The word ''

saint In religious belief, a saint is a person who is recognized as having an exceptional degree of Q-D-Š, holiness, likeness, or closeness to God. However, the use of the term ''saint'' depends on the context and Christian denomination, denominatio ...

'' derives from the Latin ''sanctus'', meaning holy, and has long been used in Christianity to refer to a person who was recognized as having lived a holy life and as being an exemplar and model for other Christians. Beginning in the 10th century, the Church began to centralise and formalise the process of recognising saints; the process whereby an individual was added to the canon (list) of recognised saints became known as

canonisation Canonization is the declaration of a deceased person as an officially recognized saint In religious belief, a saint is a person who is recognized as having an exceptional degree of Q-D-Š, holiness, likeness, or closeness to God. However, t ...

. Saints who had been canonized when the

Church of England The Church of England (C of E) is a Christian church Christian Church is a Protestant Protestantism is a form of Christianity that originated with the 16th-century Reformation, a movement against what its followers perceived to be Critic ...

was in communion with Rome generally continued to be recognized as saints after the

English Reformation The English Reformation took place in 16th-century England when the Church of England broke away from the authority of the Pope and the Roman Catholic Church. These events were, in part, associated with the wider European Protestant Reformati ...

in the 16th century. Since the split with

Rome , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg , map_caption = The te ...

Rome

, the

sometimes uses the word ''hero'' or ''heroine'' to recognise those holy people whom the church synod or an individual church praises as having had special benevolence. It considers such muted terms a reversion to a more simple and cautious

doctrine Doctrine (from la, Wikt:doctrina, doctrina, meaning "teaching, instruction") is a codification (law), codification of beliefs or a body of teacher, teachings or instructions, taught Value (personal and cultural), principles or positions, as the e ...

which emphasises empowerment (

subsidiarity Subsidiarity is a principle of social organization that holds that social and political issues should be dealt with at the most immediate (or local) level that is consistent with their resolution. The ''Oxford English Dictionary'' defines subs ...

) to all members and components of the church. The provinces of the

Anglican Communion The Anglican Communion is the third largest Christian communion Communion may refer to: Religion * The Eucharist (also called the Holy Communion or Lord's Supper), the Christian rite involving the eating of bread and drinking of wine, re ...

therefore commemorate many of the saints in the

General Roman Calendar The General Roman Calendar is the liturgical Liturgy is the customary public worship Worship is an act of religion, religious wikt:devotion, devotion usually directed towards a deity. For many, worship is not about an emotion, it is mor ...

, often on the same days. In some cases, Anglican Calendars have kept pre-1954 celebratory days that the

Roman Catholic Church The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptised Baptism (from the Greek language, Greek noun βάπτισμα ''báptisma'') is a Christians, Christian ...

has since moved or abolished.

Early Christianity

Like the Roman Catholic Church, the Anglican Communion has special holy days in honour of

Jesus Christ Jesus, likely from he, יֵשׁוּעַ, translit=Yēšūaʿ, label=Hebrew Hebrew (, , or ) is a Northwest Semitic languages, Northwest Semitic language of the Afroasiatic languages, Afroasiatic language family. Historically, it i ...

, the

Blessed Virgin Mary According to the gospels Gospel originally meant the Christian message ("the gospel"), but in the 2nd century it came to be used also for the books in which the message was set out. In this sense a gospel can be defined as a loose-knit, ...

and the

Apostles upright=1.35, Jesus and his Twelve Apostles, Chi-Rho symbol ☧, Catacombs of Domitilla">Chi_Rho.html" ;"title="fresco with the Chi Rho">Chi-Rho symbol ☧, Catacombs of Domitilla, Rome In Christian theology and ecclesiology, apostles, parti ...

. Many of the parish churches in the Communion have the names Christ Church, and St. Mary the Virgin. The same can also be said for the four great patrons of

Great Britain Great Britain is an island An island (or isle) is an isolated piece of habitat that is surrounded by a dramatically different habitat, such as water. Very small islands such as emergent land features on atoll An atoll (), ...

and

Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Great Britain and Ireland), North Channel, the Irish Sea ...

