Holy Heroes · Stage of the cause
Servants of God
Men and women whose cause for beatification and canonization has been formally opened: the first official step on the path to sainthood.
“Servant of God” is the title the Catholic Church gives to a person once their cause for beatification and canonization has been formally opened. A cause is normally opened by the bishop of the diocese where the person died, at the request of a petitioner (a diocese, a religious congregation, an association or a group of the faithful) who appoints a postulator to promote it. Before opening it, the bishop consults the bishops of his region and asks the Holy See whether there is any objection: the nihil obstat. As a rule, at least five years must have passed since the person's death; only the Pope can dispense from this wait.
With the cause open, the diocesan inquiry begins. Witnesses who knew the person are heard under oath, theologians examine their writings, and historians gather the documents of their life. When the inquiry closes, its acts are sent to the Dicastery for the Causes of Saints in Rome.
The title does not mean that the Church has already pronounced on the person's holiness; that judgement comes later, with the decree that declares someone Venerable. Until beatification no public cult is allowed, but anyone may pray privately for the person's intercession and ask God for their beatification. Graces received in this way can be reported to the postulation of the cause.
Servants of God on MyHolyHero
Sister Clare Theresa Crockett
Northern Irish former actress turned religious sister with the Servant Sisters of the Home of the Mother, killed in the 2016 Ecuador earthquake aged 33.
Frank Duff
Dublin civil servant and lay Catholic who founded the Legion of Mary in 1921, growing it into a worldwide apostolate of millions of evangelising laity.
Father William Joseph Gabriel Doyle, S.J.
Irish Jesuit and decorated World War I chaplain, killed at Passchendaele in 1917 while giving last rites to wounded soldiers under heavy shellfire.
Servant of God Sister Marie of St Peter and of the Holy Family, O.C.D.
French Discalced Carmelite of Tours whose locutions originated the modern devotion to the Holy Face of Jesus and the Golden Arrow prayer of reparation against blasphemy.
Alphonsus 'Alfie' Lambe
Young Irish Legion of Mary envoy to South America, who established Legion praesidia across five nations before dying in Buenos Aires at twenty-six.
Frequently asked questions
What does “Servant of God” mean?
It is the title given to a person whose cause for beatification and canonization has been formally opened, normally by the diocesan bishop with the nihil obstat of the Holy See. It is the first official stage on the path to sainthood.
Is a Servant of God already a saint?
No. The Church has not yet judged the person's life. The next stages are the decree of heroic virtue (Venerable), beatification (Blessed) and canonization (Saint).
Can I pray to a Servant of God?
Yes, in private. You may ask for their intercession and pray for their beatification. Public veneration, such as feast days or Masses in their honour, is not permitted until the Church beatifies them.
Who can ask for a cause to be opened?
Any member of the faithful, or a group of the faithful, can act as petitioner. The cause is normally opened by the bishop of the diocese where the person died, no sooner than five years after death unless the Pope grants a dispensation.
How long does it take to become Venerable?
There is no fixed timetable. The diocesan inquiry, the study of the documents in Rome and the preparation of the positio can take years or decades, depending on the evidence and on the work of the postulation.