Saints range from the universal, such as Mary, the mother of Jesus, to the highly local saints we see on travels in such places as Cornwall or the Dodecanese Islands.

During the Middle Ages,  the process of saint making became part of Roman Catholic Canon Law in the Western Church but the Greek Orthodox Church and its off-shoots tended to continue with local tradition supplemented by universal recognition. Both parts of the Church and subsequent post Reformation Churches which tended towards the 'Catholic' recognise universal saints in their calendars.

The early saints, which constitute most lists even today, consisted of apostles and other early leaders, martyrs and (somewhat puzzlingly) virgins. Many which were obscure nonetheless gained great prominence such as our Saint George.

Although the Roman Catholic Church has continued to employ its proving process with required miracles, many people note an 'inflation' in saint making and a corruption in the process which is currently 'fast tracking' Pope John Paul II in spite of well known flaws in his Papacy.

Non Catholic churches do not have specific processes for saint making but honour both their own leaders as universally recognised Christians such as Martin Luther King Jr (in spite of his known serious moral lapses).

Those saints whose lives we know vary enormously in their achievements and outlook but all of them are characterised by an unremitting commitment to their God.

Some people are disturbed by the apparent status of Saints as 'persons' to be prayed to within a celestial hierarchy but in all cases, including that of Mary, saints are 'prayed through', not so much as  intercessors between us and Jesus but as points of focus through which we can frame our own prayers.

KC/AL vi/12

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