In the New Testament, the name applied to the members of the Christian community generally, but restricted in ecclesiastical usage from very early times to those who have been virtuous to a heroic degree.

There are several classes of saints: apostles and evangelists; martyrs; confessors, originally those who had undergone imprisonment or pains without the final crown of martyrdom and later male saints in general who were eminent for sanctity; doctors, saints eminent for sacred learning; virgins; and matrons and widows.

There are two important sources for the many saints. The fullest list is found in the general table in the 61st volume of the Acta Sanctorum of the Bollandists, which mentions about 20,000 saints. The catalogue that possesses the highest ecclesiastical authority is that of the Martyrologium Romanum with some 2,700 saints, including about 20 saints of the Old Testament.

Many saints have a feast day which is celebrated annually. All Saints' Day, also Allhallows or Hallowmas, is a Christian festival celebrated on November 1 in the Roman Catholic and Anglican churches in honor of God and all his saints, known and unknown.

• St Agatha - patron saint of Malta and of Cataninia, Italy;
• St Albertus (Albertus Magnus) - patron saint of all who study the natural sciences;
• St Aloysius Gonzaga;
• St Ambrose - patron saint of Milan;
• St Andrew - patron saint of Scotland and Russia;
• St Ansgar - patron saint of Scandinavia;
• St Anthony of Padua - the patron saint of Padua and of Portugal, and the saint invoked for the finding of lost articles;
• St Barbara - patron saint of artillery;
• St Basil - Basil, his brother St Gregory of Nyssa, and his friend St Gregory of Nazianzus are known collectively as the Cappadocian Fathers. Basil's grandmother Macrina; his parents, Basil and Emmelia; his sister Macrina, and his younger brothers Gregory and Peter of Sebaste are all venerated as saints;
• St Blaise - patron saint of wool combers
• St Bridget of Sweden
• St Bernadette
• St Brigid of Ireland
• St Bruno of Cologne
• St Catherine of Alexandria
• St Christopher
• St David
• St Denis
• St Dunstan
• St Elizabeth Ann Seton
• St Frances Xavier Cabrini
• St Francis of Assisi
• St Francis of Sales
• St Genevieve
• St George
• St Gregory I
• St Isaac Jogues
• St Jean de Brébeuf,
• St Joan of Arc
• St John Baptist de la Salle
• St John Chrysostom
• St John of Damascus (or St John Damascene)
• St John of Nepomuk
• St Luke
• St Margaret
• St Mark
• St Martin
• St Matthew
• St Nicholas
• St Philip
• St Patrick
• St Rose of Lima
• St Sebastian
• St Seraphim of Sarov
• St Simeon Stylites
• St Stephen - patron saint of Hungary;
• St Theresa of Lisieux
• St Ursula
• St Valentine

from the Encyclopedia Mythica

Saint

I. Introduction

Saint, name applied in the New Testament (Colossians 1:2) to the members of the Christian community generally, but restricted in ecclesiastical usage from very early times to those who have been virtuous to a heroic degree. Saints are traditionally distributed into several classes: apostles and evangelists; martyrs; confessors, originally, those who had undergone imprisonment or pains without the final crown of martyrdom and, later, male saints in general who were eminent for sanctity; doctors, saints eminent for sacred learning; virgins; and matrons and widows. For the methods by which the title of saint has been conferred in early and in modern times.

II. Veneration of Saints

By the 4th century AD, the practice of venerating the saints was widespread. During the Middle Ages, however, much superstition surrounded the practice. Even before the Reformation, the Bogomils and Waldenses objected to the veneration of saints; at the time of the Reformation, the practice was generally rejected as scripturally unfounded. The Roman Catholic Council of Trent (1545-63) affirmed that it is a good and useful thing to invoke the saints on account of the benefits to be obtained from God through their intercession. The belief and practice of the Orthodox church is basically the same as that of the Roman Catholic.

Of the many saints, almost all record has perished except their names. The fullest list is found in the general table in the 61st volume of the colossal Acta Sanctorum of the Bollandists, which mentions about 20,000 saints. The catalog that possesses the highest ecclesiastical authority is that of the Martyrologium Romanum. The martyrology numbers some 2700 saints, including about 20 saints of the Old Testament, arranged according to the days of their celebration. Many of these saints were honored annually with a special feast day; at one time their feast days filled about two-thirds of the Roman Catholic church's liturgical calendar, although some of the saints had become little more than names.

In 1964 Vatican Council II concluded that only saints "of truly universal significance should be extended to the universal Church" and the others "should be left to be celebrated by a particular church, or nation, or religious community." Accordingly, in 1969, Pope Paul VI approved a reordering of the liturgical calendar to achieve the council's wish. In the revised calendar, which took effect on January 1, 1970, only 58 regular, or obligatory, and 92 optional feast days of saints were retained in addition to those of Christ, the Virgin Mary, Saint Joseph, and the apostles.

III. Saints in Art and Patron Saints

In Christian art representations of the saints, as well as of Christ, are often marked by a halo (also known as a nimbus, aureole, or glory), a ring or area of radiance about the head or entire figure, and many of the saints are pictured with emblems by which they could readily be recognized. A martyr who had a special interest in a place was called its patron as early as the 4th century. Trades and professions had their patrons, and for every disease a saint could be invoked to cure it.

Among the widely known patron saints are Andrew of Scotland, Denis of France, George of England, Nicholas of Russia, Patrick of Ireland, James the Great of Spain, and Stephen of Hungary. The term hagiology or hagiography is used to denote the branch of literature that is concerned with the lives and legends of the saints.

"Saint," Microsoft® Encarta® Online Encyclopedia 2001 http://encarta.msn.com © 1997-2000 Microsoft Corporation. All Rights Reserved.