CATECHESIS ON THE SAINTHOOD by FR. PIUSRALPH EFFIONG, SMMM

Catechesis on the Sainthood

1.0 Introduction

The devotion to saints in the Catholic Church is one of the revered acts, which every catholic is obliged to observe. It is nothing more than respect and admiration for the memory of the deceased heroes of the Church. Just as the society honours her dead who helped to make the world a better place while they were alive, Catholics honour her saints. Saints are not born saints, but as sinners in the state of original sin and were sinners throughout their lives. Saints are ordinary people. They were not born with a halo (corona or crown) around their head, and they did not glow in the dark. What separated them from those who were not given the title is that they never gave up and never stopped trying to be and do better. Every saint was one time a sinner, but lived a life of continuous struggle for holiness. And in crowning them, they become channel of intercession for us, that is why Origen says: “But not the high priest alone prays for those who pray sincerely, but also the angels … as also the souls of the saints who have already fallen asleep. For Origen, the intercession of the saint has a great impact in the spiritual life of every Christian. And by so doing we are being invited to reflect on their lives and make haste to follow their examples. 

This is in conformity with the description of the three states of the Church which the Catechism of the Catholic Church defines thus:

"When the Lord comes in glory, and all His angels with Him, death will be no more and all things will be subject to him. But at the present time some of his disciples are pilgrims on earth. Others have died and are being purified, while still others are in glory, contemplating in full light, God himself triune and one, exactly as He is."

All of us, however, in varying degrees and in different ways share in the same charity towards God and our neighbors, and we all sing the one hymn of glory to our God. All, indeed, who are of Christ and who have his Spirit form one Church and in Christ cleave together.

It is against this backdrop, that we wish to make an attempt in responding to some of the fundamental questions such as: Who are the saints? What are the criteria for one to be called a saint? We will further take a look at the historical survey of the sainthood in other religion in comparison with Catholicism, and their efficacy when they are being invoked.

2.0 Defining Sainthood 

The Merriam-Webster defines a “saint” as one who officially recognized through canonization as preeminent or distinguished for holiness. In a comprehensive sense of it, a “saint” refers to person(s) believed to be connected in a special manner with what is viewed as sacred reality—gods, spiritual powers, mythical realms, and other aspects of the sacred or holy. The religious person may have various relationships with the sacred: as seer, prophet, saviour, monk, nun, priest, priestess, or other such personage. In the case of each of these, however, a specific kind of relationship to the holy is involved. Seers, for example, have an inspirational vision of the future; prophets, proclaim a revelation; saviours are entrusted with effecting redemption, liberation, or other salvatory conditions; monks and nuns lead religious lives in accordance with ascetic regulations that they generally observe as long as they live. Every one of these religious persons may simultaneously be, or become, a saint, but there is no necessary connection.

While “sainthood” on the other hand implies a special type of relationship to the holy, a relationship that is not automatically obtained by other religious personages through their performance of religious duties or offices. In many institutionalized religions there is a regularized process by which saints are officially recognized. In Roman Catholicism there is canonization, which generally requires demonstration that the person in question wrought a miracle after beatification. Canonization requires, among other things, proof that the person in question wrought miracles during his or her lifetime. On the other hand, folk belief often recognizes the saintly powers of living or dead persons long before the institutional religion acknowledges them as saints. 

3.0 Sainthood across other Religions

The concept of sainthood in the Eastern religions differs from one another, but seemingly related. For instance:

 3.1 In Shintō Religion which is a renowned Japanese religion, there is no mention of saints according to the standards of ethical perfection or exceptionally meritorious performance, but veneration of nature and with ancestor worship. According to Shintō belief, every person after his death becomes a kami, a supernatural being who continues to have a part in the life of the community, nation, and family. Good men become good and beneficial kamis, bad men become pernicious ones. Being elevated to the status of a divine being is not a privilege peculiar to those with saintly qualities, for evil men also become kamis.

