More Holy Popes! Mobilisation of the Faithful and Staging of the Papacy during the Pontificate of Pius XII

• Applicant: Professor Dr. Claus Arnold
• Subject Area: Roman Catholic Theology
• Term: since 2025
• Project identifier: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 563551422

The beatification and canonisation of modern popes has not only become a custom since the pontificate of Pope John Paul II but was already one of the major projects of the pontificate of Pius XII (1939-1958), who from 1940 onwards pushed the processes of Innocent XI, Pius IX and Pius X, which had been left dormant, in order to achieve religious, political and generally pastorally mobilising effects. The reconstruction of the cases of Pius X (beatified in 1951, canonised in 1954) and Innocent XI (beatified in 1956), which Pius XII himself led to success, reveals the concrete implementation of the papal will for canonisation in interaction with the curial apparatus and against its partial resistance, as well as the careful staging of the mass-effective execution of the heroization of Pius XII's predecessors and their instrumentalization for the programme of his pontificate.

• DFG Programme: Research Grants
• International Connection: Italy
• Cooperation Partner: Professorin Dr. Maria Antonia Paiano