Ireland

Saint George Saint George (Greek#REDIRECT Greek Greek may refer to: Greece Anything of, from, or related to Greece Greece ( el, Ελλάδα, , ), officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country located in Southeast Europe. Its population is approxi ...

(England),

Saint David Saint David ( cy, Dewi Sant; la, Davidus; ) was a Welsh bishop of Mynyw (now St Davids St Davids or St David's ( cy, Tyddewi, , "Saint David, David's Welsh toponymy, house”) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and a comm ...

(Wales),

Saint Patrick Saint Patrick ( la, Patricius; ga, Pádraig ; cy, Padrig) was a fifth-century Romano-British Christian missionary A missionary is a member of a Religious denomination, religious group sent into an area to promote their faith or provide ...

(Ireland), and

Saint Andrew Andrew the Apostle ( gr, Ἀνδρέας ''Andreas''; Aramaic: ܐܢܕܪܐܘܣ), also called Saint Andrew, was an Apostles, apostle of Jesus according to the New Testament. He is the brother of Saint Peter. He is referred to in the Eastern Orthod ...

(Scotland).

English saints

English and local saints are often emphasised, and there are differences between the provinces' calendars.

King Charles I of England Charles I (19 November 1600 – 30 January 1649) was King of England This list of kings and queens of the begins with , who initially ruled , one of the which later made up modern England. Alfred styled himself King of the from a ...

is the only person to have been treated as a new saint by some Anglicans following the English Reformation, after which he was referred to as a martyr and included briefly in a calendar of the Book of Common Prayer. This canonisation is, however, considered neither universal nor official in the Anglican Communion worldwide, and many national Churches list him as a martyr and not a Saint, or as neither.

English martyrs

There are several persons commemorated in the modern Anglican calendars who were opposed to the

. Of particular note are

John Wycliffe John Wycliffe (; also spelled Wyclif, Wickliffe, and other variants; 1320s – 31 December 1384) was an English scholastic philosopher, theologian, biblical translator, reformer, priest, and a seminary professor at the University of Oxford. H ...

and

William Tyndale William Tyndale (; sometimes spelled ''Tynsdale'', ''Tindall'', ''Tindill'', ''Tyndall''; – ) was an English scholar who became a leading figure in the Protestant Protestantism is a form of that originated with the 16th-century , ...

, for beginning the full translation of the Bible into English (a project which led to the

Geneva Bible The Geneva Bible is one of the most historically significant translations Translation is the communication of the meaning of a source-language text by means of an equivalent target-language text. The English language draws a terminol ...

), and for writings against the Catholic Church. The

Oxford Martyrs The Oxford Martyrs were Protestants tried for heresy in 1555 and Death by burning, burnt at the stake in Oxford, England, for their religious beliefs and teachings, during the Mary I of England#Religious policy, Marian persecution English Reforma ...

Thomas Cranmer Thomas Cranmer (2 July 1489 – 21 March 1556) was a leader of the English Reformation The English Reformation took place in 16th-century England when the Church of England broke away from the authority of the Pope and the Roman Catholic ...

, Nicholas Ridley, and

Hugh Latimer Hugh Latimer ( – 16 October 1555) was a Fellow A fellow is a broad concept whose exact meaning depends on context. In learned Learning is the process of acquiring new understanding, knowledge, behaviors, skills, value (personal and cu ...

, are also commemorated for the courage they showed in death, and for their belief in a free Church of England.

Ugandan martyrs

In the 19th century, 23 Anglican and 22 Roman Catholic converts were martyred together in

Uganda Uganda (Ugandan Languages: Yuganda), officially the Republic of Uganda ( sw, Jamhuri ya Uganda), is a landlocked A landlocked country is a country that does not have territory connected to an ocean or whose coastlines lie on endorheic ba ...