3.2 In Buddhism

Buddhism a religion founded by Siddharta Gautama developed three major forms Theravada (“Way of the Elders”), also called in derogation Hinayana (“Lesser Vehicle”); Mahayana (“Greater Vehicle”); and, stemming from it, Vajrayana (“Thunderbolt Vehicle”; also “Diamond Vehicle”). A belief in saints prevails in all three groups. Theravada Buddhism, claiming strict adherence to the teachings of the Buddha, recognizes as saints (arhats) those who have attained nirvana (the state of bliss) and hence salvation from samsara (the compulsory circle of rebirth) by their own efforts.

3.3 In Jainism

According to Jain teaching, there were 23 Tirthankaras (saintly prophets or proclaimers of salvation) before Mahavira Vardhamana, the 6th-century-BCE Indian religious leader after whom Jainism was named. Today they are venerated as saints in temples containing their images. Veneration of the Holy Tirthankaras is viewed in terms of purifying the devotee morally, as these saints are but examples for the Jainas and not actually objects of a cult.

3.4 In Judaism

The cult of saints in terms of veneration was not a part of the monotheistic religion of Israel. Saintliness, however, was an ideal that many hoped to exhibit. The model of a pious person is depicted in the righteous one of Psalm 5, “his delight is in the law of the Lord, and on his law, he meditates day and night.” In the Hellenistic period (c. 300 BCE–c. 300 CE), when many Jews were susceptible to foreign religious influences, the Hasidim (the “pious” ones) segregated themselves from the others, holding fast to the faith of their fathers. The concept of the Hasidim gained new significance in the 18th century when Israel ben Eliezer, called Baʿal Shem Ṭov, or “Master of the Good Name,” started the modern movement called Hasidism. As opposed to the Orthodox Israelite religion with its emphasis on rationalism, cultic piety, and legalism, Baʿal Shem Ṭov stood for a more mystically oriented form of Judaism.

3.5 In Christianity

Jesus and his disciples did not speak of saints. But during the period (1st to early 4th century) in which they were persecuted, Christians began to venerate the martyrs as saints. They believed that the martyrs, being sufferers “unto death” for Christ, were received directly into heaven and could therefore be effective as intercessors for the living. By the 3rd century the veneration of martyr saints was already common.

In the Nicene Creed (325 CE) the early church called itself the “communion of saints.” Here, however, the word saint has the broader meaning of “believer” rather than being applied strictly to a holy person or numinous personality worthy of veneration. In the 10th century a procedure of canonization (official recognition of a public cult of a saint) was initiated by Pope John XV. Gradually, a fixed process was developed for canonization by the pope, requiring that the person must have led a life of heroic sanctity and performed at least two miracles. Saints in the Roman Catholic Church are venerated—but not worshipped—because of their spiritual and religious significance and are believed to be the bearers of special powers. Because of a belief in the powers of the saints, their relics are regarded as efficacious. In the Eastern Orthodox Church saints also are venerated, but the process of canonization is less juridical and not always ecumenical. In some Protestant churches (Lutheran and Anglican) saints are recognized, but they are not venerated as in the Roman Catholic and Orthodox.

4.0 The Canonization and its Processes 

Canonization is the declaration of a deceased person as an officially recognized saint, specifically, the official act of a Christian communion declaring a person worthy of public veneration and entering their name in the canon catalogue of saints, or authorized list, of that communion's recognized saints.

In the catholic church, there are five stages before one is being pronounced a saint. These stages are to enable the church to give a deep study on the candidate’s life and investigations into the available reports as well as revelations. 

4.1 Step one: Moment of waiting for at least five years 

The process to make someone a saint cannot normally start until at least five years after their death. This is to allow time for emotions following the death to calm down, and to ensure that the individual's case can be evaluated objectively. Some have to wait a long time before they reach Catholic sainthood. Saint Bede, the theologian, died in 735 but had to wait 1,164 years before he was declared a saint. The waiting period can, however, be waived by the Pope. Pope Benedict XVI set aside the waiting period for his predecessor, John Paul II, in 2005. This was thought to reflect the overwhelming hierarchical support John Paul II enjoyed, and the popular grassroots conviction that he was a holy man. John Paul II had also dispensed with the five-year period for Mother Teresa, beginning the process in 1999, less than two years after her death.

