tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-49979804582049464582024-03-12T18:19:52.864-07:00Really Strange SaintsCliffhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12109085007044124766noreply@blogger.comBlogger49125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4997980458204946458.post-77929051130845093162017-01-08T07:56:00.000-08:002017-01-08T07:57:14.286-08:00Introduction<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I’m a pretty good Catholic. I go to mass every Sunday and on holy days of obligation (well, almost all of the time), I send my kids to Catholic school, and I try to give up something for Lent (emphasis on “try” here.).</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">One of my favorite parts about being Catholic is the saints. I still remember the <i>Lives of the Saints</i> I had when I was a kid. It was a little, burgundy-colored, faux-leather-bound book with gilt edges. In fact, I even remember some of the illustrations, including this exact one:</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">That’s St. Roch by the way</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I guess what I always liked about the saints is that they were so concrete. Here were real, live people who were trying to live good lives. Not only were they role models, but they almost seemed like friends. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Part of what made that last bit so effective was that there are so darn many of them (over 10,000, according to catholic.org). There’s bound to be some saint out there that anyone could identify with.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">For example, I love the outdoors. So, you can probably guess who my favorite saint is. Yup, St. Francis of Assisi. I also take my role as a father pretty seriously, so another of my favorites is St. Joseph. I’ve also always admired Joseph’s humility and down-to-earth quality, something that also seems apparent in another favorite of mine, St. Peter.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">And all that’s not even to mention <b>patron saints</b>. Now, these are the saints who have some particular little niche officially carved out for them. For example, I was really into sports when I was kid. So, St. Sebastian was the saint for me. I’ve been pretty active in Scouting as an adult, so that would be St. George. And I’m a banker by trade, so that’s St. Matthew.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The Calling of St. Matthew</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Hendrick Terbrugghen</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">And here’s where we get into the funny part of this blog … In addition to patron saints for pretty standard things like basic medical conditions (e.g., blindness), or common occupations (nurses, say), and hobbies, countries, cities, and the like, we’ve also got patrons for stuff like:</span><br />
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<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Plumbers</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Roller skaters</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Hoboes</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The Internet</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Oversleeping </span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Italian prison guards</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Salmon</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Struma</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Soap boilers</span></li>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Lydwina of Schiedam</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">In addition to patronages, there’s also <b>representations</b>. This really just means how saints are typically depicted. This might be something from their life (a bishop’s crozier, say), their martyrdom (St. Sebastian’s arrows), or something more poetical (like an ox for St. Luke). Of course, this also means some pretty weird stuff as well:</span><br />
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<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Young man in an oven</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Abbess with mice</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Bishop with an axe in his head</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Pope with geese surrounding him</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Man with his limbs chopped off</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Young priest with a spider</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Naked young woman hanging by her hair</span></li>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Gertrude of Nivelles</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Finally, each saint of course has a <b>name</b>. Once again, these might be boring things like John, and James, and Anne. But, then again, you might also get:</span><br />
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<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Frodulphus</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">John of the Grating</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Trudpert of Munstertal </span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Swithburt the Younger</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Sabas the Goth of Rome</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Florian of Lorch</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Symforian Ducki </span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Tortgith of Barking</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Moloc of Mortlach </span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Vimin of Holywood </span></li>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Moloc of Mortlach</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Now, one question you might have at this point is whether this blog isn’t a teensy bit sacrilegious. And my answer to that, is “yeah, probably.” If I’m making fun a little here, though, it’s really because I think the saints are fun. What I’m really hoping is that, if I can get someone, Catholic or no, to think about these wonderful, very human, people just a little bit, maybe I’ll have done some good. And it <i>never</i> hurts to have a good laugh.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">This blog will look at each week of the calendar, featuring 10 saints whose feast days fall within that week ... and whose names, representations, and/or patronages are just pretty darn strange.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Index</b></span><br />
<ul>
<li><a href="http://reallystrangesaints.blogspot.com/2016/01/january-1-7.html">January</a></li>
<li><a href="http://reallystrangesaints.blogspot.com/2016/02/february-1-7.html">February</a></li>
<li><a href="http://reallystrangesaints.blogspot.com/2016/03/march-1-7.html">March</a></li>
<li><a href="http://reallystrangesaints.blogspot.com/2016/04/april-1-7.html">April</a></li>
<li><a href="http://reallystrangesaints.blogspot.com/2016/05/may-1-7.html">May</a></li>
<li><a href="http://reallystrangesaints.blogspot.com/2016/06/june-1-7.html">June</a></li>
<li><a href="http://reallystrangesaints.blogspot.com/2016/07/july-1-7.html">July</a></li>
<li><a href="http://reallystrangesaints.blogspot.com/2016/08/august-1-7.html">August</a></li>
<li><a href="http://reallystrangesaints.blogspot.com/2016/08/sept-1-7.html">September</a></li>
<li><a href="http://reallystrangesaints.blogspot.com/2016/10/oct-1-7.html">October</a></li>
<li><a href="http://reallystrangesaints.blogspot.com/2016/11/nov-1-7.html" style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">November</a></li>
<li><a href="http://reallystrangesaints.blogspot.com/2016/12/dec-1-7.html" style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">December</a></li>
</ul>
Cliffhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12109085007044124766noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4997980458204946458.post-41403557910479511112016-12-21T06:27:00.000-08:002016-12-21T06:35:53.673-08:00Dec. 22-30<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Well, I probably don’t need to tell you what the biggie is this week. Interestingly, there are a couple of important saints whose feast days also fall on this week – saints whose feast days tend to get pretty well overlooked. I’m talking, in particular, about John the Apostle, Stephen, and Thomas a Becket. There are also some pretty obscure saints as well – saints that honestly <i>ought </i>to be overlooked. Saints like these …</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#10 Odoardo Focherini (Dec 27)</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Hard to believe, but this guy with the super weird name also just so happens to be a very modern saint. He was, in fact, martyred during WWII – for helping Jews escape the Nazis (and would himself die in a concentration camp). He would later be recognized by Yad Vashem as one of the Righteous Among the Nations. Focherini was very much the layman – an insurance company employee and journalist, he was also married with 7 children.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">By the way, Odoardo is just an Italian version of Edward.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#9 John the Apostle (Dec 27)</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Patronage: </b>compositors</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Why people who composite, of course.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">This is actually just one of those professions that really don’t exist anymore. It’s really just a fancy term for a typesetter.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Why is John their patron? I honestly don’t know. He <i>is </i>very popular with folks in publishing – authors, publishers, editors, engravers, bookbinders, papermakers … Actually, all of that probably comes from his extensive writings, which include the fourth Gospel, three Epistles, and possibly the <i>Book of Revelation</i>.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgj5fbAvxY2OlRczZEDdAO4rQKAkzol6Ttz9lXDmTONcu6Oe3JEQMt0oWk_Dsq7hS9zSp4XtrgkspVW6ZZ3p56W22h6TjYpfTL6IcP78Pj4J6oCagfGROia-O-nFdaOs5MT_jlhIaNZTVw/s1600/john.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgj5fbAvxY2OlRczZEDdAO4rQKAkzol6Ttz9lXDmTONcu6Oe3JEQMt0oWk_Dsq7hS9zSp4XtrgkspVW6ZZ3p56W22h6TjYpfTL6IcP78Pj4J6oCagfGROia-O-nFdaOs5MT_jlhIaNZTVw/s1600/john.jpg" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Other than that, John was a fisherman, the brother of James the Greater, and possibly Jesus’s favorite (he’s referred to in the Gospels as the “Beloved Disciple”). He was also the only apostle not to deny Jesus, was the first to reach the tomb after the Resurrection, was the first to recognize the risen Jesus, did considerable missionary work, and was the last apostle living (and the only one not to die a martyr’s death).</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#8 Stephen the Martyr (Dec 24)</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Representation:</b> deacon with rocks on his head</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Note that that’s <i>on </i>his head, by the way. Not <i>in </i>his head.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">This representation may actually be a polite way to show that Stephen was stoned to death. In fact, Stephen was the first martyr.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRApPTEP_ZCNU82hwUxCu9L1v4BPRhOUzbVW480cm0l4b9TGdKjN-taX8IR4rjUBX0XhBuphFXDUv8XFPrMjE0j5dRxHbLeHymwH5UP4uWAV7JWMYeRQ3IeJeSaFdvz7W3RfGV-XzCe8s/s1600/St-stephen.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRApPTEP_ZCNU82hwUxCu9L1v4BPRhOUzbVW480cm0l4b9TGdKjN-taX8IR4rjUBX0XhBuphFXDUv8XFPrMjE0j5dRxHbLeHymwH5UP4uWAV7JWMYeRQ3IeJeSaFdvz7W3RfGV-XzCe8s/s320/St-stephen.jpg" width="212" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Surprisingly, we don’t know that much more about him. We do know that he was a Greek-speaking Jew. Upon conversion, he was made a deacon, in charge of distributing food and aid to the poor. The martyrdom happened in Jerusalem, in the year 33. It’s featured in the <i>Acts of the Apostles</i>.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#7 Theophylact of Ohrid (Dec 31)</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I’m assuming that last bit’s so as not to confuse this guy with all the other Theophylacts out there.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Well, it looks like there’s actually only one other – Theophylact of Nicomedia. If you’re like me, though, you still probably get the two of them confused all the time anyway.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Our Theophylact was actually fairly well known. He was an archbishop in Ohrid, part of the Byzantine Empire and in what is now Macedonia. He was active in the 11th and 12th Centuries.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">His main claim to fame, though, was his writing. He wrote a biography, the more secular <i>The Education of Princes</i>, extensive letters, homilies, and numerous biblical commentaries – much of which survives to this day. He was also famous for helping introduce Christianity to the Slavs and in supporting the Orthodox side against the Roman Catholics during the Great Schism.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#6 Dagobert II of Austrasia (Dec 23)</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">No, I didn’t spell that last bit wrong. That “s” should not be an “l.”</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Austrasia was part of the Merovingian kingdom, which occupied a good deal of Europe during the 5th through 9th Centuries, and was also the basis of the later Holy Roman Empire. Austrasia was the heartland of the kingdom, and occupied bits of the Netherlands, Germany, and France, as well as all of Belgium.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Oh, Dagobert? He was an Austrasian king (hence the “II”). He ascended the throne as a child, was then exiled, returned to reclaim the throne, and then was martyred not too soon after.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">His death involved getting lanced through the eye by his own godson while the two were on a hunting trip. It would also mark the end of the Merovingians and the beginning of the Capetians, the royal line of France up to the 19th Century.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#5 Hanno of Worms (Dec 24)</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Famous for his well-known diet.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">And if you got that last bit, you probably know your church history. The Diet of Worms was basically where Martin Luther defied the Catholic Church. Though the name can be readily explained (a Diet is a political assembly, with this particular one held in the German city of Worms), it also sounds really, really funny.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Oh, Hanno? All I could find (in English at least) that he was a monk, abbot, and bishop who lived in 10th Century Germany. Using Google Translate, though, I was also able to find out that:</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">13 years later (950) Hanno was at the behest of the emperor and his appointment the 15th Bishop of Worms . 952 he took the Holy. Ulrich at the Synod of Augsburg in part. be held 964 Bishop Hanno in Rome on; in Engelweihbulle concerning the Swiss Benedictine Maria Einsiedeln , called him Pope Leo VIII. 11 November of the year among the prelates, who came from Germany to Rome and were drawn by him in this matter for advice. 970 stayed Hanno again in Italy, where he on 29 March, to Ravenna , next to the Empress and Crown Prince Otto appears as a witness an act of Emperor Otto I for the Trier monastery of St. Maximin. 976 gave him Emperor Otto II the Benedictine Mosbach .</span><br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">None of which, unfortunately, I could understand.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Google Images gives me no Hannos</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">... but lotsa worms</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#4 Hryhorii Khomyshyn (Dec 28)</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I’m thinking if you played either of these names in Scrabble, you’d be clearing at least 100 points easy.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">This guy (I ain’t gonna type that in again) is another 20th Century saint. Unlike Odoardo, though, Hryhorii (on the other hand, thank God for cut and paste) died during the Soviet occupation after WWII. And that makes him one of the Martyrs Killed Under Communist Regimes in Eastern Europe. HK (let’s just keep it simple, shall we?) was a Greek Catholic, and a bishop in what is now Ukraine.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGcgovmzuzvJ5C7fM5A87dtmM4Y4gber-1nA1v_Z26rpGtgqz41gCeL371TdahzsHNLf_fMRVOgeQv4yr068uuUJspmWF-TB11568HcrddlE8GV2W8Ok_dw4DdzjQHcGZ5iT9k477ABu8/s1600/george.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGcgovmzuzvJ5C7fM5A87dtmM4Y4gber-1nA1v_Z26rpGtgqz41gCeL371TdahzsHNLf_fMRVOgeQv4yr068uuUJspmWF-TB11568HcrddlE8GV2W8Ok_dw4DdzjQHcGZ5iT9k477ABu8/s320/george.jpg" width="223" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">BTW, if that name wasn’t bad enough for you, how about one of the following alternatives:</span><br />
<ul>
<li>Gregory Khomyshyn</li>
<li>Gregory Chomyshyn</li>
<li>Gregor Khomysyn</li>
<li>Grzegorz Chomyszyn</li>
<li>Hryhory Khomysyn</li>
<li>Hryhory Khomyshyn</li>
<li>Hryhorij Khomysyn</li>
<li>Hryhorij Khomyshyn</li>
</ul>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#3 Zoticus of Constantinople (Dec 31)</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">So as not to be confused with all the other Zoticuses out there.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">And, this time, we’ve got quite a few. In addition to our guy, we’ve also got them from Africa, Egypt, Comana, Nyon, and Nicomedia. We also have some who were Martyrs and Philosophers as well. In sum, that’s 8 Zotici.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Our guy was a Roman who moved to Constantinople when it became the imperial capital (during the 4th Century). There, he became a priest, giving away his fortune (and part of Constantine’s) to the poor. When the Arian emperor Constantius came to power, some fellow Arians contrived to have Zoticus put to death for embezzlement. Here’s how it all played out (according to one random website out there):</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The heartless Emperor ordered that Zoticus be tied behind wild mules and dragged until dead. The mules ran down the hill, breaking the Saint's body upon the rocks and brush. Then, of their own accord, they returned to the top of the hill, still dragging the body, and, like Balaam's ass, spoke and proclaimed that the Martyr must be buried on that hill. The astonished and repentant Emperor ordered the Martyr buried with honor, and commanded that a hospital for lepers be built there, staffed by the best physicians and caretakers.</span><br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Our guy is also known as Zotico and Feeder of Orphans. Actually, put those two together, and we’ve got a possible early Christian superhero on our hands – Zotico, Feeder of Orphans!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#2 Zeno of Nicomedia (Dec 22)</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Not to be confused with Zoticus of Nicomedia.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Or Zeno of Gaza, or Zeno of Rome, or Zeno of Verona, or Zeno of Armenia, or Zeno of Philadelphia. Or Zenone of Nicomedia, for that matter. Yup, they’re all real.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0z2Z46ENIePiPE0RtyrmnT2b2p2ldHifl3CS5yG4ry8FK0YdANZrpr5jqV6cY7PUOEPGPbMaaxf761R2Ivfi9CC5uSnn4Uxnw5Ppo3WrwDjoMXPPGj_Ox_9LYgSw46xrS4S55reFD8hs/s1600/zeno.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0z2Z46ENIePiPE0RtyrmnT2b2p2ldHifl3CS5yG4ry8FK0YdANZrpr5jqV6cY7PUOEPGPbMaaxf761R2Ivfi9CC5uSnn4Uxnw5Ppo3WrwDjoMXPPGj_Ox_9LYgSw46xrS4S55reFD8hs/s320/zeno.jpg" width="208" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Like Zoticus, our Zeno was also a Roman – a soldier, in fact. He lived a century before Zoticus, during the reign of the evil Diocletian.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">In fact, Zeno’s story starts with his being present when Diocletian happened to be performing a sacrifice to the goddess Ceres. No biggie there – unless, like Zeno, you happened to burst out laughing. And that’s how Zeno of Nicomedia became a martyr. Sorry, not much out there on him other than totally awesome story.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#1 Ebrulf of Ouche (Dec 29)</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Isn’t this the sound you make when you cough and sneeze at the same time?</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Ebrulf was a courtier in Merovingian France (remember them?). He and his wife gave it all up, however, to become monk and nun.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Ebrulf would later ditch the monastery for the wild forest of Ouche, in his native Normandy. There, though, he would become surrounded by admirers, including a band of robbers he converted, causing him to start his own monastery. He also founded a number of other monasteries as well.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Honorable Mention</b></span><br />
<ul>
<li>Secundus Pollo</li>
<li>Quartillosa of Carthage</li>
<li>Amaswinthus of Málaga</li>
<li>Athernaise of Fife</li>
<li>Thorlac Thorhallsson</li>
<li>Wisinto of Kremsmünster</li>
<li>Adelheidis of Tennenbach</li>
<li>Frithbert of Hexham</li>
<li>Walto of Wessobrunn</li>
<li>Simon the Myroblite</li>
</ul>
Cliffhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12109085007044124766noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4997980458204946458.post-35520369179256859472016-12-14T15:41:00.000-08:002016-12-14T15:46:52.866-08:00Dec. 15-21<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">It seems like this is a week for obscure saints. Honestly, Peter Canisius, on the 21st, is the only one I can come up with (and that's only an "optional memorial"). Do you think they just started running out of 'em? </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>#10 Bodagisil of Aquitaine (Dec 18)</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">No, Google, I did <i>not </i>mean Vagisil.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">This fellow was a man of many names however. Catholocsaints.info lists:</span><br />
<ul>
<li>Bodagisil of St-Avold</li>
<li>Bodagisil of Metz</li>
<li>Bada of….</li>
<li>Baudgise of….</li>
<li>Bodagisle of….</li>
<li>Bodegisel of….</li>
<li>Bodogisilus of….</li>
<li>Bodogisil of….</li>
<li>Bogie of….</li>
<li>Buêle of….</li>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">And, yes, we’re talking about a guy. Bo (I’m sure that’s what all his friends called him) was a 6th Century Frankish noble and courtier. He also had a spiritual side, founding an abbey and becoming the abbot there. He also fathered a saint, Arnulf of Metz. I guess you could say that’s kind of half secular and half saintly.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>#9 Bogumila Noiszewska (Dec 19)</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Interestingly, Google did not try to correct me on this one. Spell Check did, however, want me to change it to “beguile.”</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">BTW, we’re talking about a girl this time. Poor thing.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Bogumila was a Polish nun who was martyred during WWII for helping to hide Jews. She was beatified by JPII in 1999 (and has not yet been canonized).</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">A surprising number of Slavic names begin with “bog.” That’s actually how you say “God” in several of these languages. Bogumila actually means “favored by God.” Remembering that this is a girl’s name, I’m finding that a tad ironic.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>#8 Sturmi of Fulda (Dec 17)</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">So, no corrections from Google, but Spell Check does give me the obvious “stormy,” as well as the much less obvious “struma.”</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Well, we’re back to the guys with this one. (I know, pretty impossible to tell with the names so far this week.) Sturmi was an 8th Century German priest, hermit, missionary, and abbot. He’s also known as Sturm and Sturmius, as well as the Apostle of the Saxons and the Apostle of Germany.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>#7 Filip Siphong Onphithakt (Dec 16)</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Okay, I think I recognize that <i>first </i>one ...</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Filip is our second 20th Century saint. A Thai convert, he was a simple catechist. After protesting police persecution of Catholics, he was ambushed, tortured, and martyred. He’s known as one of the Seven Martyrs of Songkhon. Others include:</span><br />
<ul>
<li>Agnes Phila</li>
<li>Maria Phon</li>
<li>Lucie Khambang</li>
<li>Cecilia Butsi</li>
<li>Bibiana Khamphai</li>
<li>Agata Phutta Bi (which sounds an awful lot like a fraternity)</li>
