The canonisation on Sunday of Britain's Cardinal John Henry Newman -- one of the Roman Catholic Church's most renowned converts -- and four others is the last stage in the Vatican's arduous process of creating saints.
The Church puts candidates through meticulous vetting and in most cases two "miracles" are required, usually healings resulting from the candidate's posthumous intercession in answer to prayers.
Friends or relatives can apply posthumously for their loved one to be recognised as having a "reputation for sainthood", which gets the ball rolling on the full sainthood application process.