Who was the first Saint?

Catholic Living Spirituality
#1

The first saint that was canonised?

And which Pope was it done through?

Thanks.

#2

That’s really an impossible question to answer, since until the Middle Ages or so, saints were simply declared by popular acclamation. So, it depends on what your definition is. Technically, the Catholic Church believes that anyone in heaven is a saint. However, you could look at Old Testament figures like Abraham (or even Adam), you could argue that John the Baptist is the first saint (since he’s the first New Testament figure to die), or St. Joseph, or St. Dismas (the Thief on the Cross), or possibly St. Stephen, as the first Christian martyr. Likewise, if you are looking for the first saint for which the ACTUAL modern process of canonization was definitively used, that would be St. Ulalric, Bishop of Augsburg, in 993 AD by Pope John XV, although there is some historical evidence that Saint Swibert was canonized by Pope Leo III in 804.

#3

The good thief on the cross next to Jesus. Jesus declared he would go to heaven.

#4

John the Bapist beat the good thief to the finish line.

St. Stephen might have a good case for being the first saint too.

#5

A saint is one who shows heroic virtue and is declared by the church to be in heaven. The good thief was first to be declared to be in heaven by the church (Jesus himself in this case). But I could be wrong on my theory

#6

Well, Eastern Catholics most certainly revere St. Elias (Elijah) from the Old Testament, and he was taken up to heaven in a chariot, so you could make another argument there.

#7

The thief on the cross was the first Saint. By definition and as described in the Nicene creed that we repeat at mass, the Kingdom of heaven was not available for human souls until the moment Christ died for our sins on the cross. After His death, He descended and freed the souls in waiting. The thief on the cross was told by Jesus directly that he would be in heaven with Him today. Technically then, one would have to conclude that he ascended before all the others. That doesn’t mean he was the first Canonized saint.

#8

A Saint is a creature who experiences the Beatific Vision.

So the technical answer to your question would be the angelic hosts. St. Michael, St. Gabriel, our guardian angels etc…

As for the first human creature to enter Heaven, that would be the righteous who died before the Resurrection, of which yes, St. Dismas is among. That would also include SS Moses, David, Elijah, Adam and Eve etc…

So which was the first of them to enter Heaven, most likely it was a simultaneous event.

#9