The word hasn't come far from its Latin roots in venerari, "to worship." Although you can certainly venerate a deity, a person can deserve it, too. Find part of the word Venus in there, meaning "love, desire" and dang, if someone venerates you, you're doing okay. We don't usually venerate our sweethearts; we often save it for those higher powers, or for remarkable people we're in awe of. Mother Teresa was venerated for her work with the poor, and Gandhi was venerated for his efforts for peace, but most people aren't venerated for normal stuff, like being someone's sweetie.