</ul><br/>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Oh, BTW, Spell Check wants me to change the 2nd name to “siphon,” and just plain gave up on the 3rd.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDbc0larQukx1pXH1WpFqrMLOHXiyoBG1d74y4cjF53Wk1Wh2CnrCcktQkmVGQ_D2cX_7KaqbdAeU48qRuvjXMo7FyI-as4N-PMjpYcy_g99RciE6L8kXZKDB4AbSu8Cy6BVe7n2DuXf8/s1600/phil.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDbc0larQukx1pXH1WpFqrMLOHXiyoBG1d74y4cjF53Wk1Wh2CnrCcktQkmVGQ_D2cX_7KaqbdAeU48qRuvjXMo7FyI-as4N-PMjpYcy_g99RciE6L8kXZKDB4AbSu8Cy6BVe7n2DuXf8/s1600/phil.jpg" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>#6 William of Fenoli (Dec 10)</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Representation: </b> holding a donkey’s leg</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">But <i>why</i>? <i>Why </i>was he holding a donkey’s leg?</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Ask and ye shall receive. Catholicsaints.info explains it all:</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">One day when coming in from the fields, William was attacked by thieves, and defended himself by tearing the leg off his donkey and using it as a club to drive off the attackers; afterwards he re-attached the leg, and the pair continued home.</span><br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Other than that, we really don’t know much about this guy. We do know he was a simple hermit and monk and live in the 11th and 12th Centuries in Italy. He was beatified only in 1860 (and has still not been canonized).</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijZpaMRIXpbpXXrlgznLHonppaY6J5QFYJ3FgzfM9BQJYAE8Xl-KAJF0LEcCbcTWhrXc4mXoPDL0_0rwM7Kqg1ktJagjzKI4F7bduzAL1nihyphenhyphenA1iONYYfRFk5rVZIZitGQarah9Fa5FHk/s1600/William-of-Fenoli.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijZpaMRIXpbpXXrlgznLHonppaY6J5QFYJ3FgzfM9BQJYAE8Xl-KAJF0LEcCbcTWhrXc4mXoPDL0_0rwM7Kqg1ktJagjzKI4F7bduzAL1nihyphenhyphenA1iONYYfRFk5rVZIZitGQarah9Fa5FHk/s1600/William-of-Fenoli.jpg" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>#5 John of Matha (Dec 17)</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Representation: </b> purse</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Patron saint of crossdressers?</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">John was born a noble in 11th century France. Ditching the courtly for the spiritual life, he would become a hermit; then earn a PhD in theology; then found an order, the Trinitarians. The Trinitarians, whose specialty was ransoming Christian captives from Muslims, is still around today (not sure how much ransoming they’re doing though).</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1mQBRUf6XMQsxJJbIaaDU084yvnjv3WHaO1t1-_Nzsu0Qo6oR64ty66Vfby6z3HjSFDYwUiLAg371jquTNnsJ6bubq8tWno18vnOS785gY3uqXKrIbvnMQVq1jI_hC4XFhgPtN7En3bg/s1600/trinitarian.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1mQBRUf6XMQsxJJbIaaDU084yvnjv3WHaO1t1-_Nzsu0Qo6oR64ty66Vfby6z3HjSFDYwUiLAg371jquTNnsJ6bubq8tWno18vnOS785gY3uqXKrIbvnMQVq1jI_hC4XFhgPtN7En3bg/s320/trinitarian.png" width="187" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">A Trinitarian</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">By the way, John is the namesake of DeMatha High School. If you’re a college basketball fan, you’ve probably heard of them. They arguably have the best high school hoops program in the country, claiming alumni such as Adrian Dantley, Danny Ferry, Sydney Lowe, and Adrian Branch.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The purse? Couldn’t find much, but I assume it’s a money purse, highlighting his <i>ransoming </i>activities.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>#4 Maximinus of Micy</b> (Dec 15)</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Weird names are always so much better when they’re alliterative, don’t you think?</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">We know very little about this guy other than when he lived (6th Century), where he lived (France), and what he did for a living (monk and abbot). There are some great pious legends out there however.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">In one, Max chased a dragon out of a cave and then claimed it for a hermitage. In another, Max, long dead, sent a vision to one Henry, the sufferer of some unknown affliction, telling him to come pay him a visit. Henry first went to the wrong Maximinus (in Trier), then to the shrine of Maximus (in Tours), then finally found his way to Micy. There, an apparition of the correct Maximinus appeared, slapped Henry and declared, “Where are you going, fool?” And that might be my all-time favorite pious legend.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>#3 Auxentius of Mopsuestia (Dec 18)</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">No, it’s not alliterative. It is pretty weird and unpronounceable though.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">All we know about Auxentius was that he was a 3rd Century Roman army officer, who refused to offer grapes to Bacchus (gasp!). Whether that led to his martyrdom or not is not recorded.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">We do know that Mopsuestia was a large city in the ancient world, in what is now Turkey. All that’s left of it now, however, is the small town of Yakapınar (formerly, Misis).</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">By the way, there are actually several Ss. Auxentius out there. So, don’t get this guy confused with the Auxentii of Milan, Durostorum, and Bithynia.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgT2WHDPfdrDzSLsk2ozQC-x-5Ej8TEynYDXhWNAgHeYmueHJ52CF4buGf8NTRIJqvTUchqkgKgwB-6jI5XszBQcPQcnl5RX9NtMNLCOwFQXbZn9VtHq_p1k18oEzvxAoVilOFJ1Ck8-fk/s1600/auxie.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgT2WHDPfdrDzSLsk2ozQC-x-5Ej8TEynYDXhWNAgHeYmueHJ52CF4buGf8NTRIJqvTUchqkgKgwB-6jI5XszBQcPQcnl5RX9NtMNLCOwFQXbZn9VtHq_p1k18oEzvxAoVilOFJ1Ck8-fk/s320/auxie.jpg" width="217" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Or this one from Constantinople</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>#2 Baudacarius of Bobbio (Dec 21)</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Ah, back to alliteration.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">By the by, Baudacarius was also a <i>B</i>enedictine. He lived in the 7th Century, in Italy.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">He also has a great pious legend as well:</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Legend says that once he ran nearly out of food to feed [his 30 brothers], but prayed for help and was able to feed them all from a single cooked duck.</span><br /></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIw5Rf_rLWvuyM8QU8mAo7ZDpf3FlTVR1snBEarW9yreOy-tB2PfmdkvfOfmj1hZtm57FhoA3ixq3zB8m8FdgLRRjtO2Bz9cYKgw0CMOi6ILhPr0f-_hX9G5vLXl4783_medkrGIQTAjg/s1600/baud.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="171" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIw5Rf_rLWvuyM8QU8mAo7ZDpf3FlTVR1snBEarW9yreOy-tB2PfmdkvfOfmj1hZtm57FhoA3ixq3zB8m8FdgLRRjtO2Bz9cYKgw0CMOi6ILhPr0f-_hX9G5vLXl4783_medkrGIQTAjg/s320/baud.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">For some strange reason, </span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">this is the 3rd image that comes up </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">on Google Images </span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">when you type in "baudacarius of bobbio"</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>#1 Briarch of Bourbriac (Dec 17)</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Alliteration <i>and </i>a tongue twister.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Briarch, who lived in the 6th and 7th Centuries, was an Irish noble, a monk in Wales, a pilgrim to Rome, and the founder of a monastery in France. In other words, quite the medieval jet setter. The only other things I could find out about him were that he was a friend of <a href="http://reallystrangesaints.blogspot.com/2016/11/nov-11-30.html">St. Tudwal</a> and is invoked against mental illness.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Briarch is indeed a pretty obscure figure. I actually got less than 300 hits on him in Google, probably the fewest I’ve ever got for any saint.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5_49WZ6tigdPwXFpiz3qpNvZQuWq8I4Lw-FztVdm4H9diIHrWJtmho6zyC73Oc1aR9W9Y3z-ojeT1uRCW5m4ZVP164byyedfIyggd3U0hIWJj_ViESz2ujDet2QVlLZIsNyMlT6RReBw/s1600/briarch.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="125" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5_49WZ6tigdPwXFpiz3qpNvZQuWq8I4Lw-FztVdm4H9diIHrWJtmho6zyC73Oc1aR9W9Y3z-ojeT1uRCW5m4ZVP164byyedfIyggd3U0hIWJj_ViESz2ujDet2QVlLZIsNyMlT6RReBw/s320/briarch.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">... and this is the 2nd image when you type in "briarch of bourbriac" (?!?!)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Honorable Mention</b></span><br />
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<li>Martyrs of Eleutheropolis</li>
<li>Nicholas Chrysoberges</li>
<li>Tydecho</li>
<li>Beornwald of Bampton</li>
<li>Samthann of Clonbroney</li>
<li>Winebald of Heidenheim</li>
<li>Theotimus of Laodicea</li>
<li>Bean of Lough Derg</li>
<li>Flavito</li>
<li>Freoch of Cloon</li>
</ul>
Cliffhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12109085007044124766noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4997980458204946458.post-31170341050170288412016-12-08T15:52:00.003-08:002016-12-08T16:01:01.486-08:00Dec. 8-14<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Busy week … and we’re not even into the Christmas stuff yet. The biggies this week are the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary and the feast of the Virgin of Guadalupe. Some of the “smallies” are listed below.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#10 Vicelin of Oldenburg (Dec 12)</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Representation: </b>bishop with a church sitting on his left arm</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Man, that’s gotta hurt, right?</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Vicelin lived in the 11th and 12th Centuries, mostly in Germany. From a noble family, he was orphaned at an early age. He would later become a teacher; priest (including Pastor of Wippenthorp); bishop; founder of monasteries; and missionary to the Obotrites, Polabian Slavs, and Wagrian Wends. He was also known as Witzel, as well as the Apostle of Holstein.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">A lot of possibilities for names for alt-rock bands here:</span><br />
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<li>Obotrites</li>
<li>Polabian Slavs</li>
<li>Apostles of Holstein</li>
<li>Wagrian Wends</li>
<li>Pastors of Wippenthorp</li>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtnEjr2MUEatDkDlMIYKxjZFKzcJY5f_Q9Jq0EKnvKYBW8I5bWwCjWRM6j6-M7rRwUo-6aQntXTVwkbZqObLNvFbaJrgXhpehWxD7Ue1gE4y-cAoV45pc87V-FsrJ4BUhHCzuyrMSbKuQ/s1600/vic.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtnEjr2MUEatDkDlMIYKxjZFKzcJY5f_Q9Jq0EKnvKYBW8I5bWwCjWRM6j6-M7rRwUo-6aQntXTVwkbZqObLNvFbaJrgXhpehWxD7Ue1gE4y-cAoV45pc87V-FsrJ4BUhHCzuyrMSbKuQ/s320/vic.jpg" width="145" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#9 Patapius (Dec 8)</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Patron saint of platypuses.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Patapius was a 4th Century hermit. He hung out in the Egyptian desert (he’s also known as Patapius of Thebes) as well as in Constantinople. I’m not sure how he managed the latter, as Constantinople was the largest city in Europe at the time. You can still visit his relics there, some of which are still incorrupt. Pat (surely his friends called him that) is particularly popular in the Eastern, or Orthodox, church.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmE_38wh7afRGgCwAZOi0PR6jFwPrBoX3lGrrK2l3TNJWyOofXoBr826lGRnp5BgKYm7imNhS0uHf1KdtLg1lc7O9dNx4CgtQzbe_Cf22bdAeD62rqY7UOgm83GwrhaM5A3Ss_6Qm5Bgw/s1600/Patapius-spinosus-189928.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="248" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmE_38wh7afRGgCwAZOi0PR6jFwPrBoX3lGrrK2l3TNJWyOofXoBr826lGRnp5BgKYm7imNhS0uHf1KdtLg1lc7O9dNx4CgtQzbe_Cf22bdAeD62rqY7UOgm83GwrhaM5A3Ss_6Qm5Bgw/s320/Patapius-spinosus-189928.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><i>Patapius</i> is also a bug genus</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#8 Bruno of Rommersdorf (Dec 10)</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Often confused with Rommer of Brunosdorf.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Bruno was a 12th Century German knight. He gave up worldly things, though, to become a Premonstratensian. He would later become an abbot with them.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">By the way, that rather interestingly named order simply comes from the village of Premontre, in France. They also are sometimes called the equally odd Norbertines and White Canons.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzIazADyFPt7TAAH-OJq1OtJOaq5l6B6rXf0iTCzun5UeMaqhUce5MJwpYiExqZTmGpyEB-9f1pcwOou6kHj51gFiztRU6hpnao_93dsFkb2iPU9f7MR8SX3F5crSqHuNc9R_eK42vpDI/s1600/premo.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzIazADyFPt7TAAH-OJq1OtJOaq5l6B6rXf0iTCzun5UeMaqhUce5MJwpYiExqZTmGpyEB-9f1pcwOou6kHj51gFiztRU6hpnao_93dsFkb2iPU9f7MR8SX3F5crSqHuNc9R_eK42vpDI/s320/premo.JPG" width="213" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Some of that Premo style</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#7 Severin Ott (Dec 11)</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Hey, another Premonsteranian … I mean, Premisaterian … No, Premonstrositeranian … Uh, one of those guys.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Not a lot out there on this dude. He basically lived in 17th Century Germany and was a … er … Norbertine.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Interestingly, the name also seems to be shared by a Swiss BASE jumper (they fly off mountain tops and things and then glide down with wingsuits) who died just a couple of years ago.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9PO-U8xMFclVLw3tFvdmb7sgPxOck5CGeW7bvHQUAvWwEIhFRFbF_e4vdcCtFhXc92LBuMrE34Hr2H-cONMaXRbs1nUAp4S215RshM3RCupAbOoPZ1SQGhSBBjeIXyLf2iPxZQWhOMZ0/s1600/sev.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9PO-U8xMFclVLw3tFvdmb7sgPxOck5CGeW7bvHQUAvWwEIhFRFbF_e4vdcCtFhXc92LBuMrE34Hr2H-cONMaXRbs1nUAp4S215RshM3RCupAbOoPZ1SQGhSBBjeIXyLf2iPxZQWhOMZ0/s320/sev.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Our saint was <i>not</i> known for levitation</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">(I'm thinking this might be the <i>other</i> guy)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#6 Gunthildis of Ohrdruf (Dec 8)</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Patron saint of dandruff.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Another pretty obscure medieval saint, poor Gunthildis was actually a girl. Born in England, she would later move to Germany, where she would become an abbess. She also goes by the equally awful name of Cunihilt.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#5 Eulalia of Merida (Dec 10)</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Representation: </b>naked young woman lying in the snow</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I want to see the holy card for this one.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Eulalia was a virgin martyr, active in Spain during the 3rd or 4th Centuries. Eulalia was one of those <i>sassy</i> martyrs. When arrested and asked to worship the pagan gods, she threw down an idol, stamped on the sacrifice that they put together for her to offer, and spat at the judge.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Not too surprisingly, she was then stripped, tortured, and burned. When she died, a dove was seen to fly out of her mouth. And when her body was thrown in the street, a miraculous snow then “covered her nakedness.”</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">According to Wikipedia, “For this reason she is regarded among Catholic school children and teachers alike as the patron saint of snow (inclement weather) days.” Gotta love it.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgd-AKRXEQLsWi7zW9eohTnjzprJN0BhuF3sWs47bLQNKs-qOx7mflYlAET4pQKey1mrx9k_EKGo9e9_ome5ILCFRYheLHTHp1k34Th33HlwV4tS25m9DkC-mrqRIap6CAwvDDSXcf85U/s1600/euli.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgd-AKRXEQLsWi7zW9eohTnjzprJN0BhuF3sWs47bLQNKs-qOx7mflYlAET4pQKey1mrx9k_EKGo9e9_ome5ILCFRYheLHTHp1k34Th33HlwV4tS25m9DkC-mrqRIap6CAwvDDSXcf85U/s320/euli.jpg" width="193" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#4 Corentius of Quimper (Dec 12)</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Couldn’t just be John, or James, or Thomas, now, could we? Had to go and add something like Corentius to the already risible Quimper, didn’t we?</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Well, we’re back to medieval obscurity again here. All we really know about Corentius is that he lived in the 400s, was born in Britain, moved later to France, and was a hermit and bishop.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0fLC84SAeaekttbm5xRD7itRWkaficL2LTXMVsC9NTs-92CLar2m1Qv_QT0JQWM_arp5Z8SPNV6ygzPKs_Ush8hK-o9carcgAWOwCx9nQ9osc-OYbVmOuwUfCGVim3wThztfIFrSYCbg/s1600/cory.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="262" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0fLC84SAeaekttbm5xRD7itRWkaficL2LTXMVsC9NTs-92CLar2m1Qv_QT0JQWM_arp5Z8SPNV6ygzPKs_Ush8hK-o9carcgAWOwCx9nQ9osc-OYbVmOuwUfCGVim3wThztfIFrSYCbg/s320/cory.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#3 Juan Diego Cuautlatoatzin (Dec 9)</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Patron saint of people with unpronounceable names.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">You may already know that this is the guy who saw the Virgin of Guadalupe. That happened in 1531, within the current confines of Mexico City. The basilica that was built on the site includes the cloak Juan was wearing and on which an image of the Virgin was impressed. The basilica is now the number one pilgrimage site in the world. And you’ve probably seen that image in pretty much any place where Spanish speakers gather in the Western hemisphere. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Born a poor Indian, Juan was baptized later in life. In addition to seeing the Virgin, he also led a very holy life, lived celibately with his wife, and tended the Virgin’s shrine for his last 20-some years. Though the cult of the Virgin of Guadalupe was officially recognized in the 17th Century, Juan was canonized only in 2002.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_OtJEHsiBHJ8G-UnV23t-3lurfAG5-fe52NJILz2UyF1cX90UGpwPayCJWPuGv3IbIwSA4Vm4cul8NrloeMPmGnBPj9CnwRRm-Cn3hYdh00vVutxmVicFB1CZrzAGQAPjZKwq2MLARnM/s1600/juan-diego-jr.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="273" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_OtJEHsiBHJ8G-UnV23t-3lurfAG5-fe52NJILz2UyF1cX90UGpwPayCJWPuGv3IbIwSA4Vm4cul8NrloeMPmGnBPj9CnwRRm-Cn3hYdh00vVutxmVicFB1CZrzAGQAPjZKwq2MLARnM/s320/juan-diego-jr.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Awww!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#2 Lucy (eyes on a dish) (Dec 13)</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">And, yes, those are indeed Lucy’s.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Lucy was martyred in 304, in Syracuse (that’s Sicily, by the way, not New York). A mere 21, she was your classic virgin martyr. Betrayed by a fiancé whom she spurned, Lucy defied several tortures before finally being stabbed to death.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The eyes? Well, we’ve got a couple of stories for that. In one, having her eyes gouged out was simply a part of her torture. In the second, Lucy did the deed herself, as part of an effort to cool the ardor of her suitor. Given all that, the connection is probably just linguistic. “Lucy” simply means “light.”</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">In addition to patronages for everything eye- and sight-related, she is some also invoked against dysentery and for lawyers, weavers, peasants, and penitent prostitutes. She has no less than 40-some patronages.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Indeed, Lucy is a very popular saint. Her relics are scattered about Europe, she appears in Dante, her feast is very popular (especially in Scandinavia), and she’s even got a <i>country</i> named after (St. Lucia, in the Caribbean).</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjaGqDbfJvnKwMp6AaN_88OUzWbsJGnr7cKsdGdVJZd2DjLYnZQi6ViBBD3xGKVK8hc8zUSE8a613vHh5UQ8u1S0Uq4vZS3J6clonZIG2iSM44rJ46Z-HbxxEVU-rXJLLFnCOaREad5ysw/s1600/lucy.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjaGqDbfJvnKwMp6AaN_88OUzWbsJGnr7cKsdGdVJZd2DjLYnZQi6ViBBD3xGKVK8hc8zUSE8a613vHh5UQ8u1S0Uq4vZS3J6clonZIG2iSM44rJ46Z-HbxxEVU-rXJLLFnCOaREad5ysw/s320/lucy.jpg" width="240" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">And you thought I was making that up, didn't you?</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#1 Gorgonia (Dec 9)</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Patron saint of gorgonzola makers.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">When you Google Gorgonia, make sure you put “st” before your search. If you don’t, all you’ll get is references to a bunch of sea fans (order Gorgonia, family Gorgoniidae).</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhS_3mFlHkfkmK9xjLD28tHwoq_4vHglGi2SAE2AV1srfL5knZtftYqEJzHDM6jT9G2RoSUILbOIJk59KXd6s-G30Sovj4wTPLA9gQ3zNTNBan3dT1e4s2eVSSD-cFn4RHOTWAva4lpJlg/s1600/gorgo.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="269" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhS_3mFlHkfkmK9xjLD28tHwoq_4vHglGi2SAE2AV1srfL5knZtftYqEJzHDM6jT9G2RoSUILbOIJk59KXd6s-G30Sovj4wTPLA9gQ3zNTNBan3dT1e4s2eVSSD-cFn4RHOTWAva4lpJlg/s320/gorgo.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Be aware that you may still get sea fans,</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><i>even</i> when you put in the "st"</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">St. Gorgonia came from quite the saintly family. She was the daughter of two saints – Gregory the Elder and Nonna – and the sister of two others. She herself married, and is often cited as an exemplar of a married saint. She was active in the Middle East, during the 4th Century.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Honorable Mention</b></span><br />
<ul>
<li>Fidweten</li>
<li>Carpophorus</li>
<li>Pribyslava</li>
<li>Anastasia of Pomerania</li>
<li>Therapon of Monzja</li>
<li>Ludolf van Craeywinckel</li>
<li>Romaric of Remiremont</li>
<li>Polydore Plasden</li>
<li>Protasi Cubells Minguell</li>
<li>John Bread-and-Water</li>
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Cliffhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12109085007044124766noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4997980458204946458.post-67661379669604300492016-12-02T18:00:00.000-08:002016-12-02T18:02:01.077-08:00Dec. 1-7<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Santa Claus is who we celebrate this week. Seriously! He was a real guy. His real name is St. Nicholas of Myra. He got associated with Santa Claus because he gifted some impoverished girls with dowries, and is the patron saint of children as well.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>#10 Lucius (Dec 3)</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Representation:</b> plowing with a bear and cattle</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I don’t know … I’ve always been partial to oxen myself.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Poor Lucius. No less a source than the usually up-for-anything catholicsaints.info calls him an “inadvertent pious fiction.”</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">According to the “fiction,” Lucius was a British ruler who requested missionaries from Rome in the 2nd Century. Turns out he didn’t even exist, though there was a king Lucius of Edessa (in the mid-East) who requested missionaries for a region in his kingdom called Britium (but, otherwise, never did anything else particularly holy in his life). Oops! Wrong guy. Never mind.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEich1-B6nYlCBPhuICYg2ihdxRE7kRe3imbfG0_2lByTU0lXPamGD4QLsOZrKnStnojo7zkfjpq_As82iyKIpcMcaGVHUzB0147lFB7UazopY8SgkbEfgB2my5suyTlZ4T6yCNuSgXwpA8/s1600/022-st-lucius-l.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEich1-B6nYlCBPhuICYg2ihdxRE7kRe3imbfG0_2lByTU0lXPamGD4QLsOZrKnStnojo7zkfjpq_As82iyKIpcMcaGVHUzB0147lFB7UazopY8SgkbEfgB2my5suyTlZ4T6yCNuSgXwpA8/s320/022-st-lucius-l.jpg" width="216" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Is this his mug shot?</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>#9 Barbara (Dec 4)</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Patronage: </b>fireworks, saltpeter workers, against mine collapse, death by artillery, storms, vermin, brewers, construction workers, firemen, gravediggers, hatmakers, dying people, warehouses, Santa Barbara CA …</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Yup, Barb may well be the most popular patroness out there. Catholicsaints.info lists no less than 34 different patronages!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Where did they all come from? Well, her pious legend (yup, she probably didn’t really exist either) has her locked up in a tower (prisoners, fortifications, construction workers …), from which she escapes. She is then recaptured, then put to death by her own father (dying people), who is then immediately struck by lightning (storms, fireworks, death by artillery …). None of which, of course, explains vermin, brewers, hatmakers, boatmen, mathematicians …</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Did we get it all in?</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>#8 Sabbas of Mar Saba (Dec 5)</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Or, if you prefer, Sabbas the Sanctified of Mutalaska. And, yes, Mar Saba is indeed named after him. It’s also referred to as the Holy Lavra of Saint Sabbas the Sanctified. So, if Sabbas of Mar Saba isn’t bad enough, how would you feel about:</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Sabbas the Sanctified of Mutalaska of the Holy Lavra of Saint Sabbas the Sanctified</span><br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I didn’t think so.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6YSSQiP4KOEfcn_Ls6_Kj4aNHwITl_AvjMlhz8MxGuo8RJiHOg1AkGHTl8Eoo8pHrwse3UpurJ5XKUmCF7nDRR1jYu_6egtmeTirgICTUF0smN0XLjCvv1E-ONA48Wveghju2zvSz8T0/s1600/mar+saba.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6YSSQiP4KOEfcn_Ls6_Kj4aNHwITl_AvjMlhz8MxGuo8RJiHOg1AkGHTl8Eoo8pHrwse3UpurJ5XKUmCF7nDRR1jYu_6egtmeTirgICTUF0smN0XLjCvv1E-ONA48Wveghju2zvSz8T0/s320/mar+saba.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Mar Saba today</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Who was he? Sabbas was a monk, priest, and hermit who lived around the year 500, in the Middle East. His hermitage would later become the site of Mar Saba … or the Holy Lavra of Saint Sabbas the Sanctified, if you prefer. Sabbas would also found several other monasteries, write a monastic rule, and become involved in the many theological controversies of the era.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>#7 Aper of Sens (Dec 5)</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Sounds like the title for a They Must Be Giants song.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Not a lot out there on this oddly named fellow. We do know that he was a priest and hermit who lived in France in the 7th Century.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Catholicsaint.info (the only real source for any info on Aper) also shares the following interesting little tidbits:</span><br />
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<ul>
<li>He’s also known as Apre, Aprus, Avre, Epvre, and Evre</li>
<li>“After years of bickering among his parishioners and slander from every corner, he retired to live as a hermit .”</li>
