[pgyanke]

I guess it’s like the whole “saint” thing—it takes fallible men to declare that a person is a saint by “canonization” when, really, that has already been done by God almighty IF the person in question was saved.

Canonization doesn't make men saints, it recognizes saints. It is a way for the Church Militant (the Church on Earth) to recognize those that have gone to Heavenly glory. And why is this important? Because 98% of the Christian world says a creed which includes "the communion of saints." They are part of the same Kingdom and same body of Christ and we venerate their memory and emulate their lives as Paul exhorted his readers to do with his own example.

[HossB86]

“Canonization doesn’t make men saints, it recognizes saints. It is a way for the Church Militant (the Church on Earth) to recognize those that have gone to Heavenly glory.”

So... fallible men choose to recognize men as saints so that they can be ‘venerated’ — and the communion of the saints is not of those ‘canonized’ by Rome, but ALL those saved by faith through grace.

Hoss