What is a Saint?

In the Catholic Church, the saints are ordinary people like you and me who made it to heaven.  They’ve done nothing that you and I cannot do, if we persevere in following Jesus Christ and living our lives according to His teaching.

Catholic devotion to the saints is nothing more than respect and admiration for the memory of the deceased heroes of the Church. We honor them as men and women of heroic virtue who can serve as our role models. They were no more perfect than are we; but, at the end of their lives – and hopefully, ours – they received from Our Lord his words, “Well done, good and faithful servant.”

We also ask the saints to intercede for us.  Have you ever asked anyone to pray for you when you were having a hard time? That is how Catholics “pray to” the saints –  we pray with saints, not to them. As James says, “The fervent prayer of a righteous person is very powerful.”

Well-known saints like those below often are remembered in a special way on particular days during the year.

January – February – March – April – May – June
July – August – September – October – November – December

Read about the Saint of the Week here