Saints For Dummies E-Book

John Trigilio

• Herausgeber: John Wiley & Sons
• Kategorie: Religion und Spiritualität
• Sprache: Englisch
• Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2010

Seitenzahl: 567

Beschreibung

An in-depth resource that separates fact from myth about thelives of saints Saints For Dummies offers information on famous saints(both men and women) from the Eastern Orthodox, Protestant, andCatholic traditions. With a historical biography on each saintincluding information on what they are known for, what they did inlife to achieve sainthood, and how readers can pray to them in timeof need. This easy-to-understand guide reveals that most saintswere very common, ordinary, and imperfect human beings with faultsand foibles who overcame their shortcomings to become figures ofgreat spiritual and historical significance. You get a uniqueglimpse into the lives and the character traits of these righteousmen and women, as well as future pending saints. * Explains which saints are invoked for specific situations * Rev. John Trigilio and Rev. Kenneth Brighenti are the coauthorsof Catholicism For Dummies, Women in the Bible ForDummies and John Paul II For Dummies Whether you're a scholar or just curious about the topic,Saints For Dummies will have you intrigued and informed fromthe first page.

Leseprobe

Saints For Dummies®

Table of Contents

Introduction

About This Book

Conventions Used in This Book

What You’re Not to Read

Foolish Assumptions

How This Book Is Organized

Part I: In the Beginning

Part II: Put to the Test

Part III: Living the Faith

Part IV: Explaining the Faith

Part V: Living with the Saints

Part VI: The Part of Tens

Part VII: Appendixes

Icons Used in This Book

Where to Go from Here

Part I: In the Beginning

Chapter 1: Understanding Sainthood

Ordinary Saints versus Official Saints

The Canonization Process Then and Now

Centralizing the process with Pope Alexander III

Revamping the process with Pope John Paul II

Intercession (Patron Saints)

Venerating the Saints

Following the Saints’ Examples

Setting a moral and ethical foundation with the four cardinal virtues

Building on moral virtues with the theological virtues

Chapter 2: Angels and the Blessed Virgin

Understanding Angels (And Why Some Angels Are Considered Saints)

St. Michael the Archangel

St. Gabriel the Archangel

St. Raphael the Archangel

The Blessed Virgin Mary

Mary, Joseph, and baby Jesus

Other key references to Mary in the Bible

Celebrating Mary’s feast days

Chapter 3: Starting at the Beginning: Apostles and Evangelists

St. Peter

St. Andrew

St. James the Greater

St. John the Evangelist

St. James the Less

St. Bartholomew

St. Thomas

St. Jude Thaddeus

St. Matthew

St. Matthias

St. Philip

St. Simon the Zealot

St. Mark

St. Luke

St. Paul

Part II: Put to the Test

Chapter 4: Overcoming Weakness

St. Augustine (Playboy to Puritan)

St. Camillus de Lellis (Compulsive Gambler)

St. Dismas (Thief)

St. Jerome (Bad Temper)

St. Mary Magdalene (Former Prostitute)

St. Monica (Mother of a No-Good Son)

St. Padre Pio (False Accusations)

Chapter 5: Looking at Undecayed Saints (Incorruptibles)

St. Bernadette Soubirous

St. Catherine Laboure

St. Charbel Makhlouf

St. Francis de Sales

St. Jane Frances de Chantal

St. John Marie Vianney

St. Josaphat

St. Lucy Filippini

St. Mary Magdalene de Pazzi

St. Philip Neri

St. Rose of Lima

St. Veronica Giuliani

St. Vincent de Paul

St. Zita

Chapter 6: Holy Martyrs

St. Agatha

St. Agnes

St. Blasé (Blaise)

St. Boniface

St. Cecilia

St. Denis

SS. Felicity and Perpetua

St. Fidelis of Sigmaringen

St. George

St. Hippolytus of Rome

St. Ignatius of Antioch

St. Irenaeus

St. Januarius

St. John the Baptist

St. John Fisher

St. Lucy

St. Maximilian Kolbe

St. Polycarp

St. Sebastian

St. Thomas Becket

St. Thomas More

Other Notable Martyrs

Chapter 7: Holy Virgins and Religious Women

St. Angela Merici

St. Bridget of Sweden

St. Catherine of Genoa

St. Frances of Rome

St. Gertrude the Great

St. Hedwig

St. Jeanne Jugan

St. Juliana Falconieri

St. Margaret Mary Alacoque

St. Mary Magdalene de Pazzi

St. Rose of Lima

Part III: Living the Faith

Chapter 8: Leading the Faithful: Saintly Popes

Pope St. Peter

Pope St. Linus

Pope St. Clement I

Pope St. Alexander I

Pope St. Telesphorus

Pope St. Hyginus

Pope St. Zephyrinus

Pope St. Callixtus I

Pope St. Pontian

Pope St. Fabian

Pope St. Cornelius

Pope St. Lucius I

Pope St. Stephen I

Pope St. Sixtus II

Pope St. Dionysius

Pope St. Caius

Pope St. Marcellinus

Pope St. Melchiades

Pope St. Sylvester I

Pope St. Julius I

Pope St. Damasus

Pope St. Siricius

Pope St. Innocent I

Pope St. Boniface I

Pope St. Celestine I

Pope St. Sixtus III

Pope St. Leo I

Pope St. Hilarius

Pope St. Gelasius I

Pope St. John I

Pope St. Felix III (IV)

Pope St. Agapetus I

Pope St. Gregory I

Pope St. Boniface IV

Pope St. Martin I

Pope St. Vitalian

Pope St. Agatho

Pope St. Sergius I

Pope St. Gregory II

Pope St. Zacharias

Pope St. Paul I

Pope St. Leo III

Pope St. Paschal I

Pope St. Leo IV

Pope St. Nicholas I

Pope St. Gregory VII

Pope St. Celestine V

Pope St. Pius V

Pope St. Pius X

Other Saintly Popes of the Early Catholic Church

Chapter 9: Founding Fathers and Mothers

St. Alphonsus Ligouri

St. Augustine of Hippo

St. Benedict of Nursia

St. Clare of Assisi

St. Dominic de Guzman

St. Francis de Sales

St. Francis of Assisi

St. Ignatius of Loyola

St. Lucy Filippini

St. Philip Neri

St. Vincent de Paul

Chapter 10: Ruling with Sanctity: Saints of Nobility

St. Canute IV, King of Denmark

Blessed Charlemagne (Charles the Great)

St. David of Scotland

St. Edward the Confessor

St. Elizabeth of Hungary

St. Elizabeth of Portugal

St. Helena of Constantinople

St. Hedwig of Poland

St. Kenneth

St. Kenneth (Of Ireland)