<li>“Built a cell for private prayers, and a nursing home to care for the poor. Spiritual director of a man later known as Aprunculus (little wild boar).”</li>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Too bad there isn’t a St. Aprunculus. He probably could have made #1 for this week.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJCmavyKGNXS4J2e9DdHSImCBptRtpRlSCC-Jq2GRtT7UZ9j45H0_-Fj7kwB65ynSmXRo9QPDk0lmi153ML4e82lZcPvBzlxaFoYWnlg7adjIifuiG7soHl7l3DT-eSvvCYU46lVXU-YQ/s1600/04-22-0532-aprunculus.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJCmavyKGNXS4J2e9DdHSImCBptRtpRlSCC-Jq2GRtT7UZ9j45H0_-Fj7kwB65ynSmXRo9QPDk0lmi153ML4e82lZcPvBzlxaFoYWnlg7adjIifuiG7soHl7l3DT-eSvvCYU46lVXU-YQ/s1600/04-22-0532-aprunculus.jpg" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Hey, looks like there is!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">(St. Aprunculus of Trier)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>#6 Ambrose of Milan (Dec 7)</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Representation: </b> baby with bees on his mouth</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">There’s a story here. I just know it.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">And indeed there is. Here, I’ll let Wikipedia describe it:</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">There is a legend that as an infant, a swarm of bees settled on his face while he lay in his cradle, leaving behind a drop of honey. His father considered this a sign of his future eloquence and honeyed tongue. [He would eventually be known as the “Honey-Tongued Doctor.”]</span><br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">A 5th Century bishop, Ambrose was actually a fairly important figure. Among his many accomplishments, we have:</span><br />
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<ul>
<li>Fighting Arianism</li>
<li>Championing the antiphonal chant</li>
<li>Converting St. Augustine</li>
<li>Chairing several councils</li>
<li>Becoming one of the first Doctors of the Church</li>
</ul>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">You probably won’t be too surprised that Ambrose is the patron of beekeepers and candlemakers and so on. Where the following come from, though, are totally beyond me:</span><br />
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<ul>
<li>Geese</li>
<li>Livestock</li>
<li>Police officers</li>
<li>Starlings</li>
<li>French Commissariat</li>
</ul>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLNiRNxhzESjLvQFz-DmEFUiBxRVIzUKMGTAhYPhHK4bJyMZ05ujNMKK8KssXIvJZzbShK8l8pSNwbxq2N4CN5S5Qb8AVLE76RrEWHePkue2uV0bgDWuguUOVfnVBeTYARh5r31DFjs2A/s1600/ambro.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLNiRNxhzESjLvQFz-DmEFUiBxRVIzUKMGTAhYPhHK4bJyMZ05ujNMKK8KssXIvJZzbShK8l8pSNwbxq2N4CN5S5Qb8AVLE76RrEWHePkue2uV0bgDWuguUOVfnVBeTYARh5r31DFjs2A/s320/ambro.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Yoiks! Yup, that's him.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>#5 Narcyz Putz (Dec 5)</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I really hesitated putting this guy in here (yes, he’s a guy). After all, he died in Dachau. It was a surprisingly common fate for Polish priests in WWII.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">BTW, Narcyz is the Polish form of Narcissus. And, yes, Narcissus is a guy’ name. Would you believe there are also some guy Hyacinths out there as well?</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgu6c2O6hRPqHNeAFrhTWYe0yFOnJEVDm2NXiRghoNiWw6VTXPPSyVSqQwlmU9BMAuqLM1CvhmvxI1UKJhHWKwo5wyJodFauSYRXYpipUDW5RoZr_pGTdqskStURPB_-ngYQe3g7HOVZfA/s1600/putz_panteon.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgu6c2O6hRPqHNeAFrhTWYe0yFOnJEVDm2NXiRghoNiWw6VTXPPSyVSqQwlmU9BMAuqLM1CvhmvxI1UKJhHWKwo5wyJodFauSYRXYpipUDW5RoZr_pGTdqskStURPB_-ngYQe3g7HOVZfA/s1600/putz_panteon.jpg" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>#4 Mór of Pécs (Dec 4)</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I’m tempted to make some really lame joke about his cousin Les of Abs, but … Oh shoot! I guess I already did.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">AKA Maurus and Mauricio, this guy managed to accomplish quite a bunch as well (though he’s nowhere near as famous as Ambrose). Living in 11th Century Hungary, Mor was a priest and bishop. He also was BFF with St. Stephen (Hungary’s patron saint), wrote the first book on Hungarian saints, was the first first prelate in Hungary, and was active in his country’s politics as well (serving primarily as a peace-maker).</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicgwyw0-tQ2m79y4PhY9-JygWUzIscr7qTVit-SBWy6ntTrbo9QOqj95vRrtnt70pkxxTIGz5DHOjpV5oWDqdrgHO00TOQ96jM7zIuPizx9iTvFQPP0LGUa8R96Vwo6PyiqTk4F8pcPRU/s1600/pecs.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicgwyw0-tQ2m79y4PhY9-JygWUzIscr7qTVit-SBWy6ntTrbo9QOqj95vRrtnt70pkxxTIGz5DHOjpV5oWDqdrgHO00TOQ96jM7zIuPizx9iTvFQPP0LGUa8R96Vwo6PyiqTk4F8pcPRU/s1600/pecs.jpg" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Yeah, just what I was afraid of</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">(thanks, anyway, Google Images!)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>#3 Eligius of Noyon (Dec 1)</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Representation: </b>man holding a horse's leg, which he detached from the horse in order to shoe it more easily</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Now, there’s a handy trick.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">It sounds like Eligius was a metalsmith, as well as doing some more basic smithing on the side. Quite the social climber, Eligius would eventually parlay his smithery into titles such as master of the mint, treasurer, and chief counsellor to the French king. He would also later become a priest and bishop, found several monasteries, and build a couple of churches.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgOavFfU7idj65izObtaZnw8KU0WkZUvIkAGGfyuPzbFnHvSGiCrE8FHj46VOJnPDHGrnpMm7snvbbtJrLFTcAfwJSZaIakdx2UQnavOrILBvDzKJEgUFgb_OLrmLqibQz8-WkNFXyM_A/s1600/eli.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgOavFfU7idj65izObtaZnw8KU0WkZUvIkAGGfyuPzbFnHvSGiCrE8FHj46VOJnPDHGrnpMm7snvbbtJrLFTcAfwJSZaIakdx2UQnavOrILBvDzKJEgUFgb_OLrmLqibQz8-WkNFXyM_A/s1600/eli.jpg" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Last but not least, Eligius also stands out for his many aliases:</span><br />
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<ul>
<li>Alar</li>
<li>Elaere</li>
<li>Elar</li>
<li>Elard</li>
<li>Eler</li>
<li>Eloi</li>
<li>Eloy</li>
<li>Iler</li>
<li>Loy</li>
</ul>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">… and for his many patronages as well. As for the latter, catholicsaints.info lists about 80, including these genuine oddities:</span><br />
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<ul>
<li>Against boils</li>
<li>Basket makers</li>
<li>Boilermakers</li>
<li>Peasants</li>
<li>Livestock</li>
<li>Jockeys</li>
<li>Cab drivers</li>
<li>Scissors grinders</li>
<li>Coin collectors</li>
<li>Farriers</li>
<li>Gas station workers</li>
<li>Computer scientists</li>
</ul>
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<b style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">#2 Ansanus the Baptizer (Dec 1)</b><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Representation: </b> young man holding a heart and liver</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Please tell me these aren’t his. Please …</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Ansanus is the patron saint of Siena, where he lived around the year 300. Coming from a noble Roman family, he was secretly brought up as a Christian by his nurse. Ansanus came out of the closet at age 19, managed to baptize a number of Sienese, but was then quickly martyred.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzWKkC1tOb1QLJYfXWPd8oomgXSWNzp8j3P65gvLcHw4iLCH0eKxkJKNyNUB8Qoqv26jaofeMoDb5vNFp_xMZG_1kY_m4TCUeEMynC5ALgqnR-UYSHF-1FVrm_tV60I2mKkAjOdSvi0Z8/s1600/img-Saint-Ansanus-the-Baptizer.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzWKkC1tOb1QLJYfXWPd8oomgXSWNzp8j3P65gvLcHw4iLCH0eKxkJKNyNUB8Qoqv26jaofeMoDb5vNFp_xMZG_1kY_m4TCUeEMynC5ALgqnR-UYSHF-1FVrm_tV60I2mKkAjOdSvi0Z8/s320/img-Saint-Ansanus-the-Baptizer.jpg" width="256" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Ansanus is also a man of many representations. Catholicsaints.info also has him down for:</span><br />
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<ul>
<li>baptizing</li>
<li>beheaded</li>
<li>boiled in oil</li>
<li>cross</li>
<li>dates</li>
<li>heart with the letters IHS on it</li>
<li>palm with dates</li>
<li>palm</li>
<li>towers in the background</li>
<li>man holding towers in his hand</li>
<li>richly-dressed young man</li>
<li>with a palm and banner</li>
<li>young man holding a liver</li>
<li>young man holding a cluster of dates</li>
</ul>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Unfortunately, I have no idea where <i>any </i>of these come from.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>#1 Bibiana (Dec 2)</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Patronage: </b> against hangovers</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Now, there’s a practical patronage.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Bibiana is actually a tad on the obscure side. All we really know about her was that she was a virgin martyr in 4th Century Rome. Now, there are – of course – a couple of pious legends out there with a few more details.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibl0FrjMwOaaSSI8tOj7Pbtd_Lrvab-vy0JecDD6Ke635PKFjvOFyGY3-WSwU10JogXRIJyOBwEUA-BAy0FGCy4LaeQuGkXQvZ9OymWSBluHpwoTy85rCWaGvogXhIEpJjdB9oWk2d77M/s1600/bibi.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibl0FrjMwOaaSSI8tOj7Pbtd_Lrvab-vy0JecDD6Ke635PKFjvOFyGY3-WSwU10JogXRIJyOBwEUA-BAy0FGCy4LaeQuGkXQvZ9OymWSBluHpwoTy85rCWaGvogXhIEpJjdB9oWk2d77M/s320/bibi.jpg" width="303" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Oh, my aching head!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Interestingly, though, none of these mention hangovers. The patronage most likely comes from the closeness between Bibiana’s name and the Latin verb for drinking, <i>bibere</i>. Yup, that’s all there is to it. Sorry.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Honorable Mention</b></span><br />
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<ul>
<li>Simon Yempo</li>
<li>Agnofleta</li>
<li>Johann Nepomuk von Tschiderer</li>
<li>Natalia of Nicomedia</li>
<li>Mamas</li>
<li>Cawrdaf of Fferreg</li>
<li>Pelinus of Confinium</li>
<li>Buithe of Monasterboice</li>
<li>Nilus of Stolbensk</li>
<li>Grwst</li>
</ul>
Cliffhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12109085007044124766noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4997980458204946458.post-84238884804777888692016-11-21T10:28:00.000-08:002016-11-21T10:37:54.473-08:00Nov. 11-30<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Thanksgiving week! BTW, Thanksgiving is <i>not </i>a holy day of obligation. Just in case you were wondering.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#10 Conrad of Constance (Nov 26)</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Representation: </b> bishop holding a chalice with a spider above or in it</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">You know, there’s a big difference between “above” and “in,” right?</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Conrad was a very well-connected individual who somehow managed to avoid politics in a very political time and place (the Holy Roman Empire, during the 10th Century). Bishop of Constance (in current-day Switzerland), Conrad made several pilgrimages to Jerusalem, founded a number of churches, and was known for his charity to the poor.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The spider? Sounds like “in” would have been a much more accurate representation:</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">This refers to a story that once when he was celebrating mass a spider fell into the chalice. Spiders were believed at that time to be deadly poisonous, but Conrad nevertheless drank the Blood of Christ, which had been transubstantiated from wine, with the spider in it, as a token of faith. (Wikipedia)</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0rHPxC1CqWRlZ0FU18s-5ms-PS55ltkJOtArIdZshJvF36FIAs3-dYjGwgK20cVcfWQ1r5Nm5h8CBWbmT067pqAYPkOc9TlcZJ2O1-hoLfo1WptgsCNg-d0i4_4pXrry2BoDS9soRl1o/s1600/conrad.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0rHPxC1CqWRlZ0FU18s-5ms-PS55ltkJOtArIdZshJvF36FIAs3-dYjGwgK20cVcfWQ1r5Nm5h8CBWbmT067pqAYPkOc9TlcZJ2O1-hoLfo1WptgsCNg-d0i4_4pXrry2BoDS9soRl1o/s320/conrad.jpg" width="242" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#9 Catherine Laboure (Nov 28)</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Patronage: </b> pigeon fanciers</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Catherine Laboure is a pretty well-known saint. Living in 19th Century France as a simple Sister of Charity, she had several visions of the Virgin Mary, visions which would lead to the issuing of the Miraculous Medal, arguably the most popular religious medal out there.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The pigeons? Turns out Catherine took care of the family’s pigeons as a young girl. I must admit, though, I honestly thought it had to do with Catherine’s wimple. If Sister Bertrille could get airborne with hers, I’m sure it would be easy for Cathy.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7YIUCI1kvCE3jizFeSf46t_YNfxvwKIP0nN27WtAcNf-4j62S25e160d9gCEvRsVQjaQeyLi29Stv8Cm9zEBGniO151YKKwjIQ3tVDocdS3STCR4OjI11TR60F-2SQWnZhoY9ZZRKZV0/s1600/cathy.JPEG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7YIUCI1kvCE3jizFeSf46t_YNfxvwKIP0nN27WtAcNf-4j62S25e160d9gCEvRsVQjaQeyLi29Stv8Cm9zEBGniO151YKKwjIQ3tVDocdS3STCR4OjI11TR60F-2SQWnZhoY9ZZRKZV0/s1600/cathy.JPEG" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#8 Fergus the Pict (Nov 27)</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Not too surprisingly, Fergus was a Scot, active during the 7th and 8th Centuries. He was a bishop, founded a number of churches, and attended a council in Rome. Looks like you can also <a href="http://scone-palace.co.uk/whats-on/picts-and-pictures-fergus-pict">hire him</a> for your next kids party as well:</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4ZDAVoP37vuzNQIgpbIocMA-odNxO6gR0ihPt4I72z3JbXhhmyHUE9nhzx-1f7zqeOjVVFcMWcKsY0p8pNDGQpHDNRBjtzJ4dSdF0tMF2pN0Y9lC-xsmKwjpwfoS1sezL4JLXDhCgajo/s1600/fergus-1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="210" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4ZDAVoP37vuzNQIgpbIocMA-odNxO6gR0ihPt4I72z3JbXhhmyHUE9nhzx-1f7zqeOjVVFcMWcKsY0p8pNDGQpHDNRBjtzJ4dSdF0tMF2pN0Y9lC-xsmKwjpwfoS1sezL4JLXDhCgajo/s320/fergus-1.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<b style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">#7 Amphilochius of Iconium (Nov 23)</b><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Hmm, I might be spelling that wrong. Indeed, my spell check suggests Aphidlocus of Zirconium.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Amphiliochius was active during the 4th and 5th Centuries, in what is now Turkey. He started out as a lawyer, ditched it all to become a hermit, and then was made a bishop. He was very active in the numerous theological debates that went on in this era. In particular, he was known for fighting the Macedonians, Arians, Messalonians, Green Bay Packers, and Sonny Liston. (Okay, not those last two.)</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_6FfWX9f5Ypt1MxTvdkKim390njn9elTRvVuFd3ahbTqiuWpXFWxtDHYyNlhbPH8OPVTfiiwnMubDgpiCYZhDWKudACn5qMG1XcSYRozRDNTiuz8Z-9vx_pGWLfXMvE3Bz7XXFziRzq0/s1600/amphy.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_6FfWX9f5Ypt1MxTvdkKim390njn9elTRvVuFd3ahbTqiuWpXFWxtDHYyNlhbPH8OPVTfiiwnMubDgpiCYZhDWKudACn5qMG1XcSYRozRDNTiuz8Z-9vx_pGWLfXMvE3Bz7XXFziRzq0/s320/amphy.jpg" width="238" /></a></div>
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<b style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">#6 Tudwal of Treguier (Nov 30)</b><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Representation: </b> bishop using his stole as a leash on a dragon</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Mink?</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Tudwal was a Breton monk who loved in the 6th Century. He was born in Brittany (the son of a king), studied in Ireland, was a hermit in Wales, and then returned to Brittany to found a monastery.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">He was also a man of many names. In addition to Tudwal, I’ve also got him down for Tudgual, Tugdual, Tugual, Tugdualus, Tual, Pabu, and Papu. I think someone might just be having fun with me for those last two.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Though I could find a number of sites that cited that rather interesting representation, I could not find any explanations. I’m assuming Tudwal was probably just a St. George type who just so happened to be fond of animals.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#5 Alypius Stylites (Nov 26)</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Representation:</b> an old man on a pillar holding a baby</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">There’s a story behind this. I just know there is.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">What that is, though, we may never know. Once again, all I get are citations of this particular (and particularly weird) representation. Nobody seems to want to come forward and explain what it all means. And this time, I certainly don’t feel comfortable speculating.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Oh, I can explain why he’s on a pillar though. Hard to believe, but playing hermit on the top of a pillar in the middle of the desert was all the rage in the Byzantine Empire around the 5th Century. There were usually called “stylites,” from the Greek word for “pillar,” stylos.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0Jtdi_oSoRMg5OoebyuTohhkjhT372fRIg7orS41FGSNpTuVHWE-wxQTTsczDEQVmQY1IbBM3ZYxUqz_rJF4mQ9ZfY34cBEvs9NBfBygkl4D0loqM6THDhyphenhyphenkwsfp1vaI0iJF033VHjsE/s1600/alpius.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0Jtdi_oSoRMg5OoebyuTohhkjhT372fRIg7orS41FGSNpTuVHWE-wxQTTsczDEQVmQY1IbBM3ZYxUqz_rJF4mQ9ZfY34cBEvs9NBfBygkl4D0loqM6THDhyphenhyphenkwsfp1vaI0iJF033VHjsE/s320/alpius.jpg" width="222" /></a></div>
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Sorry, no baby</div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#4 James of the Marches (Nov 28)</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Representation: </b> Franciscan with a staff, castanets at his girdle, pointing to HIS</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The castanets are bad enough. But what’s with the girdle?</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Born James Gangala in 15th Century Italy, this saint would become a lawyer and a Franciscan. He would become involved heavily in the Inquisition, then have the tables turned on him in the last few years of his life.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhC6j2Cul9k53Of9MlJJHNq5u9Op5_WrLiDmYvzPBu4Uci1Fa5frgl3XSEaepCny6wZ6Eag56EdPx7QIJeQ-NJ0hmAVaapOAOqbGwEFgELX3Oi6_j1Mndx65TmJ1o6lvz_rgD1KWhpDghY/s1600/jim.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhC6j2Cul9k53Of9MlJJHNq5u9Op5_WrLiDmYvzPBu4Uci1Fa5frgl3XSEaepCny6wZ6Eag56EdPx7QIJeQ-NJ0hmAVaapOAOqbGwEFgELX3Oi6_j1Mndx65TmJ1o6lvz_rgD1KWhpDghY/s320/jim.jpg" width="236" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">An alternative representation for him is </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">"</span><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">priest holding in his right hand a chalice from which a snake is escaping"</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#3 Barlaam (Nov 27)</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Representation: </b> man in a tree, which is being gnawed by a mouse, grabbing a beehive while hanging over a dragon in a pit</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Forget the story. I’m having a hard time even picturing this.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Barlaam was a Christian hermit in - of all places - India. He converted the king's son, Josaphat, who would later join him as a hermit as well. This legend probably derives from the life of the Buddha</span><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">. Infact, "Josaphat" is robably derived from "Bodhisattva," one of the Buddha's titles.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Surprisingly, there are multiple St. Barlaams out there, including ones in Russia and what is now modern-day Turkey.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgR1WpxZupzWU-UQ8B1-73ZvEP35S-yc14b65Y5iF5_pgI1B6BzftOu572JCbhrGyPjRpmZJludHb7uTqHbqRNR04qIe_JP4qtsqowwXhkX9EO17Si-kZjNxZxpYRVr8eBEeUQcz1cSjJg/s1600/barlaam.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="307" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgR1WpxZupzWU-UQ8B1-73ZvEP35S-yc14b65Y5iF5_pgI1B6BzftOu572JCbhrGyPjRpmZJludHb7uTqHbqRNR04qIe_JP4qtsqowwXhkX9EO17Si-kZjNxZxpYRVr8eBEeUQcz1cSjJg/s320/barlaam.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">That's it! (though I have no idea what it could possibly mean)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#2 Ekbert of Muensterschwarzach (Nov 25)</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I’m thinking that last bit might have something to do with monsters. Or maybe cheese.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Wouldn’t you know, though … “Muenster” is actually German for “monastery.” “Schwarzach”? It’s a river in Bavaria. So, basically, that whole big long mess simply equates to “the monastery on the Schwarzach River.”</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Ekbert? He was a monk at – and later, abott of – said monastery. We’re talking the 11th Century here, by the way. Other than that those scant facts, however, all we’re really left with here is that wonderful whopper of a name.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#1 Dimbalac Oghlou Wartavar (Nov 22)</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Known to his friends as “Dim” …</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Well, it looks like this guy has a lot in common Ekbert. First, we’ve got that mouthful of a name. Second, we’ve got almost next to nothing for a bio. About all I could squeeze out of the Interwebs for this guy was that he was a “a Franciscan and a Martyr of Armenia.”</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Actually, a little more digging tells me that Dimbalac was actually part of the Armenian Genocide. They were beatified by JPII in 1982. Some of “companions” include:</span><br />
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<ul>
<li>Geremia Oghlou Boghos</li>
<li>Khodianin Oghlou Kadir</li>
<li>Baldji Oghlou Ohannes</li>
<li>Kouradji Oghlou Tzeroum</li>
<li>David Oghlou David</li>
</ul>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">(If you’re wondering about that “Oghlou,” it just means “son of.”)</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHG3g8_S60EJ9e36hc5qdy2r6EZER5_JhWon17KVVYgIb2WO8AuE4aRg1w0fPn4zg0ThpFvJ2ncWwigWsxQsYAcW1J0mXg_DZ0mOfmsJG26UtfjcMbWsXSKHxVTISvXlC4ZX6YmAhZj9A/s1600/Lilli.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHG3g8_S60EJ9e36hc5qdy2r6EZER5_JhWon17KVVYgIb2WO8AuE4aRg1w0fPn4zg0ThpFvJ2ncWwigWsxQsYAcW1J0mXg_DZ0mOfmsJG26UtfjcMbWsXSKHxVTISvXlC4ZX6YmAhZj9A/s1600/Lilli.png" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Not sure who's who,</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">but the head honcho in the middle is Salvatore Lilli</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Honorable Mention</b></span><br />
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<ul>
<li>Egelwine of Athelney</li>
<li>Sosthenes of Colophon</li>
<li>Paphnutius of Heracleopolis</li>
<li>Simeon the Logothete</li>
<li>Pompea of Langoat</li>
<li>Ferran Llovera Pulgsech</li>
<li>Banban of Lethglenn</li>
<li>Sisinius of Cyzicus</li>
<li>Zosimus the Wonder Worker</li>
</ul>
Cliffhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12109085007044124766noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4997980458204946458.post-12433513046815882692016-11-14T16:28:00.003-08:002016-11-20T05:28:37.205-08:00Nov. 15-21<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">There’s a solemnity this week, the Feast of Christ the King. Now, a solemnity is a feast day of the highest order – think Christmas, Easter, Pentecost, Epiphany ... Interestingly, though, this particular one dates back only to 1925.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#10 Gertrude the Great (Nov 16)</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">AKA Great Gerty …</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Gertrude lived in 13th Century Germany. She was a Benedictine sister, having lived in the convent since the age of 4. She was a mystic and writer, with her works influencing a number of subsequent saints.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">So, what made her so great? Well, there are certainly a lot of St. Gertrudes out there (I count 9 others), so it <i>is</i> important that they not get all mixed up. And our Gertrude did seem to accomplish quite a lot and also act as a major influence over the years. So … Hard to believe, though, but Gert is the only female saint out there to get that particular appellation of “Great.”</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Oops, wrong Gerty</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#9 Lazarus Zographos (Nov 17)</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Lazarus Zographos was an anti-iconoclast. And that actually means something much more specific than someone who’s doesn’t like rebels.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Hard to believe, but whether to use religious images was a huge issue in the Byzantine Empire during the 8th and 9th Centuries. Those who were against icons were known as “iconoclasts” – literally, “image breakers.”</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Those who were for icons – like Laz – were “anti-iconoclasts.” Lazarus was, in fact, a famous painter of icons, and a monk to boot. Under certain iconoclast rulers, he would suffer for his art, being thrown in prison and tortured for refusing to destroy his icons or give up his work.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Oh, almost forgot … “Zographos” is actually just Greek for “painter.”</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I think that's him in the hoodie</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#8 Edmund of East Anglia (Nov 20)</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Representation: </b> man with his severed head between the paws of a wolf</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I’m taking it Edmund was a martyr then …</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">And sure enough, he was. Edmund was king of East Anglia, in the latter part of the 9th Century. He was martyred by invading Vikings (or perhaps Danes) who, after Edmund refused to renounce Christianity, sliced and diced him up pretty good.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The wolf? Here’s the explanation on Wikipedia:</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">According to one legend, his head was then thrown into the forest, but was found safe by searchers after following the cries of a wolf that was calling, "Hic, Hic, Hic" – "Here, Here, Here".</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">At one time, Edmund was the patron saint of England. His shrine, at Bury St. Edmunds, was a very popular patronage site.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">There you go!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#7 Hugh of Lincoln (Nov 17)</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Representation: </b> man with a swan at his death bed</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">So, I’m imagining Hugh’s last words were something along the lines of, “What the heck is <i>that </i>doing here?”</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Hugh lived in the 12th Century. Born in France, he would become a Carthusian monk, moving to England when the order sought to establish a presence there. There, he would become a bishop, a builder of churches and monasteries, and one of England’s more well-known and influential saints.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Oh, that swan? Wikipedia is here to help us out again:</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Hugh loved all the animals in the monastery gardens, especially a wild swan that would eat from his hand and follow him about and yet the swan would attack anyone else who came near Hugh.</span></div>
