Christian Holiness
All Christians in any state or walk of life are called to
the fullness of Christian life and to the perfection of charity. All are called
to holiness: Be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect. (Mt. 5: 48).
In order to reach this perfection the faithful should use the strength dealt out
to them by Christs gift, so that doing the will of the Father in everything, they
may wholeheartedly devote themselves to the glory of God and to the service of their
neighbour. Thus the holiness of the People of God will grow in fruitful abundance,
as is clearly shown in the history of the Church through the lives of so many saints.
Spiritual progress tends toward ever more intimate union with
Christ. God calls us all to this intimate union with him, even if the special graces
or extraordinary signs of this mystical life are granted only to some for the sake
of manifesting the gratuitous gift given to all.
The way of perfection passes by way of the Cross. There is
no holiness without renunciation and spiritual battle. If any man would come
after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. (Mt. 16:24).
In its earliest usage in the New Testament, the term saint
referred to all those set apart for God, all the members of the early Church who
had received the Gospel message and who as a result had rejected sin to live in
a state of sanctity. Gradually the word began to be applied to those who had died
as Christians, who were therefore in heaven and able to intercede with God on behalf
of the living, and finally to individuals as a mark of particular honour and veneration
among the local inhabitants or members of the same religious order.
During the Roman persecutions of the Church in the early centuries
AD many martyrs were canonized by popular acclaim as examples of fortitude and faith
to the suffering faithful. The anniversary of their death was commemorated more
in celebration than in mourning; they had assured their place in heaven by their
death and could now help those who still lived. As the process of canonization developed
and grew, it became desirable to invoke the highest authority and so the approval
of the Bishop of Rome was more frequently sought. Under Pope Gregory IX in the 13th
century papal approval became the only legitimate means of conferring sainthood.
To fulfil the conditions for sainthood within the Catholic
Church, an individual must now satisfy an extensive inquiry into their life and
death which seeks to establish whether the subject has performed a heroic service
of virtue or piety. Often this will be one outstanding deed, such as the foundation
of a holy order or martyrdom, the sterling test of sanctity. In other cases it may
be an unremarkable death but a life of exemplary conduct and humility. Claims of
miracles will be thoroughly researched to determine whether they are in fact the
confirmation of holiness.