Confessor of the Faith

Confessor of the Faith

The title Confessor, the short form of Confessor of the Faith, is a title given by the Christian Church to a type of saint.

Contents

Western Christianity

In the Roman Catholic Church to male saints and blesseds who were not martyred. Historically, the title Confessor was given to those who had suffered persecution and torture for the faith but not to the point of martyrdom. As Christianity emerged as the dominant religion in Europe by the fifth century, persecutions became rare, and the title was given to male saints who lived a holy life and died in peace. Perhaps the most well known example is the English king St. Edward the Confessor. It is possible for Confessors to have another title or even two other titles, for example, Bishop and Confessor; Pope and Confessor; or Bishop, Confessor, and Doctor of the Church, among others: St Jerome is known as Priest, Confessor, Theologian, Historian and Doctor of the Church.

Eastern Christianity

In the Eastern Orthodox Church, the title Confessor refers to a saint (male or female) who has suffered for the faith (usually torture, but also other types of loss), but not to the point of death, and thus is distinguished from a martyr. A confessor who is also a priest or bishop is referred to as hiero-confessor.

See also

External links


Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Поможем написать реферат

Look at other dictionaries:

  • The Incarnation —     The Incarnation     † Catholic Encyclopedia ► The Incarnation     I. The Fact of the Incarnation     (1) The Divine Person of Jesus Christ     A. Old Testament Proofs     B. New Testament Proofs     C. Witness of Tradition     (2) The Human… …   Catholic encyclopedia

  • The Church of Alexandria —     The Church of Alexandria     † Catholic Encyclopedia ► The Church of Alexandria     The Church of Alexandria, founded according to the constant tradition of both East and West by St. Mark the Evangelist, was the centre from which Christianity …   Catholic encyclopedia

  • Confessor — For other uses, see Confessor (disambiguation). The title confessor is used within Christianity in several ways. Contents 1 Confessor of the Faith 2 Confession of sins 3 See also …   Wikipedia

  • The Sacrament of Penance —     The Sacrament of Penance     † Catholic Encyclopedia ► The Sacrament of Penance     Penance is a sacrament of the New Law instituted by Christ in which forgiveness of sins committed after baptism is granted through the priest s absolution to… …   Catholic encyclopedia

  • Confessor (novel) — Confessor   First edition cover …   Wikipedia

  • Confessor — • A title of honour to designate of the Faith who had confessed Christ publicly in time of persecution and had been punished with imprisonment, torture, exile, or labour in the mines, remaining faithful in their confession until the end of their… …   Catholic encyclopedia

  • The Seal of Confession —     The Law of the Seal of Confession     † Catholic Encyclopedia ► The Law of the Seal of Confession     In the Decretum of the Gratian who compiled the edicts of previous councils and the principles of Church law which he published about 1151,… …   Catholic encyclopedia

  • The Sword of Truth — Cover designs for the 11 books of the first edition In Chronological Order[1] …   Wikipedia

  • The Carmelite Order —     The Carmelite Order     † Catholic Encyclopedia ► The Carmelite Order     One of the mendicant orders.     Origin     The date of the foundation of the Order of Our Lady of Mount Carmel has been under discussion from the fourteenth century to …   Catholic encyclopedia

  • The Reformation —     The Reformation     † Catholic Encyclopedia ► The Reformation     The usual term for the religious movement which made its appearance in Western Europe in the sixteenth century, and which, while ostensibly aiming at an internal renewal of the …   Catholic encyclopedia

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”