Uganda

. The Church of England commemorates the Ugandan martyrs on 3 June together with Archbishop

Janani Luwum Janani Jakaliya Luwum (c. 1922 – 17 February 1977) was the Archbishop of Uganda, archbishop of the Church of Uganda from 1974 to 1977 and one of the most influential leaders of the modern church in Africa. He was arrested in February 1977 and ...

, who was murdered in 1977 on the orders of

Idi Amin Idi Amin Dada Oumee (, ; 16 August 2003) was a Ugandan military officer who served as the third president of Uganda The President of the Republic of Uganda is the head of state and the head of government of Uganda. The President leads the ...

. On 18 October 1964, Pope Paul VI canonised the 22 Ugandan martyrs who were Roman Catholics.

Modern notables

Anglican churches also commemorate various famous (often post-Reformation) Christians. The West front of

Westminster Abbey Westminster Abbey, formally titled the Collegiate Church of Saint Peter at Westminster, is a large, mainly Gothic Gothic or Gothics may refer to: People and languages *Goths or Gothic people, the ethnonym of a group of East Germanic tribes ...

, for example, contains statues of 20th-century martyrs like

Maximilian Kolbe Maximilian Maria Kolbe (born Rajmund Kolbe; pl, Maksymilian Maria Kolbe ; 8 January 1894 – 14 August 1941), venerated as Saint Maximilian Kolbe, was a Polish Catholic The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, i ...

Martin Luther King Jr. Martin Luther King Jr. (born Michael King Jr.; January 15, 1929 – April 4, 1968) was an African American African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans or Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group of Americans with total or part ...

Óscar Romero Óscar Arnulfo Romero y Galdámez (15 August 1917 – 24 March 1980) was a prelate of the Catholic Church in El Salvador. He served as auxiliary bishop of the archdiocese of San Salvador, as Roman Catholic Diocese of Santiago de María, b ...

Dietrich Bonhoeffer Dietrich Bonhoeffer (; 4 February 1906 – 9 April 1945) was a German Lutheran pastor, theologian, anti-Nazi dissident, and key founding member of the Confessing Church. His writings on Christianity's role in the secular world have become ...

and

Lucian Tapiedi Image:Westminster Abbey - 20th Century Martyrs.jpg, 450px, The 20th Century Martyrs. Westminster Abbey, London. The statue of Lucian Tapiedi, by Tim Crawley, stands second from right. Lucian Tapiedi ( – 1942) was a Papua New Guinea, Papuan Angli ...

(one of the Anglican New Guinea Martyrs).

Some traditional Anglican saints

Aelred of Hexham Aelred of Rievaulx ( la, Aelredus Riaevallensis); also Ailred, Ælred, and Æthelred; (1110 – 12 January 1167) was an English Cistercian monk, abbot of Rievaulx from 1147 until his death, and known as a writer. He is regarded by Anglicans and C ...

(1110–1167),

Abbot of RievaulxThe Abbot of Rievaulx was the head of the Cistercian monastic community of Rievaulx Abbey, founded in 1131 by Walter l'Espec in North Yorkshire, northern England. The Abbots of Rievaulx were amongst the most powerful Christian leaders in northern Eng ...

—12 January *

Aidan

(d. 651), Bishop of Lindisfarne—31 August * Alban (d. between 209 and 304),

protomartyr A protomartyr (Koine Greek Koine Greek (, , Greek approximately ;. , , , lit. "Common Greek"), also known as Alexandrian dialect, common Attic, Hellenistic or Biblical Greek, was the koiné language, common supra-regional form of Greek langua ...

of Britain—22 June *

Alcuin Alcuin of York (; la, Flaccus Albinus Alcuinus; 735 – 19 May 804) – also called Ealhwine, Alhwin, or Alchoin – was an English scholar, clergyman, poet, and teacher from York, Northumbria. He was born around 735 and became the ...

of York ( 735–804), Deacon, Abbot of Tours—20 May *

Aldhelm Aldhelm ( ang, Ealdhelm, la, Aldhelmus Malmesberiensis) (c. 63925 May 709), Abbot Abbot (from Aramaic: ''Abba'' "father") is an ecclesiastical title A title is one or more words used before or after a person's name, in certain contexts. ...