St. Louis IX of France

Chapter 11: North American Saints

St. Damien of Molokai

St. Elizabeth Ann Seton

St. Frances Xavier (Mother) Cabrini

St. John Neumann

St. Katherine Drexel

St. Marguerite Bourgeoys

St. Marguerite d’Youville

St. Rose Philippine Duschene

The North American (Canadian) Martyrs

St. Isaac Jogues

St. John de Brebeuf

Companion martyrs

The Mexican Martyrs

Blessed Miguel Pro

Other notable clerical martyrs

St. Juan Diego

St. Philip of Jesus and the Martyrs of Japan

Chapter 12: American Orthodox Saints

St. Alexander Hotovitzky

St. Herman of Alaska

St. Innocent of Alaska

St. Jacob Netsvetov

St. John Kochurov

St. John Maximovitch, Bishop of Shanghai and San Francisco

St. Juvenaly of Alaska

St. Nikolai Velimirovic

St. Raphael of Brooklyn

St. Tikhon of Moscow

Part IV: Explaining the Faith

Chapter 13: Doctors of the Church

St. Albert the Great

St. Alphonsus Liguori

St. Ambrose

St. Anselm

St. Anthony of Padua

St. Athanasius

St. Augustine

St. Basil

St. Bede, the Venerable

St. Bernard of Clairvaux

St. Bonaventure

St. Catherine of Siena

St. Cyril of Alexandria

St. Cyril of Jerusalem

St. Ephraem of Syria

St. Francis de Sales

St. Gregory Nazianzen

Pope St. Gregory the Great

St. Hilary of Poitiers

St. Isidore of Seville

St. Jerome

St. John Chrysostom

St. John Damascene

St. John of the Cross

St. Lawrence of Brindisi

Pope St. Leo the Great

St. Peter Canisius

St. Peter Chyrsologus

St. Peter Damian

St. Robert Bellarmine

St. Teresa of Avila (Or St. Teresa of Jesus)

St. Thérèse of Lisieux

St. Thomas Aquinas

Chapter 14: Saintly Pastors

St. Aloysius Gonzaga

St. Ansgar

St. Anthony, the Abbot

St. Anthony Claret

St. Anthony Zaccaria

St. Augustine of Canterbury

St. Bernadine of Siena

St. Bruno

St. Cajetan

St. Casimir

St. Charles Borromeo

St. Columban

St. Eusebius of Vercelli

St. Francis of Paola

St. Jerome Emiliani

St. John Baptist de la Salle

St. John Cantius (Kanty)

St. John of Capistrano

St. Josemaria Escriva

St. Martin of Tours

St. Nicholas of Bari

St. Patrick

St. Paul of the Cross

St. Vincent Ferrer

Chapter 15: Latin Fathers of the Church

St. Ambrose, Bishop of Milan

St. Augustine, Bishop of Hippo

St. Cyprian, Bishop of Carthage

Pope St. Gregory the Great

St. Irenaeus, Bishop of Lyons

St. Jerome

St. Paulinus, Bishop of Nola

St. Peter Chrysologus

St. Vincent of Lérins

Chapter 16: Greek Fathers of the Church

St. Athanasius of Alexandria

St. Basil the Great, Archbishop of Caesarea

St. Clement of Alexandria

SS. Cyril and Methodius

St. Dionysius the Great

St. Gregory of Nazianzus

St. Gregory of Nyssa

St. Gregory Thaumaturgus

St. Ignatius of Antioch

St. John Chrysostom of Constantinople

St. John Damascene

St. Justin Martyr

St. Polycarp of Smyrna

Part V: Living with the Saints

Chapter 17: Saintly Shrines, Relics, and Pilgrimages

Shrines

St. Maria Goretti Shrine

St. Anne-de-Beaupré Shrine

St. Jean-Marie Vianney Shrine

St. (Padre) Pio of Pietrelcina Shrine

St. (Mother) Francis Xavier Cabrini

St. Faustina Shrine

Relics

First-class relics

Second-class relics

Third-class relics

Pilgrimages

The early pilgrimages

American pilgrimages

A pilgrimage for priests

Chapter 18: Waiting for Their Halos: Saints in the Pipeline

Blessed Francisco and Blessed Jacinta

Miracle of the sun

What canonization will mean

Pope Blessed John XXIII

Life of service

What canonization will mean

Blessed Kateri Tekakwitha

Following her faith

What canonization will mean

Blessed Marie Rose Durocher

A life of work, sacrifice, and love

What canonization will mean

Blessed Miguel Agustin Pro Juarez, S.J.

Fighting persecution

What canonization will mean

Blessed Teresa of Calcutta (Also Known As Mother Teresa)

A life of empathy

What canonization will mean

Part VI: The Part of Tens

Chapter 19: Ten Favorite Litanies of the Saints

Litany of the Saints

Litany of the Blessed Virgin Mary

Litany of St. Joseph

Litany of St. Dominic

Litany of St. Francis of Assisi

Litany of St. Gerard Majella

Litany of St. Philomena

Litany to Old Testament Saints

Litany of St. Thérèse of Lisieux (Or St. Thérèse of the Little Flower)

Litany of St. Thomas Aquinas

Chapter 20: Ten Famous Novenas to the Saints

Novena of the Miraculous Medal

Novena to St. Joseph

Our Lady of Good Remedy

Novena to St. Dominic

Novena to St. Jude Thaddeus

Novena to St. Gerard

Novena to St. Philomena

Novena to St. Peregrine

Novena to St. Ann

Novena to St. Michael the Archangel

Chapter 21: Ten Popular Shrines of the Saints

Basilica of St. Francis of Assisi

Catedral de Santiago de Compostela

Cologne Cathedral

House of the Virgin Mary

La Madeleine

St. Peter’s Basilica

St. Stephen’s Basilica

Sanctuaire d’Ars

St. Patrick’s Cathedral

St. Spiridon Orthodox Cathedral

Chapter 22: Ten Saintly Families

Jesus, Mary, and Joseph

St. Joachim and St. Ann (Grandparents)

St. Elizabeth, St. Zachariah, and St. John the Baptist (Cousins of the Lord)

St. Martha, St. Mary, and St. Lazarus

St. Peter and St. Andrew

St. James and St. John

St. Macrina the Elder, Grandmother of St. Macrina the Younger, Basil the Great, St. Gregory of Nyssa, and St. Peter of Sebaste

St. Felicity and Her Sons: St. Januarius, St. Felix, St. Philip, St. Silvanus, St. Alexander, St. Vitalis, and St. Martial

