Since “veneration” indicates deep respect, this is not worship. The word venerate comes from the Latin word “venerari,” which means “love.” We venerate (love and respect) the saints, but we only worship God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit. In fact, the Church understands the 4th Commandment (5th in some Protestant lists), as obliging not just honoring our natural fathers and mothers, but also those whom God’s Providence has placed in relationship over us as natural and spiritual fathers and mothers, in civil society, and in the Church, on earth, and in Heaven. Thus, St. Paul could say to the Corinthians that he was their father through the Gospel (1 Cor. 4:15; 2 Cor. 12:14-15), and Catholics call priests “Father.”