What are the requirements for the Catholic church to name someone a saint? Is it the same for women and men?

Question

For example, does a miracle have to be atrributed to them? Did they have to be celebite? etc..

Answer 1

Did you know we are ALL called to be saints? No, Celibacy is NOT a requirement, but chastity would seem to be- or at least repentance after unchastity, as in St Augustine ( a VERY bad boy in his youth!)

Yes, it is the same for men, women and children. We have martyrs as young as 6. The youngest non-martyred saint I beieve is still Dominic Savio, but I may be wrong.

Married couples have been declared saints, religious and priests, and lay people ( non-clergy or religious)


First, the Catholic Church does not make saints. God makes saints. The Church tries to recognize people who have lived holy lives, and there seems to be evidence that they are in Heaven ( the definition of a saint.)

After death, there is a cooling off period of 5 years. This keeps people from rushing to canonization without proper investigation. This can be waived by the Pope. JPII waived it for Mother Thresa, Pope Benedict has waived it for JPII.

After the waiting period, a group of people may get together and want to demonstrate that the person may be a saint. They petition for an investigation of the person's life to begin.Once the investigation is open, (called opening the cause), the person is known as a Servant of God.

The Postulator is in charge of gathering good and bad details of the Servant's life. Recall, saints are not perfect, they just kept on trying! There used to also be a person called the Devil's Advocate who's job was to accumulate the negative info. Now it is all one office. They also seek any mircacles that have occured through the intercession of the Servant.

This means, someone has asked the Servant to pray to God on their behalf for a specific need, and that prayer has been answered. This demonstrates the servant stands in the presence of God.

After one miracle has been confirmed, the Servant is Beatified, and their title becomes "Blessed" rather than Servant. BTW, if a person is a martyr, they are automatically considered a Blessed after martyrdom is confirmed- that is, willingly dying for their faith in Jesus Christ.

When a secind miracle has been confirmed, the Blessed is canonized. This is done at a special Mass. They are called Saint, they have a specific feast day ( usually their date of death- their brth into Heaven).

Answer 2

Canonization, the process the Church uses to name a saint, has only been used since the tenth century. For hundreds of years, starting with the first martyrs of the early Church, saints were chosen by public acclaim. Though this was a more democratic way to recognize saints, some saints' stories were distorted by legend and some never existed. Gradually, the bishops and finally the Vatican took over authority for approving saints.
In 1983, Pope John Paul II made sweeping changes in the canonization procedure. The process begins after the death of a Catholic whom people regard as holy. Often, the process starts many years after death in order give perspective on the candidate. The local bishop investigates the candidate's life and writings for heroic virtue (or martyrdom) and orthodoxy of doctrine. Then a panel of theologians at the Vatican evaluates the candidate. After approval by the panel and cardinals of the Congregation for the Causes of Saints, the pope proclaims the candidate "venerable."
The next step, beatification, requires evidence of one miracle (except in the case of martyrs). Since miracles are considered proof that the person is in heaven and can intercede for us, the miracle must take place after the candidate's death and as a result of a specific petition to the candidate. When the pope proclaims the candidate beatified or "blessed," the person can be venerated by a particular region or group of people with whom the person holds special importance.
Only after one more miracle will the pope canonize the saint (this includes martyrs as well). The title of saint tells us that the person lived a holy life, is in heaven, and is to be honored by the universal Church. Canonization does not "make" a person a saint; it recognizes what God has already done.
Though canonization is infallible and irrevocable, it takes a long time and a lot of effort.

Answer 3

They have to do these things:

1. Win in a 100metres sprint against the pope.
2. Down a whole pint of lager in one.
3. Sit all the way through The Phantom Menace without yawning.
4. Beat Tom Cruise in an arm wrestle.
5. Get the highest score of the day on PacMan

And most importantly...

Answer 4

A miracle has to be attributed to them, yes. They are not required to have performed the miracle themselves, of course -- only God can do that -- but there has to be a miracle that occurs through their intercession.

The requirements for formal sainthood are the same for men and women.

No, people do not have to be celibate to be declared saints. Many saints were married and had children.

Answer 5

I think there's a certain required number of miracles attributed to them

and they go through levels like being called blessed, before they are considered actual saints

I think it's the same for both genders and you don't have to be celibate



(thinking of becoming one?) lol

Answer 6

It is unscriptural. Not in any bible.
The practice probably came from when the Apostles who had Holy Spirit, layed hands on qualified men, and passed on the healing ability. But that died out with the passing of these men.
The bible tells us the dead are asleep in their graves awaiting the Resurrection. How then can praying to the dead effect any action?

Answer 7

I always thought it was 3 miracles. And Celibate.

Answer 8

No miracle is required, just the establishment of "heroic virtue".

see mother Teresa.