PACAMBRI-L Archives

From: "Cathy Baker" <>
Subject: [PaCambri] From Rootsweb Review
Date: Thu, 3 May 2001 10:06:44 -0500

Hi All,

Found this on Rootsweb Review this morning and since it has Prince Gallitzin of our Cambria County area, thought you might like to read it. Hope it might help someone.
Cathy Baker


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SAINTLY CAUSES

by Ann Ball

I am a Catholic writer whose main field of research is the lives
of the modern saints. One of the most fun parts of my writing
has been in the letters and e-mails I receive from the readers.
A number of these have been from people who wonder if they are a
relative of the saint I have written about, or who know they are
relatives and are looking for more information. In the case of
Blessed Miguel PRO, S.J., one of the Mexican martyrs, I was
happy to help a number of his distant relatives to connect with
one another via e-mail.

Today I received an e-mail from a relative of the saintly Prince
of the Alleghenies, Father Demetrius Augustine GALLITZIN, who
lived and worked most of his adult life in Pennsylvania. I had
recently had an article about the prince published in a national
Catholic newspaper. The man asked if in my research I had run
across any mention of one of his relatives. I was happy to be
able to steer him to a recently published book that not only
contained information about one of his relatives but also about
a second.

If a researcher discovers a possible connection to someone who
has been declared a Catholic saint, or who had a reputation for
great holiness and for whom there might be a cause for
canonization, the archivist for their local diocese might be a
source of information. The canonization process is still one of
the most exacting legal processes in the world, and much
information about the person must be gathered in the person's
local diocese before the cause is sent to Rome. Those who are
manning the causes are always glad to locate relatives of the
prospective saint as sometimes precious writings and documents
have been handed down in the families.

Today, there are quite a number of persons in the United States
for whom a cause of canonization is being considered. One of the
causes in particular that I know of is seeking traces of any
relatives. That is the cause of the saintly free woman of color
Henriette DELILLE of New Orleans, Louisiana. That cause is under
a special historical process and they would love to locate any
family documents or photos that have been passed down through
relatives. If anyone reading this thinks s/he might have a
connection to this family, I will be happy to steer him/her on
to the cause. For that matter, I have the addresses for most of
the causes that are from the U.S.A. and a few from Canada.

* * * * *

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• [PaCambri] From Rootsweb Review by "Cathy Baker" <>