St. Benedict and St. Scholastica

St. Boris and St. Gleb

St. Cosmas and St. Damian

St. Cyril and St. Methodius

Part VII: Appendixes

Appendix A: Helping Hands: A Listing of Patron Saints

Appendix B: Patron Saints of Countries and Places

Appendix C: Calendar of Feast Days for the Saints

Saints For Dummies®

by Rev. John Trigilio, PhD, ThD, and Rev. Kenneth Brighenti, PhD

Saints For Dummies®

Published byWiley Publishing, Inc.111 River St.Hoboken, NJ 07030-5774www.wiley.com

Copyright © 2010 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Indianapolis, Indiana

Published simultaneously in Canada

No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, scanning, or otherwise, except as permitted under Sections 107 or 108 of the 1976 United States Copyright Act, without either the prior written permission of the Publisher, or authorization through payment of the appropriate per-copy fee to the Copyright Clearance Center, 222 Rosewood Drive, Danvers, MA 01923, 978-750-8400, fax [phone]. Requests to the Publisher for permission should be addressed to the Permissions Department, John Wiley & Sons, Inc., 111 River Street, Hoboken, NJ 07030, [phone], fax [phone], or online at http://www.wiley.com/go/permissions.

Trademarks: Wiley, the Wiley Publishing logo, For Dummies, the Dummies Man logo, A Reference for the Rest of Us!, The Dummies Way, Dummies Daily, The Fun and Easy Way, Dummies.com, Making Everything Easier!, and related trade dress are trademarks or registered trademarks of John Wiley & Sons, Inc. and/or its affiliates in the United States and other countries, and may not be used without written permission. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners. Wiley Publishing, Inc., is not associated with any product or vendor mentioned in this book.

Limit of Liability/Disclaimer of Warranty: The contents of this work are intended to further general scientific research, understanding, and discussion only and are not intended and should not be relied upon as recommending or promoting a specific method, diagnosis, or treatment by physicians for any particular patient. The publisher and the author make no representations or warranties with respect to the accuracy or completeness of the contents of this work and specifically disclaim all warranties, including without limitation any implied warranties of fitness for a particular purpose. In view of ongoing research, equipment modifications, changes in governmental regulations, and the constant flow of information relating to the use of medicines, equipment, and devices, the reader is urged to review and evaluate the information provided in the package insert or instructions for each medicine, equipment, or device for, among other things, any changes in the instructions or indication of usage and for added warnings and precautions. Readers should consult with a specialist where appropriate. The fact that an organization or Website is referred to in this work as a citation and/or a potential source of further information does not mean that the author or the publisher endorses the information the organization or Website may provide or recommendations it may make. Further, readers should be aware that Internet Websites listed in this work may have changed or disappeared between when this work was written and when it is read. No warranty may be created or extended by any promotional statements for this work. Neither the publisher nor the author shall be liable for any damages arising herefrom.

For general information on our other products and services, please contact our Customer Care Department within the U.S. at 877-762-2974, outside the U.S. at 317-572-3993, or fax [phone].

For technical support, please visit www.wiley.com/techsupport.

Wiley also publishes its books in a variety of electronic formats. Some content that appears in print may not be available in electronic books.

Library of Congress Control Number: 2009942435

ISBN: 978-0-470-53358-1

Manufactured in the United States of America

10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

About the Authors

Rev. John Trigilio, PhD, ThD: A native of Erie, Pennsylvania, Father Trigilio serves as the pastor of Our Lady of Good Counsel (Marysville, Pennsylvania) and St. Bernadette Catholic Churches (Duncannon, Pennsylvania). He is the President of the Confraternity of Catholic Clergy and Executive Editor of its quarterly journal, Sapientia magazine. Father Trigilio co-hosted several weekly TV series on the Eternal Word Television Network (EWTN): Web of Faith, Council of Faith, Crash Course in Catholicism, and Crash Course in Pope John Paul II. He also serves as a theological consultant and online spiritual advisor for EWTN. He has been listed in Who’s Who in America and Who’s Who in Religion and is a member of the Fellowship of Catholic Scholars. He was ordained a priest for the Diocese of Harrisburg (Pennsylvania) in 1988.

Rev. Kenneth Brighenti, PhD: A native of New Britain, Connecticut, Father Brighenti is an Assistant Professor and Spiritual Director at Mount Saint Mary University and Seminary in Emmitsburg, Maryland. He is the Managing Editor of Sapientia magazine and a member of the Board of Directors for the Confraternity of Catholic Clergy. He has co-hosted three weekly TV series on the Eternal Word Television Network (EWTN). Father Brighenti also served as a U.S. Naval Reserve Chaplain for ten years and was ordained a priest for the Diocese of Metuchen (New Jersey) in 1988. He is the author of Marriage as Covenant (CreateSpace), and he and Father Trigilio coauthored The Everything Bible Book (Adams Media), Catholicism For Dummies, Women in the Bible For Dummies, and John Paul II For Dummies (all by Wiley). Fathers Brighenti and Trigilio are also Knights of Columbus and members of the Order Sons of Italy in America (OSIA) and the National Italian American Foundation (NIAF).

Dedication

This book is dedicated:

In honor of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Queen of all saints, whose maternal intercession and guidance helped us throughout the research, writing, and editing of this project.

In honor of St. Joseph, spouse of the Virgin Mary, head of the Holy Family, and patron of the Universal Church, for his paternal protection of ourselves, our families, and our friends.

In honor of St. John Vianney, patron saint of all priests, and St. Padre Pio of Pietrelcina, whose examples of personal piety, sacerdotal sanctity, and zeal for souls constantly inspires us in our vocation.

To his holiness Pope Benedict XVI, for his saintly leadership as chief shepherd and supreme pastor of the Universal Church.

To the members of the Confraternity of Catholic Clergy, a national association of priests and deacons that seeks to foster ongoing spiritual, theological, and pastoral formation of the ordained in a fraternal environment so as to be better prepared and equipped to serve the needs of the souls entrusted to our care.

To the priests, deacons, seminarians, and faculty of Mount St. Mary Seminary in Emmitsburg, Maryland, for their dedication to forming competent, orthodox, pastoral, and reverent men to serve Holy Mother Church and the people of God.

Acknowledgments

Fathers Brighenti and Trigilio would like to express their deep appreciation and gratitude to the following persons:

Percy and Norma Brighenti (parents); Elizabeth Trigilio (mother); Priscilla Brighenti Collin (sister); Mark Trigilio (brother); Lou and Sandy Falconeri (friends); Keith and Christina Burkhart (friends); Thomas and Bridgette McKenna; Michael Drake; Rev. Fr. Robert Levis, PhD; Rev. Msgr. James Cafone; Rev. Msgr. Steven Rohlfs; Archbishop Edwin O’Brien (Baltimore); Bishop Kevin Rhoades (Harrisburg); and Bishop Paul Bootkoski (Metuchen).

