Dear Catholic Exchange,
How can the Catholic Church declare that anyone is in heaven for sure? Catholics do not believe in the doctrine of eternal security and teach that no one, not even the most holy person on earth, has a guarantee of salvation.
There are many Protestant denominations that say we can be assured of salvation, but the Catholic Church stands apart because they say we can not ever presume to know this. So if the Catholic Church says we can hope, but not presume, then how is that they do exactly that when they say someone is in heaven?
Secondly, what does performing miracles have to do with salvation? The Church requires that miracles be performed in order to canonize someone, doesn't it? Isn't the point of canonization to declare that the person is in heaven?
Where is the evidence that God or Jesus taught that we need to be able to perform miracles in order to be saved? Doesn't the Bible say that even the demons perform signs and wonders?
Miss Rose
Dear Miss Rose,
Thank you for your question.
In a nutshell, you are correct in what you have said above. The Church does not guarantee that people are in heaven. It also does not judge that these people are in heaven, but seeks evidence that they are. This is only done after they have died. This is only revealed to us by the grace of God if He chooses to do this for our own edification. So while we can assume that some people are in heaven, we cannot guarantee that they are unless God reveals this to us.
In response to your second question, about miracles being required for canonization, these miracles are only sought out by the Church as being those of intercession from the deceased person. The person does not have to perform these miracles while alive; they only have to be attributed to their intercession with God. For more information on saints and the canonization process, see the November/December issue of Laywitness Magazine. See especially the interview “The Making of a Saint” with Monsignor Robert Sarno of the Congregation for the Causes of Saints.
I hope that this information is helpful. If we have misunderstood your question, please do not hesitate to contact us at 1-800-MY-FAITH or online at infoservices@cuf.org. We provide this service to everyone entirely free of charge and would appreciate any support, through prayers and donations, that you could give us to help others.
United in the Faith,
Christopher Kreps
Information Specialist
Catholics United for the Faith
827 North Fourth Street
Steubenville, OH 43952
800-MY-FAITH (800-693-2484)
Editor's Note: To submit a faith question to Catholic Exchange, email href=”mailto:faithquestions@catholicexchange.com”>faithquestions@catholicexchange.com. Please note that all email submitted to Catholic Exchange becomes the property of Catholic Exchange and may be published in this space. Published letters may be edited for length and clarity. Names and cities of letter writers may also be published. Email addresses of viewers will not normally be published.