02Knights Templar - Julian Emperor

SAINTS
pared to die as martyrs for their faith came to be viewed as
saints. In England, the deposed monarch King Charles I came
to be recognised in some Anglican traditions as a saint because
of belief in the divine right of kings to rule.
The veneration of saints was carried to the new world and
this often resulted in some unexpected and somewhat bizarre
religious hybrids. Slaves in Cuba would merge their traditional
beliefs with the cults of the saints to create a form of
voodoo known as Santeria. In recent times, saints have continued
to be created by different Christian Churches and include
martyrs of the Spanish civil war and the murdered
Romanov family in Russia.
Today the influence of saints can be found throughout the
modern world in such commercial settings as the celebration
of St Valentine’s Day and in the role of St Nicholas as Santa
Claus or Father Christmas. Their legacy is preserved within
place names throughout the world and in their adoption by
differing countries, professions and occupations. A study of
the lives and varying patronages of saints and of their continuing
roles both within the sacred and profane areas of our culture
reveals much that is fascinating, admirable, compelling,
disappointing and troubling in ourselves.
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