We are also very grateful to Molly Rossiter, Meg Schneider, and Barb Doyen for their invaluable assistance in formatting and editing this book.

And special mention to Mother Angelica of the Poor Clare Nuns in Hanceville, Alabama, and founder of EWTN (Eternal Word Television Network), who often said on her weekly programs, “God calls us all to become great saints. Don’t miss the opportunity.”

Publisher’s Acknowledgments

We’re proud of this book; please send us your comments through our online registration form located at http://dummies.custhelp.com. For other comments, please contact our Customer Care Department within the U.S. at 877-762-2974, outside the U.S. at 317-572-3993, or fax [phone].

Some of the people who helped bring this book to market include the following:

Acquisitions, Editorial, and Media Development

Senior Project Editor: Christina Guthrie

Acquisitions Editor: Tracy Boggier

Copy Editor: Todd Lothery

Assistant Editor: Erin Calligan Mooney

Editorial Program Coordinator: Joe Niesen

Technical Editor: Rev. Msgr. James M. Cafone

Editorial Manager: Christine Meloy Beck

Editorial Assistants: David Lutton and Jennette ElNaggar

Art Coordinator: Alicia B. South

Cover Photos: SambaPhoto/Izan Petterle

Cartoons: Rich Tennant (www.the5thwave.com)

Composition Services

Project Coordinator: Patrick Redmond

Layout and Graphics: Samantha K. Cherolis, Joyce Haughey

Proofreaders: Rebecca Denoncour, Bonnie Mikkelson

Indexer: Cheryl Duksta

Publishing and Editorial for Consumer Dummies

Diane Graves Steele, Vice President and Publisher, Consumer Dummies

Kristin Ferguson-Wagstaffe, Product Development Director, Consumer Dummies

Ensley Eikenburg, Associate Publisher, Travel

Kelly Regan, Editorial Director, Travel

Publishing for Technology Dummies

Andy Cummings, Vice President and Publisher, Dummies Technology/General User

Composition Services

Debbie Stailey, Director of Composition Services

Introduction

Although people view them with reverence and even awe, saints are simply ordinary men and women who, through their faith, overcome common weaknesses, failures, and shortcomings. And even though they’re often portrayed as perfect examples of holiness, saints are sinners, just like everyone else. Mother Teresa of Calcutta — likely to be made a saint sometime soon — often said that the only difference between a saint and someone who isn’t a saint is that the saint never gives up. Perseverance is the key to sainthood.

Real saints are real people. They have real struggles, real temptations, and real problems. Those who are granted sainthood become role models for the rest of us, showing that holiness and sanctity aren’t for the few but are available to anyone and everyone. Saints are spiritual heroes who show us that if they can overcome their personal foibles, so can we. This book is about these real people who weren’t perfect but who never quit and never gave up trying to do and to be better.

About This Book

Everyone who’s in heaven is a saint, so there are far too many to count, let alone name in one book. This book doesn’t try to give an exhaustive list of every saint known to man; rather, it provides brief histories of the men and women who lived faith-filled lives worthy of admiration and emulation. We’re limited by the data that’s available, so most of the saints we examine here are those recognized by the Catholic Church, which has the oldest, most extensive resources on this topic. Other faith traditions — Greek or Russian Orthodox, Anglican, Lutheran, and other churches — have holy men and women who are considered saints or considered to have lived saintly lives, but unlike the Catholic religion, those churches have no systematic and complete documentation on them. It’s merely a matter of better record keeping, as well as the theology and doctrine of the Communion of Saints.

You don’t have to be Catholic to appreciate or to be interested in the lives of the saints. Human nature is the same, regardless of what creed one professes. The stories of these brave men and women who fought temptation and persevered in their struggle to become better children of God are something anyone can appreciate.

In this book, we look at most of the popular saints and those whose existence has been verified. Saints who are missing from this book may very well exist and be in heaven, but some may have been only part of the imagination.

Part of the problem is that in the ancient church, there was no real, formal process by which one was named a saint. Some people were declared saints by unanimous consent, or acclamation, while others were named so by the local bishop or council of bishops. It wasn’t until the pope took the responsibility for the process that beatification and canonization came to be properly documented.

We cover sainthood both before and after the formal process developed. Because of translation and historical inaccuracies, there may be variant spellings of certain saints’ names, or dates and places of birth and death. Remember, before and even well after the invention of the printing press, a lot of church records were completed by hand — without the luxury of spell check!

Conventions Used in This Book

Following are some conventions we use that you’ll want to keep in mind when reading this book:

We use the traditional dating system of AD (annodomini, Latin for the “year of the Lord”) instead of the more recent usage of CE (common era), because of consistency. In the original records, the AD and BC (before Christ) designations of linear time are the only ones used. This convention isn’t meant to be insensitive to non-Christian readers but to be consistent with the setting in which the documents were made.

The saints we look at in this book are those whose existence has been verified and documented. The abbreviation of the word “saint” is St. for the singular and SS. for the plural.

Most saints of the early church, before the East-West Schism of 1054, are recognized by both Catholic and Orthodox Christians, while many of the post-Reformation (16th century) saints are typically only venerated by Catholics.

We use italics for emphasis and to highlight new words or terms that we define.

When known, we list the saint’s town or country of origin on the first line below the saint’s name.

If the dates of the person’s beatification and canonization are known, we include that information on the next two lines.

We list patron information on the next line for those saints who are designated patrons of certain countries, occupations, or human conditions.

Lastly, if the saint has a date on the Roman calendar (the liturgical celebrations for the Catholic Church around the world), we include that date on the next line before we look at his or her life in more detail.

What You’re Not to Read

This book is a reference book, so you don’t have to read everything. Sidebars — text enclosed in a shaded gray box — give you information that’s interesting but not necessarily critical to your understanding of the chapter or section topic. You can skip them if you’re pressed for time and still get the most important information. You can also skip any text marked by a Technical Stuff icon (see “Icons Used in This Book” later in this introduction for more information).

Foolish Assumptions

In writing this book, we made some assumptions about you, the reader:

You aren’t yet a saint yourself — that is, you’re still among the living — but you want to know something about those men and women of faith who lived before you and who are honored for their holy lives.

You may not be a Catholic Christian (you may be a Protestant or Evangelical Christian), but you’re curious about the lives of those particular men and women who are honored and venerated as being loyal friends and servants of God.

You may be a Catholic who remembers reading or hearing about the lives of the saints, and you want to refresh your memory or clarify some details.

You may have no religious affiliation but you have respect and admiration for the men and women who showed courage during trial, tribulation, suffering, and persecution in defending their faith.

