Saints - a Catholic view?

Question

In a recent post, one man said: "Saints is misconstruded by the Catholic church. According to the Bible all true believers in Christ are saints."

I think he, and many people here, don't understand the difference between a saint and a "canonized" saint. When the Church canonizes a saint (as it canonized the Bible), the Church is saying that we know this person is in heaven and they are worthy of veneration: They are a friend of God and behold the face of God. There are billions of saints we don't know about, but we DO know about the canonized ones.
Catholics and protestants suffer from a language barrier. We are not as apart as many think, but we use different terms to describe the same things, and this can lead to unwarranted disagreements.
Oh, I need to make this a question before a troll reports me. Will you please read this link,
http://www.catholic.com/library/Praying_to_the_Saints.asp
...and tell me what you think? Or do you have comments on what I said?
God bless you all

That is not my typo, its his

Answer 1

Many Non Catholics can't grasp the concept of the Communion of Saints and think that we treat the saints not as fellow citizens of the kingdom of God but as gods while ,in fact,we treat them with the respect that the heroes of the Christian faith deserve( and not unlike their treatment of their founders and heroes) and the invocation that prayer warriors are there for.

Answer 2

I love how the "typo" was pounced on ... even though, since you had quoted it, it wasn't yours.

It seems to me that a great deal of the miscommunication regarding saints goes back to the invention of the printing press, actually. In the preceding centuries, as we know, stories of the saints -- the heroes of the Church -- were told by means of artwork. Thus, statues and stained glass windows and icons. The Church did not jettison these when the printed word became accessible to ordinary folks, as they are an integral part of our faith heritage.

Modern-day Christianity does have its heroes, but it has been possible to tell their stories in print. Martyred missionaries such as Jim Elliot are held up as examples, and rightly so. (I happen to believe that Elliot and others continue to intercede for us, even though there's no formal recognition of such among their brethren.)

If anything, non-Catholic Christians tend to err on the side of revering the living, which can create problems if the "living icons" go astray in spectacular fashion (Jimmy Swaggert being the most memorable recent example). Take a look at the "following" of present-day preachers, evangelists and writers such as Joel Osteen, Benny Hinn, Joyce Meyer, Franklin Graham, etc. They are treated as celebrities and held up as exemplary Christians. Personally, I think the Church takes the more prudent course by waiting until a person's entire earthly life can be evaluated before even thinking about starting the canonization process.

Answer 3

I think the issue came up once with an answer I posted somewhere (lost in the mists of lists), although after I thought about it, it did seem likely that there are living saints amoung us (such as my own dear mother). So I say to those people who insist upon splitting hairs: "Peace be to you" or "No harm done" Whereas someone who is into drugs and lost in the world of material things weighs upon my mind moreso than someone arguing about a realm that we can only wonder at. The Baha'i's call the saints "the Concourse" of Heaven, and to ask for their intercession is something they are supposed to do on a daily basis. This native woman I met once ended all her prayers with this gem: "All My Relatives!" instead of "Amen". Her faith that her ancestors who have gone on ahead of her are ready to help her in her daily walk (she has passed on a few years back), will always be strong in my memory. How ready the saints are to assist us, if only we ask! Their eagerness is something that if we fully were aware of, we would be constantly asking for their assistance!

And is there not a prayer you say before the Rosary that goes: "I unite myself WITH THE JUST ON EARTH, I unite myself WITH THE SAINTS IN HEAVEN, I unite myself, with YOU, MY JESUS, and with your HOLY MOTHER, that I might praise her worthily and worship you in her and by her."?

I think it's a cute prayer.

Answer 4

Comment:
Thank you for the information. In a previous post you gave this link, which I have been reading. Thank you!!
I have recently come back to my roots (Catholic Church) and find your post very helpful.
So what can a troll do when you post? this post does not seem to break any rules or am I wrong?

Answer 5

Troll? What troll??? There are no anti-Catholic trolls on R & S! ;)

What do I think of the link or the comments you made? I think: thank you. Well put and clear. I hope it educates some of our protestant brothers and sisters to that important aspect of the Church.

Answer 6

I agree that the biggest 'problem' is the language, language is a 'problem' not only between religions, but societies, animals, cultures, virtually everything. Miscommunication happens daily.
But more closely to your question - close-minded people do not want things explained to them, they only want to see it thier way, which is usually with horse-blinders on. It's very sad.

Answer 7

I think anyone who uses the non-word "misconstruded" when posting can automatically be written off as not knowing what they are talking about.

Answer 8

Your posts are always informational, you should be on ewtn or something.

Answer 9

Thanks for getting the word out, man.

Answer 10

NOT TRUE