CHOOSING AND NAMING ROMAN CATHOLIC SAINTS
- The second stage is called “beatification” and is a stage necessary for non-martyrs only. A martyr in this sense of the word is someone who has been murdered or put to death in the name of their Christian faith. For this stage evidence is needed of one miracle which has happened after the candidate’s death and as a result of a specific request to them. This is seen as proof that they can intercede for those on earth and act as their voice in heaven. The candidate will then be proclaimed by the Pope as “beatified” and so can be venerated by a region or group for whom the candidate’s life holds special significance. Accordingly, the Pope would authorize a special prayer, Mass, or proper Divine Office honoring the Blessed.
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Stage 3 After beatification another miracle is needed for canonization and the formal declaration of sainthood. After a second miracle is attributed to the intercession of the “Blessed” This third and final stage is for both martyrs and non-martyrs alike. The candidate is then canonized and officially named as a saint by the Pope. Since 1886 to 1964 we have witnessed this process in the canonization of Uganda Martyrs and in the near future we may be blessed to witness the entire process about Michael Cardinal Maurice Otunga of good memories.
In all, we must not lose sight that this thorough process exists because of how important the saints are as examples for us; the faithful who strive to live in the Kingdom of God now and see its fulfillment in Heaven. Vatican II declared, “God shows to men, in a vivid way, His presence and His face in the lives of those companions of ours in the human condition who are more perfectly transformed in the image of Christ. He speaks to us in them and offers us a sign of this kingdom to which we are powerfully attracted, so great a cloud of witnesses is there given and such a witness to the truth of the Gospel. It is not merely by the title of example that we cherish the memory of those in heaven; we seek rather that by this devotion to the exercise of fraternal charity the union of the whole Church in the Spirit may be strengthened”
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(“Lumen Gentium,” No. 50).
Saints, broadly speaking, are those who follow Jesus Christ and live their lives according to his teaching. They are those holy men and women who, through extraordinary lives of virtue, have already entered Heaven.Servant of God
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Servant of God is a title used as a description of a person believed to be pious in his or her faith tradition.
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Servant of God is the title given to a deceased person of the Roman Catholic Church whose life and works are being investigated in consideration for official recognition by the Pope and the Roman Catholic Church as a saint in heaven.
Venerable
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In the Catholic Church’s Latin rite, venerable is the title of a person who has been posthumously declared “heroic in virtue” during the investigation and process leading to canonization as a saint. Before one is considered venerable, he or she must be declared as such by a proclamation approved by the pope of having lived a life that was “heroic in virtue” – the theological virtues of faith, hope and charity and Cardinal Virtues of prudence, justice, fortitude and temperance.
Beatification
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Beatification (from Latin beatus, blessed, via Greek μακάριος, makarios) is a recognition accorded by the Catholic church of a dead person’s accession to Heaven and capacity to intercede on behalf of individuals who pray in his or her name. A person who is beatified is given the title “Blessed.”
Saint
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Saint to refer to a particularly holy person, recognized by fellow believers as someone who lived a divine life and who is in the Divine presence after death.
Canonization
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In the Roman Catholic tradition, a person who is seen as exceptionally holy can be declared a saint by a formal process, called canonization. This particular form of recognition formally allows the person so canonized to be listed in the official Litany of the Saints during Mass. Formal canonization is a lengthy process often taking many years, even centuries. At a minimum, two important miracles are required to be formally declared a saint. The Church, however, places special weight on those miracles or instances of intercession that happened after the individual died and which are seen to demonstrate the saint’s continued special relationship with God after death. Finally, when all of this is done the Pope canonizes the person to be saint.