canonization

/ˌkænənəˈzeɪʃən/
noun
  1. The official process in the Catholic Church by which a dead person is declared a saint.
    • Many people attended the ceremony for the canonization of the new saint.
    • The church spent decades gathering evidence for her canonization.
    • The canonization of Mother Teresa took place in 2016.
  2. The act of treating someone or something as perfect or extremely important, often in an exaggerated way.
    • Some fans engage in the canonization of their favorite musicians.
    • The media's canonization of the athlete ignored his past mistakes.
    • The canonization of that historical figure has been criticized by modern scholars.