The late Pope John Paul II moved one step closer to being canonised as a saint after a Vatican congregation recognised a second miracle attributed to the pontiff.

The Congregation for Causes of Saints ruled that the healing of a Costa Rican woman of brain injury on May 1, 2011 was because of the intervention of the former pope since the panel of doctors could not explain her recovery save for a miracle.

The criteria of the congregation in recognising a miracle is that the healing should be instantaneous, permanent and with no scientific explanation.

To become a saint, two miracles are required by the congregation. The first miracle attributed to Pope John Paul II is the cure of Sister Marie Simon-Pierre Normand, a French nun, of Parkinson's disease that led to the former head of the Roman Catholic Church being beatified in 2011 and given the title Blessed.

With the second miracle, one of the last steps needed is for the final approval of current Pope Francis of the canonization, likely to be held toward the end of 2013.

It would be one of the fastest moves toward sainthood in modern time, fast tracked by the waiver made by his predecessor, then Pope Benedict XVI, of church rules that mandates a five-year waiting period before the process for sainthood could start.

The well-loved pontiff died in 2005 after reigning as pope for 27 years.

Vatican, however, has not officially confirmed the action of the congregation.

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