Areas where saints are out of step (6)
I believe the answer is:
spaces
'areas' is the definition.
(space is a kind of area)
'saints are out of step' is the wordplay.
'saints' becomes 'ss' (an abbreviation for saint written twice).
'are out of' means one lot of letters goes inside another (some letters on the outside of others).
'step' becomes 'pace' (synonyms).
'ss' going around 'pace' is 'SPACES'.
'where' is the link.
(Other definitions for spaces that I've seen before include "Open areas" , "Gaps" , "distances" , "Blank areas" , "cleared areas" .)