Late Pope John Paul II to be Declared 'Saint' by Catholic Church, Vatican Announces

(Reuters) - The late Pope John Paul II will be made a saint, the Vatican said on Friday, announcing that Pope Francis had approved a second miracle attributed to the Polish pontiff, who led the Roman Catholic Church from 1978 to 2005.

The Vatican said Pope John XXIII, who reigned from 1958 to 1963 and called the Second Vatican Council - which enacted sweeping reforms to modernize the Church - would also be made a saint.

No dates for the canonization ceremonies were immediately given but the Vatican said they were expected by the end of the year.

John Paul had already been credited with asking God to cure French nun Marie Simon-Pierre Normand of Parkinson's disease, which helped lead to his beatification in 2011, when he was declared a "blessed" of the

Church.

Two confirmed miracles are usually required under Vatican rules for the declaration of a saint.

The second miracle attributed to John Paul's intercession is the inexplicable curing of a woman from Costa Rica who prayed to him for help with her medical condition on the day of his beatification. Details of that miracle were due to be announced in Costa Rica on Friday.

In the case of Pope John XXIII, who was known as the "good pope", Francis waved the customary rules which require a second miracle after beatification, Vatican spokesman Father Federico Lombardi said. John XXIII was beatified in 2000.