Saint titles for holy figures of the Eastern Orthodox Church
The Saints of the Eastern Orthodox Church (and of the Eastern Catholic Churches of the Byzantine Rite ) have various customary saint titles with which they are commemorated on the liturgical calendar and in Divine Services .
Many of the titles of saints can overlap with each other (e.g. apostle and disciple) or at least are not mutually exclusive. Some of them are, however, mutually exclusive (e.g. confessor and martyr). Some titles are only given to one saint, very often the Virgin Mary and some titles are also no longer able to be earned (e.g. prophet )
List
The following list explains the titles and gives an examplary saint for each title:
Archangel angel of the second lowest rank , whose purpose is to act as a messenger of God to humans; this rank of angel is the only one to have known names [1] St. Michael [2] Apostle Jesus and who were sent out on the Great Commission in Matthew 28:16–20 to spread the Gospel to all nations[3] Judas Iscariot was one of the original twelve Apostles , he is never called as such in the Orthodox Church, since his position was filled in by St. Matthias after his suicide [4] Confessor of the Faith Confessor : one who suffered for the faith but was not martyred outright[5] St. Maximus the Confessor [6] Disciple seventy or seventy-two men who were sent by Jesus in pairs to spread the Gospel in Luke 10:1–21 ; they may also simultaneously be called Apostles [7] Philip the Evangelist [8] Enlightener or Illuminator : the saint who first brought the faith to a people or region, or who did major work of evangelisation there[9] St. Sava of Serbia [10] Equal-to-the-Apostles twelve Apostles [11] [12] St. Constantine [13] Evangelist four Gospels , as well as any saint who preached the Gospel[citation needed (e.g. St. Luke [14] Fool-for-Christ [15] St. Gabriel of Georgia [16] God-bearing or Theophoros : title given only to St. Ignatius , who according to tradition, was one of the children who went to Jesus in Matthew 19:13–14 [11] [17] Healer : a saint who used the power of God to heal maladies and injuries (e.g. St. Tryphon [18] Hieroconfessor : a confessor who is also a clergyman (e.g. St. Martin I [19] Hieromartyr St. Philoumenos [20] Martyr [21] [5] St. Sebastian [22] Merciful : one known for almsgiving , especially toward the poor (e.g. St. John the Merciful [23] Myrrhbearers Resurrection of Jesus [11] [24] St. Mary Magdalene [25] Myroblyte Myrrh-gusher or Myrrh-streaming : the relics of the saint exude holy and sweet-smelling (and often miraculous) oil (e.g. St. Simon the Myrrh-gusher [26] [27] New or Younger : title given to a saint whose name already belongs to a previous saint (e.g. St. Stephen the Younger )New-martyr Neo-martyr : a martyr often bearing the same name as a more ancient martyr, but usually more recent in the Church's history, typically beginning from the Ottoman persecutions [28] [29] St. Mary of Paris )Panagia Greek ;[30] Virgin Mary , referring to her position as the holiest of all saints[31] Passion-bearer [32] [33] Tsar Saint Nicholas II [34] Prophet [5] [35] St. Abraham [36] Protomartyr St. Stephen the Protomartyr , the first martyr of the whole Church[37] Right-Believing canonised monarchs and rulers who treated the Church and the people well (e.g. St. Vladimir Yaroslavich [38] Righteous Old Covenant (Old Testament Israel) who is not a prophet but also sometimes used for married saints of the New Covenant (the Church) (e.g. St. Job and St. Matilda respectively)Saint [39] heaven ; one who has reached salvation , who the Church on earth has recognised and glorified [40] [41] St. Publius [42] Theologian Theologian , due to their writings introducing new theological doctrines: St. John the Theologian ,[43] St. Gregory the Theologian ,[44] St. Symeon the New Theologian .[45] Theotokos Mother of God : title given only to the Virgin Mary , since she gave birth to Jesus , who Orthodox Christians believe is the Second Person of the Holy Trinity , and thus God[46] [47] [48] Unmercenary Healer St. Pantaleon [49] Venerable monastic saint; a saint who is a monk or nun [citation needed (e.g. St. Paisios [50] Venerable-martyr : a martyred monastic (e.g. St. Eudokia [51] Virgin vow of chastity (e.g. St. Agatha [52] Virgin martyr St. Lucy [53] Wonder-worker [54] St. Nicholas [55] 