Pilgrimage to Blessed Fulton J. Sheen’s Beatification
Thousands of people flocked to St. Louis in September to attend the beatification of "God's Microphone." Among the crowd was a young man named Anthony Licud, who traveled 15 hours from Virginia with his family to attend the beatification.
“We wanted to go because Blessed Fulton Sheen is my confirmation saint and we have been watching his TV show, Life is Worth Living.”
Licud is a sophomore at Saint John Paul the Great High School in Potomac Shores, VA.
The family started planning the trip in the spring of 2026 even before knowing his school schedule. Thankfully, his teachers considered it a good excuse for missing class.
The pilgrimage began with 5:00 am Mass on Wednesday, September 23rd at his home parish, Nativity Church in Burke, followed by a 15-hour car ride, carpooling with the parish priest Fr. Jordan Evans and another family from the parish. The caravan arrived Wednesday evening in time to attend the Young Adult Holy Hour and Eucharistic Adoration event at the Basilica of Saint Louis, King of France (the Old Cathedral) in St. Louis, Missouri.
“It was packed,” said Licud,” There was no room in the pews and there were a lot of young people. It’s amazing that a bishop from 50 years ago can inspire so many young people.”
The next day was the Beatification at The Dome at America's Center in St. Louis, Missouri. More than 50,000 pilgrims, bishops, and priests gathered for the historic Mass. Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle presided over the liturgy as the special papal envoy representing Pope Leo XIV. With the reading of the apostolic letter, Archbishop Sheen officially received the title "Blessed"—marking the final major step before potential sainthood.
After the Mass, Licud and his family were able to venerate one of the relics of the new Blessed - one of his fingertips.
According to Licud one of the moments that really stood out to him was a homily from the bishop of Peoria describing the process of preparing for the beatification stage.
“He said that when they were exhuming his body and it was not incorrupt, it was a great memento mori moment. Seeing this giant that was reduced to ashes. It’s the destiny for all of us.”
Licud’s journey with Blessed Fulton Sheen began two years ago when Licud was an eighth grader discerning his confirmation saint.
“My mom and I had just finished Divine Mercy on EWTN. I was sitting at my desk looking at the crucifix, and I asked Christ on the cross who should my confirmation saint be. A few seconds later, the announcer on EWTN said, ‘This is Fulton J. Sheen: Life is Worth Living.’
Licud and his mom began watching the show and he remembers being impressed by how eloquently the archbishop spoke.
“During the end of one of the episodes, Blessed Fulton Sheen was talking about how lots of people were calling down with this and down with that. Down with the government and police. He said ‘Let's begin now to use the word ‘Up.’ Up from all of this filth.’ That phrase really stayed with me.”
But perhaps the most impactful words Licud remembers from the archbishop dealt with the Eucharist.
“He once said, ‘The greatest love story is contained within a tiny white host.’ said Licud. “When I heard that it made me realize the power of the Eucharist.”
Licud said the pilgrimage to the beatification was a very encouraging experience.
“It really gave me a sense of hope in the way that there are so many young people who took the time to go on pilgrimage to celebrate the life of Blessed Fulton Sheen,” said Licud. “There are some people who talk about the statistics that newer generations are not interested in their faith. I feel they are just wrong. There was a great mix of ages there.”
“We are not just celebrating the life of a holy person. We are celebrating Christ and his victory on the cross, which Blessed Fulton Sheen's life reflected,” said Licud. “He showed us how we are supposed to follow Christ.”
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