Miracles, like the saints, are one of the most wondrous parts of the life of the Church since the earliest times. As 'the finger of God' pointing to sanctity (pope Francis), they play a particular role in canonization. The procedures to ascertain miracles, 95% of them healings, have been refined over the past four centuries, particularly in the 20th century, which also saw fundamental developments in the theology of miracles. Since 1983 fewer miracles have been required for a beatification or

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... nonization. Some candidates for sainthood have been raised to the altar on the basis of a single miracle, based on the common intercession of the saints.