I know the Catholic church has Saints.?

Question

What does one do to become a saint?

Answer 1

Well, first you need to die. :-)

Seriously- you can't be a saint unless you are in Heaven with God- that is the definition.

After a standard cooling off of 5 years (which can be waived byt the Pope), a 'cause' is opened. Information about the person's life- good and bad- is gathered....hopefully from people who knew them.

The person is known as Servant of God.

Permission is given to ask for that person's help in prayer. When a miracle claimed to have occurred through the help happens, experts go and gather evidence- medical, physical and spiritual. If it is reasonable to believe it was a miracle, the person will be beatified, known as Blessed.

Then another miracle is neccessary beofre canonization, then the person is known as a Saint.

If they are Martyred, they automatically get the Blesses title, but a miracle is still needed for Saint.

The ceremonies are really beautiful- you can catch them on EWTN sometimes.

Answer 2

Saints are people in heaven or on their way to heaven. All Christians dead and alive are saints.

The Catholic Church selects some of the most extraordinary examples, does in-depth research, and canonizes them.

Canonization is the solemn declaration by the Pope that a deceased member of the faithful may be proposed as a model and intercessor (not mediator) to the Christian faithful on the basis of the fact that the person lived a life of heroic virtue or remained faithful to God through martyrdom.

Here is the modern method of canonization:

In order to allow greater objectivity and less emotion, no petition for sainthood can be made until at least 5 years after the candidate’s death.

+ Diocesan Investigation +

A diocese, parish, religious congregation, or association asks the bishop of the diocese in which the candidate died to open the investigation. After Vatican approval, the bishop forms a diocesan tribunal.

Witnesses are called before the tribunal to recount the candidate’s heroic exercise of Christian virtues. All documents regarding the candidate must be gathered.

At this point he is entitled to the title of Servant of God.

+ Vatican Investigation +

All documentation is passed on to the Congregation for the Causes of Saints at the Vatican.

The cause undergoes an examination by nine theologians.

If passed, the cause is for examined by the Congregation.

If passed, the cause is presented to the Pope for approval. A decree is published and read publicly.

+ Beatification +

A miracle attributed to the Servant of God is necessary.

The miracle must be proven through an appropriate investigation and another decree is issued.

Then the Pope decides on beatification.

With beatification, the candidate receives the title of Blessed.

+ Canonization +

Another miracle occurring after beatification is needed for canonization (sainthood), attributed to the Blessed’s intercession.

This miracle must again be proven through an appropriate investigation.

Papal infallibility is involved with canonization.

The Blessed acquires the title of Saint.

http://www.usccb.org/comm/SaintsFinal.pdf

+ With love in Christ.

Answer 3

To become a saint (small s), one must simply believe in Christ and strive to live a Christian life. All professed Christians qualify as saints.

To be recognized as a Saint (capital S) by the Church, the process is more involved. Those so recognized generally have lived lives of extraordinary faith and dedication to that faith. Many have been martyred for their faith. The process of declaring someone a saint is tremendously detailed and very specific. This process is overseen by a number of clergy, including at least one Cardinal, who must all vote and agree to proceed at each step of the process. There is a period during which information is gathered from witnesses who knew the person in life, where possible, or from their writings about the true extent and depth of their faith. Upon collecting all this information, it is voted on by the Congregation of Rites (several more Cardinals) and, with their approval, sent to the Pope. If the Pope approves, he signs the petition, and then the candidate receives the title "Venerable."

After being declared "Venerable", the life of the candidate for sainthood is further scrutinized to see if he/she "practiced virtues both theological and cardinal, and in an heroic degree". There is, naturally, extensive documentation of the conditions one's life must meet to be considered "heroic" in the faith. This part of the process is much easier for martyrs, since they are generally held to be heroic by default.

Depending on the degree to which the candidate measures up to the standard and the quality of the evidence in support of the findings, there must be a 2-4 "miracles" verified to have been the result of requests to the candidate for intercessory prayer. The amount of documentation available for the purposes of defining and classifying miracles is just *staggering* so I won't go into the particulars. A common example of a miracle is a medical recovery from a life-threatening illness or injury which is not explainable by the medical community (including doctors involved in the case, doctors not involved in the case, doctors from other hospitals or even other countries, etc.).

If intercessory prayer by the candidate has been verified as the cause of the prescribed number of miracles (again requiring agreement of the clerics assigned to the case and the Congregation of Rites), then the candidate's case is submitted to the Pope. If all is in order and the Pope approves, he will then issue a document giving the Catholic faithful permission to "venerate" (not worship) the candidate in the manner in which we honor all the Saints. At this point, the candidate is considered to be "Beatified" and may be referred to using the title "Blessed." After this permission has been granted, he will issue a "Bull of Canonization", which is the formal document declaring the candidate to be a Saint of the Catholic Church.

Except in special cases, there is generally a waiting period of 5 years after the death of the Candidate for the process to even get underway, and the whole of the canonization proceedings can take years or even decades to complete. The waiting period has been waived, for example, both for John Paul II and Mother Teresa. Mother Teresa has passed most of the hurdles to canonization, and so she is now known in the Church as Blessed Teresa of Calcutta.

Despite the excessive length of this answer, I've been *very* brief about all the steps involved in the beatification and canonization process. I'll direct you to the link in the sources section for more information.

Answer 4

According to God's Word, ALL Christians are saints.

"Unto the church of God which is at Corinth, to them that are sanctified in Christ Jesus, called to be saints, with all that in every place call upon the name of Jesus Christ our Lord, both their's and our's:" 1 Corinthians 1:2

"To all that be in Rome, beloved of God, called to be saints: Grace to you and peace from God our Father, and the Lord Jesus Christ." Romans 1:7

"That ye receive her in the Lord, as becometh saints, and that ye assist her in whatsoever business she hath need of you: for she hath been a succourer of many, and of myself also." Romans 16:2

"For God is not the author of confusion, but of peace, as in all churches of the saints." 1 Corinthians 14:33

Many times, when an apostle wrote a letter to the church, the letter was addressed to the saints at that church. I doubt they were addressing it to dead people.

The idea of "sainthood" as invented by the catholic church, did not start until 995 AD with the Canonization of dead saints, first by Pope John XV. This practice has no basis in the Bible.

Answer 5

That is complicated, but usually, God calls that person, and if he answers the call and follows the path that God indicates until the end, the person usually becomes a saint

Answer 6

the catholic church has twisted the issue of sainthood.
the catholic church "votes" in those in consideration of sainthood ..... NOT biblical. this is a tradition of men ... the catholic church has changed soooooo much doctrine, it's not even funny.... it's pathetic & NOT of God.

scripture says the saints are those born again according to acts 2:38 & john 3 who continue in the doctrine of faith that Jesus & the apostles taught & who live a holy life (repentent) unto God.
the saints are those Christ is coming back for & will rapture. they are the true church. they are born again & without spot. that is His bride.

Answer 7

we are all called to be saints.

The only thing you have to do is follow Christ. He will do the rest.

Answer 8

They have to be canonized, usually years (even centuries) after they've died. Usually these are people who died in rather nasty ways for their faith.
The Church decides who gets sainthood.