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THE SAINTS PORTAL

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In Christian belief, a saint is a person who is recognized as having an exceptional degree of holiness, likeness, or closeness to God. However, the use of the term saint depends on the context and denomination. In Catholic, Eastern Orthodox, Anglican, Oriental Orthodox, and Lutheran doctrine, all of their faithful deceased in Heaven are considered to be saints, but some are considered worthy of greater honor or emulation. Official ecclesiastical recognition, and consequently a public cult of veneration, is conferred on some denominational saints through the process of canonization in the Catholic Church or glorification in the Eastern Orthodox Church after their approval.

While the English word saint originated in Christianity, historians of religion tend to use the appellation "in a more general way to refer to the state of special holiness that many religions attribute to certain people", referring to the Jewish ḥasīd or tzadik, the Islamic walī, the Hindu rishi or Sikh Bhagat and guru, the Shintoist kami, the Taoist shengren, and the Buddhist arhat or bodhisattva also as saints. Depending on the religion, saints are recognized either by official ecclesiastical declaration, as in the Catholic faith, or by popular acclamation (see folk saint). (Full article...)

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Selected biography

Saint Maximus the Confessor (also known as Maximus the Theologian and Maximus of Constantinople) (c. 580 – 13 August 662) was a Christian monk, theologian, and scholar. In his early life, he was a civil servant, and an aide to the Byzantine Emperor Heraclius. However, he gave up this life in the political sphere to enter into the monastic life.

After moving to Carthage, Maximus studied several Neo-Platonist writers and became a prominent author. When one of his friends began espousing the Christological position known as Monothelitism, Maximus was drawn into the controversy, in which he supported the Chalcedonian position that Jesus had both a human and a divine will. Maximus is venerated in both Eastern Christianity and Western Christianity. His positions eventually resulted in exile, soon after which he died. Maximus is among those Christians who were venerated as saints shortly after their deaths. The vindication of Maximus' theological position at the Third Council of Constantinople made him extremely popular within a generation after his death, and his cause was aided by the accounts of miracles at his tomb. In Eastern Christianity, Maximus has always been influential. The Eastern theologians Simeon the New Theologian and Gregory Palamas are seen as intellectual heirs to Maximus. Further, a number of Maximus' works are included in the Greek Philokalia - a collection of some of the most influential Greek Christian writers.

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Did you know...

...that according to legend, when a peasant stole a donkey from Opportuna of Montreuil's abbey, she "left the matter up to God," and the next day, the peasant's field was sown with salt?
...that Amaro spent three hundred years standing at the gate of the Earthly Paradise without being allowed in, according to the Life of Saint Amaro?
...that Daumantas of Pskov, a Lithuanian dynast involved in the assassination of the first Lithuanian king, was later canonized by the Russian Orthodox Church and became a patron saint of Pskov?

More did you know facts

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Selected saint days

1 May Philip the Apostle and James the Just
2 May Athanasius of Alexandria
8 May Julian of Norwich
10 May Saint John of Ávila and Servant of God Élisabeth of France
14 May Saint Matthias
19 May Dunstan
20 May Alcuin
21 May Saint Helena of Constantinople
21 May Saint Constantine the Great
25 May The Venerable Bede
25 May St Aldhelm
26 May Augustine of Canterbury
26 May Philip Neri
28 May Lanfranc
30 May Josephine Butler
30 May Joan of Arc
30 May Apolo Kivebulaya

...Archive/Noms

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General images

The following are images from various saint-related articles on Wikipedia.

Image 1On 4 November 1992, the Holy Synod of the Church of Greece unanimously declared saints those Christians who had been tortured and massacred by the Turks in the Great fire of Smyrna in 1922. (from Canonization)
Image 2St Bridget of Sweden pictured with a halo. In Christian iconography, saints may also be depicted with wreaths, palm branches, and white lilies. (from Saint)
Image 3The Turkish atrocities in Bulgaria (1876). On 3 April 2011, Batak massacre victims were canonized as saints. (from Canonization)
Image 4Icon of St. Cyprian of Carthage, who urged diligence in the process of canonization (from Canonization)
Image 5"Scripture does not teach calling on the saints or pleading for help from them. For it sets before us Christ alone as mediator, atoning sacrifice, high priest, and intercessor."—A.C. Article XXI. (from Saint)
Image 6Saint, 12th century fresco in Staraya Ladoga (from Saint)
Image 7Pope Pius II canonizes Catherine of Siena. (from Canonization)
Image 8Eremitic Saint Onuphrius by Emmanuel Tzanes, 1662 (from Saint)
Image 9Dutch Book of Prayers from the mid-fifteenth century showing a group of five saints, with their emblems: Saint James the Great (wearing a pilgrim's hat); Saint Joseph; Saint Ghislain (holding a church); Saint Eligius (bishop with a crosier, holding a hammer); Saint Hermes (with the armor and the sword) (from Saint symbolism)
Image 10The symbols of the four Evangelists are here depicted in the Book of Kells. The winged man, lion, eagle and bull symbolize, clockwise from top left, Matthew, Mark, John, and Luke. (from Saint symbolism)
Image 11Canonization of Elizabeth of Hungary in 1235. Sándor Liezen-Mayer (1863). (from Canonization)
Image 12Portrait of the saintly Kanua, a Hindu baba of Mathura, India, also pictured with a halo encircling his head. (from Saint)
Image 13A portrait depicting Saint Francis of Assisi by the Italian artist Cimabue (1240–1302) (from Saint)

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Related portals

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WikiProjects

Religion
- Christianity

The Saints Wikiproject aims primarily at standardizing the articles about people venerated by some Christians as saints or the blessed and ensuring quality articles. If there is an interest in including saints from religions other than Christianity, please propose those changes on our talk page.

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Recognized content

This is a list of recognized content, updated weekly by JL-Bot (talk · contribs) (typically on Saturdays). There is no need to edit the list yourself. If an article is missing from the list, make sure it is tagged (e.g. {{WikiProject Saints}}) or categorized correctly and wait for the next update. See WP:RECOG for configuration options.

Featured articles

Good articles

Featured pictures

Annunciation Memling
Cabinet Card of Sojourner Truth - Collection of the National Museum of African American History and Culture
Jan van Eyck - Kardinal Niccolò Albergati - Google Art Project
Jan van Eyck - Portrait of Cardinal Niccolò Albergati - Google Art Project
Leonardo da Vinci - Virgin and Child with St Anne C2RMF retouched
Raffaello Sanzio - Madonna del Cardellino - Google Art Project
Raphaël - La Madone de Lorette - Google Art Project
Russian Imperial Family 1913
Saint Côme & Saint Damien Grandes Heures Anne de Bretagne XVIe
San Giovanni Evangelista (Parma) - Dome
Sir Anthony Van Dyck - Charles I (1600-49) - Google Art Project
Sojourner Truth, 1870 (cropped, restored)
William Holman Hunt - The Finding of the Saviour in the Temple - Google Art Project