What Are Saints? Are They Dead Super-Holy Catholics?

Contrary to Catholic Church teaching, the biblical term “saint” does NOT refer to super-holy Catholics who have died and then achieve “sainthood” by passing some rigorous serious of tests and investigations by the Vatican’s saint canonization committee. When the word “saint” is used in the New Testament, it commonly refers to LIVING Christians and not some special group of Catholics who pass the Catholic super do-gooder test. This is made very clear by all the times that the apostle Paul used the word “saint” in his many letters to the various New Testament churches he was overseeing at various points in his life. Here are many of those examples:
 
Romans 15:25 – “But now I go unto Jerusalem to minister unto the SAINTS.”
 
Romans 15:26 – “For it hath pleased them of Macedonia and Achaia to make a certain contribution for the poor SAINTS which are at Jerusalem.”
 
Romans 16:15 – “Salute Philologus, and Julia, Nereus, and his sister, and Olympas, and all the SAINTS which are with them.”
 
1 Corinthians 16:1 – “Now concerning the collection for the SAINTS, as I have given order to the churches of Galatia, even so do ye.”
 
2 Corinthians 1:1 – “Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ by the will of God, and Timothy our brother, unto the church of God which is at Corinth, with all the SAINTS which are in all Achaia”
 
Ephesians 1:1 – “Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ by the will of God, to the SAINTS which are at Ephesus, and to the faithful in Christ Jesus”
 
Philippians 1:1 – “Paul and Timotheus, the servants of Jesus Christ, to all the SAINTS in Christ Jesus which are at Philippi, with the bishops and deacons”
 
Philippians 4:22 – “All the SAINTS salute you, chiefly they that are of Caesar’s household.”
 
Colossians 1:2 – “To the SAINTS and faithful brethren in Christ which are at Colosse: Grace be unto you, and peace, from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.”
 
In addition to Paul’s writings, we see the work “saint” used in the same way, in the book of Acts:
 
Acts 9:13 – “Then Ananias answered, Lord, I have heard by many of this man, how much evil he hath done to thy SAINTS at Jerusalem”
 
Acts 9:32 – “And it came to pass, as Peter passed throughout all quarters, he came down also to the SAINTS which dwelt at Lydda.”
 

Summary

 
The Catholic Church likes to create a mystique and exclusivity to itself and one of the ways that it does that is by creating this special class of citizens in Heaven that no other church or denomination has. They attribute divine characteristics to their saints, like the ability to hear and act upon prayers, which would require their saints to be omnipresent, just like God. When we rely on the Bible alone for our spiritual truth we can avoid being led astray by a church or denomination or its preachers and teachers. — RM Kane
 

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