On the veneration of relics and
images. Relics in the strict sense are what is left over from the bodies
of the Saints. In the broad sense they are also things that they used during
their lifetime and that their bodies, even dead bodies, have touched. The
veneration which is given to relics, is a relative cult, since it is directed
to them because of the connection they have with the person of the Saints. The
solemn veneration of relics is found in the whole ecclesiastical tradition, as
even the Acts of the Martyrs give abundant witness to. The magisterium of the Church
has often approved of this. Thus the Council of Nicaea II condemned those who
throw away the relics of the martyrs (D 603); the Council of Rome in 993 (D
675) approved the veneration of them; the Council of Constance (D 1269) did the
same against the Wycliffites and the Hussites; and especially the Council of
Trent in session 25 (d 1821) against the Protestants, and in its Profession of
Faith (d 1867).
The cult of images is also
relative. The defense of this cult against the iconoclasts was made principally
by the Council of Nicaea II (d 600-601, 603). The Council of Constantinople IV
(D 653-656) and the Council of Trent in session 25 (D 1823, 1867) proposed the
same doctrine. (Iesu Solano and J. A. de Aldama, Sacrae Theologiae Summa,
4 vols. [trans. Kenneth Baker; Keep the Faith, Inc., 2014], 3-A: 505)
Further Reading:
Answering Fundamentalist Protestants and Roman Catholic/Eastern Orthodox on Images/Icons
