SAINTific post!

Ola guys!(and girls!) Well, before i start with the next post, you've most definitely seen the new template this blog is sporting! Haha......this is in preparation for Christmas...that's why we changed the layout. Nevertheless, the contents will ALWAYS be as informative as you have seen, even in this "SAINTific" post. Oh yeah, one more thing before the post...

...probably you've not noticed it, so, scroll down just below the CBOX on your left sidebar and you will see this icon. Click on the "play" sign. It's a new feature which is added to this blog to brighten up and get you ready for Christmas! Cheers! (oh yeah, there's 45 songs to choose from, but it's all random, so pray hard that you will hear the track that you love! Teeeheeee)

Now, back to our SAINTific post. Saint has been an integral part of the Catholic church since its formation. Probably many of you have questions about saints...so here's a brief info on saints.

History
According to the Bible, a saint is one who is sanctified (cf. 2 Chron. 6:41). The early Christians were all called saints. (Heb. 13:24; Jud. 1:3; Phile. 1:5, 7) Over time, the traditional usage of the term saint came to refer to a person who is recognized as having attained a certain level of holiness. English-language publications will sometimes use saint to describe a revered person from another religion. The word itself means “holy” and is derived from the Latin sanctus. The concept originates in early Greek Christian literature with the use of the word hagios (Greek άγιος meaning “holy” or “holy one”) and in the New Testament, where it is used to describe the followers of Jesus of Nazareth.
As Christianity developed, the word saint came to be used more commonly to designate specific individuals who were held to be exemplars of the faith, and who were commemorated or venerated as an inspiration to other Christians. From the beginning of Christianity, Christians prayed to departed friends and relatives to intercede on their behalf, and such prayers were soon extended to those regarded as saints. Rather quickly, the saints' intercession was sought more frequently than that of departed personal friends.

Roman Catholicism
There are more than 10,000 Roman Catholic saints. The older term for saint is martyr, meaning someone who would rather die than give up their faith, or more specifically, witness for God. However, as the word martyr took on more and more the meaning of "one who died for the Faith," the term saint, meaning holy, became more common to describe the whole of Christian witnesses, both martyrs and confessors. The Catholic Church teaches that it does not, in fact, make anyone a saint. Rather, it recognizes a saint. In the Roman Catholic church, the title of Saint - with a capital 'S' - refers to a person who has been formally canonised (officially recognised) by the Church.

Canonisation
Formal canonisation is a lengthy process often taking many years, even centuries.
The first step in this process is an investigation of the candidate's life, undertaken by an expert. After this, the report on the candidate is given to the bishop of the area and more studying is done. It is then sent to the Congregation for the Causes of Saints in Rome. If they approve it, then the person may be granted the title of "Venerable", further investigations may lead to the candidate's beatification and given title of "Blessed."
At a minimum, three important miracles are required to be formally declared a saint. The Church, however, places special weight on those miracles or instances of intercession that happened after the individual died and which are seen to demonstrate the saint's continued special relationship with God after death. Finally, when all of this is done the Pope canonises the saint

Do Catholics pray TO saints?
We pray with saints, not to them.Have you ever asked anyone to pray for you when you were having a hard time? Why did you choose to ask that person?
You may have chosen someone you could trust, or someone who understood your problem, or someone who was close to God. Those are all reasons we ask saints to pray for us in times of trouble. Since saints led holy lives and are close to God in heaven, we feel that their prayers are particularly effective. Often we ask particular saints to pray for us if we feel they have a particular interest in our problem. For example, many people ask Saint Monica to pray for them if they have trouble with unanswered prayers, because Monica prayed for twenty years for her son to be converted. Finally her prayers were answered in a way she never dreamed of -- her son, Augustine, became a canonized saint and a Doctor of the Church.