4.2 Step two: Become a 'servant of God' (Servus Dei):  

Once the five years are up, or a waiver is granted, the process of canonization commences at the diocesan level. A bishop with jurisdiction, usually the bishop of the place where the candidate died or is buried, although another ordinary can be given this authority, gives permission to open an investigation into the virtues of the individual in response to a petition of members of the faithful, either actually or pro forma. This investigation usually commences no sooner than five years after the death of the person being investigated. The Pope, qua Bishop of Rome, may also open a process and has the authority to waive the waiting period of five years, e.g., as was done for St. Teresa of Calcutta by Pope John Paul II, and for Lúcia Santos and for Pope John Paul II himself by Pope Benedict XVI.  Normally, an association to promote the cause of the candidate is instituted, an exhaustive search of the candidate's writings, speeches, and sermons is undertaken, a detailed biography is written, and eyewitness accounts are collected. When sufficient evidence has been collected, the local bishop presents the investigation of the candidate, who is titled "Servant of God" (Latin: Servus Dei), to the Congregation for the Causes of the Saints of the Roman Curia, where the cause is assigned a postulator, whose office is to collect further evidence of the life of the Servant of God. Religious orders that regularly deal with the Congregation often designate their own Postulator General. At some time, permission is then granted for the body of the Servant of God to be exhumed and examined. A certification non-cultus is made that no superstitious or heretical worship, or improper cult of the Servant of God or her/his tomb has emerged, and relics are taken and preserved.

Step three: Show proof of a life of 'heroic virtue'

Venerable (Venerabilis; abbreviated "Ven.") or "Heroic in Virtue": When sufficient evidence has been collected, the Congregation recommends to the Pope that he proclaim the heroic virtue of the Servant of God; that is, that the Servant of God exercised "to a heroic degree" the theological virtues of faith, hope, and charity and the cardinal virtues of prudence, justice, fortitude, and temperance. From this time the one said to be "heroic in virtue" is entitled "Venerable" (Latin: Venerabilis). A Venerable does not yet have a feast day, permission to erect churches in their honor has not yet been granted, and the Church does not yet issue a statement on their probable or certain presence in Heaven, but prayer cards and other materials may be printed to encourage the faithful to pray for a miracle wrought by their intercession as a sign of God's will that the person be canonized.

Step four: Verified miracles

Blessed (Beatus or Beata; abbreviated "Bl."): Beatification is a statement of the Church that it is "worthy of belief" that the Venerable is in Heaven and saved. Attaining this grade depends on whether the Venerable is a martyr:

For a martyr, the Pope has only to make a declaration of martyrdom, which is a certification that the Venerable gave their life voluntarily as a witness of the Faith or in an act of heroic charity for others.

For a non-martyr, all of them being denominated "confessors" because they "confessed", i.e., bore witness to the Faith by how they lived, proof is required of the occurrence of a miracle through the intercession of the Venerable; that is, that God granted a sign that the person is enjoying the Beatific Vision by performing a miracle for which the Venerable interceded. Presently, these miracles are almost always miraculous cures of infirmity, because these are the easiest to judge given the Church's evidentiary requirements for miracles; e.g., a patient was sick with an illness for which no cure was known; prayers were directed to the Venerable; the patient was cured; the cure was spontaneous, instantaneous, complete, and enduring; and physicians cannot discover any natural explanation for the cure.

The satisfaction of the applicable conditions permits beatification, which then bestows on the Venerable the title of "Blessed" (Latin: Beatus or Beata). A feast day will be designated, but its observance is ordinarily only permitted for the Blessed's home diocese, to specific locations associated with them, or to the churches or houses of the Blessed's religious order if they belonged to one. Parishes may not normally be named in honor of beati.

