communion of saints, Latin Communio Sanctorum, in Christian theology, the fellowship of those united to Jesus Christ in Baptism; the phrase is first found in the 5th-century version of the Apostles’ Creed by Nicetas of Remesiana. The original Greek phrase has been translated both as a sharing of the benefits of membership in the church and as a communion with the saints (in the biblical sense of all who have been baptized). Both translations accord with the New Testament doctrine that the baptized are united with Jesus Christ, who shares in their human nature, and that their goal is to share in his present glorified state. The new relationship with other Christians, living and dead, and with Christ replaces the covenant relationship of the Old Testament.
In medieval Western Christianity, special emphasis was placed on the benefits to be derived for the living (“the church militant”) through the intercession of the saints in heaven with God (“the church triumphant”); the dead who were not yet perfected (“the church suffering”) were also believed to be the beneficiaries of prayers said in their behalf. Major Protestant Reformers, wishing to reaffirm the unique mediatory role of Jesus Christ, denied the intercessory role of the saints and viewed the communion of saints as all believers in Christ.