A saint is a special friend of Jesus who gets to spend all eternity in heaven with God.

The Catholic Church recognizes some men and women as being in heaven with Jesus through a special process called "canonization."  These men and women are given the title of "Saint" to indicate they are holy examples for us to follow.

However, we believe there are many other men and women living in heaven who haven't been recognized by the Church.  These men and women are still saints but do not have the official title from the Church.

Sometimes you will hear people refer to the canonized saints as capital "S" saints and all other saints as lower case "s" saints to help differentiate.

God created all human beings to become saints.

God wants YOU to be a saint and desires to be with YOU for all eternity, because He loves YOU!  

Becoming a saint is not an unattainable goal nor a prideful expedition but an answer to God’s call. He created each human in his image and likeness with an intellect to know Him through prayer, a free will to answer His call, and an immortal soul to live with Him in eternity.

"It does not take much time to make us saints.  It only takes much love."

- Venerable Fulton Sheen

You become a saint by:

Saying Yes to God's call consistently

Becoming friends with Jesus

Welcoming the Holy Spirit into your life

Living a life of prayer

Receiving the Eucharist

Going to Reconciliation

Working to grow in virtue

Listen to Fr. Mike Schmitz give more tips here

Busted Halo does a quick video overview here.

• Once the bishop approves and the process starts, the candidate is called "Servant of God." A committee to promote the cause of the candidate’s sainthood is created by the diocese. This committee searches the candidate’s writings/creations to make sure the candidate truly lived a virtuous, holy life.  They create a biography compiling all the information about the candidate's life that is available including recording eye witness accounts.  All this information is sent to the Vatican in Rome.

• The material from the diocese is presented to the Congregation for the Causes of Saints in Rome (CCS), who compiles it into a “Positio." A postulator is appointed to be the overseer of that particulate candidate's case throughout the process. The positio is tried by a panel of 9 theologians and must be confirmed with a majority vote.  It is then passed onto a panel of bishops and cardinals who also have to confirm it with a majority vote.  Only after the case is confirmed by those two panels will the CCS present the case to the pope.  If the pope reviews the case and gives his approval, the case moves forward and the candidate is now called "Venerable." At this point, the body of the candidate is exhumed and examined (this is how we find saints who are incorruptible).  The CCS will also collect relics of the Venerable.

• The remainder of the canonization process is dependent on 2 miracles being obtained through the Venerable's intercession.  Each of the miracles will undergo the same scrutiny as the candidate's life (diocesan investigation and approval where the miracle took place, then 2 panels trial and approval at the Vatican, and finally the pope's approval). 

• When a miracle has been approved through the intercession of a Venerable, the CCS recommends the Pope declare him or her to be "Blessed." The miracle confirms the person's reputation for holiness.  Martyrs are the exception to this part of the process.  If a Venerable is declared a martyr by the Church, they may be beatified right away and only need one miracle to be obtained through his or her intercession. The first miracle for a martyr is the strength of virtue to not deny Christ even unto death. The Blessed can be given a feast day and a patronage, but they are usually restricted to use by his or her home diocese.

• When a second miracle has been approved through the Blessed's intercession, the CCS recommends to the Pope that he or she be canonized as he or she is worthy of veneration due to their heroically virtuous life.  The second miracle is confirmation that the person is in heaven, interceding to God on our behalf.  The Pope will enroll the person in the Canon of Saints at a special Mass which can take place in Rome or in the saint's home town.  At their canonization, the (now) saint is given an official feast day and patronage. Veneration throughout the universal Church community is now encouraged.

When the Catholic Church canonizes someone, they are telling the entire world that that individual lived a holy life, one filled with heroic virtue. They are examples of men and women who lived on this earth just like you and me. They are family members who want what is best for us.  They know what it's like to live here in the broken world with their struggles, successes, jobs, habits (good and bad), shortcomings, passions, favorite things, etc.  With all of that, the saints kept their eyes focused on God, choosing to consistently say yes to whatever he asked and received a place in heaven as their reward.  They show us with their lives the priority we should give to prayer, the Mass, the Eucharist, Reconciliation, and love.  We want to learn from them and be encouraged by them.  If they can do it, so can we!

Even now, the saints are men and women who reside in heaven with God, who use their eternal paradise to talk to Him on our behalf, who look forward to welcoming us - their family - home to heaven.

We honor the saints by trusting them as beloved members of our families, as our closest of friends.  We follow their example, we ask for their intercession, we welcome them into our lives and our homes, and we introduce them to others.

Ways to Follow their example and Ask for their intercession

• Consistently say "yes" to God

• Go to Mass

• Receive the Eucharist

• Go to Reconciliation

• Build a strong relationship with God through prayer

• Learn about the saint's life - what were they passionate about, what were their gits and talents, what were their struggles, how did they handle all of those things

• Look for a prayer to that saint or write one of your own; talk to him or her about something you have in common that you'd like their help with

Ways to Welcome them into homes, lives, and relationships

• Find out their feast day and celebrate it

  • How does your family usually celebrate an achievement or special occasion?  Do the same for that saint

  • Did they have a favorite food you could eat?

  • What country were they from, pick a food or decor that coincides with that heritage (St. Maria Goretti was from Italy, decorate with red/white/green or eat pasta)

  • What is something they are known for or loved to do? Try to imitate those actions (St. Therese of Lisieux tried to do little acts of love throughout her day)

• Put up pictures or statues of the saints (just like you would of family and friends), be ready to share something about them if you're asked

• Bring them into your conversations with others, "I know someone who dealt with that..." or "I just read this funny story about..."

Check out The Little Rose Shop which has a calendar of feasts and celebrations that you can add to your personal calendar (Google, Outlook, Apple, Yahoo, Office 365).