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Are you sure that's not a <i>flamingo</i>?</div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#6 Hélène-Marie-Philippine de Chappotin de Neuville (Nov 15)</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Of, if you prefer her religious name, Mary of the Passion … And seeing that that’s 25 characters, 1 space and 2 dashes less, I would well imagine you would.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Mary was born in 1839, in France. Originally a cloistered nun, she later established a mission convent in India, then broke off from her existing order to found the Franciscan Missionaries of Mary. This order, though still contemplative, also offered medical service to women in their local community. The group grew by leaps and bounds, and today numbers 6,700 nuns, the citizens of 80 nations, serving in 76 countries.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#5 Mechtilde of Helfta (Nov 19)</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Just rolls right off the tongue …</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">But would you believe it could have been a lot worse? Mechtilde was actually born Mechtilde von Hackeborn-Wippra, into a well-known noble German family. Entering the convent at age 7, she would eventually become a Benedictine nun. She was particularly known for her musical abilities (she was called the “Nightingale of Helfta”), teaching children (including our #10 this week, Gertrude the Great), and her “extreme amiability” (Wikipeda, again).</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#4 Yosafat Kotsylovsky (Nov 17)</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Ow, I think I just <i>hurt</i> my tongue!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">And if that wasn’t painful enough, I’ll have you know that Yosafat’s official title was Eparch of Przemyśl!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Yosafat was a Ukrainian Greek Catholic. They’re one of a number of Eastern Rite Catholic sects, all of which recognize the Pope. In addition to being an eparch (basically, a bishop), Yosafat is also considered a martyr, having died in a Soviet prison camp.</span><br />
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Relaxing at home, I take it</div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#3 Josaphata Mykhailyna Hordashevska</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I don’t think I’ll ever be able to use my tongue again!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">First of all, Josaphata is indeed the feminine form of Josaphat. Second, Josaphata was also – like Yosafat – a member of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic church.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Interestingly, though, Jospahata has a lot more in common with #6 on our list, Mary of the Passion. Like Mary, Josie joined a contemplative order, but was then tasked with forming a new order that would move out into the world, serving the local community. And like Mary’s new order, Josaphat’s became wildly popular.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I have no idea what the mini people are all about</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#2 Leopold III (Nov 15)</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Representation: </b> armed man with a cross on his coronet, a banner with three eagles, and a model of the church of Heiligenkreuz in his hand</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">But what was he armed with? Geez, these descriptions are so vague.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">So, let me try to explain all this. First, the coronet … That’s due to Leopold’s being Margrave of Austria. The arms? That’s for defeating Hungarian invaders in battle. Heiligenkreuz was a monastery – one of many – Leopold founded.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I would imagine the cross is because of Leopold’s piety. The three eagles? Sorry, can’t help you there.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">By the by, Leopold is the patron saint of Austria.</span><br />
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So, what happened to the eagles?</div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#1 Florinus of Remus (Nov 17)</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Not to be confused with Remus of Florinus.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">He is, however, the same guy as:</span><br />
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<li>Florinus of Mazia</li>
<li>Florinus of Val Venosta</li>
<li>Florinus of Matsch</li>
<li>Florinus of Ramosch</li>
<li>Florinus of Vinschgau</li>
<li>Florinus of Vnuost</li>
<li>Florinus of Chur</li>
<li>Florinus of Finsgowe</li>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Who was he? Florinus (who’s also known as Florin and Florian) was a 9th Century priest, born in Italy but working in Switzerland. He was known for living like a hermit and performing miracles, but otherwise simply being the local parish priest. There’s not much more on him, I’m afraid – he’s rather on the obscure side.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Sorry, not sure how he ended up behind bars</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Honorable Mention</b></span><br />
<ul>
<li>Machudd of Llanfechell</li>
<li>Heliodorus of Pamphylia</li>
<li>Nerses the Great</li>
<li>Rufus of Rome</li>
<li>Maximus of Mainz</li>
<li>Dasius of Dorostorum</li>
<li>Martyrs of Hippo</li>
<li>Mummolus of Lagny</li>
<li>Cosmas Takeya Sozaburo</li>
<li>Martyred Visitationists of Madrid</li>
</ul>
Cliffhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12109085007044124766noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4997980458204946458.post-85654220926686892622016-11-08T16:25:00.000-08:002016-11-08T16:37:20.919-08:00Nov. 8-14<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">This week seems to be a good one for B-level saints. These are folks that you’ve probably heard of only if you’re Catholic – Martin of Tours, Leo the Great, Frances Xavier Cabrini …</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The ten below? Well, to have heard of them, you’d probably have to be 1) seriously Catholic and 2) possibly also a little odd yourself.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>#10 Vitonus of Verdun (Nov 9)</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Very vierd.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Vitonis was a French saint who lived in the 5th and 6th centuries. He was a missionary to the region of Lorraine (where Verdun is located). There, he would become bishop, miracle worker, and founder of a seminary and abbey. The latter would be subsequently named after him, and is known today as St. Vanne (other alternate names of his include Vaune and Vitone).</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>#9 Cunibert of Cologne (Nov 12)</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Correspondingly.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">In addition to the awesome alliteration, Cunibert was also a man of many names. In addition to plain ol’ Cunibert, we’ve also got Cunipert, Kunibert, and Honoberht (?!?!). For the second part, we’ve also got Keulen, Köln, Trèves, and Trier. Put those two together, and we’ve got 16 different permutations and combinations.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Whatever you might call him, he lived in the 600s, was the bishop of the German city of Cologne, acted as co-regent for the Frankish kingdom of Autrasia, and founded many churches and monasteries.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">His typical representation is “bishop with a bird (usually a dove or pigeon), often speaking in his ear or leading him somewhere.” This comes from a pious legend where said bird helped Cunibert find the long-lost grave of St. Ursula.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjExyrlV_i-4-HPmVZ4zVhQSIu-sc4k_tk6sHTkR3L40KRwshycLEkWTcPpNZ7uQgp_R-jzk2DO44_BTBZaix86RNX2ZPXT2SMS3lp8_KsA3CVEC_rKHz9MR_baeBvKQszMuCiNE_EK2nQ/s1600/cuni.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjExyrlV_i-4-HPmVZ4zVhQSIu-sc4k_tk6sHTkR3L40KRwshycLEkWTcPpNZ7uQgp_R-jzk2DO44_BTBZaix86RNX2ZPXT2SMS3lp8_KsA3CVEC_rKHz9MR_baeBvKQszMuCiNE_EK2nQ/s1600/cuni.jpg" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>#8 Homobonus of Cremona (Nov 13)</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">As far as I can tell, that first name is not pronounced “homo bonus.” It seems to be more correctly rendered as “huh-MAH-buh-nis.” Too bad.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Our guy Homo (I’m assuming that’s what his friends called him), was actually born Omobono Tucenghi in 12th Century Italy. That first name means “good man” (“Homobonus” is merely the Latin version). I have no idea what that last name means (but can guess it’s a bear to pronounce properly).</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Interestingly, Homobonus was very much a man of this world – he was married, and a well-off merchant as well. That last part explains his patronage of tailors, shoemakers, clothworkers, and business people in general. In fact, Homo’s been something of a hot commodity lately in business circles (if we can believe Wikipedia, that is):</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">In recent years, statuettes of Saint Homobonus are being sold as novelty items or executive toys in the United States. As the patron saint of business people, Homobonus has become a relevant figure in corporate culture. There is even a digital marketing agency that takes the saint's name. Omobono Ltd is based in Cambridge, UK. A priest was one of the founders of the organization. Another digital company in Texas, specializing in webhosting, combines Sheen (as in Fulton Sheen) with Omo to form Sheenomo [Sheenomo.com].</span><br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Now, Homobonus was also a very devout person and gave most of his riches away to charity. So, you got’s to do ‘em both – okay, you MBA types?</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsXFO3Gk5EkrumWCmJfgNL8O82XEtZYXkX9W8SorWgNjh6FLRXKMvYOkLalzV939bU3OgJqqhvqHeAuIeKI8MsWP2VkL1zPvEWsHYyeT6Zg28MmfbX7Q7x1TihEPOSj15omx3v3CuVR8Q/s1600/homo.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsXFO3Gk5EkrumWCmJfgNL8O82XEtZYXkX9W8SorWgNjh6FLRXKMvYOkLalzV939bU3OgJqqhvqHeAuIeKI8MsWP2VkL1zPvEWsHYyeT6Zg28MmfbX7Q7x1TihEPOSj15omx3v3CuVR8Q/s320/homo.jpg" width="208" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>#7 Aedh Mac Bricc (Nov 10)</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Odd as it may seem, this is not how someone clears their throat in Gaelic.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Aedh lived in 6th Century Ireland. He was a bishop, founded monasteries, and cured headaches. As for that last bit, he actually cured a particular doozy of St. Brigid’s – making him forever one of about two dozen patrons you can call on when you’re suffering from cephalalgia.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">There’s a curious story out there about Aedh:</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">He frequently visited settlements of holy virgins who received him with the respect due to a man of his position. On one occasion, when he perceived that the girl serving him was pregnant he fled from the building both to avoid the pollution and to shame her. She confessed her sins and did penance. Áed was not one to leave someone under his care in a difficult situation; he blessed her womb and the baby disappeared as if it had never been there.</span><br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Not sure what this says about Church doctrine regarding abortion.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqwhQkEXdtNA8GDCx9qQepE28FQNLWdDcB2dcz9gUn7vepia0RTLGbiiY350SDAmXS1V62zWnR4PuFq0lANsjNWduBhBbv_93920qChWaeCIXwyz7dIj3FDMpwsphIr9Fju_LdUwl0le8/s1600/aedh.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqwhQkEXdtNA8GDCx9qQepE28FQNLWdDcB2dcz9gUn7vepia0RTLGbiiY350SDAmXS1V62zWnR4PuFq0lANsjNWduBhBbv_93920qChWaeCIXwyz7dIj3FDMpwsphIr9Fju_LdUwl0le8/s320/aedh.jpg" width="223" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>#6 Pavel Dzjidzjov (Nov 11)</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I’m guessing <i>no one</i> knows how to pronounce this one.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Supporting me in this regard is how Google insists on “showing results for Pawel Dziedzic.” Heck, they are the same guy, right?</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Pavel/Pawel is one of our modern saints, martyred in 1952 by the Bulgarian Commies. He’s actually only a beatus, or Blessed. One more miracle, though, and he’ll truly be a saint.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5S0KEL23DVDbXj14orXb0-Cn_jpXEPz-LOOEjTKaFkd707lktl6mp-5x5R9KH_g-seDPes6uMtO2jHimdbPE4riMpeEZ7CoDIQYEfpHH3Wse3tdqPts6PABhZQOVCtWql7SU35wVT1xc/s1600/pavel.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5S0KEL23DVDbXj14orXb0-Cn_jpXEPz-LOOEjTKaFkd707lktl6mp-5x5R9KH_g-seDPes6uMtO2jHimdbPE4riMpeEZ7CoDIQYEfpHH3Wse3tdqPts6PABhZQOVCtWql7SU35wVT1xc/s1600/pavel.jpg" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>#5 Josephat Chichkov (Nov 11)</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">You gotta wonder why there aren’t more cute little baby Josephats out there. Got a nice ring to it, don’t you think?</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">You’re not going to believe this, but Josephat was actually a companion of Pavel. Other companions include Kamen Vitchev and Eugene Bossilkov. Nice try, you two, but I’m afraid your gonna have up your game a little if you want to appear on this list with Pawel/Pavel and Josephat.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKDPDk_Il0sUE0oEQ8hSvLJNx3iv3DBAs2mVXDVAEvr0p3ZDEq95Q0Bp5ILpNDQacYM_eWDubPArNhLTHv4SixUY6I-JjpvEkQLBGBO1xWXdFY6WiYl5-acxl3L_WvWr3vQeEN3JNZfDc/s1600/chichkov.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKDPDk_Il0sUE0oEQ8hSvLJNx3iv3DBAs2mVXDVAEvr0p3ZDEq95Q0Bp5ILpNDQacYM_eWDubPArNhLTHv4SixUY6I-JjpvEkQLBGBO1xWXdFY6WiYl5-acxl3L_WvWr3vQeEN3JNZfDc/s1600/chichkov.jpg" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>#4 Josaphat Kuncewicz (Nov 12)</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">It was a good week for Josaphats …</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Interestingly, this Josaphat was not pals with all those other guys. In fact, this Josaphat lived back in the 16th and 17th Centuries. He was born a noble in what is now Ukraine. A monk and then a priest and archbishop, his main claim to fame was getting caught in between the Catholic and Orthodox churches and ending up a martyr.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKbV0DqnlhTq8CWHkgduZy8-ub8-CVrnIZS9iW6WAZpQSbZvR2XkavR37okOgGF2UEFj7AcoUYjOD7KJhqJ8LhgNpR-7KhDXp-TDgXHNIjaPtTBEOe3QBhY5ceWfIvUegzg5i31aUobiw/s1600/jo.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKbV0DqnlhTq8CWHkgduZy8-ub8-CVrnIZS9iW6WAZpQSbZvR2XkavR37okOgGF2UEFj7AcoUYjOD7KJhqJ8LhgNpR-7KhDXp-TDgXHNIjaPtTBEOe3QBhY5ceWfIvUegzg5i31aUobiw/s1600/jo.jpg" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>#3 Livinus (Nov 12)</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Representation:</b> bishop holding his tongue with a pair of tongs</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">But why? Why was he holding his tongue with a pair of thongs?</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Well, as it turns out, said tongue was torn out as part of Livinus’s martyrdom. Interestingly, though, that didn’t stop it – Livinus’s tongue kept right on preaching.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Livinus lived in the same rough time as Vitonus, Cunibert, and Aedh. Another Irishman, he would head to the Low (or Benelux) Countries as a missionary (and subsequent martyr).</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZD8_TtdSwDqSsPkm48eRrsEkzA7n5DIwBHBBmj83KcG8KX2mpnxGuCuNkjOMTGSyfbYimXRCJUnZ7ye8c2uW14VUoVL2c_UvIVZ_u9c0Cwl2VJe1yDuQ34mdTrM9-o9OEz82A-i1Fm90/s1600/liv.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZD8_TtdSwDqSsPkm48eRrsEkzA7n5DIwBHBBmj83KcG8KX2mpnxGuCuNkjOMTGSyfbYimXRCJUnZ7ye8c2uW14VUoVL2c_UvIVZ_u9c0Cwl2VJe1yDuQ34mdTrM9-o9OEz82A-i1Fm90/s320/liv.jpg" width="306" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Rubens</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>#2 Five Polish Brothers (Nov 12)</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Also happens to be the name of a polka band as well.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Okay, I’m making that up.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Get this though … These guys happened to be neither Polish nor brothers. Instead, they were Benedictine monks, from Italy, who just so happened to have been martyred in Poland. We’re talking the year 1005 here, by the way.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpmeKfsx4_uzJMgNbke6wMKrlAZUUr1N2Is_UfZ-FbFE6IhNrkk0cvCa0Gu4vqa93Tkd4PvGAKM80dTA6iE4CAVfo6Zs0FLBOzy3UVwtthnG8FV-NjgElowJ_sU69IvbEYV_bK7hoHAzg/s1600/bros.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpmeKfsx4_uzJMgNbke6wMKrlAZUUr1N2Is_UfZ-FbFE6IhNrkk0cvCa0Gu4vqa93Tkd4PvGAKM80dTA6iE4CAVfo6Zs0FLBOzy3UVwtthnG8FV-NjgElowJ_sU69IvbEYV_bK7hoHAzg/s320/bros.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>#1 Maria Crucified Satellico (Nov 8)</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I’m particularly thankful spell check didn’t correct that last part as “satellite.” As that would have been <i>weird</i>.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Maria was born in 17th Italy and was raised by her uncle, who just so happened to be a priest. Quiet ambitious, as a child, Maria declared, “I want to become a nun, and if I succeed, I want to become a saint.” She would eventually become a Poor Clare and an abbess, but – unfortunately – not a saint (she’s only a beata).</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Two other interesting things about our Maria – she was very musical and also suffered from demons. Not that those two are related, of course …</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Honorable Mention</b></span><br />
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<li>Jucundus of Bologna</li>
<li>Deodat of Rodez</li>
<li>Chillien of Aubigny</li>
<li>Rhediw</li>
<li>Warmondus of Ivrea</li>
<li>Adeltrude of Aurillac</li>
<li>Nonnus of Heliopolis</li>
<li>Narses of Subagord</li>
<li>Veranus of Vence</li>
<li>Ymar of Reculver</li>
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Cliffhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12109085007044124766noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4997980458204946458.post-10501684237323323872016-11-03T16:42:00.001-07:002016-11-04T06:31:14.833-07:00Nov. 1-7<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">This week includes feasts for both All Saints and All Souls. The first is for everyone who has made it into heaven, whether recognized down here as an official saint or not. The second is for all the rest of us.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#10 Martin de Porres (Nov 3)</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Patronage: </b> hair stylists</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Martin de Porres was illegitimate, of mixed race, and grew up in extreme poverty. He would eventually be apprenticed to a barber (whence the odd patronage).</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Martin would later join the Dominicans, first as a servant and then eventually as a brother. He moved from doing laundry and working in the kitchen to ministering to the sick, handling alms, acting as a fundraiser, and founding an orphanage and a hospital.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Americancatholic.org also cites “ecstasies that lifted him into the air, light filling the room where he prayed, bilocation, miraculous knowledge, instantaneous cures and a remarkable rapport with animals” among his other accomplishments.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEij5tiQkkG0SxbYUa-HLG5VzDFzym7PQs-r8vWPMjXVxpKWdYr55ZXhFNnAWxLxkZZjDMFLkuZQmdixn54BnMvsqQS8BLw3Ikdapxh7cydtxc7qaKMpyFGqUUeSqyz7Xo8U5w7lJsKYx8Y/s1600/martin.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEij5tiQkkG0SxbYUa-HLG5VzDFzym7PQs-r8vWPMjXVxpKWdYr55ZXhFNnAWxLxkZZjDMFLkuZQmdixn54BnMvsqQS8BLw3Ikdapxh7cydtxc7qaKMpyFGqUUeSqyz7Xo8U5w7lJsKYx8Y/s320/martin.jpg" width="234" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">A little off the top?</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#9 Austremonius (Nov 1)</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Def: adj., of or exhibiting austremony.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I’m not sure exactly what that is (and, yes, I totally made that up), but I do know that St. Austremonius was a 4th Century missionary to Gaul, where he would later become a bishop. He’s also known as Stramonius, Austromoine, Stramonius, and Stremonius. And that’s about all I could find on this guy …</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKNVm7b3wBGMe9rIAgbmaWXShFMmF7buW6vWVVr4WXfNSpDcGBAyMrXMcErh6xDeiD7CYDsD6vZy7H63K2hWxxveXWxCoBEMLsmo3MW54jA2CjQq5D44UmfwnbNxfCmUatlon7Rj0Wx5k/s1600/austy.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKNVm7b3wBGMe9rIAgbmaWXShFMmF7buW6vWVVr4WXfNSpDcGBAyMrXMcErh6xDeiD7CYDsD6vZy7H63K2hWxxveXWxCoBEMLsmo3MW54jA2CjQq5D44UmfwnbNxfCmUatlon7Rj0Wx5k/s320/austy.jpg" width="174" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#8 Prosdocimus of Padua (Nov 7)</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Not much on this dude either … I mean, other than that awesomely alliterative appelation, that is.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">He may have been friends with St. Paul, who may have sent him to Padua, where he did become its first bishop. Though that’s all we really know about him, he was immortalized by a number of artists, including Donatello. Why? Not totally sure.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">This one's by Andrea Mantegna</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#7 Amicus of Rambone (Nov 2)</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Sadly, that place is actually pronounced “ram-bone-ee,” not “ram-bone.” It’s actually the name of an abbey, in Italy. Ah, what might have been …</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Oh, Amicus? He was the abbot there. Originally a prince, he would give it all up to become a lowly monk. We’re talking the 10th and 11th Centuries here, by the way. And that’s about all we know about Amicus …</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAlUQ_px2uLAwUXw5MwVy7ZnZhCMdgM-vCNOmYyq_2LSzueJJx4cYLxqLbGJmzjENY0SCG9IclhG14oYgnlOR9FbAUz8QW4lI0RkY-Tu-CBrIO462NKRXmc2EwC-OgSEVSMg3ff_l2YN4/s1600/ami.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAlUQ_px2uLAwUXw5MwVy7ZnZhCMdgM-vCNOmYyq_2LSzueJJx4cYLxqLbGJmzjENY0SCG9IclhG14oYgnlOR9FbAUz8QW4lI0RkY-Tu-CBrIO462NKRXmc2EwC-OgSEVSMg3ff_l2YN4/s320/ami.jpg" width="134" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The only image I could find out there of him</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#6 Willibord of Echternach (Nov 7)</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Representation: </b> cleric dipping his staff into a cask</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">No, no! No more for you, Willibord!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Finally, somebody with a bio … Though originally from England, Willibord spent a number of years studying in Ireland, traveled twice to Rome, and then ended up as a missionary in northern Germany. He is, in fact, known as the “Apostle of the Frisians” (the very northwest part of Germany and the very northern part of the Netherlands). He would also become the first bishop of Utrecht (in the Netherlands) and found a monastery at Echternach (in Luxembourg). Put ‘em all together, and you’ve got the “Apostle of the Benelux Countries” (that’s Belgium, the Netherlands, and Luxembourg, in case you didn’t already know).</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Alas, I have no idea where the cask and staff come in.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5Q2JV4UdaJfEMrvU9J2LePa4CF8nIx0qvGsIatac7Lz7VOd4t5eAy3f-zKtx-gmUbDn346btpT4HtRV-Ar0f1Ncr-0MbFbLpfaHpFBrsecqwN6wmyPD_yhq0eGgPsbbwC3bb9a-SCATM/s1600/willi.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="291" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5Q2JV4UdaJfEMrvU9J2LePa4CF8nIx0qvGsIatac7Lz7VOd4t5eAy3f-zKtx-gmUbDn346btpT4HtRV-Ar0f1Ncr-0MbFbLpfaHpFBrsecqwN6wmyPD_yhq0eGgPsbbwC3bb9a-SCATM/s320/willi.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Patron saint of the extremely skinny</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#5 Winifred of Wales (Nov 3)</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Representation: </b> Celtic maiden holding a sword with a fountain at her feet, and red ring around her neck where her head has been severed and restored</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I’m not sure what I like better, the wonderfully alliterative name or the rather gruesome representation. Aw, do I have to choose?</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">So, here’s the scoop on the latter bit … Turns out Winifred was beheaded by a suitor, named Caradog, when she resisted his advances. Her brother, one St. Beuno, came along, stitched her up, and brought her back to life. She later became a nun and abbess.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Supposedly, a spring sprang up where Winifred’s head rolled on the ground. It would become famous for its miraculous cures, and a major pilgrimage site as well.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhyi-6xabZrymqdksutIF-kowtVri4DKPrRu_e-VOxIjZAf7a6Sivk2a1ZobRJnQ-BE76MR-sJOGzxOfnfnHhNn5txvCVyAGxClW6sY0zYoAfEEJLliHTpvY91Or_A8WQsMBOBA0fVPDNc/s1600/winny.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhyi-6xabZrymqdksutIF-kowtVri4DKPrRu_e-VOxIjZAf7a6Sivk2a1ZobRJnQ-BE76MR-sJOGzxOfnfnHhNn5txvCVyAGxClW6sY0zYoAfEEJLliHTpvY91Or_A8WQsMBOBA0fVPDNc/s320/winny.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Said well</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#4 Charles Borromeo (Nov 4)</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Patronage: </b> apple orchards, starch makers, against ulcers, Monterey CA, etc.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Did I leave anything out?</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Charles came from quite the tony family. His mother was a Medici, and he had an uncle who would become pope.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">It’s not too surprising then that he rose pretty high up in the ranks, collecting titles like some of us collect coins or comic books or commemorative spoons:</span><br />
