Servant of God

Servant of God is a title given to certain people in several different religions, but in general usage the phrase "servant of God" is used as a description of a person believed to be pious in his or her faith tradition. The Eastern Orthodox Churches, e.g., use this term to describe the believer approaching to receive the Eucharist, also called Holy Communion. The Arabic name Abdullah عبد الله literally means "servant of God".

Roman Catholicism

"Servant of God" is the title given to a deceased person of the Roman Catholic Church whose life and works are being investigated in consideration for official recognition by the Pope and the Roman Catholic Church as a saint in heaven. This title should not be confused with "Servus Servorum Dei" (Servant of the Servants of God), one of the titles of the Pope.

Receiving the title "Servant of God" is the first of the four steps in the canonization process. The next step is being declared "Venerable", upon a decree of heroicity or martyrdom by the honoree. This is followed by beatification, with the title of "Blessed", after the confirmation of miracles attributed to the honoree. The final step is canonization, where the honoree would receive the title of "Saint".

Hinduism

Guru, or "Sat guru" in various traditions of Hinduism is given the name Dasa, Servant of God, as for example the pure teacher, also called "Uda ka Das", meaning "the servant of the one God".cite book
author=
title=Essays And Lectures On The Religions Of The Hindus: Religious Sects of the Hindus V1
publisher=Kessinger Publishing, LLC
location=
year=2006
pages=p. 353
isbn=1-4286-1308-0] In Sanskrit word 'dasa' (IAST "IAST|dāsa") means servant, this meaning is retained in all Indian languages where monotheistic devotion to personal God is practiced. In Tamil, "tontai", dasa, servant or "slave," commonly used to refer to devotees of Vishnu or Krishna.cite book
author=Steven P. Hopkins
title=An ornament for jewels: love poems for the Lord of Gods
publisher=Oxford University Press
location=Oxford [Oxfordshire]
year=2007
pages=p. 160
isbn=0-19-532639-3] According to Gaudiya Vaishnava theology Smriti statement "IAST|dāsa-bhūto harer eva nānyasvaiva kadācana" means that living entities (bhuto) are eternally in the service (dasa) of the Supreme Lord (Hari). [Bhaktivedanta Swami, A. C. (1972). "The Bhagavad-gita As It Is", second edition. New York: Macmillan.] Thus designation for Vaishnava followers of "svayam bhagavan" Krishna was the status title "dasa" as part of their names as in Hari dasa.cite book
author=Talbot, Cynthia
title=Precolonial India in practice: society, region, and identity in medieval Andhra
publisher=Oxford University Press
location=Oxford [Oxfordshire]
year=2001
pages=p. 81
isbn=0-19-513661-6]

ee also

*Abdullah, a common Arabic name, translated as "servant of God"

References