Good deeds, deadly sacrifices, and even inexplicable occurrences arising from apparent divinity, are the reasons why different individuals have been beatified and canonized by the Vatican carry with him the name of saint.

Every daymarked on the calendar, commemorates the life and death of those beings, men and women, who have dedicated their lives to the same Catholic Church which has earned them the appointment.

It is the day of the saint Wednesday February 22.

In Ravenna, in the province of Flaminia, Saint Maximian, bishop, who faithfully fulfilled his episcopal office and fought against the heretics of the time in favor of the unity of the Church.

With this character is other saints and martyrs which are also celebrated this Wednesday, February 22 as follows:

San Pascasio, obispo

Saint Margaret of Cortona

Saint Papias

Blessed Diego Carvalho

Pope Francis after the canonization of Mother Teresa of Calcutta, in St. Peter’s Square at the Vatican, September 4, 2016. (AFP PHOTO / ANDREAS SOLARO)

The Catholic and Orthodox Church uses canonization to declare a deceased person a saint who during his life made sacrifices or was linked to a divine event in favor of the church.

This involves including the person’s name in the canon (list of recognized saints) and permission is granted by the Catholic Church to venerate her, acknowledging her power before God.

During Christianity, people were recognized as saints without the need for a formal process; however, this changed in the Middle Ages. In the case of Catholicism, the Church must make an exhaustive inquiry into the life of the person to be sanctified.

For the Catholic Church, there are four ways to achieve this: the way of heroic virtues; the path of martyrdom; that of exceptional causes, confirmed by an ancient cult and written sources; and the offer of life.

Canonization of the Argentinian priest José Gabriel Brochero. (AP)
Canonization of the Argentinian priest José Gabriel Brochero. (AP)

Catholicism is one of the most practiced religions in the world. The most recent data from the Vatican – in particular from its Ecclesial Statistical Yearbook – indicate that there are more 1,360 million Catholics in the world.

The American continent is where the most Catholics predominate, with nearly half of those registered by the Vatican, being more than a quarter located in South America.

In recent years, the Vatican has realized that the presence of Catholics has grown considerably on two continents: Asia -especially the Middle East- and Africa.

In contrast, religious rates in Europe declined, while in Oceania they remained stable.

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