Florida Catholic | Vatican Postulator’s Role

The purpose of a Vatican postulator

Vatican postulator Andrea Ambrosi's job is to examine, collect and research data on a candidate for sainthood and present the case to the Holy See.

Published: 02.08.08

VALETA ORLANDO | FC
Roman Postulator Andrea Ambrosi signs the official documents of the investigation of the alleged miracle attributed to Blessed Karl of Austria.

On Jan. 31, Bishop Thomas Wenski presented sealed documents to Vatican postulator Andrea Ambrosi on the investigation in the Orlando Diocese of an alleged miracle by Blessed Karl of Austria, the last emperor of the Austro-Hungarian Empire during World War I.

According to canon law (the legal code of the Catholic Church) a postulator’s job is to examine, collect and research historical and theological material about the individual for whom the honors of the altar are sought and present the case to the Holy See. Ambrosi will present the documents he received from Bishop Wenski to Cardinal José Saraiva Martins, prefect to the Congregation for the Causes of Saints, for further study and conclusion.

Ambrosi estimates that he has handled more than 300 cases since beginning work as a postulator in the early 1980s.

One of his most important functions in the early years was to play “devil’s advocate,” and not just as a generic figure of speech. As part of the ancient, protracted and labyrinthine church process of beatification and canonization, there is always an official “accuser” whose job is to try to rip a case to shreds.

“It was incredible training,” Ambrosi said, “because, to be a good defender, you have to know how to be a good accuser.”

In the world, there are perhaps only 30 people who do what Ambrosi does. After three years of playing antagonist and gaining invaluable experience with the general promoter of the faith, a Vatican position within the Congregation for the Causes of Saints, Ambrosi was a seasoned professional by the time John Paul II instituted his sweeping procedural changes of the canonization process.

In November 2002, Ambrosi was appointed general postulator for the Causes of Beatification and Canonization of The Congregation of Holy Cross, a Congregation founded in France in 1837 by Blessed Father Basile Moreau.

Tanya Goodman of the Florida Catholic staff contributed to this article.

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