You’re just curious and want to know the patron saint of your occupation or homeland, or you want to know more about those saintly people who overcame the same obstacles you’re battling each day.

How This Book Is Organized

This book comes in 7 parts, consisting of 22 chapters and 3 appendixes. Throughout the book, we refer you to other parts of the book to make it easy for you to get a better appreciation and understanding of a certain subject, but each part and chapter stands on its own, so you can read them in any order you like.

Part I: In the Beginning

In this part, we look at sainthood in general, the process involved, and how it’s applied specifically to certain individuals. We also examine the very first to be called saints — the apostles and disciples whom Jesus chose to start and to preach in his church.

The Catholic Church has the most saints because it’s the oldest religion venerating the saints and is one of the few faith traditions to have an elaborate system to publicly declare someone a saint. This part looks at that procedure, which has been streamlined by recent popes.

Part II: Put to the Test

Saints are holy men and women who more often than not had to endure many trials and tribulations. This part looks at those brave souls who overcame their own personal weaknesses and temptations and never gave up in their struggle for sanctity.

We also look at those who battled religious persecution and opposition, not to mention prejudice and discrimination, because of their faith, as well as those who had to contend with the natural desire to marry and have children but who, for a higher love of God, embraced a celibate life of virginity and service to the Church. Finally, we look at those exceptional and rare saints who overcame even the ravages of time and whose dead bodies remain incorrupt (undecayed).

Part III: Living the Faith

From popes to pioneers, founding fathers to founding mothers, and noble kings to noble queens, this part looks at those pivotal saints who influenced and shaped Church history and Church life because of their position in the world or in the Church. These saints put their faith into practice and were instrumental in spreading and sustaining that same faith.

Part IV: Explaining the Faith

The learned wise men and women of this part are the saints whose love of truth and ability to defend and teach the faith preserved and promoted their beloved religion. Though not all held academic degrees, their titles of honor are based on the success they had explaining Christian theology.

Fathers, Doctors, and Pastors of the Church are looked at for their vital contribution to the establishment of Christianity — not just as a religion but also as the means to sow the seeds of faith.

Part V: Living with the Saints

In this part, you meet some of the saints-to-be — those men and women currently beatified who are awaiting the final decree of canonization from the pope, whereby they become official saints of the Catholic Church.

We also examine things associated with saints, like their relics and shrines. Relics are either parts of the saint’s body or things that he or she owned, touched, wore, and so on. These artifacts are honored not for any magical reason but because that’s all that’s left of these holy men and women.

Part VI: The Part of Tens

If you like lists, the Part of Tens is for you. We give you ten of the most popular litanies and novenas of saints. We also give you ten places of saintly pilgrimage (shrines) and ten famous families of saints.

Part VII: Appendixes

Here we list the feast day for each saint as found on the current Roman calendar (the Catholic Church liturgical observance), as well as a list of patron saints and their particular patronage (place, occupation, or condition).

Icons Used in This Book

Icons are the fancy little pictures in the margins of this book. Here’s a guide to what they look like and signify:

This icon marks interesting information that makes it easier for you to get the inside scoop on saints and saintly facts.

This icon points out ideas that sum up and reinforce the concepts we discuss. In fact, if you’re short on time and can’t read an entire section, go straight to this icon. Also, if you need a refresher in a chapter for any reason, you can skim through and read these to reinforce the main points.

Think of this icon as bonus material — the info it flags gives you some background about the subject that’s not critical. In some cases, this information gives you the brief history of a point, or more detail than is absolutely necessary. We think the information is interesting, so we include it — but if you’re in a time crunch, you can skip over it.

Where to Go from Here

You can start right in with Chapter 1 and read to the end, or you can use the table of contents and index to find just the bit of information you’re looking for. If you’re curious about the Apostles, turn to Chapter 3. For information on the Virgin Mary and the archangels, go to Chapter 2. Or, if you’re interested in people like Mother Teresa — people who’ve been beatified but aren’t yet official saints — check out Chapter 18.

The great thing about this book is that order doesn’t matter. In most chapters, the saints are listed alphabetically (in a few chapters, chronological listing makes more sense, and we clarify that in each of the chapters), and the chapters are arranged by broad categories. You can read any chapter or any part of a chapter that interests you, or you can read the entire book from cover to cover.

For more in-depth study, we recommend Fr. Alban Butler’s Lives of the Saints in multi-volume and single-volume editions. He did a tremendous amount of research and study on almost every saint the Church recognizes.

Part I

In the Beginning

In this part . . .

We can’t really expect you to understand the saints until we explain what sainthood is and how it all comes together. In this part, we discuss the idea of sainthood, its qualities and characteristics, and the criteria the Church uses to determine whether someone is qualified to be named a saint. Anyone who makes it to heaven is a saint, but the true “official” saints are those of whom the Church has said: That man or woman lived a holy life worth imitating.

Saints are considered friends of God who were his faithful servants while alive on earth. This part looks at some of the first Christian saints of history — the Apostles and the Evangelists. We also include the most famous and beloved of all the saints, the Virgin Mary, and we briefly examine the mysterious spiritual beings who live with the saints in heaven — the angels.

Chapter 1

Understanding Sainthood

In This Chapter

Defining what it means to be a saint

Looking at the canonization process and how it has changed

Honoring and celebrating the saints

Following the examples set forth by the saints

In this chapter, we discuss the idea of sainthood in general, especially how the Catholic Church understands the notion of holiness in its members. We take you through the canonization process and explain how it has evolved over the centuries. We explain how saints are venerated, and we discuss the unique role patron saints can play in your spiritual life. Finally, we examine the reasons for pursuing a saintly life and the means to achieve it.

Ordinary Saints versus Official Saints

In the Catholic Church, anyone who goes to heaven is considered a saint. Those who make it to heaven but are never canonized are still as saintly as those named so by the pope; in fact, the unnamed and unnumbered saints in heaven are in the majority, and God alone knows who they are and how numerous. These ordinary saints lived normal lives but did so with faith in and love for the Lord. Official saints, on the other hand, are men and women who lived lives worthy of recognition, honor, and imitation.

The Catholic Church has never taught that a person has to be perfect or sinless to get to heaven. In fact, it teaches that every man and woman who has been born since Adam and Eve (except for the Virgin Mary, by a special divine grace from God) suffers from the effects of original sin. This means that all of us are sinners and need forgiveness. The saints were all human, with their own vulnerabilities, but by the grace of God they were able to overcome their shortcomings. They lived holy lives, even with their quirks and weaknesses, proving that others can do it, too. To be named a saint (a decision reserved for the pope), candidates are canonized, or formally authenticated through an intense study of the person’s life. Everything that’s known about a candidate — his words, deeds, and writings — comes under close scrutiny. If the details of the candidate’s life are determined worthy of formal sainthood, the facts and evidence are presented to the pope for approval. No one becomes a saint until the pope says it’s so.

