The Cause for Beatification and Canonisation
THE PROCESS OF BEATIFICATION AND CANONISATION within the Catholic Church follows a strict protocol. Typically, the process cannot commence until five years after the holy person’s death. The Bishop of the local diocese (the church administrative district) in which the individual died petitions the Holy See (the holy seat or throne in Rome) to begin the Cause for Beatification. Once approved, the official permission to begin—the nihil obstat (“nothing obstructs”)—is communicated to the initiating Bishop.
Beatification literally means “to make blessed” (from beatus, “blessed” + facere, “to make”). In the Catholic Church it refers to the official recognition of a deceased person’s entry into heaven and their ability to intercede on behalf of individuals who pray in the name of the blessed. Latin Beatus has the further meanings of “prosperous, fortunate, blissful”, indicating the nature of the beatific vision and salvation attained by the blessed. More specifically, the visio beatifica indicates the direct experience and knowledge of god realised through heavenly attainment, and corresponds closely to the Eastern Orthodox doctrine of theōsis (deification). According to the Catechism of the Catholic Church (CCC):
God put us in the world to know, to love, and to serve him, and so to come to paradise. Beatitude makes us “partakers of the divine nature” and of eternal life (2 Pet 1:4; cf. Jn 17:3). With beatitude, man enters into the glory of Christ (Cf. Rom 8:18) and into the joy of the Trinitarian life. (CCC 1721).
Canonisation is the recognition by the Apostolic See in Rome that the beatified saint can be venerated not just locally but universally. Whereas beatification gives permission for local veneration, canonisation makes it a universal precept. A canonised Saint is able to be venerated in the Ritus Romanus, the principle liturgical rite of the Catholic Church.
Once the Cause is approved, the formal investigation begins, and a diocesan tribunal is formed. “Witnesses are called before the tribunal to recount concrete facts on the exercise of Christian virtues considered heroic, that is, the theological virtues: faith, hope, and charity, and the cardinal virtues: prudence, justice, temperance, and fortitude, and others specific to their state in life. In addition, all documents regarding the candidate must be gathered. At this point he [or she] is entitled to the title of Servant of God”. (Vatican City, September 12, 1997 [VIS]).
The process has seven steps:
1. Cause
2. Servant of God
3. Venerable
4. First Miracle
5. Blessed (Beatification)
6. Second Miracle
7. Saint (Canonisation)
The Cause is the formal recognition by the Vatican that a person is being considered for Beatification.
A Servant of God (Servus Dei) is a title given to someone who is being formally considered for sainthood. It marks and coincides with the formal introduction of the Cause for Beatification.
The title of Venerable (Venerabilis, “worthy of reverence or respect”) is the formal acknowledgement by the Vatican that the individual has been demonstrated to be "heroic in virtue". Specifically, this refers to the theological virtues (faith, hope, and charity), and the cardinal virtues (prudence, justice, fortitude, and temperance). The proclamation of venerability means that the person is likely in heaven, but could still possibly be undergoing the process of purgation (purgatorium, “cleansing”).
Having attained the status of Venerable, Mother Aubert now needs two miracles recognised in order to be fully sanctified.