VATICAN CITY – The late Pope John Paul moved closer to sainthood in the Catholic Church on Saturday when his successor, Pope Benedict, approved a decree recognising that John Paul had lived the Christian faith heroically.

The Vatican said Benedict had signed the “heroic virtues“ decree, a key step in the procedure by which the Church recognises its saints, after a recommendation by a Vatican panel of experts. The late pope will now have the title “venerable“.

The following step will now be the recognition of a miracle attributed to John Paul, who died in 2005. That is expected to happen early next year, meaning the late pope can be beatified, the final step before sainthood.