--- description: 800,000 people descended on St. Peter's Square Sunday to bear witness to Popes John XXIII and John Paul II becoming saints title: Photos: Thousands Gather for Canonisation Mass image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt08f9d7e895caaeaf/69868cbbe8524b174d602988/2014-04-27t094735z_1199647399_lr1ea4r02.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [World](/section/world/) ## World Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # Thousands Gather for Canonization Mass by [TIME Staff](/author/time-staff/) ## TIME Staff Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Apr 27, 2014 3:32 PM CUT  Bishops during the canonisation mass. Bishops during the canonisation mass.Stefano Rellandini—Reuters by [TIME Staff](/author/time-staff/) ## TIME Staff Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Apr 27, 2014 3:32 PM CUT  Nuns hold up a poster with portraits of Pope John Paul II, left, and John XXIII, in St. Peter's Square at the Vatican, April 27, 2014. Emilio Morenatti—AP  Faithful gather in St. Peter's Square. Alessandra Tarantino—AP  Pilgrims, numbering nearly 800,000, gather on St. Peter's Square. Giorgio Cosulich—Getty Images  Pope Francis kisses the relic of Pope John XXIII as he leads the canonisation mass. Dan Kitwood—Getty Images  Bishops during the canonisation mass. Stefano Rellandini—Reuters  Pope emeritus Benedict XVI waves as he leaves after the canonisation mass of Popes John XXIII and John Paul II. Vincenzo Pinto—AFP/Getty Images  Priests arrive in Saint Peter's Square to give communion to pilgrims. Giorgio Cosulich—Getty Images  A faithful receives communion. Max Ross—Reuters  Pope Francis stands on the popemobil surrounded by bodyguards as he waves to pilgrims in Saint Peter's Square after the canonisations of Popes John Paul II and John XXIII. Giorgio Cosulich—Getty Images ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/78406/pope-francis-canonisation-mass/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/78406/pope-francis-canonisation-mass/"},"headline":"Thousands Gather for Canonization Mass","datePublished":"2014-04-27T15:32:57.000Z","dateModified":"2026-05-11T05:08:26.711Z","description":"800,000 people descended on St. Peter's Square Sunday to bear witness to Popes John XXIII and John Paul II becoming saints","url":"https://time.com/78406/pope-francis-canonisation-mass/","keywords":["Pope Francis topic","Vatican","Pope Benedict XVI"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt08f9d7e895caaeaf/69868cbbe8524b174d602988/2014-04-27t094735z_1199647399_lr1ea4r02.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"TIME Staff","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/time-staff/"}],"articleSection":"World","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt08f9d7e895caaeaf/69868cbbe8524b174d602988/2014-04-27t094735z_1199647399_lr1ea4r02.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"Bishops attend a canonisation mass in St. Peter's Square at the Vatican","caption":"Bishops attend a canonisation mass in St. Peter's Square at the Vatican","creditText":"Stefano Rellandini—Reuters","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/world/","name":"World"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/78406/pope-francis-canonisation-mass/","name":"Thousands Gather for Canonization Mass"}}]}] ```