obedience, fortitude, faith, and selflessness. In a word, Father Capodanno exemplified charity and the call to love God above all things and to love your neighbor as yourself.
This life of heroic virtue culminated in the ultimate sacrifice of giving his life for another, fulfilling the teaching that “no greater love hath man than to give his life for another.” In our world that focuses on self-gratification and selfishness, Father Capodanno is an example of how Christians need to be living. His heroic virtues are worthy of emulation, regardless of state and station in life.
The call of all Christians is to be holy: “to love God with their whole heart and their whole soul, with all their mind and all their strength, and to love each other as Christ loves them. Thus, it is evident to everyone, that all the faithful of Christ of whatever rank or status, are called to the fullness of the Christian life and to the perfection of charity…” (Lumen Gentium, 40). This is the universal call to holiness, and this is the path of the saints.
As we were created to know, love, and serve God here on earth to be happy with Him in Heaven, so too were we created to be saints, for only saints (whether canonized or not) are in Heaven. Canonized saints are those faithful men and women who the Church recognizes officially as being in Heaven in communion with God and being worthy of imitation.
The Church has established a procedure for Canonized sainthood, consisting of four stages: Servant of God, Venerable, Blessed, and Saint. The cause of sainthood begins with the bishop of the diocese of the individual. He petitions the Holy See for permission, called a nihil obstat (nothing stands in the way). If the permission is granted, the Bishop may begin the cause.
On May 19, 2006, the Cause for Canonization was opened for Father Capodanno and he was declared a Servant of God by Archbishop Edwin F. O’Brien, who was at the time the Archbishop of the Archdiocese for the Military Services, USA.
Each Cause is presented along one of three paths: Martyrdom, Heroic Virtue, or Offer of Life. Each has strict requirements for a candidate to meet. With the advice of our Postulator, we are currently pursuing the Offer of Life (Oblatio vitae) path for Father Capodanno. This is reserved for a person who lived a life of virtue while, and in imitation of Christ, freely gave his or her life for others.
Following the review of Father Vincent’s Positio in May 2022, the Dicastery requested additional information on Father Vincent’s life and recommended a suspension in the Cause. Our original postulator in Rome has retired, and our new postulator, Dr. Nicola Gori, is updating Father Vincent’s Positio to present the requested additional information.
The Dicastery for the Causes for Saints reviews the life of the Servant of God according to the evidence provided in the Positio. The Dicastery then votes on whether to present the case to the Holy Father or not. The Pope will make a final decision. If he approves, the Dicastery will issue a decree, entitling the candidate to the title “Venerable” Servant of God.
This review of the life of the Servant of God is an earthly attempt to judge the worthiness of the soul to be in Heaven in communion with God. But this is not enough, beyond this, the Church also seeks supernatural evidence before advancing the candidate to the next stage in the canonization process.
Beatification is a statement that it is worthy of belief that the candidate for sainthood is in heaven. It allows the Blessed’s home diocese or region to honor him officially by celebrating him on a certain “feast” day with special prayers at Mass.
To be beatified, a Venerable must have a miracle attributed to his intercession as supernatural evidence that he is with God. This miracle must take place after his death and it is evaluated by the Dicastery for the Causes of Saints. Martyrs — those who died for their faith — can be beatified without a miracle, but Father Capodanno is not considered a martyr – he was not killed because of his Catholic faith. He was killed by a Vietnamese Army machine gunner who likely only saw him as an American.
There have been many reports of “favors granted” when people have prayed for Father Vincent’s intercession. One of these cases has been investigated by the diocese in which it was reported and submitted to Rome. The results look very positive and it is ready for review if the Dicastery bestows the title of Venerable.
