Pope John XXIII, John Paul II to be canonized

Popes John XXIII and John Paul II will be declared saints on April 27, 2014.

Pope Francis announced the date Monday during a meeting with cardinals in the Apostolic Palace.

Francis announced in July he would canonize two of the 20th century's most influential popes together, approving a miracle attributed to John Paul's intercession and bending Vatican rules by deciding that John XXIII didn't need one.

The double sainthood is seen by Vatican watchers as an attempt to bridge a traditional left-right divide in the Catholic Church.

"John XXIII is generally a hero to the church's progressive wing, while John Paul II is typically lionized by Catholic conservatives," John Allen of the National Catholic Reporter told Agence France-Presse.

Allen said the decision could be interpreted as "a statement that any attempt to set them at odds is artificial and that what they had in common is more fundamental than any perceived differences."

Francis is clearly a fan of both men: He prayed at their tombs on the anniversary of John Paul's death this year — an indication that he sees a great personal and spiritual continuity in them.

John XXIII and John Paul II are closely identified with the Second Vatican Council, the meetings in 1962 through 1965 that modernized the Catholic Church — an indication that Francis clearly wants to make a statement about the council's role in shaping the church today.

A spokesman for Poland's bishops' conference, the Rev. Jozef Kloch, said the dual canonizations would stress that John Paul II continued the ideas introduced by John XXIII, who called Vatican II.

Originally the canonizations were to take place Dec. 8, but Polish bishops complained that a December date would make it difficult for Polish pilgrims to travel to the Vatican by bus on snowy, icy roads. As a result, the first Sunday after Easter was chosen instead — a feast day established by John Paul .

It was on that feast day, Divine Mercy Sunday, that John Paul was beatified in 2011, drawing 1.5 million pilgrims to Rome.

Wire services