That is, the Catholic Church does not “raise” or “elevate” persons to sainthood as if it were some type of award for living a virtuous life.
Over at USA Today, columnist Brett Decker has expressed his opinion that the Holy Father is taking a great risk by canonizing Pope John Paul II and Pope John XXIII because of their alleged failure to address the clergy sex-abuse scandal.
He refers to Pope Francis as “raising two popes to sainthood” and the two pontiffs as being “raised above all others.” But that is not what is happening on Sunday, April 27.
The Church is sometimes able, after a long laborious process, to discern that certain individual souls are indeed united with God in Heaven, enjoying the beatific vision. The process we call canonization is a recognition of an objective reality.
Think of it this way. If I have a new neighbor, and I see him go to and from work dressed in a police officer’s uniform, I see him riding in a police car, and watch him fight crime and rescue kittens from trees, etc., I may come to the realization that he is a police officer. But my realization changes nothing, he is and has been a police officer and the only thing that changes is that I might start addressing him as “officer.”
The Church does not create saints so much as it recognizes that certain individuals are saints. If it has recognized that John Paul II and John XXIII are indeed saints then they are. The canonization on April 27 is a formality.
Now we can certainly discuss the wisdom of such a formal declaration and its’ timing, but let us at least all start on the same page.
Mr. Decker also writes “The Catholic Church declares individuals to be saints to give the faithful role models of heroic virtue and show how one should live life to get to heaven.”
That is perhaps a matter of how you want to interpret Church teaching. As I said, the Catholic Church declares individuals to be saints because it has discerned that they are in fact saints (holy). As saints, they are to be regarded as models of heroic virtue and examples for us to follow. But does the Church do this specifically to provide those models? This is what the Catechism has to say on canonization:
“By canonizing some of the faithful, i.e., by solemnly proclaiming that they practiced heroic virtue and lived in fidelity to God’s grace, the Church recognizes the power of the Spirit of holiness within her and sustains them as models and intercessors.” Catechism of the Catholic Church 828
So while we are taught what happens when a person is canonized, we are not really taught the Church’s intention in doing so, it is a matter open to question.
Mr. Decker’s column may be read in its entirety here.
Saint John Paul II and Saint John XXIII, pray for us.