( 639–709),

Bishop of Sherborne The Bishop of Sherborne is an Episcopal polity, episcopal title which takes its name from the market town of Sherborne in Dorset, England. The see of Sherborne was established in around 705 by St Aldhelm, the Abbot of Malmesbury. This see was the ...

, shrines at

Salisbury Salisbury ( ) is a cathedral city City status in the United Kingdom is granted by the monarch of the United Kingdom The monarchy of the United Kingdom, commonly referred to as the British monarchy, is the constitutional monarchy of t ...

and

Canterbury Canterbury (, ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and UNESCO World Heritage Site, situated in the heart of the City of Canterbury, a local government district of Kent, England. It lies on the River Stour, Kent, River Stour ...

—25 May * Alfred the Great (849–899), King of Wessex * Alphege (954–1012), Archbishop of Canterbury, Martyr—19 April * Anselm of Canterbury ( 1033–1109), Archbishop of Canterbury * Augustine of Canterbury (d. 604), first Archbishop of Canterbury—26 May * Benedict Biscop ( 628–690), Abbot of Monkwearmouth-Jarrow Abbey, Wearmouth—13 January * Birinus ( 600–649), Bishop of Dorchester, Apostle of Wessex—4 September (Church of England), 3 December (Roman Catholic) * Brigid of Kildare, Brigid ( 451–525), Abbess of Kildare—1 February * Cedd ( 620–644), Abbot of Lastingham, Bishop of the East Saxons—26 October * St Chad, Chad (d. 672), Bishop of Lichfield—2 March * Charles I of England (1600–1649), King of England, Scotland, and Ireland—30 January * Columba (521–597), Abbot of Iona, Missionary—9 June * Crispin and Crispinian (d. 286)—25 October. Immortalised as Saint Crispin's Day in ''Henry V (play), Henry V'' by William Shakespeare, Shakespeare * Cuthbert of Lindisfarne, Cuthbert ( 634–687), Bishop of Lindisfarne—Church of England 29 March; Church in Wales 4 September); Episcopal Church (USA) 31 August * Dunstan ( 909–989), Archbishop of Canterbury—19 May * Edmund the Martyr (d. 869), King of the East Anglia, East Angles, Martyr * Edward the Confessor ( 1003 to 1005 – 1066), King of England—13 October (translation of relics) * Etheldreda ( 636–679), Abbess of Ely—23 June * St Felix, Felix of Burgundy (d. 647 or 648), Bishop, Apostle to the East Angles—8 March * Frideswide, Prioress at Oxford (Christ Church Cathedral, Oxford, Christ Church) * Saint George, George, allegedly martyred at Nicomedia in 303, his major shrine was at Constantinople, patron saint of England * Robert Grosseteste ( 1175–1253), Bishop of Lincoln, Philosopher, Scientist * Hilda of Whitby, Hilda ( 614–680), Abbess of Whitby * Hugh of Lincoln, Hugh (1135 to 1140–1200), Carthusians, Carthusian monk and Bishop of Lincoln—17 November * Julian of Norwich ( 1342 – ''c''. 1416), spiritual writer, mystic—8 May, 13 May * Margery Kempe ( 1373 – after 1438), housewife and mystic * Saint Margaret of Scotland, Margaret ( 1045–1093), Queen of Scotland, mystic—10 June or 16 November * Mellitus (d. 624), first Bishop of London—24 April * Mildrith, Mildred (ca. 660–730), Abbess of Minster-in-Thanet—13 July * Kentigern (Mungo), Kentigern (d. 614), Bishop of Cumbria—13 January * Saint Ninian, Ninian (4th or 5th century), Bishop of Galloway, Apostle of the Picts—16 September * Osmund (Bishop of Salisbury), Osmund (d. 1099), Bishop of Salisbury—4 December * Oswald of Northumbria, Oswald ( 604–642), King of Northumbria, martyr—5 August * Oswald of Worcester (d. 992), bishop of Worcester—29/28 February * St. Paulinus of York, Paulinus of York (d. 644), Archbishop of York, missionary—10 October * Saint Petroc, Petroc (d. 564), missionary to the West Country—4 June * Saint Piran, Piran (d. 480), patron saint of Cornwall and tinners—5 March * Richard, Bishop of Chichester (1197–1253) * Richard Rolle (1290–1349) of Hampole, spiritual writer * Edmund Rich of Abingdon (1175–1240), Archbishop of Canterbury—16 November * Swithun (d. 862), Bishop of Winchester—15 July in England and 2 July in Norway * Theodore of Tarsus (602–690), Archbishop of Canterbury—19 September * Thomas Becket ( 1118–1170), Archbishop of Canterbury, martyr—29 December * Thomas de Cantilupe (1218-82), bishop of Hereford—25 August/2 October *