<ul>
<li>Abbot</li>
<li>Bishop</li>
<li>Archbishop</li>
<li>Governor</li>
<li>Secretary of state</li>
<li>Apostolic administrator</li>
<li>Papal legate</li>
<li>Legate a latere</li>
<li>Cardinal-Deacon</li>
<li>Protector of the Kingdom of Portugal</li>
<li>Abbot commendatario</li>
<li>Vicar general in spiritualibus </li>
<li>Cardinal-Priest of the Title of St. Prassede</li>
<li>Protonotary apostolic participantium and referendary</li>
</ul>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">He was actually a major force in the Counter Reformation, played an important role in the Council of Trent, and was a major patron of the arts. Given all his many accomplishments and his very refined background, he still managed to live very humbly.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#3 Clydog (Nov 3)</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">This poor guy is also known as Clodock and Clitaucus. Wow, I’m not sure which of these three is the worst. They all seem equally bad.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Clydog was a young Welsh king, known for his just and peaceful rule. When a noble maiden fell in love with him, a jealous admirer of hers (and a friend of the king!), slew Clydog while the two (Clydog and the jealous dude, that is) were out hunting.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Clydog’s body was transported by oxen back to his seat, but when the cart broke down, Clydog was buried on the spot. A church was later built there, becoming a popular medieval pilgrimage spot.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#2 Rumwold of Buckingham (Nov 3)</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Representation: </b> preaching newborn baby</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">This is a good one. I’ll let catholicsaints.info describe it in full:</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">He lived only three days during which time he repeated several times “I am a Christian”, and asked for Baptism (which he received from bishop Wilderin) and Holy Communion. Immediately after Baptism, he made a confession of faith, preached a sermon on the Trinity, reciting Scripture and the Athanasian Creed as part of his proofs. He completed this performance by predicting his death, and outlining his desired burial arrangements.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">But, wait – it gets better:</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">A statue of Rumwold at Boxley Abbey could supposedly only be moved by people who lived pure lives. Purity was apparently measured by the size of a donor’s gift to the abbey since if it was sufficient, one of the monks would operate a ratchet mechanism that helped move the statue. This was exposed and the statue burned during the Reformation.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#1 Winnoc of Wormhoult (Nov 6)</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Representation: </b> in ecstasy while grinding grain to flour</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">It’s not typically how I’ve felt before when grinding grain, but hey …</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Winnoc was a Welsh prince who was brought up in Brittany, where his family had fled from the Saxons. He would later found the priory of Wormhout, in modern-day Belgium. We’re talking the 7th and 8th Centuries here.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">That great representation? Sounds like Winnoc particularly enjoyed doing the lowly manual labors around the abbey, including grinding grain. I’m afraid that’s all there is to it ….</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Great name too, by the way. And wouldn’t you know, Winnoc is another one of those saints with many, many name variants:</span><br />
<ul>
<li>Winnoc of Wormhoudt</li>
<li>Winnoc of Flanders</li>
<li>Winnock</li>
<li>Winoc</li>
<li>Winok</li>
<li>Winnok</li>
<li>Wunnoc</li>
<li>Winocus</li>
<li>Vinocus</li>
<li>Vinnoco</li>
<li>Winnow</li>
<li>Winwalo</li>
<li>Gwynnog</li>
<li>Pinnock</li>
</ul>
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You call that ecstatic?</div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Honorable Mention</b></span><br />
<ul>
<li>Wulganus</li>
<li>Dominator of Brescia</li>
<li>Innumerable Martyrs of Saragossa</li>
<li>Clether</li>
<li>Cadfan</li>
<li>Dingad</li>
<li>Dionysius Fugixima</li>
<li>Gebetrude of Remiremont</li>
<li>Spinulus of Moyen-Moutier</li>
<li>Erc of Slane</li>
</ul>
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Cliffhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12109085007044124766noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4997980458204946458.post-52366655188455135422016-10-25T17:35:00.001-07:002016-10-26T09:29:00.099-07:00Oct. 22-31<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#10 Miniato of Florence (Oct 25)</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Representation: </b> young man carrying his severed head</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">It’s a great – and super weird – representation, but I gotta tell ya, there are so many of these that that representation’s not going to get you any higher than #10 at this point in the calendar.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Poor St. Miniato has been totally overshadowed by the basilica built in his honor. The latter just so happens to be one of the architectural treasures of Florence. It sits on the highest hill in town, dates back to 1018, and is one of the most beautiful churches in Italy.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">As for the saint, he was originally an Armenian prince, and served in the Roman army. He gave all that up, though, for life as a Christian hermit, with his hermitage where the basilica now sits. </span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhcmHzA18Kt7LDVRvyhpn7N_lV9JNy7IQ4NvA6hsoAAcFuHnLXWbqbYAhPTi6Ay8sSy7K7tccO3TYWQvpAmKM7wieL2V94jR42m0tcKdSgYmcCXUULYbsiTbjRCj_mqLIHwNLL7szyC3lY/s1600/mini.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhcmHzA18Kt7LDVRvyhpn7N_lV9JNy7IQ4NvA6hsoAAcFuHnLXWbqbYAhPTi6Ay8sSy7K7tccO3TYWQvpAmKM7wieL2V94jR42m0tcKdSgYmcCXUULYbsiTbjRCj_mqLIHwNLL7szyC3lY/s320/mini.jpg" width="255" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Needless to say, he got his portrait painted by a ton of pretty good painters</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">As for the head thing … Miniato went through the usual torments – wild animals, stoning, etc. – before finally being decapitated. Even that, though, wasn’t enough to stop our man. With head tucked firmly under arm, he took a stroll from the amphitheater to his hermitage, preaching all the way.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#9 Simon the Apostle (Oct 28) </b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Patronage: </b>sawmen</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Now, Simon is no mystery here. It’s the sawmen I’m wondering about.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Well, it’s actually not all that mysterious. According to Merriam-Webster, it’s just “one who saws or who repairs saws.” </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Simon is actually one of the more obscure apostles. To distinguish him from Simon Peter, our Simon is often called The Zealot. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The association with saws? Unfortunately, it has nothing whatsoever to do with Simon’s occupation, but rather with his form of martyrdom. Indeed, poor Simon is famous for being sawn in half.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinUhSE0Pi-DCOwwSS38EcdykFpKJ2dGzYz9cTU-8fx7viR8A51ImrUrnwY_JlcLT3-FYfiYn5vmlX_gMap_wS1bfwLXrGPkBd7qGr_3grnfuSAjHT1kLw-SvUwQaItczcEtR9EvHWG0zo/s1600/simon.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinUhSE0Pi-DCOwwSS38EcdykFpKJ2dGzYz9cTU-8fx7viR8A51ImrUrnwY_JlcLT3-FYfiYn5vmlX_gMap_wS1bfwLXrGPkBd7qGr_3grnfuSAjHT1kLw-SvUwQaItczcEtR9EvHWG0zo/s400/simon.jpg" width="131" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#8 Celina Chludzinska (Oct 26)</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">And if this one isn’t bad enough, would it help to know that she’s often referred to as Celina Chludzińska Borzęcka?</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Yup, the last bit there is her married name. After her husband passed away, Celina and a daughter moved to Rome and founded a new religious community, the Congregation of the Sisters of the Resurrection. </span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyJZninebuu4spmWHK-feuXAstKp2-9JKc0KrhLjstc-KXSyGOkI7eEygFIhQPJD92FYAiVPOlLyo6uASFPmUVNNRAgJA-UVcDgu58fWyRqCst7HY8cEVX9UzRStfZWOuaQXH60N4ZYX4/s1600/celina.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyJZninebuu4spmWHK-feuXAstKp2-9JKc0KrhLjstc-KXSyGOkI7eEygFIhQPJD92FYAiVPOlLyo6uASFPmUVNNRAgJA-UVcDgu58fWyRqCst7HY8cEVX9UzRStfZWOuaQXH60N4ZYX4/s320/celina.jpg" width="177" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Before taking the veil</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">She’s a recent saint (well, actually only a blessed), having died just over a 100 years ago, in 1913. Celina was actually beatified less than 10 years ago, in 2007.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#7 Ethelfleda</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">This poor thing was also known as Elfleda, Elflaeda, and Ethelflaeda. She also usually gets the appellation of “of Romsey,” the abbey where she was abbess.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">That last bit is also to distinguish her from Ethelfleda, the daughter of King Alfred the Great. Our Ethelfleda was a princess as well, though the daughter of King Edward the Elder. Got it all straight?</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">According to <a href="http://www.dailyecho.co.uk/news/4688553.Celebrate_the_Festival_of_Ethelflaeda__Romsey___s_naked_nun/">this site</a>, our Ethelfleda was also known for skinny-dipping! In fact, they call her “Romsey’s naked nun”!!</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSktvBhXHqlkNINVVVBvKeDTeQQtXVs39OS1SKVjxQKqis2wbm7-QMF44OhRS0GZSKa-V8qJxka7owF3csTxxfegzk52IjQx-U1j4hX3a4jmE9USKPsSWFknUAC0YYrGVXFF7wS_PddpY/s1600/ethel.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSktvBhXHqlkNINVVVBvKeDTeQQtXVs39OS1SKVjxQKqis2wbm7-QMF44OhRS0GZSKa-V8qJxka7owF3csTxxfegzk52IjQx-U1j4hX3a4jmE9USKPsSWFknUAC0YYrGVXFF7wS_PddpY/s320/ethel.jpg" width="258" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I’m afraid you’ll have to settle for this however</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#6 Gioan Dat (Oct 28)</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">"Gioan dat? You could hav dis instead. Whachu wan?"</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Gioan was an 18th Century Vietnamese martyr. There’s not a lot out there on him – in English at least. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Almost everything I could find on him was in Vietnamese, a language that Google Translate seems to have some real issues with. Happily, that does give us such gems as:</span><br />
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<ul>
<li>Fatherless childhood, his mother's permission to Achieve total dedication to the Lord under the loving care of Dad Loan Made At Banana.</li>
<li>John Achieve seconded to Origin of Good Grapes, Than Phu.</li>
<li>Since then, troops have found the chalice and vestments, it is torture landlord, Don Page and some others believe, huh.</li>
<li>Father Made Bach Bat Training Tool posing as an old friend came to visit, and gave it to his father confessor Blessed Sacrament.</li>
<li>A pot gong back up, everyone must back away.</li>
</ul>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2yli3Mp5f54BbWtXggKtXOSDsbCvO8Rz5Vi04LWq2SLdloNW1A-aazzDXVM8D-IMgmDBcl3Hf-XOIq5Ofa53M-F3fDkb_P8XsT3f2GDGZMV1THaCAAFYq4_A5wIvPNpJ1aVEofQ-ywGM/s1600/gioan.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2yli3Mp5f54BbWtXggKtXOSDsbCvO8Rz5Vi04LWq2SLdloNW1A-aazzDXVM8D-IMgmDBcl3Hf-XOIq5Ofa53M-F3fDkb_P8XsT3f2GDGZMV1THaCAAFYq4_A5wIvPNpJ1aVEofQ-ywGM/s320/gioan.jpg" width="203" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The illustration doesn’t seem to help much either</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#5 Ermelinda of Meldaert (Oct 29)</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Ermelinda was a 6th Century Belgium hermitess, known for her strict penances. And that’s about all we know about Ermelinda …</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjfII6ybKOiYuoDfV1C1Cujf_UJPOddxQViPC5BbeoM77Jy-5bcilpowU9phuHFrrZMT1KrsNDEcmlthtKV45r90pC9Z5XwumE2wKXwyngxHe3lYHle8yVvWoLZx_Fh0KAFT-CU06mcyw/s1600/ermy.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjfII6ybKOiYuoDfV1C1Cujf_UJPOddxQViPC5BbeoM77Jy-5bcilpowU9phuHFrrZMT1KrsNDEcmlthtKV45r90pC9Z5XwumE2wKXwyngxHe3lYHle8yVvWoLZx_Fh0KAFT-CU06mcyw/s320/ermy.jpg" width="216" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I’d love to know what <i>this </i>is all about though</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#4 Achahildis of Wendelstein (Oct 29)</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Apart from the great name, Achahildis is most famous for being the mother of quintuplets. Not too surprisingly, her representation is often “with five children.”</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Her other representations need a little explanation:</span><br />
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<ul>
<li>Tree full of ripe cherries – “When she was pregnant in the dead of winter, she had a craving for cherries; a tree in her garden suddenly produced a full crop of them."</li>
<li>Geese – “Once when she discovered that a servant had killed and stolen some geese, she forgave the servant and brought the geese back to life – including the one that had been cooked.”</li>
</ul>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Thanks, catholicsaints.info!</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdzzfNC1wy9swyKRjsRojzuKUH97plysfU9fA2FmbAGsFEhYL-lHcHxaRtvYFpoedk4kiIfcMg8Yd1CeEPq_U5xpXttwIqJlV4t7mL4Oul7LPtnDGR454SlA8Hx_j3fuY1__DFlqVK0p0/s1600/ach.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdzzfNC1wy9swyKRjsRojzuKUH97plysfU9fA2FmbAGsFEhYL-lHcHxaRtvYFpoedk4kiIfcMg8Yd1CeEPq_U5xpXttwIqJlV4t7mL4Oul7LPtnDGR454SlA8Hx_j3fuY1__DFlqVK0p0/s320/ach.jpg" width="232" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#3 Elesbaan of Ethiopia (Oct 27)</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Elesbaan is another royal – this time, a king of Ethiopia. He was famous for invading Arabia, where the local ruler was persecuting Christians. Elesbaan fought him, lost, fought him again, won, then retired as a hermit.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBKho5unmcEN8vtrglRkjLvTzN-JrCKQtvm2YkNRBr-sTJMf7p0NRNWIFakXc5Lgpvw3EoIAApRIjzyH_7N9JGZmBh_a06MBvPqbz8pBg5S00L0x-8VX-Zx93mdIumdys-N2TXQ0cQko0/s1600/ele.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBKho5unmcEN8vtrglRkjLvTzN-JrCKQtvm2YkNRBr-sTJMf7p0NRNWIFakXc5Lgpvw3EoIAApRIjzyH_7N9JGZmBh_a06MBvPqbz8pBg5S00L0x-8VX-Zx93mdIumdys-N2TXQ0cQko0/s320/ele.jpg" width="263" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Yup, he was indeed black</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">What I really like about this guy, though, are all the many names he went by – some of which seem to have absolutely nothing to do with each other:</span><br />
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<ul>
<li>Elesbaan of Axum</li>
<li>Elesbaas</li>
<li>Elesbas</li>
<li>Elesboas</li>
<li>Ella Atsbeha</li>
<li>Ella Asbeha</li>
<li>Eleuzoe</li>
<li>Hellestheaeus</li>
<li>Calam-Negus</li>
<li>Calam</li>
<li>Caleb</li>
<li>Kaleb</li>
</ul>
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<b style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">#2 Thomas Thwing (Oct 23)</b><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">It don’t mean a thing, if it ain’t got that thwing …</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Thomas was a priest in England during the 17th Century. He was actually active <i>after </i>the period when Catholics and Protestants were killing each other right and left. He was, however, involved in a plot, the Barnbow Plot, to kill the reigning king. Poor Thomas was the only one to hang.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiz3cfEK0tPyKeiuuhGbiU0NJ6vEhd4mF59pGn7cpM7tc7-djB1-Gmj6myZer6tE5DdfPnKQF6zK_fzgjQ5sFN0A7-5EiR2LOUxJgjJDnLQ-zIlJAjlLAAkFppsK6c7c1pYG4PEc2lYHdg/s1600/tom.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiz3cfEK0tPyKeiuuhGbiU0NJ6vEhd4mF59pGn7cpM7tc7-djB1-Gmj6myZer6tE5DdfPnKQF6zK_fzgjQ5sFN0A7-5EiR2LOUxJgjJDnLQ-zIlJAjlLAAkFppsK6c7c1pYG4PEc2lYHdg/s1600/tom.jpg" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">What I really want to know about, though, is that last name. Well, here’s what ancestry.com has to say:</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Apparently an English habitational name from the place so called in East Yorkshire, named with Old Scandinavian þvengr or Old English þweng ‘narrow strip of land’.</span><br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#1 Quodvultdeus (Oct 26)</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">It means “What God Wills.” That still doesn’t make it any less weird or hard to pronounce though, does it?</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Q (I’m assuming all his friends called him this) was a 5th Century bishop in Carthage, in North Africa. When an Arian Vandal came to power there, he sent Q and some other Christians to sea in some totally unseaworthy boats. Miraculously, they were able to cross the Tyrrhenian Sea all the way to Naples. Q was besties with the well-known Augustine of Hippo.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I would imagine that’s the Bible, so I’m wondering why Q seems so bored.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Honorable Mention</b></span><br />
<br/><ul>
<li>Cuthbert of Canterbury</li>
<li>Egelnoth the Good</li>
<li>Clether</li>
<li>Cadfarch</li>
<li>Colman of Templeshambo</li>
<li>Quadragesimus of Policastro</li>
<li>Canna verch Tewdr Marw</li>
<li>Bean of Mortlach</li>
<li>Dodone of Wallers-en-Fens</li>
<li>Albinus of Buraburg</li>
</ul>
Cliffhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12109085007044124766noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4997980458204946458.post-36825519676731254562016-10-15T11:55:00.001-07:002016-10-15T12:02:19.099-07:00Oct. 15-21<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">We’ve got two biggies this week, Ss. Luke and Teresa of Avila. We’ve also got one of my personal favorites, the North American Martyrs. That was actually the name of the church I attended when I was in junior high and high school. My wife had never heard of them before and thought I was making it up. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">They were actually just some French Jesuit missionaries to the Indians back in the 17th Century. You can probably guess the rest of the story …</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#10 Hedwig of Andechs (Oct 16)</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Patronage: </b> duchesses</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">For all you duchesses out there …</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Hedwig was indeed a duchess – of Silesia and then later of Greater Poland, both by marriage. She was born a countess. Andechs was the name of her own noble line.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Both Hedwig and her husband were very pious, devoting much to charity. Upon becoming a widow, Hedwig gave everything she had to the church and retired to a monastery, where she led a very humble life.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">You gotta admit, Hedwig’s a pretty awesome name as well.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7fj80F0ZesOtWLEZ0H-QV_O8rU9-d5xjMQnBYOjnRntnQKvcw1gYLRs19NWLFCpzuWfAXOxD6HzIHAhVBpPYgD4_YAvPIixYPUMEEcFBFqxMQvnKdGOUItoTUbbobRwRT2z16cXTfhy4/s1600/heddy.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="205" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7fj80F0ZesOtWLEZ0H-QV_O8rU9-d5xjMQnBYOjnRntnQKvcw1gYLRs19NWLFCpzuWfAXOxD6HzIHAhVBpPYgD4_YAvPIixYPUMEEcFBFqxMQvnKdGOUItoTUbbobRwRT2z16cXTfhy4/s320/heddy.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">For some reason, there were no shortage of odd images of Hedwig out there</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#9 Frideswide (Oct 19)</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">“Fried’s wide” or “free-duss-wee-duh”?</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Actually, it’s pronounced “fries-wide.” You can find the whole story in gory detail right <a href="http://margaretfrazer.com/archive/archive2008-01.html">here </a>(just be sure to scroll down a couple of pages).</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">So, who was she (and, yes, she was indeed a she)? Well, she was a real-live (Anglo-Saxon) princess. Her main story seems to resolve around her adopting a religious life, but having a suitor pursue her nonetheless. When he tried to abduct her, Frideswide was forced to flee. Various legends have the poor bloke pursue her then either go blind or break his neck in a fall from his horse. Frideswide is the patron saint of both Oxford, where she ended her flight and settled down, and Oxford University as well. All this happened in the 7th and 8th Centuries, by the way.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5jlwrOP2Fyg_SKewudw83MW-gYfb-RA5fX5cXX5gDMu6OMOAtOskWys_BiWnw-4l0Lon8AlAVfl1XSaBgQ88jsafYSueCJG17qHdusyHqkhbFahNB0h9S1FbtMqOlUg54Nnhd70oQl3M/s1600/fri.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5jlwrOP2Fyg_SKewudw83MW-gYfb-RA5fX5cXX5gDMu6OMOAtOskWys_BiWnw-4l0Lon8AlAVfl1XSaBgQ88jsafYSueCJG17qHdusyHqkhbFahNB0h9S1FbtMqOlUg54Nnhd70oQl3M/s320/fri.jpg" width="213" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">BTW, she also goes by Frideswith, Fritheswithe, Frithuswith, Frevisse, and Fris</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#8 Finnian Munnu (Oct 21)</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">You may be familiar with his holy brother, the Blessed Finnian Haddie.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Sorry about that (and I hope you’re familiar with that rather obscure reference). Finnian was actually an Irish monk and missionary to Scotland (where he’s known as St. Mundus). He founded a monastery, attended synods, was a famous miracle worker, and suffered without complaint from some horrible skin disease. He was active in the 6th and 7th Centuries.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Actually, there’s no shortage of Finnians out there. In addition to our guy, we’ve also got Lobhar and of Lucca, Moville, Kinnitty, and Clonard. Our guy is also known as Finnian of Tech Mannu, Finnian of Taghmon, Fintan, Finton, Munnin, and Mund.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0eRGOeh3n5AcBfzh5r6uZj7Ea0B60FQaC7W13PMoA-A0afSL2_pLfxovU5suv1CSLP9sC5z_1GCQPWWXrWOnIqgyYNmgsLk3yEbNRg8Hb2AC4mun-qo7V21RI5nr7BblhicBXR6TKnyc/s1600/fin.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0eRGOeh3n5AcBfzh5r6uZj7Ea0B60FQaC7W13PMoA-A0afSL2_pLfxovU5suv1CSLP9sC5z_1GCQPWWXrWOnIqgyYNmgsLk3yEbNRg8Hb2AC4mun-qo7V21RI5nr7BblhicBXR6TKnyc/s320/fin.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">It’s basically just a smoked haddock (popular in Scottland)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">… um, finnan haddie, that is</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#7 Augustine Thevarparampil (Oct 16)</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Go ahead, try to even pronounce this one.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Well, I guess it’s better than the other name he’s known by – Thevarparambil Kunjachan. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Augustine (let’s just call him that) was actually quite an admirable fellow – something of a male Mother Theresa. An Indian priest who lived during the 20th Century, he devoted himself to the Dalits, the lowest of the castes. </span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKfT0Ru3RBb81huc1epFLTqVsUfpHxznfvPfnxcRI2wq5rQN2d8DrRj6suPAdy2Vcygr1r2u3b0h7ARO_SkEk_cI4c8dbbq6MvI0CvmdcQKIPrMDbq6CPeePsb38fk_CRHVPNH8AaxemQ/s1600/gus.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKfT0Ru3RBb81huc1epFLTqVsUfpHxznfvPfnxcRI2wq5rQN2d8DrRj6suPAdy2Vcygr1r2u3b0h7ARO_SkEk_cI4c8dbbq6MvI0CvmdcQKIPrMDbq6CPeePsb38fk_CRHVPNH8AaxemQ/s1600/gus.jpg" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">He still kinda looks like Mr. Spock though</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#6 Jerzy Popieluszko (Oct 19)</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">This one? I wouldn’t even try.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I debated including this one. There’s really not a funny story behind this one. The events are also very recent, so may still be rather sensitive.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Basically, Father Jerzy was a Polish priest who became associated with the Solidarity movement. He would later be hounded and framed by the government and survive several assassination attempts before finally being murdered, quite brutally.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">He was beatified in 2010 by Pope Benedict, 26 years after his death.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#5 Artemius Megalomartyr (Oct 10) </b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Is that like a megalomaniac?</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Happily, “megalo” merely means “great,” so all this really means is Artemius the Great Martyr.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Artemius, who was born in Egypt, was a general in the Roman army. Quite popular with Constantine the Great (who made him Viceroy of Egypt), he would not do so well under Julian the Apostate.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmLLHvVstR24Q-j8lVdrEbqh5Rf_UpumYR5lf3ORwMwL2v7_EuYj8_h9aJKt58ue-81OtLMhRbrQJ9gLKDIgyTJKBiridBnnP6R9xKNF7FaE19e_6ApEq7jA-kMuw-VSreRTqumtTeVxk/s1600/art.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmLLHvVstR24Q-j8lVdrEbqh5Rf_UpumYR5lf3ORwMwL2v7_EuYj8_h9aJKt58ue-81OtLMhRbrQJ9gLKDIgyTJKBiridBnnP6R9xKNF7FaE19e_6ApEq7jA-kMuw-VSreRTqumtTeVxk/s1600/art.jpg" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#4 Luke (Oct 18)</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Patronage: </b> Worshipful Company of Painters</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Luke, I think we all know. The Worshipful Company of Painters? Not so much.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Actually, all they were were a medieval London guild company. Their official name is the Worshipful Company of Painters/Stainers. Famous alumni include Joshua Reynolds, Peter Lely, and John Everett Millais.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The association with Luke? Well, legend has it that the evangelist painted a portrait of the Virgin Mary. On the continent, the typical painter’s guild was often called the Guild of St. Luke.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOo-y7Kue2DKpTBQk17UZXRyhN7PocVWarg6_awC854KZZZJooxSs2YqPNrX-Nzr5JtU5JnYs1d7-REpqkIr_GYs4rADQ_gH1Khqe_en8dw6carGcA5o_W4Tn7dwbZyJZ_ygqvXzewCKM/s1600/luke.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="173" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOo-y7Kue2DKpTBQk17UZXRyhN7PocVWarg6_awC854KZZZJooxSs2YqPNrX-Nzr5JtU5JnYs1d7-REpqkIr_GYs4rADQ_gH1Khqe_en8dw6carGcA5o_W4Tn7dwbZyJZ_ygqvXzewCKM/s320/luke.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Here they come!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">By the way, there are also Worshipful Companies of:</span><br />