Official sainthood isn’t merely an honor for the saints themselves. The saints serve as examples for the faithful who struggle to reconcile their human natures with their spiritual aspirations.

The following sections explore the making of a saint, from the initial nomination process and early examinations, to everything the Church must consider and the events that must take place after the candidate’s death.

The Canonization Process Then and Now

As we mention in the previous section, any declaration of sainthood must come from the pope. That’s true now, but it wasn’t always so. Before the 12th century, the local bishop was the one who canonized saints — either on his own or in a council or synod of bishops. In very early and ancient times, saints were declared by acclamation, or unanimous consent of the people. If a popular holy person died, usually a martyr, the diocese where he or she lived and died eagerly pushed for sainthood.

But dying for the faith wasn’t the only way of sanctity and holiness. Living a good and holy life — even if it didn’t end in martyrdom — meant something, too.

The question arose, then: Who gets to be declared a saint? In this section, we look at the development of the formal process by which someone is declared (canonized) a saint.

Centralizing the process with Pope Alexander III

Pope Alexander III was the first to rein in the canonization process. In the late 12th century, he made canonization the exclusive province of the papacy, and he and his successors established elaborate processes and regulations to make sure that every candidate met uniform eligibility guidelines. The result was something very much like a trial. Each investigation involved a promoter for the saint-to-be (sort of a defense attorney) and an opposing side (the equivalent of a prosecuting attorney), called the devil’s advocate, whose job was to expose any heresies in the candidate’s writings or sermons, and/or any immoral behavior in the candidate’s life.

For the next 800 years, those who wanted to advocate a particular person for sainthood had to follow a time-consuming path. First was beatification, a formal decision that a person can be called “Blessed.” Beatification involved a canonical trial with advocates and judges. Those who knew the candidate or witnessed postmortem miracles testified, and the candidate’s writings and teachings were examined and entered into evidence. All this took place in Rome, because one of the regulations that came from Alexander’s centralization policies was that all such trials be held at the Vatican.

Oh, yes, there was also a 50-year waiting period between a person’s death and the earliest date he or she could be considered for sainthood. The purpose of the waiting period was to allow time for emotions to settle, thus reducing the number of grief-induced petitions for sainthood. Fifty years was considered the length of time for one generation to disappear.

Revamping the process with Pope John Paul II

In 1983, Pope John Paul II made major changes to the canonization process. For one thing, he reduced the waiting period from 50 years to 5 years, in large part because, after 50 years, finding witnesses who knew the candidate personally can be difficult.

The pope has the authority to reduce or waive this waiting period; in fact, John Paul waived it himself in the case of Mother Teresa (see Chapter 18).

John Paul II also replaced the trial process with a more scholarly, document-oriented approach. Officials still gather the candidate’s writings and facts about the candidate’s life, but the contentious roles of the devil’s advocate and the trial setting are gone (see the upcoming section “Examining lives and allowing for human nature”). And he returned much of the process to the authority of the local diocese; local bishops and dioceses now do much of the preparatory work and the first phase of research, as they’re the ones on location where the proposed saint lived and worked.

When a bishop accepts a case for review, the candidate is called a “Servant of God,” until a decision is made to send the case on. When that occurs, the proposed saint is considered Venerable, and research focuses on proof of a miracle connected with the candidate (see the “Confirming miracles” section later in this chapter). After a bona fide miracle is established, Rome decides whether the person can be called “Blessed” and formally beatified.

The next phase is one of waiting for another miracle and the documentation on it. Not all beatifications continue to canonization, but as long as a verifiable second miracle exists, there is hope.

Pope John Paul II reserved all beatification ceremonies to himself, but Pope Benedict XVI has restored the ancient practice of allowing other bishops to beatify their local candidates for sainthood. Benedict still has final say on elevating a “Blessed” to “Saint.”

If sufficient evidence exists, and if the pope decides to canonize someone, the feast day is typically the day he or she died. This is considered the saint’s “heavenly birthday.” Some saints die on a day already taken in the universal calendar, so their feast day is designated on the closest open day to their actual date of death.

Examining lives and allowing for human nature

When people are proposed as possible saints, their lives — their actions and words — are closely examined. No one looks for perfection — just for reassurance that the person in question didn’t lead a notorious or scandalous life. Catholic authorities scrutinize the candidate’s speeches, sermons, books, and other writings to make sure that they contain nothing contradicting defined doctrines or dogmas.

Still saints, just no feast days

Some saints, like St. Christopher and St. Valentine, have been removed from the Roman calendar, but that doesn’t mean that they were defrocked of their sainthood. Saints for whom there isn’t enough evidence to establish the date and place of death are considered saints, but their traditional feast days may be given officially to someone whose departure from this world can be verified.

So, for example, February 14 was traditionally St. Valentine’s Day and still is. However, there are no records unequivocally establishing the actual day of his death, and even the precise year is unknown. (We don’t even know what century some saints lived in.) On the other hand, we have proof that SS. Cyril and Methodius died on February 14. So Valentine’s Day is the official feast day for St. Cyril and St. Methodius.

What happened to St. Valentine and St. Christopher? They’re still in heaven; they’re just not on the liturgical calendar, that’s all. Other saints went from the universal calendar to the local or regional feast calendar.

If the candidate’s words and deeds pass muster, examiners then search for heroic virtue — the desire and effort to seriously pursue a life of holiness.

Saints are human, and as such, they make mistakes. They’re not angels, they don’t have wings or halos, and they don’t glow in the dark. Saints are simply sinners who never gave up trying to do and to be better.

Confirming miracles

The definition of an accepted miracle varies almost as widely as those proposed for sainthood. Traditional miracles involve unexpected healing that’s immediate and complete, as well as inexplicable to modern science.

Other miracles can be used as corroborative evidence, such as

Incorruptibility: A phenomenon in which the dead person’s body doesn’t decay, no matter how many years have elapsed since death. Only non-embalmed bodies are considered for evidence of incorruptibility.

The odor of sanctity:A sweet smell of roses exuding from the dead body, despite rigor mortis and the number of years since death. Again, only non-embalmed bodies are considered for this miracle.

Signs of stigmata: Marks resembling one or more of the five wounds Christ suffered upon crucifixion, present only while the person was alive.

Bilocation:Being in two places at the same time. Because this only happens before death, while the saint candidate is still alive, only the most reliable testimony from unimpeachable witnesses can be used. Levitation also can be used as evidence.

