Who is called to be a saint

Italian pope from to who extended the authority of the papacy to the west and persuaded Attila not to attack Rome New Testament the Apostle closely associated with St. Paul and traditionally assumed to be the author of the third Gospel. Apostle and companion of Saint Peter; assumed to be the author of the second Gospel.

New Testament disciple of Jesus; traditionally considered to be the author of the first Gospel. Spanish mystic and religious reformer; author of religious classics and a Christian saint Christian martyr and patron of those who suffer from epilepsy and Sydenham's chorea died around Christian martyr; patron saint of England; hero of the legend of Saint George and the Dragon in which he slew a dragon and saved a princess?

Apostle and patron saint of Ireland; an English missionary to Ireland in the 5th century. Candidates for sainthood must first be named Servant of God Servus Dei in Latin , and that person is named at least five years after his or her death by the bishop of the place where the person died.

The diocese completes an exhaustive search of the candidate's writings, sermons, and speeches is undertaken, writes a detailed biography, and collects eyewitness testimony. If the prospective saint passes, permission is then granted for the body of the Servant of God to be exhumed and examined, to ensure that no superstitious or heretical worship of the individual has taken place.

The next status the candidate goes through is Venerable Venerabilis , in which the Congregation for the Causes of the Saints recommends to the pope that he proclaim the Servant of God "Heroic in Virtue," meaning that he has exercised to a heroic degree the virtues of faith, hope, and charity.

Venerables then make the step to Beatification or "Blessed," when they are deemed "worthy of belief," that is to say, that the church is certain that the individual is in heaven and saved. Finally, a Beatified individual may be canonized as a saint, if at least two miracles have been performed through the intercession of the individual after his or her death. Only then can the Rite of Canonization be performed by the Pope, when the Pople declares that the individual is with God and a worthy example of following Christ.

Most of the saints whom we refer to by that title for instance, St. Others, such as Saint Paul and Saint Peter and the other apostles, and many of the saints from the first millennium of Christianity, received the title through acclamation—the universal recognition of their holiness. Catholics believe that both types of saints canonized and acclaimed are already in Heaven, which is why one of the requirements for the canonization process is proof of miracles performed by the deceased Christian after his death.

Such miracles, the Church teaches, are the result of the saint's intercession with God in heaven. Canonized saints can be venerated anywhere and prayed to publicly, and their lives are held up to Christians still struggling here on earth as examples to be imitated.

Actively scan device characteristics for identification. Use precise geolocation data. Others found their calling in a quiet, reserved life, far away from the center of activity. Julian of Norwich lived in a small cell attached to a church. She was even walled in, but that did not keep people away; they came to her and asked for her spiritual advice. Catherine of Siena lived at home, not in a convent, as a person dedicated to God.

People flocked to her, but not because she wanted them to. Others, whose names are not well-known, lived simple lives among their families and friends, serving God with all their hearts, but never making a splash in the world. Humility has always had a poor press; many people think that humility means saying derogatory things about oneself.

Far from it! The saints showed their humility by using whatever gifts they had to perfection, but never attributing these gifts to themselves. Augustine and St. Thomas Aquinas were brilliant men and they did not go around saying how stupid they were. They did acknowledge, however, that all they knew was as nothing compared to the infinite wisdom of God.

Some, especially members of religious orders, had entire days of prayer. Others found their time with God in other ways. Dorothy Day — not canonized but recognized by many as a truly holy person—started her day with prayer but said that she met God daily in the crowds of the poor who came to her hospitality house.

None of the saints saw prayer as a waste of time or as an activity for only the weak or naive. Each of the saints had human flaws and faults. They made mistakes. Even at the end of their lives, they still found themselves in need of contrition, pardon and reconciliation. Jerome, it is said, had a fearful temper. When another scholar of his time, a former friend, Rufinus, questioned his conclusions, Saint Jerome wrote pamphlet after pamphlet blasting him. Aloysius apparently had bad timing in his spiritual quest; the other novices were just as happy when he was not there.

He was the kind of saint who did not seem to know how to enjoy the things of this life. Some saints misunderstood their own visions. When St. 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 but had to wait 1, years before he was declared a saint. The waiting period can, however, be waived by the Pope.

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 , less than two years after her death. Once the five years are up, or a waiver is granted, the bishop of the diocese where the person died can open an investigation into the life of the individual, to see whether they lived their lives with sufficient holiness and virtue to be considered for sainthood.

Other religious groups in the diocese can also ask the bishop to open the investigation. Evidence is gathered on the persons' life and deeds, including witness testimonies.

If there is sufficient evidence, the bishop asks the Congregation for the Causes of Saints, the department that makes recommendations to the Pope on saints, for permission to open the case.

Once the case is accepted for consideration, the individual can be called a "servant of God". The Congregation for the Causes of Saints scrutinises the evidence of the candidate's holiness, work and signs that people have been drawn to prayer through their example. If the Congregation approves the case, it is passed to the Pope.

If the Pope decides that the person lived a life of "heroic virtue", they can then be called "venerable".