聖人 | 意味、定義、ヒンディー語、カトリック、有名な聖人、役割、重要性

Saint | Meaning, Definition, Hindi, Catholic, Famous, Role, & Significance | Britannica Ask the Chatbot Games & Quizzes History & Society Science & Tech Biographies Animals & Nature Geography & Travel Arts & Culture ProCon Money Videos saint Introduction & Top Questions Nature and significance Saints in Eastern religions Confucianism and Daoism Shintō Buddhism Jainism Hinduism Saints in Western religions Ancient Greek religion Zoroastrianism and Parsiism Judaism Christianity Islam Modes of recognition The bases of recognition Popular recognition Theological interpretations of popular recognition Forms of cults Types and functions of saints Saints as moral examples Saints as prophets and reformers Theological teachers as saints References & Edit History Related Topics Images & Videos At a Glance saint summary Quizzes Saints Christian Saints Quiz Related Questions How are saints recognized in Christianity? What defines a saint in various religions? How does sainthood differ in Confucianism and Daoism? What is the role of saints in Buddhism? When are some notable saints who have been declared doctors of the church? print Print Please select which sections you would like to print: Table Of Contents CITE verified Cite While every effort has been made to follow citation style rules, there may be some discrepancies. Please refer to the appropriate style manual or other sources if you have any questions. Select Citation Style MLA APA Chicago Manual of Style Copy Citation Share Share Share to social media Facebook X URL https://www.britannica.com/topic/saint Feedback External Websites Feedback Corrections? Updates? Omissions? Let us know if you have suggestions to improve this article (requires login). Feedback Type Select a type (Required) Factual Correction Spelling/Grammar Correction Link Correction Additional Information Other Your Feedback Submit Feedback Thank you for your feedback Our editors will review what you’ve submitted and determine whether to revise the article. External Websites IndiaNetzone - Indian Saints United States Conference of Catholic Bishops - Saints Britannica Websites Articles from Britannica Encyclopedias for elementary and high school students. saint - Children's Encyclopedia (Ages 8-11) saint - Student Encyclopedia (Ages 11 and up) St. Matthias Saint Matthias , tempera on wood by the workshop of Simone Martini, c. 1317–19; in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York. (more) saint Ask Anything Quick Summary Homework Help Written by Gustav Mensching Professor of Comparative Religion, Rhenish Friedrich Wilhelm University of Bonn, West Germany. Author of Soziologie der Religion and others. Gustav Mensching Fact-checked by Britannica Editors Encyclopaedia Britannica's editors oversee subject areas in which they have extensive knowledge, whether from years of experience gained by working on that content or via study for an advanced degree.... Britannica Editors Last updated Mar. 22, 2026 • History Britannica AI Ask Anything Quick Summary Table of Contents Table of Contents Quick Summary Ask Anything Top Questions How are saints recognized in Christianity? In Christianity , saints were initially martyrs venerated for their sacrifice for Jesus Christ . The Roman Catholic Church formalized the process of declaring saints, known as canonization . To be canonized requires a life of heroic sanctity and the performance of miracles . Saints are venerated, not worshipped, and are seen as intercessors with special powers. Christian saints include all of the Apostles , Francis of Assisi , and Mother Teresa . What defines a saint in various religions? A saint is a holy person who is believed to have a special relationship with the sacred as well as moral perfection and exceptional teaching abilities. The concept is present in many religions , both ancient and contemporary, with saints being recognized by popular acclaim or official pronouncement, such as through canonization in the Roman Catholic Church . How does sainthood differ in Confucianism and Daoism? In Confucianism , saintliness is linked to ethical perfection and acquiring ideal harmony with the Way ( Dao ) of heaven ( tian ). The “holy rulers of primal times,” such as King Tang (11th century bce ), were representative examples of ideal conduct. In Daoism , sanctity involves attaining a passionless unity with the Absolute, as exemplified by the zhenren , or the “pure men of early times,” described by the mystical sage Zhuang Zhou (died c. 300 bce ) in the Zhuangzi . What is the role of saints in Buddhism? Theravada Buddhism , which claims strict adherence to the teachings of the Buddha , recognizes saints ( arhats ) as people who have attained nirvana (the state of bliss) and hence salvation from samsara (the compulsory circle of rebirth) through their efforts. Mahayana Buddhism rejected the Theravada belief that only monks may attain salvation and taught that there is a path to redemption for all people, irrespective