Catholics Don't Worship Mary And The Saints, We Venerate Them.

A REFLECTION ON CAN. 1186-1189 ON FOSTERING SANCTIFICATION THROUGH THE CULT OF THE SAINTS, SACRED IMAGES AND RELICS

Ask any practising Catholic who their patron saint is, and you may probably find that they are even named after a saint, or have a special devotion to that saint. However, it is common for people who do not know the faith well to question what this perceived devotion (mistakenly taken for “worship of”) really is and means.

Let’s take a look at what Canon Law states about “The cult of saints, of sacred images and relics”. Before you start thinking what on earth the Church has to do with “cults”, let us first clarify what is meant by the “cult of saints”. In this context, the term, “cult” comes from the Latin, “cultus”, meaning “to venerate”. Thus, the Church speaks of the veneration of saints as part of “fostering the sanctification of the people of God” (Can. 1186).

Many people seem to think Catholics worship Mary as the Mother of God. This is wrong. Catholics do not worship Mary as such, but instead, “the Church commends to the special and filial veneration of Christ’s faithful the Blessed Mary ever-Virgin, the Mother of God, whom Christ constituted the Mother of all” (Can. 1186). We know this because Jesus Christ said on the Cross, “Behold your mother” (John 19:27). Thus, since Mary is our mother (not just Jesus’ mother), we show profound reverence and respect for her, hence the term, “venerate”.

Therefore, Mary, amongst other saints, are venerated, where the faithful recognize their example of holiness as one to follow in, as an inspiration to living the Christian life. In amidst this recognition, the faithful find themselves asking for the intercession of Mary and the saints to pray for them, simply explained, as a person could ask their relative or friend to pray for them, to help them in their path towards holiness.

However, it is important to note that Catholics do not simply venerate anyone. The Church proposes that “only those servants of God...numbered by ecclesiastical authority (i.e. the Pope) among the Saints and Blessed” can be venerated by the faithful (Can. 1187). There are certain criterion that must first be examined before the beatification and canonisation process (the process to become a Blessed, and then, eventually a Saint) can even begin, as Can. 1404 states, “special pontifical law governs the causes of canonization of the servants of God”. Simply put, Catholics can only venerate Saints and Blesseds approved by the Roman Catholic Church, who, having investigated the person’s cause for sainthood, has found them worthy of such veneration.

Thus, although some argue for the verse that comes after the First Commandment, “You shall not make for yourself a carved image, or any likeness of anything that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth.” (Ex. 20:4), the Church’s Canon Law states that “the practice of exposing sacred images in churches for the veneration of the faithful is to be retained” (Can. 1188). This is because, the primary context of Ex 20:4 must be understood in the context of not worshipping false gods or idols instead of the one, true, living, triune God, in the Holy Trinity. Therefore, maintaining that such images are to inspire the faithful to holiness, through veneration of the Saints and Blesseds, Can. 1188 states that the images of such are to be “displayed in moderate numbers in suitable fashion, so that the Christian people are not disturbed [not giving rise to a] less appropriate devotion”. Understood simply, God must always be the centre of our lives and the first priority, but we can also, in fostering our own sanctification, as allowed by the Church, venerate the Saints and Blessed and aspire towards holiness, taking them as our examples of how to live a good Christian life. However, we must never, under any circumstances, allow ourselves to become so obsessed over a particular devotion to a Saint or Blessed, thinking they are to be worshipped, in such a way it jeopardizes our relationship with God.

So, next time you hear someone talking of “worshipping” Mary or the Saints/Blesseds, stop them for a moment and question them. Ask them, gently, if they understand what they are implying, and if they realize that the Church teaches us that we can venerate Saints/Blesseds, but that we can only truly worship the One True God. Dare to question and respond back to those who think Catholics worship anything other than God, and inform them about the Truth of our faith. Therefore, in our aspiration to live a life of holiness, and thus to be sanctified, we venerate and take for our example, the Saints and Blesseds.