1. Declaring a person is in heaven.
To believe that a person is in heaven is an act of Faith. Faith is an act of believing what cannot seen. There is no empirical proof to show that a soul is in heaven. So clearly to believe that a soul is in heaven is a pure act of Faith. Thus it must follow the rules of Faith; meaning to say, that the basis of belief must be the fact that the person has obeyed the commands of Christ necessary to go to heaven. Thus a canonisation is a declaration that a soul is in heaven, can be a model for all Catholics and can intercede for men before the throne of God.
Since the process is lengthy, let us consider a down to earth procedure based on the essence of canonisation. Anybody can use this that he may be aided in making an act of Faith.
Canonisation is not a popularity contest wherein human judges can decide who is in heaven. It is not a political process used to gain votes. It is not a gimmick used to be popular. It is an act of
Faith. Making such an act increases our Faith and increases our chances of going to heaven ourselves.
2. FIRST. Going to heaven according to Christ and the Fathers.
Only One knows the way to heaven because He came from there through the incarnation and returned back there with His Ascension. And He proved it.
He came down to earth precisely to teach us how to go to heaven. And His teachings are found in Divine Revelation and interpreted by the Fathers of the Church.
These teachings are taught to the faithful in the Liturgy of the Mass spread over three years, divided in three Cycles, A, B and C. These teachings found in Divine Revelation show the general way to heaven but the specifics can only be found in the Fathers of the Church. The Catholic Church had always taught that the sources of knowledge on how to go to heaven are Scriptures and the Fathers of the Church.
The teachings on how to go to heaven is clearly found in detail in Scriptures and the Fathers of the Church. For Catholics, there is no other source of knowledge on how to go to heaven. All Catholics should know this because they cannot go to heaven unless they, themselves, follow this path. The people in the Vatican should know this, also, because they are supposed to guide the Catholics to heaven.
If the Vatican is ignorant of Divine Revelations and if the Catholics do not know this way to heaven taught in the Liturgy, then we have a very big problem. This is the first thing all Catholics should know in the process of canonisation.
3. The way to heaven in simplified and in summary form.
The way to heaven that is explained by Divine Revelation and interpreted by the Fathers can be summarised this way; perfect life of repentance, perfect act of Faith, Hope and the beginnings of Charity. Anyone who does these will surely be in heaven and can be canonised or declared a saint by the Church.
4. SECONDLY. Anybody who follow the way to heaven described above will surely be in heaven after he dies. Thus he can be declared a saint. Now the question is this; knowing the way to heaven as taught by Christ in Divine Revelation, did this candidate fulfill all the requirements Christ had taught? This can be an arduous task. It is here where a thorough study is done in the life of the candidate. It must be very clear that he had obeyed all the commands of Christ required to go to heaven as found in Divine Revelation and explained by the Fathers. To do this many witnesses are summoned to give testimonies because many requirements must be fulfilled to see that the candidate's life conformed completely to the requirements given by Christ to go to heaven. Not only must the candidate possess the above four virtues. He must show that he practiced them in a heroic degree.
5. Act of Faith based on personal knowledge.
As an individual, can I know that a candidate is surely a saint in heaven? Yes. If I know both; first, the way to go to heaven as taught by Christ and secondly, if I thoroughly know the life of the candidate. Thirdly, I should see that the two coincide. The candidate is surely in heaven and is a saint. The early Christians did it this way.
My Act of Faith will be based on that fact that the life of the candidate conforms to the teaching of Christ on how to go to heaven. So the basis of my Faith is the fact that Christ said, if you do this you will be in heaven.
My faith is not based on my personal research or study. It is based on the result of my study that taught me that Christ said that if you obey His commandments you will go to heaven; and I believed what He said. This is an act of Faith in Christ.
6. An example in the case of Pope Paul VI.
This is a difficult case because there are so many complains about him that he is described as the patron saint of apostates.
I know the way to heaven from the Sacred Liturgy and from Ascetical theology. I, also, have a few books on the life of Pope Paul VI. And I see that his life conforms to what I learned from the Liturgy and from Ascetical theology. So basing it from my own personal knowledge I believe that Pope Paul VI is a saint in heaven.
Because my belief is based on my own personal knowledge, my believing that he is a saint in heaven is not an Act of Faith. It is pure human knowledge. But if I say that my belief is based on the fact that I see that his life conforms with the teachings of Christ, then my belief that Pope Paul VI is a saint in heaven, is an Act of Faith. I can safely pray to him to intercede for me to God.
7. Act of Faith based on Vatican pronouncements.
Not everybody can do what I did above. Few know the way to heaven as found in Divine Revelation, the Fathers and Ascetical theology. Many bishops and priest do not know these. They have not learned this, either, from the Liturgy of the Mass or from the Fathers of the Church since this is not taught in the seminary nor in theological schools, like Bologna. But the Church should know this and use this as the criterion in judging whether a candidate deserves to be canonised.
Unfortunately, the Vatican Office shows it does not know the way to heaven, since they intentionally did not use this criterion in the process of canonisation. Neither had Pope Francis explained to the Church the way to heaven since his installation up to the present. Neither was this used to judge the worthiness of the candidates for canonisation.
They changed the rules for judgment the worthiness of candidates. It is no longer based on the way to heaven taught by Christ and explained by the Fathers.
And the Vatican had not studied the lives of the candidates thoroughly. So there are no documents comparing the life of the candidates to the way to heaven described by Christ. This comparative study is essential to the canonisation process. This comparative study is so exhaustive in the case of former saints, like Joan of Arc and Therese of Lisieux. None was done in all the candidates canonised by Pope Francis. So nobody can be certain in making the necessary Act of Faith in believing that those saints are in heaven. Pope Francis' declaration is just like news item saying that Mickey Mouse is in Disneyland. You don't need an Act of faith to believe that. To believe that a person is a saint in heaven needs an Act of Faith. But it is impossible to believe Pope Francis because the elements of Faith are lacking in the present Vatican process of canonisation.
So the canonisation celebration at the Vatican was not canonising anybody. It was just a political victory celebration for some candidates.
8. Model for all Catholics who want to go to heaven.
The old process mentioned above is the model for all Catholics who want to go to heaven. All they had to do was follow the way to heaven Christ taught in Divine Revelation and explained by the Fathers; and which is laid down in proper order in the Liturgy of the Mass. And the lives of the saints, like St. Therese, is presented as an example of how an ordinary young girl practiced what Christ taught. Thus she was worthy to be canonised as an example for all Catholics.
But those canonised by Pope Francis were not proven to have followed the way Christ taught. So why should we believe that they are in heaven? Some of them have even gone against the very teachings of Christ. Shouldn't they be somewhere else?
Of course, we should all celebrate when a soul is canonised. This is a declaration that they are where all of us would want to go. But are they really there? The answer is of paramount importance and we cannot leave the answer to unreliable sources. We must go back to the dependable sources, Divine Revelation and the Fathers of the Church. Which sadly, the Vatican bureaucracy is not following.
