Talk:Folk saint/Draft

Historical Perspective?

I was reading this article, and I got to wondering about the way the term 'Folk saint' gets used in anthropology or the social sciences more broadly. Is the term only used for objects of popular veneration in modern-day Latin America, or is the term used more broadly for objects of veneration that fall outside of the Catholic mainstream?

I ask because I'm curious about the way that the concept gets read back into history. Before about 1000, of course, there was no official process of canonization in the Western church (I don't know about the east, off the top of my head). Do saints from before 1000 count as folk saints, or is the use of the concept restricted to Latin America (or other present-day Catholic areas)? Brian P. Long 14:34, 6 March 2009 (UTC)

That's a good question. Folk saints tend to arise in a colonized context when local religions or traditions are subsumed by Catholicism. In fact, more than a few of the canonized saints seem to have had lives as regional deities or cultural heroes long before they were venerated by Christians. This phenomenon is certainly not restricted to Latin America but the Cathlicism of Latin America is highly syncretic in some ways and seems to keep producing more saints. The essential difference is that folk saints are not recognized by the Church but people petition their spirits nonetheless.

As far are saints from before 1000, I'm not sure. I suspect they were venerated in much the same way as folk saints, which is to say according to local custom rather than official doctrine. But there was no official list to compare them against, so it is hard to say that they stood in contrast to official saints the way folk saints do. I have a book here on the history/hagiography of a few canonized saints during the colonial period in Latin America that might shed some light on the process of passing from unofficial to official.

I'll have a look at some of my sources and a think about how to make the article clear on this point. Please feel free to pitch in if you have any ideas.--Joe Quick 15:08, 6 March 2009 (UTC)

There's still some work to be done, but I think the article is coming together now. What do you think of my adjustments, Brian? --Joe Quick 19:23, 8 March 2009 (UTC)

I think this looks good. The article has me thinking about some things related to saints, syncretism, and official sanction in the first thousand years of the church, but I don't yet have a good way to work these things into the article. I'll let you know if I do. Thanks, Brian P. Long 16:09, 9 March 2009 (UTC)

Nomination

I am nominating this article for approval since it appears complete and appropriately encyclopedic. It would be good to be joined in this nomination by an anthropology editor or someone in religion. Roger Lohmann 15:05, 22 June 2009 (UTC)

I would think it would need at least a brief description of the Protestant/Reformation viewpoint on folk saints. David L Green 01:29, 23 June 2009 (UTC)

I'd love to but I've never heard or read anything about that perspective. Could you help? --Joe Quick 02:49, 23 June 2009 (UTC)

David,

I am not an author on this piece; only trying to shepherd it through to approval, but it strikes me that the the Reformation viewpoint on saints would be very appropriate in the general entry on saints. But Martin Luther's recognition of the Roman/pagan origins of Catholic/Christian saints and consequent characterization of the veneration of saints as 'idolatry' doesn't really apply here. (There may also be other facets of the Protestant/Reformation viewpoint relevant here that I'm not aware of.) In any case, the article offers a cultural rather than a doctrinal perspective; it struck me that folk saints arose in a largely Latin American context where there was no significant Protestant cultural presence to speak of until late in the 20th century, long after this folk-culture configuration took root. Thus, including that point here could be construed as assuming a Protestant viewpoint not consistent with the CZ neutrality policy.

There would certainly be room here in a later revision for fuller exploration of the colonial and native cultural mix that produced these folk saints, and variations in African and other colonial cultural regions, but that shouldn't deter approval of the first draft. Because of the paucity of other material on the subject, this article already appears #1 on a Google search for "Folk saint". Given the CZ editorial philosophy, it is important to add our imprimatur to what is really a very fine article.

Roger Lohmann 12:32, 23 June 2009 (UTC)

Toward Approval

I see that editor Roger Lohmann has nominated this article after making what looks to be only these edits, which I think all pass as copy edits. Therefore a single editor approval is in order and set for June 27th, 2009. Keep an eye on the version number as the date approaches as the version in the Template is the one that becomes the approved version. As Roger eludes to, other editors are encouraged to sign on as well and can only increase credibility. D. Matt Innis 02:03, 23 June 2009 (UTC)

I left a note for Robert Stockman earlier today about joining in on approval. I brought the article to his attention a little while ago and we were briefly in communication about it but the discussion never really went anywhere. Hopefully, he can join in on approval now. --Joe Quick 02:52, 23 June 2009 (UTC)

Roger, do you want to include Shamira's edits in the approved version? They look good to me. --Joe Quick 19:18, 27 June 2009 (UTC)