Well, obviously we would say that the “miracle” healing of Jack Sullivan’s back condition, after praying to the ghost of Cardinal John Henry Newman, is not in fact an example of miraculous intervention for one privileged recipient of divine medical treatment. But as part of the justification for a state visit the beatificiation of Newman is high on the list. John Cornwell digs deep into the specific case in hand in order to discredit it.

It’s also worth pointing out that as a defector to the Vatican from Anglicanism, John Henry Newman’s beatification does not seem well-timed for mending any bridges given the Pope’s recent invitation to protestants which upset some in the Anglican hierarchy.

According to Vatican saint-making rules, the person to be beatified, or made a “blessed”, must literally prove his or her influence with God by persuading the Almighty to perform just one “testable” miracle. The positiones contain all the scientific evidence for the “inexplicable” nature of the miracle, and the Pope bases his verdict on their findings. But a close study of the Sullivan positio reveals that the Pope has not adhered to the Vatican’s own strict standards for validating miracles. The evidence for Sullivan’s miracle also contradicts the opinions of at least three leading medical specialists: the consultant neurosurgeons Michael Powell of the National Hospital for Neurology and Neurosurgery in London and Helen Fernandez of Addenbrooke’s Hospital, Cambridge; and the clinical psychologist Professor Irving Kirsch of Hull University, who studies placebo effects.

When Benedict XVI arrives in Britain in September, groups of activists are set to voice a catalogue of anti-papal grievances, including his perceived interference in Britain’s equality laws, and his attempt to woo Anglican priests en masse from the Church of England. Gay activists have vowed to protest against his condemnation of homosexuality, while there is talk of a “legal ambush” to arrest him for alleged cover-ups of priestly paedophiles. During the election campaign, the leaders of Britain’s three main parties all disagreed with the Pope on homosexuality, contraception and human embryonic stem-cell research. And now Benedict’s visit — of which the beatification of Newman was to be the central focus — looks bound for a theological as well as political storm.

Full article: http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/comment/faith/article7113421.ece

The British Humanist Association is a founding member of the Protest the Pope campaign which is organising events this year to protest the state visit.