Saints

INVERTED RISK, DISTINCT FROM OTHER LANGUAGES: elsewhere in this pipeline, the rejected alternative for “saints” wrongly implies an ascetic elite. In Malayalam the established Christian word, വിശുദ്ധര്‍/വിശുദ്ധന്‍, carries the opposite problem: centuries of Catholic and Orthodox usage (Kerala has a strong tradition of canonized, venerated saints, e.g. St. Alphonsa) mean the word can be heard as referring only to a small class of formally recognized holy figures. Romans 1:7 calls every ordinary believer in Rome a വിശുദ്ധന്‍; translator notes must make clear Paul’s usage is broader than the canonization sense many readers will default to.