On Praying to the Saints - Known and Unknown

"If a saint is anyone who has died and is in heaven with God, as the Catholic Church defines the word, there are a lot more saints up there than the few famous ones the church has canonized.

"Heaven must be filled with regular folks who led very good and, in many cases, exceptional lives but might not have had friends in high enough places to recommend them for canonization. The church recognizes them anonymously as part of what we call the 'communion of saints,' but let's face it - people like St. Thérèse of Lisieux, St. Anthony, and St. Francis of Assis are the celebrities of the Catholic Church.

"All the other unknown saints, who are just as able to join with us in prayer, can play just as large a role in our daily faith lives as their more famous counterparts."

A recent U.S. Catholic article offered an overview of the number of saints, known and often unknown, who are ready to guide us, to help us "find the place they know so well."

To access the complete article, please visit:

U.S. Catholic: When in doubt, pray to the saints