( 1494–1536), translator of the Scriptures, martyr—6 October * The Venerable Bede (672 or 673–735), monk at Jarrow, scholar, historian—western churches 25 May, and Orthodox churches 27 May * Wilfrid of Ripon, Wilfrid ( 633- 709), bishop, missionary * William of Ockham ( 1287–1347), friar, philosopher * William of York (1141-53), bishop—8 June * William of Perth (d. ca. 1201), pilgrim, enshrined at Rochester Cathedral—23 May/22April * Willibrord of York ( 658–739), bishop, Apostle of Frisia—7 November * Wulfstan, Bishop of Worcester, Wulfstan (d. 1095), Bishop of Worcester—19 January

Examples of modern Anglican saints

The ninth Lambeth Conferences, Lambeth Conference held in 1958 clarified the commemoration of Saints and Heroes of the Christian Church in the Anglican Communion. Resolution 79 stated: *In the case of scriptural saints, care should be taken to commemorate men or women in terms which are in strict accord with the facts made known in Holy Scripture. *In the case of other names, the Calendar should be limited to those whose historical character and devotion are beyond doubt. *In the choice of new names economy should be observed and controversial names should not be inserted until they can be seen in the perspective of history. *The addition of a new name should normally result from a widespread desire expressed in the region concerned over a reasonable period of time.

Modern Anglican saints

The following have been identified as heroes of the Christian Church in the Anglican Communion (post-Reformation individuals commemorated in the Church of England Calendar, excluding those primarily venerated by the Roman Catholic or Orthodox churches): *Lancelot Andrewes (1555–1626), Bishop of Winchester, spiritual writer, theologian *Anthony Ashley-Cooper, 7th Earl of Shaftesbury, Anthony Ashley-Cooper (1801–1885), Earl of Shaftesbury, social reformer *Vedanayagam Samuel Azariah (1874–1945), bishop in South India, evangelist *Samuel Augustus Barnett, Samuel Barnett (1844–1913) and Henrietta Barnett (1851–1936), social reformers *Richard Baxter (1615–1691), Puritan divine *

(1906–1945), Lutheran pastor, martyr *William Booth (1829–1912) and Catherine Booth (1829–1890), founders of the Salvation Army *Thomas Bray (1658–1730), founder of the SPCK *John Bunyan (1628–1688), spiritual writer *Joseph Butler (1692–1752), Bishop of Durham, philosopher *Josephine Butler (1828–1906), social reformer *John Calvin (1509–1564), reformer *Wilson Carlile (1847–1942), founder of the Church Army *Edith Cavell (1865–1915), nurse *Charles I of England, Charles I (1600–1649), king and martyr *Caroline Chisholm (1808–1877), social reformer *

