The term "saint" is a context-specific translation of the Latin "sanctus", meaning sacred, and originally referred to a sacred (extremely holy) person—however, since the 10th century, the Church has reserved the status of saint to people its official canon law (including calendar) has recognised for outstanding Christian service and conduct. When the Church of England was in union with Rome saints arose in the form of canonisation. Those martyrs and confessors recognised before the 10th century and since the break with Rome in the 16th century are generally still considered both "saints" and "Saints". "Hero/heroine" are sometimes to refer to those holy people whom the church synod or an individual church praises as having had special benevolence who have lived and died since the split with Rome. It considers such muted terms a reversion to a more simple and cautious doctrine which emphasises empowerment (subsidiarity) to all members and components of the church.
The provinces of the Anglican Communion therefore commemorate many of the saints in the General Roman Calendar, often on the same days. In some cases, Anglican Calendars have kept pre-1954 celebratory days that the Roman Catholic Church abolished or moved.
Like the Roman Catholic Church, the Anglican Communion has special holy days in honour of Jesus Christ, the Blessed Virgin Mary and the Apostles. 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 and Ireland, Saint George (England), Saint David (Wales), Saint Patrick (Ireland), and Saint Andrew (Scotland).
English and local saints are often emphasised, and there are differences between the provinces' calendars. King Charles I of England 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.
There are several persons commemorated in the modern Anglican calendars who were opposed to the Roman Catholic Church. Of particular note are John Wycliffe and William Tyndale, for beginning the full translation of the Bible into English (a project which led to the Geneva Bible), and for writings against the Catholic Church.
The Oxford Martyrs, Thomas Cranmer, Nicholas Ridley, and Hugh Latimer, 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, a group of Anglican and Roman Catholic converts were martyred together in Uganda. On 18 October 1964, Pope Paul VI canonised the 22 Ugandan martyrs who were Roman Catholics.
Anglican Churches also commemorate various famous (often post-Reformation) Christians. The West front of Westminster Abbey, for example, contains statues of 20th-century martyrs like Maximilian Kolbe, Martin Luther King, Jr., Oscar Romero, Dietrich Bonhoeffer and Lucian Tapiedi (one of the Anglican New Guinea Martyrs).
Aelred of Hexham (1110–1167), Abbot of Rievaulx—January 12Aidan (d. 651), Bishop of Lindisfarne, Missionary—Alban (d. between 209–304), Protomartyr of Britain—June 22Alcuin of York (c. 735–804), Deacon, Abbot of ToursAldhelm (c. 639–709), Bishop of Sherborne—May 25Alfred the Great (849–899), King of WessexAlphege (954–1012), Archbishop of Canterbury, Martyr—April 19Anselm of Canterbury (c. 1033–1109), Archbishop of CanterburyAugustine of Canterbury (d. c. 604), first Archbishop of Canterbury—Benedict Biscop (c. 628–690), Abbot of Wearmouth—January 12Birinus (c. 600–649), Bishop of Dorchester, Apostle of Wessex—September 4 (Church of England) December 3 (Roman Catholic)Brigid (c. 451–525), Abbess of Kildare—February 1Cedd (c. 620–644), Abbot of Lastingham, Bishop of the East Saxons—October 26Chad (d. 672), Bishop of Lichfield—March 2Charles I of England (1600–1649), King of England, Scotland, and Ireland—January 30Columba (521–597), Abbot of Iona, Missionary—June 9Crispin and Crispinian (d. c. 286)—October 25 Immortalized as Saint Crispin's Day in Henry V by ShakespeareCuthbert (c. 634–687), Bishop of Lindisfarne—Church of England March 20; Church in Wales September 4); 31 August Episcopal Church (USA) August 31Dunstan (c. 909–989), Archbishop of CanterburyEdmund the Martyr (d. 869), King of the East Angles, MartyrEdward the Confessor (c. 1003 to 1005–1066), King of England—October 13 (Translation of relics)Etheldreda (c. 636–679), Abbess of Ely—June 23Felix of Burgundy (d. 647 or 648), Bishop, Apostle to the East Angles—March 8Robert Grosseteste (c. 1175–1253), Bishop of Lincoln, Philosopher, ScientistHilda (c. 614–680), Abbess of WhitbyHildegard (1098–1179), Abbess of Bingen, Visionary—September 17Hugh (1135 to 1140–1200), Carthusian monk and Bishop of Lincoln—November 17Julian of Norwich (c. 1342-c. 1416), Spiritual Writer, Mystic—May 8, May 13Margery Kempe (c. 1373-after 1438), Housewife and MysticMargaret (c. 1045–1093), Queen of Scotland, Mystic—June 10 or November 16Mellitus (d. 624), first Bishop of London—April 24Kentigern (d. 614), Bishop of Cumbria—January 13Ninian (4th or 5th century), Bishop of Galloway, Apostle of the Picts—September 16Osmund (d. 1099), Bishop of Salisbury—December 4Oswald (c. 604–642), King of Northumbria, Martyr—August 5Paulinus (d. 644), Archbishop of York, Missionary—October 10Petroc (d. c. 564), Missionary to the West Country—June 4Richard, Bishop of Chichester (1197–1253)—Richard Rolle (1290–1349) of Hampole, Spiritual WriterEdmund Rich of Abingdon (1175–1240), Archbishop of Canterbury—November 16Saint Swithun (d. c. 682), Bishop of Winchester—July 15 in England and July 2 in NorwayTheodore of Tarsus (602–690), Archbishop of Canterbury—September 19Thomas Becket (c. 1118–1170), Archbishop of Canterbury, Martyr—December 29William Tyndale (c. 1494–1536), Translator of the Scriptures, Martyr—October 6The Venerable Bede (672 or 673–735), Monk at Jarrow, Scholar, Historian—Western Churches on May 25 and Orthodox Churches May 27Wilfrid (c. 633-c. 709), Bishop, Missionary—William of Ockham (c. 1287–1347), Friar, PhilosopherWillibrord of York (c. 658–739), Bishop, Apostle of Frisia—November 7Wulfstan (d. 1095), Bishop of Worcester—January 19The ninth 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.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, theologianAnthony Ashley-Cooper (1801–1885), Earl of Shaftesbury, social reformerVedanayagam Samuel Azariah (1874–1945), bishop in South India, evangelistSamuel Barnett (1844–1913) and Henrietta Barnett (1851–1936), social reformersRichard Baxter (1615–1691), Puritan divineDietrich Bonhoeffer (1906–1945), Lutheran pastor, martyrWilliam Booth (1829–1912) and Catherine Booth (1829–1890), founders of the Salvation ArmyThomas Bray (1658–1730), founder of the SPCKJohn Bunyan (1628–1688), spiritual writerJoseph Butler (1692–1752), Bishop of Durham, philosopherJosephine Butler (1828–1906), social reformerJohn Calvin (1509–1564), reformerWilson Carlile (1847–1942), founder of the Church ArmyEdith Cavell (1865–1915), nurseCharles I (1600–1649), king and martyrCaroline Chisholm (1808–1877), social reformerThomas Cranmer (1489–1556), Archbishop of Canterbury, Reformation martyrJohn Donne (1572–1631), priest, poetElizabeth Ferard (1825–1883), first Deaconess of the Church of England, founder of the Community of St AndrewNicholas Ferrar (1592–1637), deacon, founder of the Little Gidding CommunityGeorge Fox (1624–1691), founder of the Society of Friends (the Quakers)Elizabeth Fry (1780–1845), prison reformerAllen Gardiner (1794–1851), missionary, founder of the South American Mission SocietyIsabella Gilmore (1842–1923), deaconessCharles Gore (1853–1932), bishop, founder of the Community of the ResurrectionJames Hannington (1847–1885), bishop of Eastern Equatorial Africa, martyr in UgandaGeorge Herbert (1593–1633), priest, poetOctavia Hill (1838–1912), social reformerRichard Hooker (1554–1600), priest, apologist, theologianEglantyne Jebb (1876–1928), social reformer, founder of 'Save The Children'Samuel Johnson (1709–1784), moralistJohn Keble (1792–1866), priest, tractarian, poetThomas Ken (1637–1711), Bishop of Bath and WellsGeoffrey Studdert Kennedy (1883–1929), priest, poetEdward King (1829–1920), Bishop of LincolnApolo Kivebulaya (c. 1864–1933), priest, evangelist in Central AfricaIni Kopuria (d. 1945), founder of the Melanesian BrotherhoodHugh Latimer (c. 1487–1555), Bishop of Worcester, Reformation martyrWilliam Laud (1573–1645), Archbishop of CanterburyWilliam Law (1686–1761), priest, spiritual writer,Charles Fuge Lowder (1820–1880), priestMartin Luther (1483–1546), reformerJanani Luwum (c. 1922–1977), Archbishop of Uganda, martyrFrederick Denison Maurice (1805–1872), priestHenry Martyn (1781–1812), translator of the Scriptures, missionary in India and PersiaBernard Mizeki (c. 1861–1896), apostle of the MaShona, martyrHarriet Monsell (1811–1883), founder of the Community of St John the BaptistJohn Mason Neale (1818–1866), priest, hymn writerJohn Henry Newman (1801–1890), Cardinal, tractarian, theologianFlorence Nightingale (1820–1910), nurse, social reformerJohn Coleridge Patteson (1827–1871), first Bishop of Melanesia and martyrEdward Bouverie Pusey (1800–1882), priest, tractarianPandita Mary Ramabai (1858–1922), translator of the ScripturesNicholas Ridley (c. 1500–1555), Bishop of London, Reformation martyrOscar Romero (1917–1980), Archbishop of San Salvador, martyrChristina Rossetti (1830–1894), poetSamuel Seabury (1729–1796), first Anglican bishop in North AmericaPriscilla Lydia Sellon, a restorer of the religious life in the Church of EnglandGeorge Augustus Selwyn (1809–1878), first Anglican Bishop of New ZealandSadhu Sundar Singh ( 1889– ? ), evangelist, teacher of the FaithMary Slessor (1848–1915), missionary in West AfricaMary Sumner (1828–1921), founder of the Mothers' UnionJeremy Taylor (1613–1667), Bishop of Down and ConnorWilliam Temple (1881–1944), Archbishop of CanterburyThomas Traherne (1636 or 1637–1674), poet, spiritual writerWilliam Tyndale (c. 1494–1536), translator of the Scriptures, Reformation martyrEvelyn Underhill (1875–1941), spiritual writerHenry Venn (1725–1797), John Venn (1759–1813), and Henry Venn the younger (1796–1873), priests, evangelical divinesIsaac Watts (1674–1748), hymn writerCharles Wesley (1707–1788), evangelist, hymn writerJohn Wesley (1703–1791), priest, evangelist, founder of MethodismJohn West (1778-1845), missionary and the first Anglican priest in Western CanadaWilliam Wilberforce (1759–1833), social reformer