The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Seoul announced on Friday that the Vatican has approved the beatification process of the late Cardinal Stephen Kim Sou-hwan.

This comes as the Vatican's Dicastery for the Causes of Saints recently informed Archbishop of Seoul Archdiocese Peter Chung Soon-taick that it had approved the 'nihil obstat' for the beatification of the late Cardinal.

The 'nihil obstat' decree means that there are no objections to the promotion of beatification after a review by the dicastery.

With this, the late Cardinal Stephen Kim Sou-hwan officially becomes a candidate for beatification, a confirmation that he had lived a holy life and often the first stage of the path to sainthood.

The Archdiocese of Seoul has been pursuing the beatification of Cardinal Kim, saying that he has set an example of virtue, devoted himself to the growth of Korean Catholicism, and contributed to establishing democracy and promoting human rights during his lifetime.