The Vatican announced that Pope Benedict XVI approved the canonization of Laura de Jesus Montoya, making her Colombia’s first native-born saint, reported local media.
Pope Benedict XVI on Thursday approved the canonization of Laura de Jesus Montoya, also known as Mother Laura. In 1914, she founded the Congregation of the Missionary Sisters of the Blessed Virgin Mary and Saint Catherine of Siena and almost a century later, the congregation has a presence in 21 different countries on three continents.
Mother Laura’s canonization revolves around the miracle she purportedly performed in 2005, 56 years after her death in 1949. To be anointed, one must first perform a miracle, therefore Laura de Jesus Montoya could only be considered for canonization after the Church confirmed a miracle had indeed occurred. According to the Catholic Church, a doctor, purportedly on his death bed, prayed to Mother Laura and awoke the next morning completely cured.