of their social standing. Mahayana views Buddhas and bodhisattvas (“Buddhas-to-be”) as saints who aid others in salvation. Tibetan Buddhism accepts living saints, such as the Dalai Lamas , who are seen as incarnations ( tulkus ) of past saints or deities . saint , a holy person who is believed to have a special relationship to the sacred as well as moral perfection or exceptional teaching abilities. The phenomenon is widespread in the religions of the world, both ancient and contemporary. Various types of religious personages have been recognized as saints, both by popular acclaim and official pronouncement, and their influence on the religious masses (the broad spectrum of those holding various wide-ranging religious beliefs) has been, and is, of considerable significance. Nature and significance How to Become a Saint: Canonization Explained Step one: Be Catholic. (more) See all videos for this article Saints are persons believed to be connected in a special manner with what is viewed as sacred reality— gods , spiritual powers, mythical realms, and other aspects of the sacred or holy. The religious person may have various relationships with the sacred: as seer, prophet, savior, monk , nun , priest , priestess, or other such personage. In the case of each of these, however, a specific kind of relationship to the holy is involved. Seers, for example, have an inspirational vision of the future; prophets proclaim a revelation ; saviors are entrusted with effecting redemption, liberation, or other salvatory conditions; monks and nuns lead religious lives in accordance with ascetic regulations that they generally observe as long as they live. Every one of these religious persons may simultaneously be, or become, a saint, but there is no necessary connection. Sainthood thus implies a special type of relationship to the holy, a relationship that is not automatically obtained by other religious personages through their performance of religious duties or offices. The significance of saintly personages is generally based on real or alleged deeds and qualities that became apparent during their lifetimes and continue to exert influence after their deaths. The special character of their feats and qualities of living is believed to arise from an especially close association with a deity or sacred power. In addition to such a relationship, sainthood also requires the existence of a sacral institution that can grant such recognition, or of a popular cult that acknowledges and posits a belief in the saint’s special qualities. In many institutionalized religions there is a regularized process by which saints are officially recognized. In Roman Catholicism there is canonization , which generally requires demonstration that the person in question wrought a miracle after beatification . Canonization requires, among other things, proof that the person in question wrought miracles during his or her lifetime. On the other hand, folk belief often recognizes the saintly powers of living or dead persons long before the institutional religion acknowledges them as saints. Saints in Eastern religions Confucianism and Daoism Confucianism is in the main ethically oriented. Confucius taught that right conduct was a means of acquiring ideal harmony with the Way ( Dao ) of heaven ( tian ) and that the “holy rulers of primal times” were representative examples of such ideal conduct. In the oldest known Chinese historical work, the Shujing (“Classic of History”), such a ruler, King Tang (11th century bce ), is described as one who “possessed the highest degree of virtue, and so it came to be that he acquired the bright authority of heaven.” Thus, in Confucianism the saintliness of its holy men lay in ethical perfection, and through the practice of ethical ideals a contact with heaven was established. Confucius himself serves as an example of a man who was first regarded as a saint because of his deep wisdom and conscientious observance of ethical precepts and was even considered to be “more than human.” During the Han dynasty (206 bce –220 ce ), Confucius was elevated to a new status: Emperor Gaozi offered sacrifice at the Confucian temple, and Emperor Wu proclaimed Confucianism the official ideology of China. The titles of duke (1 ce ) and king (739) were further tributes to “the perfect sage.” During the Tang dynasty (618–907), sacrifices were regularly offered in Confucian temples, and in 1906 Confucius was declared equal to the Lord of Heaven. Daoism is oriented toward another kind of sanctity: the attainment of a passionless unity with the Absolute. Zhuangzi (died c. 300 bce ), a mystical Daoist sage, speaks of the zhenren , or the “pure men of early times,” in the eponymous work attributed to him, the Zhuangzi , and characterizes them as such. Britannica Quiz Saints Shintō Shintō , the native Japanese religion , is concerned with the veneration of nature and with ancestor worship ; it does not have saints according to the standards of ethical perfection or of ex