The prediction was made by Monsignor Slawomir Oder, the Polish priest who is in charge of arguing John Paul’s case for sainthood.
Mgr Oder said on a visit to the island of Ischia that he hoped the beatification would happen “by the spring of 2009, having already consigned the positio".
The “positio” is a 2,000-page folder containing all the documents testifying to John Paul’s holiness.