Intercession (Patron Saints)

You have mediators and intercessors in your lives every day; you just don’t call them “mediator” and “intercessor.” Sometimes you call them “doctor” and “nurse,” or “store manager” and “clerk.” The intercessor is the person you turn to in order to seek help from someone higher up: The nurse relays your information to the doctor; the clerk relays requests or concerns to the store manager.

That’s how it is with God and saints. Jesus is the mediator in our lives, the one who can speak on behalf of an entire group and who has the authority to negotiate, make agreements or treaties, and represent both parties. The saints are those who make requests to the one and only mediator on behalf of someone else. Their role is optional — not everyone turns to an intercessor, or saint, to address God.

Patron saints serve as intercessors for particular areas. For example, St. Lucy was a martyr in the ancient Church who died a horrible death when her Roman persecutors gouged out her eyeballs (see Chapter 6). She is invoked as the patron saint for ailments of the eye.

Just as the living on earth can and do pray for others (intercession), the saints in heaven can and do pray for the living here on earth. In both cases, the intercessor prays to the one mediator on behalf of someone else. The Catholic Church sees the intercession of the saints as one big prayer chain in the sky.

Venerating the Saints

Just because saints have their own days on the Church calendar doesn’t mean they’re to be worshipped — that’s held for God alone. Rather, saints are worthy of public honor or veneration, called dulia in Latin. Holy men and women in heaven deserve honor just as our nation honors those who died defending our country.

Statues, icons, and images of the saints are not to be considered idols (a claim some have used to criticize Catholicism, citing one of the Ten Commandments warning against worshipping false idols). Again, the proper analogy is not worship but honor. Memorials such as statues of George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, and Abraham Lincoln are public and government-supported ways to honor brave heroes who either died in service of their nation or who spent a good portion of their lives in service to it. The same type of honor exists within the Church. Statues, icons, and images of the saints are memorials meant to remind us of the courage and piety of these holy men and women.

Do you have a picture of a deceased loved one in your wallet or hanging on the wall at home? Those images aren’t idols. The pictures of saints displayed in church or in homes are the same thing: a visible reminder of someone you honor and appreciate.

Canonized saints not only have a feast day but also can have churches named after them, such as St. Bernadette’s Church or the Church of St. Ann. The building is still a house of God and place of divine worship, yet the place is dedicated to the intercession (see the next section) of this particular saint. Schools (elementary, high school, college, and university), too, can be named after canonized saints to honor their legacy of faith.

Following the Saints’ Examples

By canonizing many new saints, Pope John Paul showed the world that sanctity and holiness don’t belong to a clerical minority. Heaven is open to anyone who wants it and is willing to live a good and holy life.

Sainthood is a multi-step process, both in life and after death. In life, achieving holiness may involve a one-time decision to accept God, but that decision must be followed by a lifetime of living according to that decision. Martyrdom — dying in the name of faith — is a one-time act, but making such a strong commitment requires a lifetime of working toward being a true and faithful servant of God.

Sainthood is a reminder that perseverance and dedication to one’s faith can bring us to our goals. As Blessed Mother Teresa of Calcutta often said, “God does not call us to be successful; he calls us to be faithful.” We know we aren’t perfect and, save for the grace of God, won’t be; as such, we should stop trying to reach for that which is out of our grasp. Instead of trying to be perfect, we are called to be faithful in our efforts to do and be better.

Sainthood is also a reminder that even the most hardened sinner isn’t without help or hope. Through God’s grace, anyone can turn his life around and return to the faithful.

In this section, we look at the moral, everyday life of the hopeful saint-to-be. Because the saints are normal human beings, they have the same wounded human nature all men and women are born with, thanks to original sin. And because they have the same moral weaknesses we all do, their ability to overcome them by God’s grace is also available to everyone else.

Setting a moral and ethical foundation with the four cardinal virtues

St. Thomas Aquinas, a brilliant theologian of the 13th century, taught that “grace builds upon nature.” This means that before anyone can hope to live a holy life worthy of sainthood (being in heaven), he or she must have a solid moral and ethical foundation upon which the life of grace is built. Being a holy or saintly person is no accident. You must intend and want to be holy. One must first pursue goodness before holiness. The former lays the groundwork for the latter.

The moral or cardinal virtues have been known and discussed since antiquity. Socrates, Plato, Aristotle, Cicero, and the Stoics, just to name a few, were philosophers who lived centuries before Christ and who were Greek or Roman pagans. They had no revealed religion like the Jews and Christians. But they had the use of human reason and saw that there were four cardinal (from the Latin word cardo, meaning “hinge” — that is, the hinges to a good moral life) virtues. The ancient philosophers realized that prudence, justice, fortitude, and temperance were the underpinnings of an ethical life and would bring peace and happiness to the individual person and to the community and society at large. Faith complements reason, so religion continues the process by adding to the cardinal or moral virtues the three theological virtues of faith, hope, and love.

The moral (cardinal) virtues can and ought to be practiced by anyone and everyone. They’re good for you and help you to be and to do good, as each one is considered a habit you must acquire through effort and practice. The theological virtues come via divine grace through the sacraments, especially Baptism, which is the gateway to the other sacraments (Penance, Eucharist, Confirmation, Matrimony, Holy Orders, and Anointing of the Sick).

To be considered holy, one must first seek a life of virtue — a life guided by the four cardinal virtues of prudence, justice, fortitude, and temperance. As with any life change, each of these virtues must be practiced often before it becomes an ingrained habit.

The following sections give a closer look at each of the cardinal virtues.

Prudence

The premiere of all virtues, prudence is the ability to make good decisions and to have the ability to practice tact — knowing when, where, and how something is appropriate. You wouldn’t ask a friend to repay a debt at the friend’s mother’s funeral. In the same vein, prudence is knowing how to approach a delicate situation with sensitivity and charity.

St. Thomas More (16th century) was a most prudent man. As Lord Chancellor of England and a wealthy nobleman, Thomas always weighed his words and deeds before he said or did them. Some may have called him cautious, but prudent best summarizes his life as a Catholic layman. During his conflict with King Henry VIII, Thomas prudently kept quiet when needed and spoke eloquently and boldly when needed as well. Never rash or impetuous, Thomas prayed and gave deliberation to every aspect of his political, social, and private life. Being wise in knowing the right time and place and the right word and action is what prudence is about.

Justice

Justice is doing the right thing for the right reason; quid pro quo (this for that), the Romans used to say. There are three kinds of justice: commutative, distributive, and social, each defined by the people involved.

Commutative justice involves just two parties: the buyer and seller, teacher and student, neighbor and neighbor. It involves equity and fairness between the two parties.