(1489–1556), Archbishop of Canterbury, Reformation martyr *John Donne (1572–1631), priest, poet *Elizabeth Ferard (1825–1883), first Deaconess of the Church of England, founder of the Community of St Andrew *Nicholas Ferrar (1592–1637), deacon, founder of the Little Gidding community *George Fox (1624–1691), founder of the Society of Friends (the Quakers) *Elizabeth Fry (1780–1845), prison reformer *Allen Gardiner (1794–1851), missionary, founder of the South American Mission Society *Isabella Gilmore (1842–1923), deaconess *Charles Gore (1853–1932), bishop, founder of the Community of the Resurrection *James Hannington (1847–1885), bishop of Eastern Equatorial Africa, martyr in Uganda *George Herbert (1593–1633), priest, poet *Octavia Hill (1838–1912), social reformer *Richard Hooker (theologian), Richard Hooker (1554–1600), priest, apologist, theologian *Eglantyne Jebb (1876–1928), social reformer, founder of 'Save The Children' *Samuel Johnson (1709–1784), moralist *John Keble (1792–1866), priest, tractarian, poet *Thomas Ken (1637–1711), Bishop of Bath and Wells *Geoffrey Studdert Kennedy (1883–1929), priest, poet *Edward King (English bishop), Edward King (1829–1920), Bishop of Lincoln *Apolo Kivebulaya (''c''. 1864–1933), priest, evangelist in Central Africa *Ini Kopuria (d. 1945), founder of the Melanesian Brotherhood *

(''c''. 1487–1555), Bishop of Worcester, Reformation martyr *William Laud (1573–1645), Archbishop of Canterbury *William Law (1686–1761), priest, spiritual writer, *Charles Fuge Lowder (1820–1880), priest *Martin Luther (1483–1546), reformer *

(''c''. 1922–1977), Archbishop of Uganda, martyr *Frederick Denison Maurice (1805–1872), priest *Henry Martyn (1781–1812), translator of the Scriptures, missionary in India and Persia *Bernard Mizeki (''c''. 1861–1896), apostle of the Shona people, MaShona, martyr *Harriet Monsell (1811–1883), founder of the Community of St John the Baptist *John Mason Neale (1818–1866), priest, hymn writer *John Henry Newman (1801–1890), Cardinal, tractarian, theologian *Florence Nightingale (1820–1910), nurse, social reformer *John Coleridge Patteson (1827–1871), first Bishop of Melanesia and martyr *Edward Bouverie Pusey (1800–1882), priest, tractarian *Pandita Mary Ramabai (1858–1922), translator of the Scriptures * Nicholas Ridley (''c''. 1500–1555), Bishop of London, Reformation martyr *

(1917–1980), Archbishop of San Salvador, martyr *Christina Rossetti (1830–1894), poet *Samuel Seabury (bishop), Samuel Seabury (1729–1796), first Anglican bishop in North America *Priscilla Lydia Sellon, a restorer of the religious life in the Church of England *George Augustus Selwyn (1809–1878), first Anglican Bishop of New Zealand *Sadhu Sundar Singh ( 1889– ? ), evangelist, teacher of the Faith *Mary Slessor (1848–1915), missionary in West Africa *Mary Sumner (1828–1921), founder of the Mothers' Union *Jeremy Taylor (1613–1667), Bishop of Down and Connor *William Temple (archbishop), William Temple (1881–1944), Archbishop of Canterbury *Thomas Traherne (1636 or 1637–1674), poet, spiritual writer *

(''c''. 1494–1536), translator of the Scriptures, Reformation martyr *Evelyn Underhill (1875–1941), spiritual writer *Henry Venn (Clapham Sect), Henry Venn (1725–1797), John Venn (priest), John Venn (1759–1813), and Henry Venn (Church Missionary Society), Henry Venn the younger (1796–1873), priests, evangelical divines *Isaac Watts (1674–1748), hymn writer *Charles Wesley (1707–1788), evangelist, hymn writer *John Wesley (1703–1791), priest, evangelist, founder of Methodism *John West (missionary), John West (1778–1845), missionary and the first Anglican priest in Western Canada *William Wilberforce (1759–1833), social reformer