<ul>
<li>Distillers</li>
<li>Apothecaries</li>
<li>Plumbers</li>
<li>Spectacle Makers</li>
<li>Tinplate Workers</li>
<li>Fish Mongers</li>
<li>Cordwainers</li>
<li>Environmental Cleaners</li>
</ul>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#3 Gall (Oct 16)</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Representation: </b> abbot blessing a bear, which brings him a log of wood</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Wow! Could we be any more random here?</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Like Finnian, Gall was another Irish missionary of the 6th and 7th Centuries. Unlike Finnian, Gall went much further afield. He started out in Gaul (too bad he didn’t stay there or he could have been Gall of Gaul), then continued on to Germany and Switzerland. In that last location, he turned down a bishopric and founded a monastery. The Swiss canton of St. Gallen ultimately gets its name from him.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Oh, the representation? Here’s how the fine folks at Wikipedia explain it:</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Another popular story has it that as St Gall was travelling in the woods of what is now Switzerland he was sitting one evening warming his hands at a fire. A bear emerged from the woods and charged. The holy man rebuked the bear, so awed by his presence it stopped its attack and slunk off to the trees. There it gathered firewood before returning to share the heat of the fire with St Gall. The legend says that for the rest of his days St Gall was followed around by his companion the bear.</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYBhu4lztZIUgKtBI8L0NqpaReBO1Tn5AjfCOjS3Df59KSrGPvzWh8hwS37mA9t4Zp4J-kOIKW7AAGxMGgu3F0qr5YFitzTIVtj54p3lyD7KzsvN4c-EEr2MHw6ydX7LHdFyDEm_QW2lM/s1600/gall.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYBhu4lztZIUgKtBI8L0NqpaReBO1Tn5AjfCOjS3Df59KSrGPvzWh8hwS37mA9t4Zp4J-kOIKW7AAGxMGgu3F0qr5YFitzTIVtj54p3lyD7KzsvN4c-EEr2MHw6ydX7LHdFyDEm_QW2lM/s320/gall.jpg" width="240" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Awww</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#2 Proculus of Pozzuoli (Oct 18)</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Proculus was a martyr with Januarius and five others during the persecutions of Diocletian (specifically, in 305). The seven were thrown to some wild animals, who subsequently turned into teddy bears. Seeing as that move didn’t go over that well, the authorities then chopped their heads off (which always seems to work).</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Proc’s feast day used to be Nov, 19. This meant that he was formerly known in Italy as 'u pisciasotto, “the pants pisser,” as it traditionally rains on that day.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#1 Ursula (Oct 21)</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Representation: </b> maiden shot with arrows, often accompanied by a varied number of companions who are being martyred in assorted, often creative ways</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Longest … representation … ever.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">And pretty darn weird as well. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">So, here’s the story with Ursula … It’s a bit of a shaggy dog story, so bear with me. Legend has her born a princess in England. Betrothed to the governor of Brittany, she traveled there with a bridal party of 11,000 virgins (her companions in the representation above). Before the festivities, however, she decided to take the party to Rome, where she was then joined by the pope. The group then headed north, being intercepted in Cologne by some Huns. And that’s where everyone gets martyred in those “assorted, often creative ways.”</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Honorable Mention</b></span><br />
<ul>
<li>Ednoth</li>
<li>Ethbin</li>
<li>Ethelbert of Eastry / Ethelred of Eastry</li>
<li>Gebizo</li>
<li>Narcis Basté y Basté</li>
<li>Thecla of Kitzengen</li>
<li>Conogon of Quimper</li>
<li>Gundisalvus of Silos</li>
<li>Zoticus of Nicomedia</li>
<li>Bernard of Bagnorea</li>
</ul>
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Cliffhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12109085007044124766noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4997980458204946458.post-33943359402843528932016-10-08T12:41:00.000-07:002017-10-11T17:14:52.220-07:00Oct. 8-14<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">There’s only one really interesting saint this week, and that’s John XXIII. And the thing that might be most interesting about him is that he was pope when I was born. And I’m not that old! As a very liberal Catholic, I also count him as one of my favorite saints as well.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#10 Colman of Stockerau (Oct 13)</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Patronage:</b> horned cattle</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">No horns? Forget it then. You’re just gonna have to find somebody else.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">In addition to that rather odd patronage, we’ve also got Colman down for:</span><br />
<ul>
<li>Horses</li>
<li>Plague</li>
<li>Gout</li>
<li>Hanging</li>
</ul>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">That last bit pertains directly to poor Colman’s form of martyrdom. I’ll let catholicaints.info explain:</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0.5in;">
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">While on a pilgrimage to the Holy Lands, Colman was stopped by the Viennese on suspicion of being a Moravian spy; there was continual fighting between Austria, Moravia and Bohemia, and a stranger who spoke no German was immediately suspect. With no evidence other than being a stranger, he was convicted of espionage, tortured, and hanged with two thieves.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">What happened next, though, is probably how Colman became a saint however:</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">In the tradition of the time, the bodies were left to rot as a warning to others. Colman’s body hung there for 18 months, incorrupt, and untouched by animals. Miracles were reported at the site, including the scaffolding taking root and putting out branches.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpNIzO_e5GZao8SJYs21z_6eiC-TbPaihwFo-YTQCx8qkIMykmJqptgUm4FYw4E0zwYd0q0oklpE6JyV3iHIe1tuCK-0iIcbM9rxivOG5xAIsn-QUc7MMSVcK65_V7n3B60Oqd8mBV91c/s1600/colman.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpNIzO_e5GZao8SJYs21z_6eiC-TbPaihwFo-YTQCx8qkIMykmJqptgUm4FYw4E0zwYd0q0oklpE6JyV3iHIe1tuCK-0iIcbM9rxivOG5xAIsn-QUc7MMSVcK65_V7n3B60Oqd8mBV91c/s1600/colman.png" /></a></div>
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<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">If you’re ever in the Benedictine abbey at Melk (Austria), </span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">you can touch part of the stone that Colman was martyred on</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#9 Francis Borgia (Oct 10)</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Representation: </b> skull crowned with an emperor's diadem</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">There’s a story behind this, I just know it.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Unfortunately, though, it’s a pretty common one. The skull may simply represent a <i>memento mori</i>, a classic reminder of the brevity of life. It’s particularly associated with the Jesuits, who Francis joined. The crown may represent a martyr’s crown, or simply reflect Francis’s illustrious background.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgoaOi62C7ut8xBGjUPTYwvVXV0GZq8JZBAskJeBtCOz5PchyphenhyphenW8G0me8s38z0izi2gW8zuJF3TkUx0r_UOnxytuCGwOntdhW3DM-NVBgUe90jD5wmXgVNL1IylhQlQqvmyOmLXBKm5GwtU/s1600/francis.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgoaOi62C7ut8xBGjUPTYwvVXV0GZq8JZBAskJeBtCOz5PchyphenhyphenW8G0me8s38z0izi2gW8zuJF3TkUx0r_UOnxytuCGwOntdhW3DM-NVBgUe90jD5wmXgVNL1IylhQlQqvmyOmLXBKm5GwtU/s1600/francis.jpg" /></a></div>
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<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Alas, poor Francis …</span></div>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Indeed. Francis was a Duke, the grandson of a pope, and was raised at the court of Charles V. The emperor took a particular liking to him, making him a Marquess and Vicerory.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">When Francis’s wife died, though, he renounced everything and became a simple Jesuit priest. Though exceedingly humble, Francis would go on to found numerous colleges and be made the Jesuits’ Superior General.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">All this happened in 16th Century Spain.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#8 Maximilian of Celeia (Oct 12)</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Patronage: </b>Habsburg family</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Well, that's a little particular, isn’t it? I mean,
how many Habsburgs do <i>you</i> know?</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Interestingly, though, Maximillian was not a member of that family. In fact, he lived in the 3rd Century, long before the Habsburgs were around. They did, however, adopt him. In fact, the Holy Roman Emperor Maximilian I was probably named after him. It would be a name that would run through the Habsburg family for the next 500 years.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-fG9830AVxX4Zby5gZXR804swBxRZkxZayx0co-yG9SysObxzSh6T4uIUxqM7Gvz6wE3DEMFJVI6eLFyiY73ZR7uiJD9O_XlTU7RY6M_m8LzEcAN1tydwWgX2xQ2D2yccXQBglt8J1EM/s1600/max.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-fG9830AVxX4Zby5gZXR804swBxRZkxZayx0co-yG9SysObxzSh6T4uIUxqM7Gvz6wE3DEMFJVI6eLFyiY73ZR7uiJD9O_XlTU7RY6M_m8LzEcAN1tydwWgX2xQ2D2yccXQBglt8J1EM/s320/max.jpg" width="220" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">As for the saint, there really isn’t that much on him. We do know he was a missionary and a subsequent martyr. He also founded the church of Lorch (remember <a href="http://reallystrangesaints.blogspot.com/2016/05/may-1-7.html">Florian</a>?), which makes him Maximilian of Lorch as well.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#7 Eulampia / Eulampius (Oct 10)</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">They gotta be twins, right?</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Well, we do know they were brother and sister. Not so sure about the twin thing.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The two were martyred during the 300s (not a good time to be a Christian, BTW) in the city of Nicomedia (modern-day Turkey). Seems Eulampius (the brother) was arrested for buying supplies for Christians hiding in caves in the local mountains. When he was whipped, Eulampia disclosed herself by coming to his aid. They would then both be executed – along with 200 soldiers who were so impressed by the siblings’ courage that they converted <i>en masse</i>.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The two are very popular in Orthodox churches, but are recognized by the Catholic Church as well.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhp7sknADN85Oqjoc6vssyqt7EGQ8jsapfQ2ZM4Lrkb7D3eJpTtBcgywnkhoiETAjTTNJS562QwlUqI_8jrWn1BMZHtMjW7DCFdpGWq5XRxLAHVJiL7blTV138Z0wLBN-1e6OHiki4Q0o/s1600/eul.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhp7sknADN85Oqjoc6vssyqt7EGQ8jsapfQ2ZM4Lrkb7D3eJpTtBcgywnkhoiETAjTTNJS562QwlUqI_8jrWn1BMZHtMjW7DCFdpGWq5XRxLAHVJiL7blTV138Z0wLBN-1e6OHiki4Q0o/s320/eul.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Why am I not surprised?</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#6 Pelagia the Penitent (Oct 8)</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I understand she was from Pennsylvania, and had quite the parental pedigree.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Actually, Pelagia was from Antioch (again, in modern-day Turkey), and lived around the year 300. She was actually a very attractive dancing girl / prostitute who was converted by St. Nonnus. And that’s how she got her other appellation, the wonderful Pelagia the Harlot.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEieRTK9koGVd6z-4RgV6DosL2auxCy_vkem4s2gC7PswyGXobfR38ZrlxtLtNyguVO1EXTz-2HXYYNer1gR2P8bQgrhfTiTm-BA0Fki7YlYanq0sV46NSqhDdZxrsCnvmc6nncLysTEuLA/s1600/pelagia.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEieRTK9koGVd6z-4RgV6DosL2auxCy_vkem4s2gC7PswyGXobfR38ZrlxtLtNyguVO1EXTz-2HXYYNer1gR2P8bQgrhfTiTm-BA0Fki7YlYanq0sV46NSqhDdZxrsCnvmc6nncLysTEuLA/s320/pelagia.jpg" width="240" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">After her conversion, Pelagia went to the Mount of Olives, where she lived a very ascetic life as a bit of a transgender monk. Yup, she dressed like a man and passed herself off as the eunuch Pelagius. The standard story is that she did that so she could hide her beauty and pray without being bothered. As a NC native, I do have to wonder, though, exactly what bathroom she used.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#5 Callistus (Oct 14)</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Representation:</b> pope with a millstone on him or nearby</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">You know there’s a big difference between those two, right?</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Callistus was indeed an early pope, ruling in the 200s. His martyrdom also prominently featured a millstone, with said object tied around Callistus’s neck as he was thrown down a well or off a bridge into the Tiber.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Unfortunately for Callistus, the only record we have of his life came from two of his enemies, one of whom would become the first anti-pope. Amid all the calumny, it sounds like Callistus was born a slave, was exiled for his faith, was the sextant for one of Rome’s more famous catacombs, and was rather liberal during his short papacy (his critics seem to have been just the opposite).</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigPoPr0I_1Ps7DdHodjANesD4MleSwC51BQ-_LKkgFNVADdxBZIqjOKZ1-6W5FEbTEqP9nbHmezLxVStlBORAnHOPvu2xu7Gqao8Up2fEUxOxeIWHghq2Iv8LY7d5WPDCPN-NmWukLFjg/s1600/cal.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigPoPr0I_1Ps7DdHodjANesD4MleSwC51BQ-_LKkgFNVADdxBZIqjOKZ1-6W5FEbTEqP9nbHmezLxVStlBORAnHOPvu2xu7Gqao8Up2fEUxOxeIWHghq2Iv8LY7d5WPDCPN-NmWukLFjg/s320/cal.jpg" width="216" /></a></div>
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<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">This is actually not his mug shot – </span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">just something I found on the web</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#4 Canice (Oct 11)</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Representation:</b> man ordering birds to stop singing / man ordering mice to leave</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Why? What did they do?</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Also, did they leave, or did they just ignore him? Curious minds want to know.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Well, it sounds like they did pay attention. He’s famous for stopping those noisy birds from interrupting mass, and for doing a St. Patrick on the mice of the Irish island of Ubdain.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBsOf3WaBUyYWnp76u05ic-F7_8Hrm1UAPP-vk-hn2mXLwCQNs7mKErjxL-NZiXx2xi9vD0dpe2jcNdR0qIjxrNaLCuJNI91M76_6gNCc80owYeEfw2la2oCFyoxu_yP4HgXi-q7g3lNI/s1600/can.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBsOf3WaBUyYWnp76u05ic-F7_8Hrm1UAPP-vk-hn2mXLwCQNs7mKErjxL-NZiXx2xi9vD0dpe2jcNdR0qIjxrNaLCuJNI91M76_6gNCc80owYeEfw2la2oCFyoxu_yP4HgXi-q7g3lNI/s320/can.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Yup, that’s him</span></div>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Canice was an Irish monk, priest, and missionary who lived during the 6th Century. He’s one of the Twelve Apostles of Ireland. The town – and county – of Kilkenny is named after him (with kil meaning “church” in Gaelic). He’s also known as Kenneth, especially in Scotland, where he was a missionary.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#3 Cerbonius of Populonia (Oct 10)</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Representation: </b>bishop with a bear licking his feet</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Okay, these are starting to get weird.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Cerbonius lived at the same time as Canice, but much further south. He may have been born in North Africa, fleeing to Italy to avoid invading barbarians.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Barbarians caught up him with there, though, where the story behind that wonderful representation played out. Turns out one of the barbarian kings ordered Cerbonius to be tied to a stake and set a wild bear upon him. You can guess the rest.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">There’s another excellent story about Cerbonius that involves him saying mass too early, being hauled to Rome by his parishoners, performing some miracles along the way, and eventually getting absolved by the pope. Along the way, he tamed some wild geese, which followed him the rest of way. And that’s what’s behind another popular representation of his – “with geese.”</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxOm9lM3Lu1ITZkoq8g-fMotVjrYMA8XoXd0vsMoJpTo5mpl3LKn2VeCjz4JUCFJATsGw8UHexNMgnRLJXrnJZOEWAsmDNt8Ap-JTtN_bPom6rhUHhy0eNn9-iJ__JnebUDvSTdvGvogo/s1600/cerb.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxOm9lM3Lu1ITZkoq8g-fMotVjrYMA8XoXd0vsMoJpTo5mpl3LKn2VeCjz4JUCFJATsGw8UHexNMgnRLJXrnJZOEWAsmDNt8Ap-JTtN_bPom6rhUHhy0eNn9-iJ__JnebUDvSTdvGvogo/s320/cerb.jpg" width="251" /></a></div>
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<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Couldn’t find any bears – </span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">these gees will have to do</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#2 Denis of Paris (Oct 9)</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Representation: </b>beheaded bishop carrying his severed head – the head sometimes wears its mitre, and there is often a vine growing over his neck</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">What is this, weird week?</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">St. Denis is actually pretty well known. He was the first bishop of Paris, and was indeed a martyr. He’s also the patron saint of Paris, and is also known as The Apostle of France. The French were so devoted to him that St. Denis, in Paris, is where all the French royalty are buried. Finally, the traditional French battle cry is, “Montjoie! St. Denis!”</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">As for the head bit, there’s actually quite a saintly tradition of that. In addition to Denis, this blog also features <a href="http://reallystrangesaints.blogspot.com/2016/06/june-15-21.html">Alban of Mainz</a> and <a href="http://reallystrangesaints.blogspot.com/2016/05/may-8-14.html">Solange of Bourges</a>. There are so many of these saints that they actually have their own name, cephalophores (from the Greek for “head-carrier”). Like Denis, these folks often walk long ways, preaching all the while.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgoPkzQMWPrZEdZab0i8-nlyxMgQefm_Er6rFTJ-8EcFADB2acXG7sQeioRj0PzRwkGU1GYpyeXPkUHdiIXSPZqvXHmXqhSXUawFUKW0fycnPNJJQNPFKsglKII1qjTKMbhGypmZpM1ISI/s1600/denis.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgoPkzQMWPrZEdZab0i8-nlyxMgQefm_Er6rFTJ-8EcFADB2acXG7sQeioRj0PzRwkGU1GYpyeXPkUHdiIXSPZqvXHmXqhSXUawFUKW0fycnPNJJQNPFKsglKII1qjTKMbhGypmZpM1ISI/s320/denis.jpg" width="282" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#1 Abraham the Patriarch (Oct 9)</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Representation: </b>bearded old man holding a blanket containing small people representing the souls of all believers saved since his first reaction to God</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Sure, why the heck not?</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">This guy probably needs no introduction. You know, the guy who wandered around the Mideast? Canaan, Hebron, Egypt? Father of Jacob and Ishmael? Husband of Sarah and Hagar? Promised land? That covenant thing? You know, that guy.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdiLPIhoF-5vc6zT7wQGrkaG_150P3s0B05bRat7iRWSFaSI5DOTidW9cQItfz9oNBQO-nZDYyND4r0XIewOakin3DRpRhOBRV7ebjhDVQ_1T_FOvg607naG48g4HmiGTclQlzhHbkXfE/s1600/abe.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdiLPIhoF-5vc6zT7wQGrkaG_150P3s0B05bRat7iRWSFaSI5DOTidW9cQItfz9oNBQO-nZDYyND4r0XIewOakin3DRpRhOBRV7ebjhDVQ_1T_FOvg607naG48g4HmiGTclQlzhHbkXfE/s320/abe.gif" width="247" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Yup, that’s him</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Honorable Mention</b></span><br />
<ul>
<li>Lubenzio</li>
<li>Lupulo of Capua</li>
<li>Sabinus of the Lavedan</li>
<li>Ethelburgh of Barking</li>
<li>Domnina of Anazarbus</li>
<li>Monas of Milan</li>
<li>Fulk of Fontenelle</li>
<li>Guiadenzio of Gniezno</li>
<li>Malo the Martyr</li>
<li>Anastasius the Apocrisarius</li>
</ul>
Cliffhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12109085007044124766noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4997980458204946458.post-64341472899689922102016-10-02T16:39:00.002-07:002016-10-02T18:39:27.751-07:00Oct. 1-7<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Couple of biggies this week. Therese of Lisieux, also known as the Little Flower, happens to be one of the more popular saints out there. Her autobiography, <i>The Story of a Soul</i>, has inspired many. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The other biggie is Francis of Assisi. I think everyone’s familiar with him. He also happens to be my personal all-time fave.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#10 Justina of Padua (Oct 7)</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Representation: </b> young woman with both breasts pierced by one sword</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Oh geez. That’s a little too graphic for me.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Now, that particularly gruesome martyrdom happened in the year 304, during the persecutions of Diocletian. Other than that, Justina was famous for converting Cyprian, as well as being a disciple of the Apostle Peter. Needless to say, that last bit is pretty much impossible, as Peter died around 65 AD.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbhmYXX0_B7JovFu7E6G1aG5PA088bLFDal0ZzJ2NiZkmyfU6N0UjOa4SyoU4Z6uSu-RQu5pPss4eg-3DZsqiy1cpjIpLxZ-yYCcwOuSm_4CG_C_v6acXkjk4_EKfo32ziCqZLcuz0bxc/s1600/justina.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbhmYXX0_B7JovFu7E6G1aG5PA088bLFDal0ZzJ2NiZkmyfU6N0UjOa4SyoU4Z6uSu-RQu5pPss4eg-3DZsqiy1cpjIpLxZ-yYCcwOuSm_4CG_C_v6acXkjk4_EKfo32ziCqZLcuz0bxc/s320/justina.jpg" width="219" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">She is (thankfully) also often shown with a unicorn</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#9 Leodegarius of Autun (Oct 2)</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Representation: </b>man having his eyes bored out with a gimlet</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Aagghh! That’s <i>way</i> too graphic for me.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Leo (which I’m sure all his friends called him) lived in Burgundy in the 600s. He was a noble, the son of St. Sigrada, as well as the brother of St. Warinus. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Leo was a priest and bishop, but made the fatal mistake of getting mixed up in local politics (hence his very gruesome representation).Oh, by the way, Leo’s eye sockets were also cauterized and his tongue and lips cut off as well. Somehow or other, though, he survived another two years before finally being executed.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2p5lXwwwQET4lCSs_fG_SujyZ71fQ7MRw5ejn6DALtF_bDhTxasFbWXV85eYjxsjxrQ-rsizZqiEk8qHyEXfZKIn6lqCsqIYzIufV1caZvE_Mz9RdxTbCUOt0F1YkIDaDfviPw_WOB9M/s1600/leo.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2p5lXwwwQET4lCSs_fG_SujyZ71fQ7MRw5ejn6DALtF_bDhTxasFbWXV85eYjxsjxrQ-rsizZqiEk8qHyEXfZKIn6lqCsqIYzIufV1caZvE_Mz9RdxTbCUOt0F1YkIDaDfviPw_WOB9M/s1600/leo.jpg" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Note the gimlet on the right </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">(I’m sparing you the actions shots out there on Google Images)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#8 Adalgott of Chur (Oct 3)</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Not to be confused with Adalgott the Churl.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Our Adalgott was a monk, and actually a student of St. Bernard at the famous monastery of Clairvaux. He was also an abbot and bishop, and founded a hospital. We’re talking 12th Century Switzerland here, by the way.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Sorry, not a lot out there on him …</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqlolGBslhm3XiCFIko-Ey6eKOq9Bp_WvfeTjhOQ0xVI4PO8dDDTJ2gh7WiN-6E7C8vqgXUUatH2y_fdSOVc3Tgpsrhv_tVWUl1Y9HCZe7pe9fRSy9AkBQWjM9suIOglI9B8K_GuXhV00/s1600/adlagoot.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqlolGBslhm3XiCFIko-Ey6eKOq9Bp_WvfeTjhOQ0xVI4PO8dDDTJ2gh7WiN-6E7C8vqgXUUatH2y_fdSOVc3Tgpsrhv_tVWUl1Y9HCZe7pe9fRSy9AkBQWjM9suIOglI9B8K_GuXhV00/s320/adlagoot.jpg" width="199" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">There is this weird picture though</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#7 Ammon the Great (Oct 4)</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Representation:</b> a man saying the rosary in bed with his wife</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Catholicsaints.info tells me that Ammon was forced into marriage but that “he and his wife lived as brother and sister for 18 years, then each entered religious life.” So, that explains that …</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">After he and his wife went their separate ways, Ammon would become one of the “desert fathers,” a bunch of monks living in the Egypt desert beginning around the 3rd Century. As happened with a lot of these hermits, Ammon soon became surrounded by followers. In fact, Ammon had more than 4,000 of them! So much for solitude …</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGPX47oZx_UjLDyBhm0H7VhWjB5xIvXrKAmaG7lp86KZ30e0xv5P1iQty2T-yCMz1hImxKgvrxa-vx-Ac4OiTOq_0Sqs_m793W4gAzJ9_aJ8AmQkbk8NQPgahHIYuD_S1w8nsE9LxEMmE/s1600/ammon.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGPX47oZx_UjLDyBhm0H7VhWjB5xIvXrKAmaG7lp86KZ30e0xv5P1iQty2T-yCMz1hImxKgvrxa-vx-Ac4OiTOq_0Sqs_m793W4gAzJ9_aJ8AmQkbk8NQPgahHIYuD_S1w8nsE9LxEMmE/s320/ammon.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">2945 Talmage St, Ammon, ID</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">(but thanks anyway, Google Images)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#6 Mary Frances of the Five Wounds of Christ (Oct 6)</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Hey, I think I took her to the sock hop at the CYO. Oh, no, that was Mary Frances O’Flanagan.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">MFFWC actually started out life as Anna Maria Gallo. Born in 18th Century Naples, she escaped a forced marriage and abusive father to join the Franciscans as a tertiary (there the ones who live at home). She was a bit on the extreme side, wearing hair shirts, whipping herself, and spending her last 40 years as a recluse. She was famous for having visions and also the stigmata as well.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">She has a rather unique patronage. In her home, which was turned into a shrine, there is a chair which childless mothers can sit in to help them become fertile.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnf-pMqzZvvHnfTi4PAftH_90lCH2fdXCaGf-A8h6gZ2gCUCHy2v0yl8ESG3K8k5CBtjSePIwN4YptNMfxPpqnXTic9nt6AguUnxioEg3bD6mguB_A5P7Nk6tWTQSnU3B3dNmMEhv9IZ8/s1600/wounds.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnf-pMqzZvvHnfTi4PAftH_90lCH2fdXCaGf-A8h6gZ2gCUCHy2v0yl8ESG3K8k5CBtjSePIwN4YptNMfxPpqnXTic9nt6AguUnxioEg3bD6mguB_A5P7Nk6tWTQSnU3B3dNmMEhv9IZ8/s320/wounds.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Said chair</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#5 Dionysius the Areopagite (Oct 3)</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">That Dionysius! He’s such an areopagite!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">So, what exactly is an areopagite? Why, it’s a member of the council of the Areopagus, of course! So, what’s the Areopagus? Well, it’s a hill in Athens … where a bunch of judges sat.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">And our guy just so happened to be one of those judges. He was converted to Christianity by St. Paul during a speech he made in front of said judges. Dionysius may also have become the first bishop of Athens. He was also definitely a martyr.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Whatever you do, though, please don’t confuse this guy with Pseudo-Dionysius the Areopagite. That was some guy who wrote some stuff that was previously attributed to our Dio, but was then later shown not to be his at all.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjU2FuoX6ablDKH8wM6R4JXIfqzCg6BeO7LEvxDlmPkTePY8ggGYJqjSbuLh3UxtWP8gULLE2SS-lrsblxSQ_VQed1eTpea2WRAPIKwdI-ODoli3q1meF6_Ix8Yb2nLxJHkSi3HiBFn0dc/s1600/dio.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjU2FuoX6ablDKH8wM6R4JXIfqzCg6BeO7LEvxDlmPkTePY8ggGYJqjSbuLh3UxtWP8gULLE2SS-lrsblxSQ_VQed1eTpea2WRAPIKwdI-ODoli3q1meF6_Ix8Yb2nLxJHkSi3HiBFn0dc/s1600/dio.jpg" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I think this is actually Pseudo’s</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#4 Pardulf (Oct 6)</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Or, if you prefer, Pardulfus … Yup, he goes by both.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Pardulf was a French peasant, shepherd, and hermit who lived in the 7th and 8th Centuries. He would later become a monk and abbot. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Another one a bit on the extreme side, Pardulf ate once a week, warmed himself only by the rays of the sun, and – perhaps worst of all – was a vegetarian! A bio of his, <i>Vita Pardulfi</i>, is an important source of knowledge of daily life in the medieval kingdom of Aquitaine.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#3 Marian Skrzypczak (Oct 5)</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">So, what is it with Poles and vowels? Or are they just under the delusion that Y’s, Z’s & C's are not consonants?</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Marian was martyred by the Nazis during their invasion of Poland. Not much out there on him, so I had to resort to translating some pages from the Polish. From those, I found this absolutely classic mistranslation:</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">His father owned a drugstore, which in Janowiec [Marian’s hometown] led to the outbreak of the First World War in 1914.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5V_RqPLdgwbM7uSvPz7l_oqJDnZOQnGT7Ian9LRlv4DzYSq2yz8__TS7j1iTezYz55O60ILDY4PmiIV-xZzDVgQvhHO1vp6-fIOACbtbK5RBpeNXjU85zrYY27jtL12WUmCkvjdHHjTk/s1600/marian.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="282" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5V_RqPLdgwbM7uSvPz7l_oqJDnZOQnGT7Ian9LRlv4DzYSq2yz8__TS7j1iTezYz55O60ILDY4PmiIV-xZzDVgQvhHO1vp6-fIOACbtbK5RBpeNXjU85zrYY27jtL12WUmCkvjdHHjTk/s320/marian.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">And I thought it all started in Sarajevo</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#2 Szilárd István Bogdánffy (Oct 3)</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">No, I did not just put both elbows on the keyboard. This is really the way this guy spells his name.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Another modern saint, Szilard was martyred by the Communists. Tortured, mistreated, and ultimately refused medical care, he would die in 1953, in his native Romania.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Previous to that, Szilard was a priest, professor, and clandestine bishop. Sounds like he also barely escaped martyrdom during WWII as well.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5JGMSXs0inf0624RrlZQAOveFwnfuUFlHUAm_MPjM4RgdJx_GsBf8lSO1eaXvjJXWF1IHgiiJYq9XXa3Wt8DmrxTbHOuKOXv47w395AaCnigDc2UxBWe7FnqCuf4vPjliXHC0Fj5nqag/s1600/lizard.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5JGMSXs0inf0624RrlZQAOveFwnfuUFlHUAm_MPjM4RgdJx_GsBf8lSO1eaXvjJXWF1IHgiiJYq9XXa3Wt8DmrxTbHOuKOXv47w395AaCnigDc2UxBWe7FnqCuf4vPjliXHC0Fj5nqag/s1600/lizard.jpg" /></a></div><br/>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Perhaps to shed a little light on that rather strange name, I was able to find out that Bogdanffy was a Transylvanian Armenian. Not too surprisingly, that particular combination of words brings up only 350 results on Google.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#1 Iwi (Oct 6)</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Short, sweet … and just rather odd.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">And just in case that name isn’t odd enough for you, perhaps you’d like to refer to this poor devil by some of his alternate names:</span><br />
<ul>
<li>Ivi</li>
<li>Iwig</li>
<li>Ywi</li>
<li>Iwigius</li>
</ul>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Two great stories about this English monk who lived in the 7th and 8th Centuries:</span><br />
<ul>
<li>He took a ship without bothering to learn its destination, planning to evangelize where it landed (it was Brittany)</li>
<li>When some Breton monks later took his relics along with on a pilgrimage to England, the relics were so heavy that they couldn’t be moved (and reside in Wilton Abbey to this day)</li>
</ul>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">By the way, make sure you don’t confuse our guy with acronyms for any of the following:</span><br />
<ul>
<li>International Womens Initiative</li>
<li>Intelligent Web Interaction</li>
<li>International Water Institute</li>
<li>Israeli Weapon Industries</li>
<li>International Workshop on the Internet</li>
<li>Index of Watershed Indicators</li>
<li>International Worship Institute</li>
<li>Innovatie Wetenschappelijke Informatievoorziening</li>
</ul>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZ2trlGII0Ko3HFqxGt3-jc63XzWj569iWs7uiGDJFkDs-TPVkrCUFzNItw8u2oV0vCYQRTgLKQglMx2Gkw72xBKeTLMTOROoU2JMB-1sEvWiU8kj8gQFFuxUjkszOb2n2Gj6iXsGInjQ/s1600/iwi.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZ2trlGII0Ko3HFqxGt3-jc63XzWj569iWs7uiGDJFkDs-TPVkrCUFzNItw8u2oV0vCYQRTgLKQglMx2Gkw72xBKeTLMTOROoU2JMB-1sEvWiU8kj8gQFFuxUjkszOb2n2Gj6iXsGInjQ/s320/iwi.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Or Independent Wrestling International, for that matter</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Honorable Mention</b></span><br />
<ul>
<li>Canog</li>
<li>Dubtach of Armagh</li>
<li>Crispus of Corinth</li>
<li>Erotis</li>
<li>Quarto of Capua</li>
<li>Hadrianus Takahashi Mondo</li>
<li>Crescencio García Pobo</li>
<li>Ebontius of Babastro </li>
<li>Vasnulfo</li>
<li>Dodo</li>
</ul>
Cliffhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12109085007044124766noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4997980458204946458.post-35848042761676812542016-09-22T06:18:00.000-07:002016-09-22T06:33:11.420-07:00Sept 22-30<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">There are a few moderately well-known saints this week – Padre Pio, Ss. Cosmas and Damian, Jerome, the Archangels, Wenceslaus, and St. Vincent de Paul. That last one is actually the patron saint of my local parish. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#10 Bernardine of Feltre (Sept 28)</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Patronage: </b>pawnbrokers</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">So, this is who Chumlee prays to every night?</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjztA7o-_l7Kp1KwjIrgATXiB21koIaLp5ZSMHxopf5D1zpOSvdhAwJF_RGqbFd_D3bPSatYnpw7yeBRBeNkhCi5FyGYQ5sbbuHoGMEuRm75iCuytb6n2uD_DOMpsFJFIQFea73Kpvis8Q/s1600/chumlee.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjztA7o-_l7Kp1KwjIrgATXiB21koIaLp5ZSMHxopf5D1zpOSvdhAwJF_RGqbFd_D3bPSatYnpw7yeBRBeNkhCi5FyGYQ5sbbuHoGMEuRm75iCuytb6n2uD_DOMpsFJFIQFea73Kpvis8Q/s320/chumlee.jpg" width="287" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">That’s Chumlee, by the way – not Bernardine</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Bernardine was a 15th Century Italian preacher. He was famous for his “bonfires of the vanities,” where people would toss in things like playing cards, dice, cosmetics, wigs, and fine clothes.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The pawnbrokers? Well, Bernardine was famous for starting a rival institution, called “mounts of piety,” which charged a lot less than the regular ones. You know, kind of like a Vatican version of Pawn Stars. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#9 Sadalberga (Sept 22)</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">So, what’s with all the bergas? We’ve got Notaberga and Sexaberga … and now Sadalberga.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The story of Sadalberga is a pretty common one – young noble with religious leanings but forced to marry. She and her hubby eventually separate to live the religious life, with mom, dad, and kids all ending up as saints.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">What’s really cool about Sadalberga’s story, though, is all the great medieval names involved. In addition to Sadalberga, we’ve got Blandinus, Anstrudus, Fulcrus, Gundoin, Richramn, Saretrude, Gaulbert, Waldebert, Dagobert, and Bodo.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5Fjedcn6Od5C1lgL2Kbs8tApQPGwfGgF49Qj7-gJdiO68kWVYp4W-ylSgdft279XpmloQpAGnFMjNBdEFMDYwUY07zsFr3aqC7ocoMOyNWbHLnJ4dXDKwQhvP4QitXKNpsB0jwp6xK30/s1600/sad.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5Fjedcn6Od5C1lgL2Kbs8tApQPGwfGgF49Qj7-gJdiO68kWVYp4W-ylSgdft279XpmloQpAGnFMjNBdEFMDYwUY07zsFr3aqC7ocoMOyNWbHLnJ4dXDKwQhvP4QitXKNpsB0jwp6xK30/s1600/sad.jpg" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I have absolutely no clue what this is all about</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">(but it was the 3rd result on Google Images for “sadlaberga”)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#8 Cleopas (Sept 25)</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Wasn’t that the name of the yokel character in the Simpsons?</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Nope. That was <a href="http://reallystrangesaints.blogspot.com/2016/04/april-22-29.html">Cletus</a>. I’m pretty sure Cletus has a cousin named Cleopas though.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Actually, are you familiar with the Road to Emmaus? That’s where the risen Jesus appeared to two of his disciples in disguise. Well, one of those disciples just so happened to be Cleopas. No one knows what the other one’s name was. I’m pretty sure it was not Cletus though.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJnNbKYdOf_9Z3fdVRyXrk2z9vyzf34sEVeavPgRgT_i24IXUauo5TVVaykMBIML4mShFLIaZywTWPpduHvXzuyzMKnsncP8EhjaqslzXVWx49yJd0ve8Rzaoxe0uWvY1Zh5_MJQZ3om8/s1600/cleo.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJnNbKYdOf_9Z3fdVRyXrk2z9vyzf34sEVeavPgRgT_i24IXUauo5TVVaykMBIML4mShFLIaZywTWPpduHvXzuyzMKnsncP8EhjaqslzXVWx49yJd0ve8Rzaoxe0uWvY1Zh5_MJQZ3om8/s320/cleo.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I had no idea the Road to Emmaus was also a South Park episode</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Apart from the Gospel story, Cleopas doesn’t really get much press. He may be the same person as Clopas, believed to be the brother of St. Joseph. Just to muddy the water further, he’s also referred to as Cleophas, Cleofa, Cleopatros, and Alphaeus (Alphaeus?).</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#7 Gabriel (Sept 29)</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Patronage:</b> television workers</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I’m sure we’re all pretty familiar with Gabriel. Like the other archangels, he appears in both the Old and New Testatments (as well as the Koran!). He’s famous for being something of a heavenly messenger service, including doing such bigtime gigs as Daniel’s visions, the Annunciation, and dictating the Koran to Muhammad. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">And that may be what’s behind his association with television, as well as with:</span><br />
<ul>
<li>Broadcasters</li>
<li>Communications workers</li>
<li>Telecommunications workers</li>
<li>Postal workers (and philatelists as well)</li>
<li>Messengers</li>
<li>Diplomats</li>
</ul>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigWjzS_elgBjHbqVcLdODl_bHEfwbsyt86GBhU67ox4Cv54WQcYXwjlmykv_rtC0MUcz6B4MlDg3EKdhoNSeqkJwZkNEql4xjhu-JrjBbmy3h-P7TFXyaB2g_pC8prP-FxcLmG4ztcjCw/s1600/gabe.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigWjzS_elgBjHbqVcLdODl_bHEfwbsyt86GBhU67ox4Cv54WQcYXwjlmykv_rtC0MUcz6B4MlDg3EKdhoNSeqkJwZkNEql4xjhu-JrjBbmy3h-P7TFXyaB2g_pC8prP-FxcLmG4ztcjCw/s320/gabe.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Here he is lookin' kinda hunky</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#6 Michael (Sept 29)</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Patronage:</b> Greek Air Force</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Another archangel, another weird patronage.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Once again, though, there’s some logic behind this one as well. Turns out two of Michael’s main duties include (www.catholic.org]: </span><br />
<ul>
<li>Escorting the faithful to heaven at their hour of death</li>
<li>Calling men from life on Earth to their heavenly judgment</li>
</ul>
<br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">As for Michael’s other 30-some patronages, I’m not so certain. Some of the odder ones include:</span><br />
<ul>
<li>Bakers</li>
<li>Bankers</li>
<li>Boatmen</li>
<li>Barrel makers</li>
<li>Artists</li>
<li>Ambulance drivers</li>
<li>Radiologists</li>
<li>Dying people</li>
<li>Police officers</li>
<li>Spanish police officers</li>
<li>Paratroopers</li>
<li>Knights</li>
<li>Fencers</li>
<li>Swordsmiths</li>
<li>Haberdashers</li>
<li>Greengrocers</li>
</ul>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPtnWvf95WkNpinykxMhbjajOdqI4OspbyPJEZcViZjYRFzsqRdfCD1yBX3VH2K9XNRRlJeR-u8qjC_zZwVoCkCdvrK_7H0KvAhmRGCoOjuzqDfz8ZiqV9qgTxkATaS6N54k67mH_HkF4/s1600/mike.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPtnWvf95WkNpinykxMhbjajOdqI4OspbyPJEZcViZjYRFzsqRdfCD1yBX3VH2K9XNRRlJeR-u8qjC_zZwVoCkCdvrK_7H0KvAhmRGCoOjuzqDfz8ZiqV9qgTxkATaS6N54k67mH_HkF4/s320/mike.jpg" width="213" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#5 Theodota of Thrace (Sept 29)</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Thuffering thucotash!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I love Theodata’s bio on catholicsaints.info:</span><br />
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<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0.5in;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Repentant prostitute. Convert. Tortured and martyred for refusing to sacrifice to Roman idols during the persecutions of Agrippa.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Short (less than 20 words), sweet – but speaks volumes. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">By the way, Thrace is in modern-day Bulgaria.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#4 Martyrs of the Theban Legion (Sept 22)</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">No, these guys are not Marvel Comics characters.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">What they were were a crack regiment in the Roman army. Originally from the Egyptian city of Thebes, they were all Christians. When posted to what is now France and forced to worship the pagan gods, they refused. Eventually, all 6,666 would be martyred. </span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSmcCOmx82zuvhS4lF2OWCZH0Uq8P27Tv6yjDLRA8ogqEgxmvYQvkAGQcJoL1215nUegxtqjn_AGqLK5n6kI4yRyfNBeBAKSE2b28YdLAO3m6WKPEOCc0-DktBvUjIc_Eo5rV7krEvQYc/s1600/thebes.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSmcCOmx82zuvhS4lF2OWCZH0Uq8P27Tv6yjDLRA8ogqEgxmvYQvkAGQcJoL1215nUegxtqjn_AGqLK5n6kI4yRyfNBeBAKSE2b28YdLAO3m6WKPEOCc0-DktBvUjIc_Eo5rV7krEvQYc/s320/thebes.jpg" width="151" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">This is their leader, Maurice</span></div>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">By the way, “Martyrs of the Theban Legion” would also be a great name for a (heavy metal?) band.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#3 Herman the Cripple (Sept 25)</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Things weren’t so PC, oh, way back in the 11th Century.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Alternate names for this guy, unfortunately, include Hermann von Reichenau (which makes him sound like some Nazi) and Herman Contractus (which just sounds weird).</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Herman was actually quite the interesting fellow. Severely crippled from birth and dumped on the local abbey, he would remain there the rest of his life. He would also become a monk, compose hymns and poetry, write histories and math treatises, study astronomy, learn a number of languages, and correspond with other scholars all over Europe. He was something of the Stephen Hawking of his day, I guess.</span><br />
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<b style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">#2 Maria Carme Fradera Ferragutcasas / Maria Magdalena Fradera Ferragutcasas / Maria Rosa Fradera Ferragutcasas (Sept 27)</b><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Do you think they’re related?</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">And indeed they are. They were all sisters (i.e., nuns), who just so happened to be sisters in real life as well. Tragically, though, they all died a martyr’s death. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Their martyrdom was not, however, hundreds of years ago. Nor was it in some faraway pagan land. In fact, they were all martyred during the Spanish Civil War, in the 1930s. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Actually, it’s rather shocking how many martyrs there were from that particular conflict. Catholicsaint.info lists over 1400.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikm6xAXnGK7pABu8uPXRA2IcjZ_0R1dSW2TcpF5s2ts5jQ2kHREXjh4SU17R2RWNFwizA2ct1gwkWUXC0dyHv8Y_qV-vyc1PcXTcoW500nAQOy8QQ-gd-bdoHDZOqI82gfM79v2BAv_hs/s1600/maria.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikm6xAXnGK7pABu8uPXRA2IcjZ_0R1dSW2TcpF5s2ts5jQ2kHREXjh4SU17R2RWNFwizA2ct1gwkWUXC0dyHv8Y_qV-vyc1PcXTcoW500nAQOy8QQ-gd-bdoHDZOqI82gfM79v2BAv_hs/s320/maria.jpg" width="284" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">That should be Maria Carme</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#1 Coprio (Sept 24)</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">How are your Latin and Greek roots? Familiar with “copro”? As in “coprolite,” “coprolallia,” “coprophagia,” “coprophilia”?</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Here, I’ll let catholicsaints.info explain:</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Abandoned as an infant on a dungheap (Greek: <i>koprìa</i>) by his parents, the boy was found and rescued by monks of the nearby monastery of Saint Theodosius in Bethleham. The monks named him Coprio, and raised him as their own. He grew to become a model of holiness, living his 90 years in the monastery. Monk.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Yup, that's pretty much everything you get on Google Image for "st coprio"</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Honorable Mention</b></span><br />
<ul>
<li>Willigod of Moyenmoutier</li>
<li>Hilary the Hermit</li>
<li>Lupus of Lyons</li>
<li>Callistratus of Constantinople</li>
<li>Amalia Abad Casasempere de Maestre</li>
<li>Zama of Bologna</li>
<li>Mewrog</li>
<li>Fymbert</li>
<li>Purificación Ximénez y Ximénez</li>
<li>Pau Bori Puig</li>
</ul>
Cliffhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12109085007044124766noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4997980458204946458.post-80365631441589825342016-09-16T17:43:00.000-07:002016-09-16T17:55:20.293-07:00Sept 15-21<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Nothing special going on this week. It does, however, seem to be a week dedicated to saints whose names sound way too similar and could be way too easily confused. To wit:</span><br />
<ul>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">15th – Ribert and Ritbert of Varennes</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">16th – Abundius of Rome and Abundantius of Rome</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">16th – Vilbetta of Maranza and Vorbetta of Maranza</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">18th – Ferreolus the Tribune and Ferreolus of Limoges </span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">20th – Theopistus of Rome and Theopistes of Rome </span></li>
