since you asked...
How can the Church declare a canonized saint, like St. Christopher, to no longer be a saint?
This question first arose in the secular media and among many Catholics in 1969, when the revised liturgical calendar for the universal church was promulgated by Pope Paul VI. In that revision, some celebrations of the saints were removed from the calendar, others transferred to different days, and others, such as the feast days of more recently canonized saints, were added. This was not the first revision of the Church’s calendar. There have been further revisions since, and more revisions are inevitable.
In the first centuries of the Church’s life, the anniversaries of martyrs’ deaths were observed, usually with the celebration of the Eucharist, by local communities of believers who cherished their memories and sought their intercession. Some martyrs were quickly recognized by neighboring communities, and lists or catalogues of martyrs quickly spread throughout the Church. St. Martin of Tours, who died peacefully around 397 A.D., may be among the first of the non-martyred saints (“confessors”) to have been remembered with an annual Eucharist. The fame of his heroic virtue as well as miracles attributed to his intercession caused this annual feast day celebration (November 11) to be observed throughout Europe, where many chapels and churches were soon erected to honor him.
One can see from this cursory history that the veneration of the saints began as a local phenomenon. In many ways, it still is. When the holiness of a deceased member of the Catholic community is recognized by the People of God, the local bishop has the possibility of presenting a “cause” to the Holy See, which now has the ultimate responsibility and authority for determining whether or not the Church will permit public veneration of the person. This is done through a series of investigations, authorized by Rome and always beginning at the local level (i.e., where the person lived and/or died), and under the authority of that bishop, and may lead to the determination by the pope that the person (called “the Servant of God”) be recognized as venerable, blessed, or even a saint. The Church also investigates the legitimacy of alleged miracles which are awaited prior to beatification and canonization.
The recourse to Rome for beatification and canonization was not required during most of the first millennium. In fact, the first known canonization by a pope was that of St. Ulric, Bishop of Augsburg, who died in 973 A.D., and was canonized by Pope John XV in 993. Soon, it was considered desirable by the local churches to have their saints canonized by the Roman Pontiff. In this way, their saints were officially put on the list of saints recognized by the Roman Church. By the end of the tenth century, the popes were beginning to restrict the authority of bishops to canonize, though beatifications often remained a local matter.
In 1634, Pope Urban VII decreed that the rites of beatification and canonization belonged exclusively to the pope. An “office,” the Sacred Congregation of Rites, for the purpose of studying the lives and alleged miracles attributed to candidates for sainthood had been established in 1588, and was reorganized in 1969 (the current Congregation for the Causes of Saints). It is the responsibility of this group to determine and recommend to the Holy Father the acceptance of martyrdom, heroic virtues, and the miracles of the various Servants of God. The decision to proceed at any point in the process ultimately lies with the pope. In the last few centuries, it has been understood that beatification allows veneration of the blessed at the local level. Canonization calls for the universal veneration of those recognized as saints of the Church. It is the common opinion of many theologians that canonization is an infallible act of papal authority, defining that the one canonized now belongs to the Communion of Saints in heaven.
In the current liturgical calendar, there are four levels of observance of the blessed and saints: solemnities, feasts, obligatory memorials, and optional memorials. Furthermore, there is a universal calendar for the Latin Rite, which stipulates which observances are celebrated by everyone with Mass and the Liturgy of the Hours, and which are optional. Moreover, national conferences of bishops can determine, with the approval of the Holy See, additional feast days that are to be observed by a nation or region. Religious communities, dioceses, and parishes can also have particular calendars, depending upon local devotion and customs (the feast day of a founder, of the patron saint, or of a saint who once lived in a local diocese). Not all of the canonized saints, nor those recognized by the Church though never formally canonized (like Saint Christopher), have days that are observed universally or locally.
When the liturgical calendar for the Latin Rite was reformed in 1969, it was the desire of Pope Paul VI to add many saints from around the world, and from various states of life (e.g., single, married, lay, clergy, etc.). This required the removal of many saints from the calendar who were never formally canonized and whose biographies often lacked much clear historical evidence. St. Christopher, for example, has been a very popular saint whose fame largely derives from many, often contradictory medieval legends. The removal of his feast from the universal calendar did not mean his removal from the list of saints. It is fitting, for example, that St. Christopher be honored at a parish named after him with the highest priority (i.e., a solemnity), though his feast is not obligatory for the universal church. Likewise, the memorial of St. Elizabeth Ann Seton, the first American-born saint, is observed on January 4 within the dioceses of the United States, but not elsewhere. The pontificate of Pope John Paul II, which saw so many canonizations, also added some new saints to the universal calendar (e.g., St. Padre Pio). Without question, the universal and local calendars will continued to be revised, in order to raise up new and compelling examples of holiness for our imitation.
Rev. James F. Garneau, Ph. D., is Pastor of St. Mary's Church, Mount Olive, NC.