Step five: Canonisation

Saint (Sanctus or Sancta; abbreviated "St." or "S."): To be canonized as a saint, ordinarily at least two miracles must have been performed through the intercession of the Blessed after their death, but for beati confessors, i.e., beati who were not declared martyrs, only one miracle is required, ordinarily being additional to that upon which beatification was premised. Very rarely, a Pope may waive the requirement for a second miracle after beatification if he, the Sacred College of Cardinals, and the Congregation for the Causes of Saints all agree that the Blessed lived a life of great merit proven by certain actions. This extraordinary procedure was used in Pope Francis' canonization of Pope John XXIII, who convoked the first part of the Second Vatican Council.

Canonization is a statement of the Church that the person certainly enjoys the Beatific Vision of Heaven. The title of "Saint" (Latin: Sanctus or Sancta) is then proper, reflecting that the saint is a refulgence of the holiness (sanctitas) of God himself, which alone comes from God's gift. The saint is assigned a feast day which may be celebrated anywhere in the universal Church, although it is not necessarily added to the General Roman Calendar or local calendars as an "obligatory" feast; parish churches may be erected in their honor; and the faithful may freely celebrate and honor the saint. Although recognition of sainthood by the Pope does not directly concern a fact of Divine revelation, nonetheless it must be "definitively held" by the faithful as infallible pursuant to, at the least, the Universal Magisterium of the Church, because it is a truth related to revelation by historical necessity. Regarding the Eastern Catholic Churches, individual sui juris churches have the right to "glorify" saints for their own jurisdictions, although this has rarely happened. 

5.0 Theological interpretations of popular recognition

In monotheistic religions the belief in saints in its popular form generally contradicts orthodox teaching. Such religiosity is usually opposed and rejected or else reinterpreted in view of its ineradicably. If the latter is the case, the orthodox interpretation given the cult of saints in order to justify it is a theological construction. In Roman Catholicism, for instance, church doctrine makes a distinction between veneration (veneratio, douleia) and adoration (adoratio, latreia). Veneration is defined as a proper attitude toward saints, whereas adoration is applicable only in connection with God. The veneration of images as practiced especially in the Eastern Orthodox Church is explained similarly. The Roman Catholic Church teaches that the saints are representatives of God's grace on earth and that they are completely subject to his will. The vestigial remains of polytheistic beliefs and practices connected with the veneration of saints are thus theologically, though not popularly, eliminated.

Similar interpretations of the belief in saints in a monotheistic religion serve to justify an existing cult. The people themselves are hardly influenced by such interpretations, however. According to many scholars, the differentiation between douleia (veneration) and latreia (worship), or between veneratio (veneration) and adoratio (adoration), has little meaning for the masses. In practice, they observe their cult of saints quite in accordance with polytheistic devotion toward gods. The supplications actually directed to the saints in the various religions can hardly be distinguished from prayers to deities, even though the saints are theologically regarded as mere intercessors having special access to God, and the answer to prayer is considered as coming from God alone. From the perspective of scholars of comparative religion, however, beings to whom prayers are dedicated are gods.

6.0 The Efficacy of the Saints in the life of the Church

Then [during the Eucharistic prayer] we make mention also of those who have already fallen asleep: first, the patriarchs, prophets, apostles, and martyrs, that through their prayers and supplications God would receive our petition.” The intercession of the saints. "Being more closely united to Christ, those who dwell in heaven fix the whole Church more firmly in holiness. . .. They do not cease to intercede with the Father for us, as they proffer the merits which they acquired on earth through the one mediator between God and men, Christ Jesus . . .. So, by their fraternal concern is our weakness greatly helped."

7.0 Conclusion

The catechism of the Catholic Church reminded us that, we believe in the communion of all the faithful of Christ, those who are pilgrims on earth, the dead who are being purified, and the blessed in heaven, all together forming one Church; and we believe that in this communion, the merciful love of God and his saints is always [attentive] to our prayers" (Paul VI, CPG § 30).

Finally, the saints serve as a channel of where God answers our prayers. They intercede on our behalf each time we invoke them. The exemplary lives become a mirror where we make effort to imitate. May Saints of God pray for us now and at the hour of our death as we journey on this ephemeral life, and to behold the beatific vision we long for; through Christ our Lord. Amen.