Who are Catholic Saints?

Catholic Saints info

Who are the Catholic Saints?

Simply put, Catholic saints are souls who are in Heaven. This means that everyone who is in Heaven is a saint, whether or not they have the title “Saint” before their name.

Why are some people called saints and not others?

Do you wonder why the Catholic Church calls some people saints but not others?

The Church has a process called canonization to determine without a doubt that the soul of someone who has died is indeed in Heaven. This process takes years-and a lot of paperwork and investigations.

A person will not be declared a saint until he or she has gone through this very thorough process and it is determined without a doubt that the person’s soul is in Heaven. Then they will be canonized and be given the title “Saint.”

If you would like to learn more about the details of the canonization process, the US Conference of Catholic Bishops’ website is a great resource.

How many Catholic saints are there?

There are thousands of Catholic saints who have been through the canonization process and have been given the title Saint.

Even before the formal canonization process was instituted, there were many people who were declared saints.

Why does each saint have a feast day?

The Catholic Church gives each saint a feast day. This is a designated day for the saint, almost like a birthday. Oftentimes, the feast day of a saint is the anniversary of the saint’s death. This is because the day the saint died is their birthday into Heaven.

Our souls are eternal. Our life on earth is temporary. We are to use it to help us to be ready for Heaven. When a soul goes to Heaven, it is a great reason to rejoice! A feast day is a day to remember a saint and celebrate that he or she is in Heaven. Remembering the saints on their feast days also helps us to remember to keep our own eyes on Heaven and know that Heaven is our eternal home, not the earth.

If you want to know the feast day of a particular saint or find out which saint’s feast day is on any particular day, Franciscan Media’s website has a database of saints where you can find this information.

Who are some popular Catholic saints?

There are many popular saints. The Blessed Virgin Mary, St. John the Baptist, and St. Francis of Assisi are some that most people (even nonCatholics) have heard about.

Often, people have a favorite saint. This could be a saint they identify with, someone they admire, or someone they want to be more like. It is always great to learn about saints you have not heard of before or learn even more about saints you have heard something about.

Here are a few other popular saints: popes-St. Peter*, St. Felix IV, St. John Paul II, St. John XXIII; nuns-Saint Scholastica, St. Theresa of Avila, St. Therese of Lisieux; priests-St. Don Bosco, St. Vincent de Paul, St. Padre Pio; missionaries-St. Francis Xavier, St.  Rose Philippine Duchesne; martyrs-St. Lawrence, St. Perpetua, St. Felicity; parents-St. Rita, St. Gianna Mola; teenagers-St. Agnes*, Dominic Savio; soldiers-St. Martin of Tours, St. Joan of Arc*; children-St. Tarcisius*; Maria Teresa Goretti*; married-Zele Guerin and Louis Martin; single-St. Catherine of Sienna, St. Martin de Porres.

*These saints are also martyrs.

Why should we even learn about Catholic saints?

Learning about the saints can be very beneficial. It can help you to see the struggles they went through and what they did to help get through them. You can see how they handled sorrows, joys, regrets, problems, sins, and trials in their lives and relied on God and others to help them.

Some saints seem like they always were virtuous, yet when you read more about them, you learn about their struggles and challenges to grow closer to God and follow His will.

Other saints led lives they themselves thought were so sinful that they considered themselves to be beyond hope, yet they were able to accept and embrace the love God had for them and turn their lives around in amazing ways.

We are all one body in Christ. We are one holy, Catholic, and Apostolic Church. Our members are on earth, in Purgatory, and in Heaven. We can learn from the saints and be encouraged by their examples to continue to grow in holiness.

The saints in Heaven can also pray for us. They want us to be holy, to live our vocation well, and nurture God’s life of grace in our souls. They want us to be in Heaven with them, too, as one family, beholding the face of God.

Can anyone become a saint?

Yes. Each person has free will to choose to live their lives for God. It is possible for anyone to become a saint. Whether each person chooses to live their lives for God, no matter what their vocation, is another story.

Some saints were popes, others were nuns, priests, missionaries, and martyrs. Other saints were parents, teenagers, children, married, and single. Some saints were great sinners before they changed their ways and lived better lives. Other saints lived quite lives.

Just as there are a variety of people in the world, there are saints in Heaven from a variety of vocations and backgrounds.

Never think you cannot be a saint. You can be.

Can you become a saint?

Fr. Mike Schmitz explains this very well!

Who are the Catholic Saints?

The Catholic Saints are our brothers and sisters in Christ. They are people who have gone before us who have said yes to God in their lives over and over and over again. They have picked themselves up when they have fallen down and have worked and prayed to live lives with God at the center.

The saints are our brothers and sisters who want to see us in Heaven as well. We can learn from them and ask them to pray for us so that we may join them in Heaven and behold the face of God together.

Do you have a favorite saint? Leave a comment below to let us know who he or she is.