How the Church Recognizes Saints Process of Canonization

Opening Prayer Come now, put aside your busy-ness for a while, take refuge for a time from your troublesome thoughts: throw away your cares, and let your burdensome worries wait. Take some time off for God: rest a while in him. Enter the secret room of your mind: put out everything except God, and whatever helps you to find him. Close the door of your mind, and seek God. Say now to God, with all your heart: “I seek your face, Lord. Your face I seek.” St Anselm,

True and False Question 1. Beginning in the time of the Apostles, the Church has maintained a carefully regulated process for the canonization of saints. 2. Catholics worship saints and that is the reason for the Church’s careful attention to the process of canonization. 3. Diocesan bishops are rarely involved in the investigation that must take place in order to advance a cause for sainthood. 4. There are ten official stages associated with the canonization process. 5. Canon law requires that an investigation into the virtues of a person’s life may not be officially opened until five years after the death of the would-be saint.

True and False Continued 6. The titles Servant of God, Blessed, and Saint are synonymous. 7. A candidate is automatically declared a saint if the following evidence is presented: healings through contact with a relic; incorruptibility of the body; liquefaction of blood on the anniversary of death; a sweet aroma associated with the saint’s remains. 8. If a person has been martyred, the requirement for two miracles after death is considered to be irrelevant to the process for canonization. 9. The Church does not consider scientific evidence or the testimony of medical experts in determining whether a miracle has occurred. 10. The declaration of beatification or canonization must be announced at a Mass that takes place in Rome.

Introduction Veneration of saints has been common practice in early Church Identification of who was a saint gradually became regulated by Bishop and Pope 10th Century, Roman Church no one venerated without approval First recorded canonization was St Ulrich of Augsburg by Pope John XV in 993

Code of Cannon Law Canon 1403 of our current Code of Canon Law regulates the process of canonization of Saints: §1. Special pontifical laws governs the causes of canonization of the servants of God. §2. The prescripts of this Code, however apply to these causes whenever the special pontifical laws refers to the universal law, or norms are involved which also affect these causes by the very nature of the matter.

Being canonized as a saint means: 1. The saint's name is added to the catalogue of saints (meaning that veneration is authorized) 2. The saint is invoked in public prayers 3. Churches may be dedicated in the saint's memory 4. The Mass can be offered in the saint's honor 5. Feast days are celebrated in the saint's memory 6. Images of the saint are made in which his or her head is surrounded by a halo 7. The saint's relics (remains) are enclosed in vessels and publicly honored

How does the Process Start Canonization examines a person’s life and death Two phases Diocesan Roman

Diocesan Phase Starts where person resides, usually 5 to 50 years after death People from church and community make the request its are called Actor Causae Research on writings, speeches, sermons present to Bishop Bishop than can ask Congregation for the Causes of Saints to open the cause

Diocesan Phase With Permission granted by Rome, Bishop Calls tribunal The person must be shown to have been virtuous, devout, religious, and characterized by love, kindness, prudence and other virtues (concrete examples are required). If Martyrdom: Investigate Circumstances by witnesses and examination of life Miracles are not necessary at this point, If the person passes this step, he or she is called a Servant of God.

Diocesan Phase At some point, 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 has grown up around the servant or his or her tomb, and relics are taken. Bishop send report to Rome

Roman Phase Step One Documentation sent to Vatican’s Congregation for the Cause of Saints Examine diocesan documentation by congregation’s theologians Sent to cardinal and bishop members of congregation for review Sent to Pope Pope Approval a decree issued- lived a virtuous life Conferring title “Venerable”

Step Two A miracle must be attributed to Venerable to move to next step Verified by team of medical experts Three traditional standards Total Healing of disease Must instantaneous ( all at once) Person must remain healed Pope declares the title “Blessed: Pope can dispense from a miracle if person was a martyr. ( not always)

Step Three Second miracle is required of the Blessed to move to Saint A proven miracle follows same procedure as the first Required even for martyrs Declared “Saint: Worthy of universal veneration by the Church

Ceremony of Canonization 1. The saint's life history is read aloud. 2. The pope chants the following in Latin: “In honor of the Blessed Trinity, for the exaltation of the Catholic Faith and the growth of Christian life, with the authority of Our Lord Jesus Christ, of the Blessed Apostles Peter and Paul and Our Own, after lengthy reflection, having assiduously invoked God's assistance and taken into account the opinion of many brothers of ours in the episcopate, we declare and define [name] to be a saint, and we enroll him in the Catalogue of the saints, and we establish that in the whole Church he should be devoutly honored among the saints. In the name of the Father and of the son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.”

Differences Beatification and Canonization Beatification (Blessed) became common around Centralized process Three main differences Number and location of diocese hold annual public liturgical celebrations Beatification - Bishop of diocese declares Blessed Canonization - Prefect of Congregation of Saints (Pope) declares Saint “Papal infallibility is involved”

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