Originally Posted by BobVigneault

Chris is right of course. Catholics venerate their priests and it means 'respect'. However, when it comes to saints it is as Chris has said. It is all part of the economy of hagiology. I was just drawing a distinction between worship and veneration - as in "Gil has a statue in veneration of John Calvin". Hey, I never noticed that before. Nice timing Gil.

I'm not sure what doulia and latria is except that when I was a boy scout it seems I always got latria duty. Yuck!

VENERATION OF SAINTS

Honor paid to the saints who, by their intercession and example and in their possession of God, minister to human sanctification, helping the faithful grow in Christian virtue. Venerating the saints does not detract from the glory given to God, since whatever good they possess is a gift from his bounty. They reflect the divine perfections, and their supernatural qualities result from the graces Christ merited for them by the Cross. In the language of the Church's liturgy, the saints are venerated as sanctuaries of the Trinity, as adopted children of the Father, brethren of Christ, faithful members of his Mystical Body, and temples of the Holy Spirit.

All items in this dictionary are from Fr. John Hardon's Modern Catholic Dictionary, © Eternal Life.