Montini preparing for canonization of Pope Paul VI

Montini Catholic High School in Lombard is anticipating the canonization of Pope Paul VI.

Montini was named after Pope Paul VI, who was elected to the papacy in 1963 while planning was under way to create the school.

Pope Paul VI will be canonized as a saint by Pope Francis on Sunday, Oct. 14. Pope Paul, who had the task of closing the Second Vatican Council in 1965, will be canonized in St. Peter's Square along with Archbishop Oscar Arnulfo Romero and another four saints of charity during the Synod of Bishops in the Vatican.

Montini's school community will celebrate the Canonization during its All Saints Day Mass at 9:30 a.m. Nov. 1 in the gym.

Pope Paul's Beatification was made official by Pope Francis in May 2014 after a miracle was accredited to his intercession. The Beatification ceremony took place Oct. 19, 2014, in Rome.

Pope Paul VI was born as Giovanni Battista Enrico Antonio Maria Montini (John Baptist Montini) in 1897 in the northern Italian province of Brescia. He was elected pope in 1963, and served a 15-year pontificate before his death on Aug. 6, 1978.

He implemented the reforms started by his predecessor, John XXIII, with the Second Vatican Council (1962-1965). During his pontificate, he wrote seven encyclicals, including the "Humanae Vitae" ("Of Human Life"), published in 1968, which outlined the Catholic position on birth control.