Vatican City - In a rare about-face, Pope John Paul yesterday granted a special dispensation from Roman Catholic Church rules that will allow Mother Teresa of Calcutta to speed towards sainthood.
Church rules call for five years to pass after a person dies before the long bureaucratic procedure for sainthood can begin. A Vatican statement said the Pope had dispensed with this regulation for Mother Teresa, who died on September 5th, 1997, and was revered by many as a "living saint" because of her work for the poor.