CT News
March 25, 2026 : Pope Leo XIV approved the advancement of the cause for canonization of Father Edward Flanagan, a beloved Irish-born priest who devoted his life to serving vulnerable children in the United States. He founded “Boys Town,” an organization dedicated to serving impoverished children. Father Flanagan has now been declared Venerable.
His life and legacy were immortalized in the 1938 movie “Boys Town,” starring Spencer Tracy, who won an Oscar for his portrayal of the priest.
Thanks to his ministry to young boys in Omaha, Nebraska, Flanagan was invited to review the child welfare conditions in Japan and Korea in 1947, and the following year in Austria and Germany.
While in Germany, Flanagan had a heart attack and died on May 15, 1948. His body rests at Dowd Memorial Chapel of the Immaculate Conception in Boys Town, Nebraska.
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