Pope Francis will canonize Devasahayam Pillai, together with six others, during a canonization Mass in St Peter’s Basilica on May 15, 2022.
The announcement was made November 9 by the Congregation for the Causes of Saints. It follows the Ordinary Public Consistory of May 3 this year whereby the Pope had authorized the canonizations, without however setting a date for the ceremony because of the health emergency caused by the Covid-19 pandemic.
Blessed Lazarus (Devasahayam)
Blessed Lazar is the only martyr among those set to be canonized.
Blessed Lazarus, known as Devasahayam, was a Nair caste in India. Converted to Catholicism by a Jesuit priest in 1745, Devasahayam Pillai took the name Lazarus.