The beatification process opened in the Munich-Freising archdiocese under Cardinal Michael von Faulhaber who opened the informative process on 10 March 1937 and concluded it later on 24 March 1938; a smaller process opened in the São Paulo archdiocese to correspond with the informative one and Archbishop Leopoldo Duarte e Silva oversaw it from 22 April to 2 September 1937. Theologians approved all of his spiritual writings on 24 July 1942 after having deemed them to be in strict accordance with the faith. The formal introduction of the cause came under Pope John XXIII on 27 April 1960 and he was therefore titled as a Servant of God. An apostolic process was later held and was opened on 8 May 1961 while Cardinal Julius Döpfner closed it on 14 February 1964. The Congregation for the Causes of Saints validated the previous processes in Rome on 16 January 1970 before later receiving the Positio from the postulation in 1985. Theologians assented to the cause on 9 July 1985 as did the C.C.S. on 8 January 1986 while the confirmation of his life of heroic virtue allowed for Pope John Paul II to title him as Venerable on 16 January 1986.