Home›Open Questions›Is sainthood a usable cross-cultural category, or does it import Latin Christian assumptions into traditions that do not share them?Open QuestionsIs sainthood a usable cross-cultural category, or does it import Latin Christian assumptions into traditions that do not share them?Citation FormatsGeneral ReferenceGeneral Reference Citation TextDivinity Atlas. "Is sainthood a usable cross-cultural category, or does it import Latin Christian assumptions into traditions that do not share them?." Accessed August 30, 2026. https://www.divinityatlas.com/open-questions-index/is-sainthood-a-usable-cross-cultural-category-or-does-it-import-latin-christian-assumptions-into-traditions-that-do-not-share-them.Copy General ReferenceAPA StyleAPA Style Citation TextDivinity Atlas. (n.d.). Is sainthood a usable cross-cultural category, or does it import Latin Christian assumptions into traditions that do not share them?. Retrieved August 30, 2026, from https://www.divinityatlas.com/open-questions-index/is-sainthood-a-usable-cross-cultural-category-or-does-it-import-latin-christian-assumptions-into-traditions-that-do-not-share-themCopy APA StyleBibTeXBibTeX Citation Text@misc{divinityatlas-is-sainthood-a-usable-cross-cultural-cat, author = {Divinity Atlas}, title = {Is sainthood a usable cross-cultural category, or does it import Latin Christian assumptions into traditions that do not share them?}, year = {2026}, url = {https://www.divinityatlas.com/open-questions-index/is-sainthood-a-usable-cross-cultural-category-or-does-it-import-latin-christian-assumptions-into-traditions-that-do-not-share-them}, note = {Accessed August 30, 2026} }Copy BibTeXOpen QuestionCross-Tradition ConnectionsSourcesComments (0)Reader Challenges (0 open reader challenges)Open QuestionThe comparative literature has not settled this. Using one tradition's word for the others carries with it a juridical, posthumous and universal notion of holiness that the wali, the tzadik, the sant and the arhat do not each share, and specialists in those fields regularly object to the translation. There is no agreed replacement term.What would resolve this A sustained comparative study working from each tradition's own vocabulary outward rather than from the English word inward, and testing whether any set of features is genuinely shared across them.OpenComparative religion; religious studiesJohn Bowker (ed.), The Oxford Dictionary of World ReligionsCross-Tradition ConnectionsQuestion OnSaint, Religious Roles & Titles Well-attested Source The Oxford Dictionary of World ReligionsJohn Bowker (ed.)tier 1SourcesThe Oxford Dictionary of World Religionstier 1John Bowker (ed.), Oxford University Press, 1997s.v. SaintView the SourceComments (0)No comments yet. Be the first to share a thought.Sign in to join the discussion.Reader Challenges (0 open reader challenges)No disputes yet. Spotted an error or a better source? Open the first one.Sign in to dispute this or suggest a correction.View At A Past YearThe atlas records no dated fact of its own for this entry, so there is no other year to choose.Show This Year