Distributive justice is the balance between the individual and the group, such as between a resident and a government, or a union member and the union. A resident pays taxes and votes in elections; in return, the government provides for safety and well-being.

Social justice is the responsibility everyone has to preserve natural resources for future generations and look out for one another. When one government oppresses its people, for example, social justice drives other governments and citizens to stand up in defense of the oppressed.

St. Joseph (first century) is literally called a “just” man in the Gospel, and he epitomizes the virtue of justice. He knew what was the right thing to do, and he sought to be fair at all times. His protection of his wife Mary and her son Jesus was motivated out of love, to be sure, but it was his practice of justice that enabled him to be the husband and foster father he needed to be for his family. Being fair to everyone and doing the right thing — and not for reward or recognition — is what justice is all about.

Fortitude

Everyone has been in the position of wanting or needing to do or say something that’s necessary, although not easy. Fortitude is having the courage to do or say it anyway.

Blessed Teresa of Calcutta (20th century) is certainly the poster child for fortitude and courage. She was unflinching in her determination to do what had to be done and to say what had to be said, no matter how powerful her opponents. Whether it was helping the poorest of the poor or defending the lives of the unborn in the womb, this little Albanian nun became very familiar with the virtue of fortitude, and hence, she never gave up and never quit. She spoke with charity and kindness but also with firmness of conviction — to leaders of the First, Second, and Third Worlds; the UN; Congress and the White House. Having the guts to do the job (God’s will, that is) and not be influenced by ambition or fear is what fortitude is about.

Temperance

Temperance is knowing when enough is enough. Temperate people set limits on their own legitimate pleasures and activities. You may allow yourself a glass of wine, for example, but temperance keeps you from overindulging.

St. Josemaria Escriva (20th century) was a very temperate man. He practiced moderation in his work and in his play (leisure and recreation). No party pooper, Josemaria would enjoy parties and responsibly partake of alcoholic beverages, such as wine. But he knew there had to be limits, and he didn’t overindulge. He balanced work with rest. Temperance taught him the value of moderation in pleasures so as not to abuse himself or others. Josemaria also practiced some self-denial called mortification, but again in moderate ways so as not to incur injury or harm. A healthy balance is what temperance is about.

Building on moral virtues with the theological virtues

The road to sainthood involves not only the moral virtues but also the theological virtues. These virtues are bestowed at Baptism but can be enhanced throughout one’s lifetime. Baptism remits original sin and makes a person an adopted “child of God.” Sanctifying grace is given at Baptism, which makes a person holy and thus able to enter the holiness of heaven. Along with sanctifying grace, Baptism also makes the soul pliable and ready for actual grace, which is the supernatural gift from God that enables you to do holy things (like pray, forgive your enemies, endure hardships, make sacrifices for others, have courage in the midst of difficulties, and so on).

Following are the theological virtues:

Faith is believing what God says simply because it comes from God.

Hope is trusting in promises that God has yet to fulfill, knowing that those promises one day will come to fruition, at a time and place that is right for God.

Love, theologically, is a spiritual love, wanting what is best for someone else, putting others above one’s self. It’s not a sexual love or a biological love; it’s seeking to love God and to love your neighbor.

The theological virtues build on what the moral, cardinal virtues hopefully establish as a foundation. Faith, hope, and love empower you to believe what God has revealed, to trust in his mercy and providence, to love God with your whole heart and soul, and to love your neighbor as yourself. The daily struggle to live a holy life is made possible by the theological virtues. Hence, people want and need more faith, more hope, and more love every day of their lives until they finally get to heaven, where there is the fullness of grace and the total joy without end.

Sainthood begins with virtue and ends in holiness. It’s a lifelong process — there’s never a time when a person can stop being prudent, just, temperate, or courageous. In the same way, faith, hope, and love are never fully realized until we get to heaven, but God gives us little morsels to savor along the way.

Chapter 2

Angels and the Blessed Virgin

In This Chapter

Distinguishing angels from saints

Looking at the three key archangels

Getting to know the Virgin Mary

Saints are human souls living in heaven. They’re considered friends of God and deserve respect and honor because of their fidelity. Of all the saints in heaven, the highest honor is given to the Virgin Mary, the Mother of Jesus Christ. She’s not only the biological Mother of the Savior but also his most faithful disciple. Mary always put the will of God before her own, and she even says in the Gospel of John, “Do whatever [my son] tells you.”

As saints warrant honor and veneration (but never adoration or worship), Catholics and the Eastern Orthodox Church give the Blessed Mother the highest type of honor, though they stop short of crossing the line into adoration (because worshiping Mary would be idolatry). She is given the utmost respect because of her special relationship with Jesus.

The angels are second only to Mary in terms of their dignity. Both are creatures made by God. Though angels are far superior to human beings in terms of intelligence and power, the Virgin Mary outranks them because of her unique position as the Mother of Christ.

Three angelic beings are named in the Bible and a few more in the apocryphal Scriptures. In this chapter, we examine them and the special woman chosen to be the Mother of the Messiah, the Virgin Mary.

Understanding Angels (And Why Some Angels Are Considered Saints)

Contrary to popular belief, angels aren’t people who’ve died and gone to heaven and then earned their wings. Angels are spirits that God created before he made human beings; they were the first creatures ever created and were the most powerful, most intelligent, and most beautiful. Angels are pure spirits in that they have no bodies — only intellect and will. Men and women — from Adam and Eve to today — are body and soul, both material and spiritual.

People who die and go to heaven don’t become angels — they become saints. Angels and saints are two separate beings, separate species. Confusion arises when, on occasion, some angels are given the title saint, which is typically reserved for humans. The overlap is merely a matter of semantics: The Latin word for saint is sancta, which means holy. Once in heaven — saint or angel — one is automatically holy.

It can be confusing, but look at it this way: Angels are spirits in heaven, and saints are human beings in heaven. Angels can be called “saint” (as in the case of St. Michael the Archangel) as a sign of respect and honor. A human being is called “saint” only after death and once in heaven.

Christianity believes that angels and demons (fallen angels) are separated according to their loyalty and obedience to God. The first angels were tested on their loyalty and obedience, and those who failed, like Lucifer, were cast into hell. In hell, the angels became demons with Lucifer (whose name means bearer of light), who later became known as the devil (also called the prince of darkness).

Kicked out of heaven?

Many talk about the devil and his fellow fallen angels being kicked out of heaven and thrown into hell by St. Michael the Archangel, but that theory goes against the Christian belief, “Once in heaven, always in heaven.” The Bible speaks about a war in heaven (Revelation 12:7) where St. Michael defeats the dragon and one-third of the angels fall with him (Revelation 12:4), but this book of the Bible is apocalyptic, meaning that the sacred author used lots of allegory and metaphor in writing it.