Venerable
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
- For the title given to ordained Buddhist monks, see Venerable (Buddhism).
Venerable in daily dictionary usage means to convey an impression of aged goodness and benevolence, but this derives from the title conferred on persons for religious reasons, particularly in the Christian churches.
In the Eastern Orthodox Church, venerable (Greek: "Όσιος" for men and "Οσία" for women) is a title attributed to saints who had lived a monastic or eremitic life, and it is considered equal or sometimes superior to the usual "Saint".
In the Anglican Communion, venerable is the title given to an Archdeacon.
In the Roman Catholic Church, venerable is the title of a person who has been posthumously declared "heroic in virtue" during the investigation and process leading to canonization as a saint. Before one is considered venerable, he or she must be declared as such by a proclamation approved by the pope of having lived lives that were "heroic in virtue" -- the virtues being the Theological Virtues of faith, hope and charity and the Cardinal Virtues of prudence, justice, fortitude and temperance. The next step is beatification, at which point the person is referred to as Blessed, and then finally canonization, at which point the person is referred to as Saint.
The 6th century English monk St Bede was given the title venerable soon after his death, he was the first person to be recorded as Venerable.
| Stages of Canonization in the Roman Catholic Church |
|---|
| Servant of God → Venerable → Blessed → Saint |
