Veneration of saints is the process of giving honor to those saints in heaven. It may be a single saint or a number of saints or, as on November 1, all the saints in Heaven. It is not a worship of saints. Worship is due only to God. It is recognizing them for their lives and accomplishments while on earth. It is much the same as the honor shown to people such as George Washington or Abraham Lincoln.
Roman Catholic AnswerThe "cult of saints" is from the Latin word "cultus" which means The act of honoring or worshipping, reverence, adoration, veneration; loyalty (from Wiktionary). The cult of saints refer to the veneration of the saints.
Veneration. hierolatry
Yes, we venerate (honor) Mary and the saints. We do not worship them. Worship is reserved for God alone.
The Immaculate Conception is important to Catholics because of Mariology, the extreme veneration of Mary. It is not important to Protestants, who reject the veneration of saints.
God is the most high. You give more.
They become saints when they enter Heaven. If they have lived a saintly life on earth they may be considered as living saints. The Church may carry out a canonization process to verify that the person is actually in Heaven and worthy of emulation and veneration.
No church 'makes' saints. However, churches may investigate potential saints to verify that they are actually in heaven and then proclaim then as saints and worthy of veneration and emulation. The church best known for proclaiming saints is the Catholic Church but the Orthodox and Anglican Churches have also been known to do so.
Saints are not worshiped as worship is reserved for God alone. Saints are honored, or venerated, much as we do for our founding fathers, ancestors, etc. When we honor the saints we honor their creator. Although inaccurate, the word you are looking for is hagiolatry. A more accurate word would be veneration.
The term is "saint veneration" or "saint worship", which refers to the practice of honoring saints for their holiness and intercession. It is a common practice in many branches of Christianity, particularly in Catholicism and Eastern Orthodoxy.
There is nothing worthy of worship except for God. Relics are worthy of veneration (honor) but are not worshiped.
An icon is a flat panel painting depicting Jesus, Mary, saints and angels which is an object of veneration. This form of Christian veneration became widespread in the eastern part of the Roman Empire. It also reached the western part, but did not become widespread like in the eastern part.
Saint Christopher is often associated with characteristics such as strength, courage, and selflessness. He is revered as the patron saint of travelers due to his willingness to help others, as seen in the popular legend where he carries a child across a river, unknowingly carrying the weight of the world.