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A saint is a particularly good or holy person, whose life and actions are considered inspirational. The term is used within Christianity, with definitions varying by denomination. English-language publications will sometimes use saint to describe a revered person from another religion. The word itself means “holy” and is derived from the Latin sanctus. During periods of Christianity, many people have prayed to saints as intercessors, and communities developed strong rituals around particular saints, adopting one or more as patron saints of a locale or occupation.
In Christianity, the term arose in Greek literature with the use of the word hagios (Greek άγιος meaning “holy” or "holy one"). In the Old Testament, the term is used to describe people who have found favor with God.(In the Old Testament, the cognate is the Hebrew word qodesh, קדש). In the New Testament, the term is used to describe the followers of Jesus of Nazareth.
Other religions also recognize certain individuals as having particular holiness (or enlightenment.) For instance, the figures of bodhissatvas in Buddhism occupy a space between people in daily life and the Buddha they work to emulate. In traditional Sephardic Judaism in North Africa, revered rabbis were honored locally in rituals at their graves. In each religious tradition, there has been an official position about the role of saints and similar figures, for instance, in theology, and there have been popular traditions that are created organically by the people.
The Saints Wikiproject aims primarily at standardizing the articles about people venerated by some Christians as saints or the blessed and ensuring quality articles.
Non-Christian Saints If there is an interest in including saints from religions other than Christianity, please propose those changes on our talk page and we can integrate them into the wikiproject.
