I'm sort of surprised Papa nostro concelebrated the Mass and not the Divine Liturgy. He loves the Eastern Liturgies more then the Latin Rite(s), modern or otherwise.

The Divine Liturgy = The Mass

That's ridiculous. Orthodox saints are canonized the way it was done more or less for most of history, first on a local level then on a wider level. Saints have been declared without undergoing a formal canonization process and without papal involvement even in the West. There are plenty of Orthodox saints, even from the 20th century.

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I am simply reporting what an Orthodox priest told me. If you have a dispute with what he said then you ought to go take it up with him. Have you ever spoken to an Orthodox priest about canonization of saints? 
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In the  Roman Catholic Church, there is no "local level" or "wider level" for recognizing saints, so whatever you're trying to imply about "the way it was done more or less for most of history" is entirely up for grabs, here.
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What you're saying appears to be complete fabrication.