SW News: A Catholic statesman and one of the architects of European unity has been declared Venerable and is one step closer to sainthood. The heroic virtues of Robert Schuman were recognized by the Holy Father who authorized the Congregation for the Causes of Saints to promulgate the Decree advancing his cause.

Born in 1886, Schuman was a French Catholic who chose politics as a mission and a service. For him, it was one way of fulfilling the will of God. During World War II, he was arrested by the Gestapo and remained imprisoned from September 14, 1940 to April 12, 1941. He managed to escape from prison and remained at large until the end of the war. It is reported that he sought refuge mainly in convents and monasteries.

In post-war France, he was elected a member of Parliament and he went on to handle important positions such as prime minister, minister of finance and foreign affairs minister.

A devout Catholic, Schuman was the moral authority in creating a common system of economic and social growth. Along with German Chancellor Konrad Adenauer and Italian statesman Alcide De Gasperi, he laid the foundation for a unified Europe. Their endeavours led to the Treaty of Rome in 1957 which established the European Economic Community.

The following year, Schuman was elected the first president of the European Parliament. A year later, he was affected with a severe form of cerebral sclerosis. He passed away on September 4, 1963, in Scy-Chazelles, France, at the age of 77.