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de:Heiligenverehrung
(Latin ''veneratio'', Greek ''dulia'')
In
Catholicism and
Eastern Orthodoxy, '''veneration''', or '''veneration of saints''', is a special act of honoring a dead person who has been identified as singular in the traditions of the religion, and through them honoring
God who made them and in whose image they are made. Veneration is often shown outwardly by respectfully bowing or making the
sign of the
cross before a
saint's icon or
relics or statue. These items may also be kissed.
In Catholic theology, veneration is a type of honor distinct from the
worship due to God alone. Church theologians have long adopted the terms ''
latria'' for the sacrificial worship due to God alone, and ''dulia'' for the veneration given to saints and icons. Catholic theology also includes the term ''hyperdulia'' for the type of veneration specifically paid to
Mary, Mother of God in Catholic Tradition. This distinction is spelled out in the
dogmatic conclusions of the
Seventh Ecumenical Council (A.D.
787), which also decreed that
iconoclasm (forbidding icons and their veneration) is a
heresy that amounts to a denial of the
Incarnation of
Jesus Christ.
In some other religious traditions it is held that veneration amounts to the heresy of
idolatry, and that the related practice of
canonization amounts to the heresy of
apotheosis. These charges are accepted without discussion in much of
Protestant theology, although many
Anglicans venerate saints. Such religious traditions generally do not acknowledge a meaningful distinction between veneration and
worship.
In the tradition of Green theology (or Creation-centered theology) animals, plants, and other parts of nature may be said to be ''venerated'' simply by taking good care of them, thereby showing honor and respect for God who made them.
Creation, being regarded as an icon of the Creator, is a valid object of veneration.
== See also ==
*
Idolatry
*
Idolatry in Christianity
*
Genuflection
*
Pilgrimage
*
Hagiography
*
Iconography
*
Prayer
*
Blessed Virgin Mary