</ul>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#10 Januarius of Naples (Sept 19)</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Patronage: </b> blood banks</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">As unlikely as it may sound, there’s actually a really good explanation for this one.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Januarius, also known as Gennaro, is the patron saint of Naples. Now, it just so happens that the good people of that city keep a vial of Januarius’s blood on hand in their cathedral. Further, they take it out three times a year. And every time they take it out, the blood liquefies and bubbles.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_raCGlj1bH0gGcbCuZivNJo050dUK_6MlOHWt9dvvWFEJk98wpOrA6DQae6fAvk4RpDbr1OQm74GePL_7nPaw0cho3ooeCn7I-mz9Oen9ZQPbOyRsyZwTIJeJfAX00Eh1vBAdE5wgD_I/s1600/jan.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="203" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_raCGlj1bH0gGcbCuZivNJo050dUK_6MlOHWt9dvvWFEJk98wpOrA6DQae6fAvk4RpDbr1OQm74GePL_7nPaw0cho3ooeCn7I-mz9Oen9ZQPbOyRsyZwTIJeJfAX00Eh1vBAdE5wgD_I/s320/jan.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">“So, whaddya think?”</span></div>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Januarius himself was a bishop and a martyr, succumbing during the Persecutions of Diocletian. Nietzsche, of all people, once wrote a poem about him.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#9 Matthew (Sept 21)</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Patronage: </b> stockbrokers</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Well, I guess even guys like Gordon Gecko need a patron. (Actually, they probably need patrons more than most people.)</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Yes, this is indeed Matthew the Apostle (and evangelist). Pretty famous guy.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDXwW8Tp4cqkIS9B-8xmLn3rDJQ4CiNVCWIg1Uw_JFFO3O1aAebT02RMKdVwUWtcmGCgGlLd4OdA8WKk3Hkf83G9Y3WiFvDl6DEn_C8nQ1ISgMuutSCSKgt_8Pj69Gra47wCi8XzYldOo/s1600/matt.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDXwW8Tp4cqkIS9B-8xmLn3rDJQ4CiNVCWIg1Uw_JFFO3O1aAebT02RMKdVwUWtcmGCgGlLd4OdA8WKk3Hkf83G9Y3WiFvDl6DEn_C8nQ1ISgMuutSCSKgt_8Pj69Gra47wCi8XzYldOo/s1600/matt.jpg" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The stockbroker bit comes from Mathew’s having been a tax collector. As you can imagine, they weren’t any more popular than they were now. Matthew is also patron saint of other financial types like accountants, bankers, bookkeepers, customs officials, money managers, and even security guards. I understand that there is no truth to the rumor that he is patron saint of the IRS. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#8 Socrates (Sept 17)</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">No, not that Socrates. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">It is hard to imagine that someone else would go by that name, but that has actually been a pretty popular name for Greeks over the centuries.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Our Socrates was a soldier in the 2nd Century, in what is now modern-day Turkey (in the Roman province of Pamphylia, to be exact). He was on hand when St. Theodore, who had been conscripted, refused to worship the pagan idols as part of his indcution ceremony.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Poor Ted was stuck on a red-hot plate, dowsed with liquid tar, and dragged through the streets by horses. None of these tortures, however, had any affect.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">And that impressed Socrates enough that he himself became a believer. Socrates then went through similar tortures, with similar disappointing results. Like Theodore, he would finally be beheaded, thus earning his own martyr’s crown.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibf9_8sCqjyhr7pA4gObBqqWhcireN5HlCm4hyphenhyphenSDXmrwKp9i5Y7QJqo-Z-FnKCqR212YjWXOc-JJpE5xrWnYTWbbbPvwtj20QxjsGBcA3ooP0gykOUZwiSpbLjqs1UyrYeeddb6goYyK0/s1600/soc.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibf9_8sCqjyhr7pA4gObBqqWhcireN5HlCm4hyphenhyphenSDXmrwKp9i5Y7QJqo-Z-FnKCqR212YjWXOc-JJpE5xrWnYTWbbbPvwtj20QxjsGBcA3ooP0gykOUZwiSpbLjqs1UyrYeeddb6goYyK0/s1600/soc.jpg" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Socrates Restaurant, St. Albert, Canada</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">(Hey, thanks, Google Images!)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#7 Hildegard von Bingen (Sept 17)</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Hard to believe that a saint with such an odd name is actually pretty high profile.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Hildegard was actually something of a medieval Renaissance man (er, woman). And, no, that is not a contradiction in terms.</span><br /><br/>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Hildy was an abbess, writer, artist, composer, architect, philosopher, theologian, mystic, and early scientist. Some people even credit her with inventing opera. In 2012, Benedict XVI made her a Doctor of the Church.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Hildegard lived in the 12th Century, in what is now Germany. Something of a controversial figure, she was only canonized in 2012. She is often seen as something of a proto-feminist figure.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYQtJduzDXJI9Ib1bsj-BRObsziCsTxlNLUG4GSNawuyYS34SZSk0ilDeumD0OahxNueuJ-WL6VCe2ZoX4t04qT7RxoD5765uGGtLEiKaL0wUkbRkR1W4NOm9gF_MrUl6a_wM5zG3ZrKw/s1600/hilde.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="166" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYQtJduzDXJI9Ib1bsj-BRObsziCsTxlNLUG4GSNawuyYS34SZSk0ilDeumD0OahxNueuJ-WL6VCe2ZoX4t04qT7RxoD5765uGGtLEiKaL0wUkbRkR1W4NOm9gF_MrUl6a_wM5zG3ZrKw/s320/hilde.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">No, Hildy is not on fire</span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">She’s just receiving a vision </span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">(as interpreted by some medieval artist)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#6 Joseph of Cupertino (Sept 18)</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Patronage: </b>astronauts</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Once again, this rather wild patronage actually has a pretty good explanation.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Turns out Joseph was able to levitate. As a result, he’s patron of, not only astronauts, but a number of other high-flying folk as well:</span><br />
<ul>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Air crews</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Air Forces</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Air travellers</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Pilots</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Paratroopers</span></li>
</ul><br/>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Joe lived in the 1600s and was a Franciscan monk. Cupertino is in Apulia, by the way, in the heel of the Italian boot. And, yes, that is indeed how the town where Apple is headquartered got its name.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#5 Mary de Cerevellon (Sept 19)</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Patronage: </b> Spanish sailors</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Hmm, don’t you think those Spanish marines are going to get jealous? I looked and I looked, and I couldn’t find a patron saint for them.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Mary lived in 13th Century Spain, where she started an order, the female branch of the Mercedarians.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">As for the patronage, I had to do a little conjecturing, but it probably goes something like this ... Turns out Mary was particularly devoted to Christian slaves. Back then, Christians were often enslaved as galley crews in the Mediterranean, at that time something of a Muslim lake. Mary’s from Spain, so … there you have it.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">She’s usually represented “carrying a ship”</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#4 Zygmunt Szcesny Felinski (Sept 17)</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Patronage:</b> Scrabble players</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Okay, I made that one up. Zygmunt’s not patron saint of anything, as far as I could tell.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">He would make a good one though. In fact, he’s something of a national figure in Poland. He figured prominently in independence movements during the 19th Century – when Poland was ruled by Russia and Zygmunt was Archbishop of Warsaw. He would later get exiled for his efforts, but also canonized in 2009 as well.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">"Hi, folks!"</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#3 Cornelius (Sept 16)</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Patronage: </b> twitching</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Cornelius was actually quite the busy guy. In addition to twitching, you can also call on him relative to:</span><br />
<ul>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Epilepsy</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Fever</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Earache</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Domestic animals</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Cattle</span></li>
</ul>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The last two probably have to do with his name – it means “horn.” The first three? You got me.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiaFDh71pyvR3J8Rqq_s0DF3Baeco7OASC81umNENEG_tytluAnUxJb5Q_wIx1kc0gUbfrCXeDSvfbzW_YvDkj-fxRz83kKY4i0ADY-cQ1uYcDsFBEAUKaj-qYv9lmN7S9ekiKY9tiTwI8/s1600/corny.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="316" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiaFDh71pyvR3J8Rqq_s0DF3Baeco7OASC81umNENEG_tytluAnUxJb5Q_wIx1kc0gUbfrCXeDSvfbzW_YvDkj-fxRz83kKY4i0ADY-cQ1uYcDsFBEAUKaj-qYv9lmN7S9ekiKY9tiTwI8/s320/corny.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I can’t tell if he’s smoking a pipe or “brandishing” a horn</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Cornelius was pope back when that was not such a good thing. When he served (in the 3rd Century), being pope was akin to having a big, red target on your back. Sure enough, Cornelius served all of two years, and was then exiled and martyred.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#2 Mirin of Bangor (Paisley) (Sept 15)</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Patronage: </b> Paisley</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">No, not that paisley. </span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidnKqYAqyx7t1be8ZMpUVAmZofx0CQSgXHb1pHmL4XfrMGe1XrZ8iv452pwO3HGiRzU4JCuvJMn3lxGuA3gc8c0hpAtNAPx0gzUI3Gz3b5DVA5lI6Kn9eNgieVs5489V71fGzaP2_opQg/s1600/mirin.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidnKqYAqyx7t1be8ZMpUVAmZofx0CQSgXHb1pHmL4XfrMGe1XrZ8iv452pwO3HGiRzU4JCuvJMn3lxGuA3gc8c0hpAtNAPx0gzUI3Gz3b5DVA5lI6Kn9eNgieVs5489V71fGzaP2_opQg/s320/mirin.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Wrong paisley!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Paisley the fabric is actually named after Paisley, a city in Scotland where it was first made. This burg of 80,000 is located just west of Glasgow. Its patron saint is Mirin.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Mirin lived in the 500s and 600s. Born in Ireland, he came to Scotland as a missionary, founded an abbey in Paisley, and became its first abbot. His shrine was something of a major pilgrimage site as well.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Paisley (the town) remembered Mirin by naming the local soccer team after him. St. Mirren FC, is in the Scottish Premier League, the highest level of soccer in Scotland. Not too surprisingly, they are known as the Saints (but also as the Buddies?!?!).</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#1 Mercedarian Martyrs of Morocco (Sept 15)</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Man, oh man! That’s marvelous! Mucho miraculous! Molto mind-messing!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">These guys were part of a religious order (the Mercedarians) who were captured by Muslims during the 13th Century. They were hauled back to Morocco, where they were enslaved. That didn’t stop them from preaching however (or getting martyred for that preaching).</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">By name, they are John, James, Francis, Sancho, Dionisio, and Ildefonso.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Honorable Mention</b></span><br />
<ul>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Brogan of Ross Tuirc</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">María de La Encarnación de La Yglesia de Varo</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Eumenius Thaumaturgus</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Evilasius of Cyzicum</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Hygbald</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Agathoclia</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Pomposa</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Nicetas the Goth</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Flocellus</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Rodingus</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Quadrato of Magnesia</span></li>
</ul>
Cliffhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12109085007044124766noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4997980458204946458.post-30159090510868985472016-09-09T17:13:00.003-07:002016-09-09T17:34:41.971-07:00Sept 8-14<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Big week for you Marian devotees out there. We’ve got her birth on the 8th and The Most Holy Name of the Blessed Virgin Mary on the 12th. And just over the line into the next week – on June 15th – is the feast of Our Lady of Sorrows.</span>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#10 Martyrs of Bithynia (Sept 10)</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Turns out there were only three of them:</span><br />
<ul>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Menodora</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Metrodora</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Nymphodora</span></li>
</ul>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The three were actually sisters, and were martyred “in the persecutions of emperor Maximian and governor Fronto” (catholicsaints.info). We’re talking around the year 300 here.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNjafOKfs1xqtWmlyuGMAR4uFad0eOBnuIA7XR3L1dw-Dk2iBlZBT6Is8OOHd4LkqSmZdCEmUnhKCCUPExCYBhv61Qzf3BAljnYbtmjSS2fXYEYxrxXxToKsCGlGTRT2bU0CUfSnhNEJM/s1600/nympho.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="211" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNjafOKfs1xqtWmlyuGMAR4uFad0eOBnuIA7XR3L1dw-Dk2iBlZBT6Is8OOHd4LkqSmZdCEmUnhKCCUPExCYBhv61Qzf3BAljnYbtmjSS2fXYEYxrxXxToKsCGlGTRT2bU0CUfSnhNEJM/s320/nympho.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">That’s Nympho on the right; don’t know about the others</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Bithynia? It was a Roman province, making up the northwest part of present-day Turkey. Today? Just kind of a funny name.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#9 Hyacinth of Rome (Sept 11)</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Now, Hyacinth’s bad enough. But would you believe that Hyacinth was a guy?</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Yup. He and his brother Protus were burned alive (or maybe beheaded, or maybe both), way back in 257. </span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSMEd3fNVn41uMm9t73LPWfwo8nP5eSQmI5J1ZS63rDv2JpBEF17zHu0614ohqJqGEAXKWSUzzF0R0-DGV2vArf1HVSXGWBQIIA_Bh4R2V0xq5TFtThHplUyxbwlv6NPNumztbgeQBZXo/s1600/hy.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSMEd3fNVn41uMm9t73LPWfwo8nP5eSQmI5J1ZS63rDv2JpBEF17zHu0614ohqJqGEAXKWSUzzF0R0-DGV2vArf1HVSXGWBQIIA_Bh4R2V0xq5TFtThHplUyxbwlv6NPNumztbgeQBZXo/s1600/hy.jpg" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Interestingly, the flower was actually named after a mythological figure – who was also a guy. I’m assuming our saint was named after this figure as well.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">There are actually no less than 9 saint Hyacinths out there, all male. In fact, there are actually two Hyacinths of Rome. And all that’s not even including the 7 Jacintos – the Spanish equivalent of Hyacinth.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#8 Serafina Sforza (Sept 9)</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Suffering succotash …</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Serafina started out as something of a debutante. You’re probably already familiar with the Sforzas, one of the famous families of the Italian Renaissance. Serafina was also related to two others – the Colonnas and Montefeltros – as well.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Sforza is actually Serafin’s married name. Her husband, though initially quite the nice guy, would later live up to his family’s Machiavellian nature. After suspecting Serafina of a plot against him, he had her put away in a nunnery. There, though, Serafina shone – eventually ending up as the abbess.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#7 Maria Eutimia Uffing (Sept 9)</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Unlike our first few saints, Maria is a much more recent one. Born in Germany, she actually lived through WWI (which she spent ministering to POWs). Though crippled in her youth by rickets, and in poor health the rest of her life, she worked tirelessly in some particularly humble occupations. JPII reflected that well in what he said about her for her beatification ceremony:</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Her life shows us that seemingly small things can be very important in God’s eyes. From the human viewpoint this sister was not a “star” in the limelight, but her silent work was a ray of light to many people that is still shining today.</span><br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">She was a member of the wonderfully named Klemensschwestern (Sisters of the Congregation of Compassion).</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#6 Pulcheria (Sept 10)</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Patronage: </b>empresses</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">And our next saint goes out to all you empresses out there …</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">You’ll be happy to know that Pulcheria was indeed an empress herself. She was originally a princess, the daughter of Byzantine Emperor Arcadius. When Arcadius died, she then became regent for her younger brother, Theodosius II. When Theo came into his maturity, Pulcheria faded into the background (and was then actually forced into exile by her evil daughter-in-law). When Theodosius died himself, Pulcheria and her husband Marcian came back as Emperor and Empress. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">On the spiritual side, Pulcheria was actually quite involved. She guided two very important Councils, Ephesus and Chalcedon; built numerous churches and hospitals; and was involved in battling Monophysites, Nestorians, Eutychians, and various other 5th Century bad guys.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">You’d never guess it from the way it sounds, but Pulcheria actually means “beautiful.”</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEpJRsEIefTBbGOPAdKQxd5pPw4UKmPFK__DTUBI5VVU87typVsBPUSxl3g8qwk7V18bv-4nvT3S1hRGx8XGDPWFPdp1mciBS63C8zSIi0ktPDOnNZMqBn2B4BIGKt-8_zrpk6YqxDeEg/s1600/pulch.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEpJRsEIefTBbGOPAdKQxd5pPw4UKmPFK__DTUBI5VVU87typVsBPUSxl3g8qwk7V18bv-4nvT3S1hRGx8XGDPWFPdp1mciBS63C8zSIi0ktPDOnNZMqBn2B4BIGKt-8_zrpk6YqxDeEg/s1600/pulch.png" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Hey, nice hat!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#5 Notburga (Sept 14)</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Like #7, Notburga was another very humble saint. A cook in a noble household, Notburga ran afoul of her mistress when she took scraps of food to the poor instead of to the pigs as directed. After sacking Notburga, said mistress became deathly ill. Notburga, though, remained to nurse her and make sure she repented and got into heaven before kicking the bucket.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">A similar story happened at Notburga’s next place of employment. This time, though, she was working for a peasant. I guess that all just goes to you show that both ends of the social spectrum can behave badly.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Notburga lived from 1265 to 1313, in what is now Germany. She is patron saint for peasants, servants, and farm workers. Many miracles are attributed to her, and her burial site is a popular pilgrimage.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiekQ2rb_9gdGoL88nItSxhWKKBm6KjYQSyhdusNd1UoU3gCQYKILrfadnuyT0IjBPeAmVS2Mg_PhauOJdZYEDEhrD-HuYxAnWDER5mMostLN-Cjs0M1nfost_nR6s0HoUzAVc0pPCxN4Y/s1600/not.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiekQ2rb_9gdGoL88nItSxhWKKBm6KjYQSyhdusNd1UoU3gCQYKILrfadnuyT0IjBPeAmVS2Mg_PhauOJdZYEDEhrD-HuYxAnWDER5mMostLN-Cjs0M1nfost_nR6s0HoUzAVc0pPCxN4Y/s320/not.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Her skeletal remains are on display in Eben, Germany</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#4 Paphnutius (Sept 11) </b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">So, what would the nickname for this one be? Paph? Paphy? Nuti?</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Paphnutius was also known as Paphnutius of Thebes, Paphnutius the Confessor, and Paphnutius the Great. And that’s to distinguish him from other notable Paphnutii, such as the Hermit, the Buffalo, of Egypt, of Alexandria, of Jerusalem, of Borovsk, of Tentyra, and of Heracleopolis. Huh! Popular name in 4th Century Egypt, I guess. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Paphy was a hermit and bishop. He was also tortured and maimed for his faith, as well as getting exiled to the mines. Paph was particularly well known for his participation in a number of early councils. In fact, you may have this guy to blame/credit for priestly celibacy.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbA0ldcrKMboZa8153HdxmaFUy3j4hPPSTwgVlM_BpZEiYv2xjtFRMqH1WpXqaO_iDI4Mru7CVwTgczr7LTg2w-j2stMSy35-eYHE_dAT-nWEEmXBOvADgnnhB0MQ53I_GRZuRgYN8ydc/s1600/paph.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbA0ldcrKMboZa8153HdxmaFUy3j4hPPSTwgVlM_BpZEiYv2xjtFRMqH1WpXqaO_iDI4Mru7CVwTgczr7LTg2w-j2stMSy35-eYHE_dAT-nWEEmXBOvADgnnhB0MQ53I_GRZuRgYN8ydc/s1600/paph.jpg" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#3 Autonomous (Sept 12)</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Dictionary.com tells me that this means “having self-government, at least to a significant degree.” Hmm …</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Autonomous the saint was actually an early Roman bishop. Under the Persecutions of Diocletian, Auto fled to Bithynia (that place again!), where he subsequently became a martyr. Not much more on him out there, I’m afraid.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">In fact, when I Google “st. autonomous,” I get a few hits to our guy, but a lot more like these:</span><br />
<ul>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Wells Fargo Picks the 3 Winners of Autonomous Emergency Braking</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Mobile Intelligent Autonomous Systems</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Institute of Navigation Sixth Annual Autonomous Snowplow Competition</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">St. Josephs College Of Arts and Science (Autonomous)</span></li>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZZq1DsrpFrFrWEv7ix6-MYmWvR2As4HxbZu6f5efWDuIbEDA9gkNktJsLNc6JVPiICofr306U1CJ0hzpT5BJIy9XL3ImTzp0OXpxaJ52z8F9K5mpb0ZifnKPgOz_JF5QOXNMewHgpDCk/s1600/auto.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="217" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZZq1DsrpFrFrWEv7ix6-MYmWvR2As4HxbZu6f5efWDuIbEDA9gkNktJsLNc6JVPiICofr306U1CJ0hzpT5BJIy9XL3ImTzp0OXpxaJ52z8F9K5mpb0ZifnKPgOz_JF5QOXNMewHgpDCk/s320/auto.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">And images like this one</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#2 Disibod of Disenberg (Sept 8)</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Patron saint of disembodied dishwashers and Duesenberg drivers …</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Disibod was an Irishman who lived in the 7th Century, leaving the Emerald Isle as a missionary to Germany. There, he founded a monastery, where he became abbot-bishop.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">He was written up by no less an illustrious personage of Hildegard of Bingen, though I’m afraid I don’t have a lot from her to add here.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#1 Corbinian (Sept 8)</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Representation: </b>bishop making a bear carry his luggage because it has eaten his mule</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">There’s a story in this. I just know there is.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Corbinian, originally named Waldegiso, was a Frankish hermit, pilgrim, and bishop who lived in the 600 and 700s. He was also a missionary to Bavaria, where he founded a monastery, performed some miracles, and ran into trouble with the local royals there.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The legend may be symbolic. In fact, there are a number of pious legends where the local pagans are represented as animals to be tamed.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjyaSrFtU58HxpHy3SsQPsr0sMmrCB1HfTDLkxdWhsjw4Jf_b27d0UKvqYu5i0xHFRLvDE2jxr9GJuIdDlJLh7YX_s4PlD7tgf51NlE9UeQ1-XCLK71ZtE7ykL4-9fd7_O72lCG3X53pP4/s1600/corb.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjyaSrFtU58HxpHy3SsQPsr0sMmrCB1HfTDLkxdWhsjw4Jf_b27d0UKvqYu5i0xHFRLvDE2jxr9GJuIdDlJLh7YX_s4PlD7tgf51NlE9UeQ1-XCLK71ZtE7ykL4-9fd7_O72lCG3X53pP4/s1600/corb.png" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Benedict XVI, who headed Corbinian’s see before becoming pope, used the bear in his own papal arms</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Honorable Mention</b></span><br />
<ul>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Kingsmark</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Hedwig of Hreford</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Gusmeo of Gravedona sul Lario</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Apolonia Lizárraga Ochoa de Zabalegui</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Autbert of Avranches </span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Wulfhilda</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Pierre-Sulpice-Christophe Faverge</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Frithestan</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Barypsabas</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Macrobius</span></li>
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Cliffhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12109085007044124766noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4997980458204946458.post-56890070015431921652016-08-31T16:39:00.001-07:002016-09-09T17:33:52.812-07:00Sept 1-7<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">This may be possibly the most boring week in the whole church calendar. We’ve got Thursday of the Twenty-Second Week of Ordinary Time, Tuesday of the Twenty-Third Week of Ordinary Time, and so on. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">We do also have Pope Gregory the Great. He increased papal authority, wrote extensively, reformed the mass, and was made a Doctor of the Church. You can also invoke him <i>against </i>gout and <i>for </i>choir boys.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>#10 Abigail the Matriarch (Sept 1)</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Kind of slim pickens this week, so we’re going to have to start with the less-than-LOLROTF Abigail the Matriarch. Not even totally sure why this one struck my fancy, to tell you the truth.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">This is another one those rather odd OT saints. Abigail was the wife of David, as well as a prophetess and very holy woman in her own right.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCRHxI98sl_cNBYalYyL8xuLbbSeI847vPVV-O4ludqdaib-v-y6GmgzvNTOXhMjel_qaNInFAAYqgtYCZVt8NxFNddt-HlYdjOM4o5sx8_Nvf8VucIDckZC11XT08oXLXZ4hB7ddiGSU/s1600/abby.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="314" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCRHxI98sl_cNBYalYyL8xuLbbSeI847vPVV-O4ludqdaib-v-y6GmgzvNTOXhMjel_qaNInFAAYqgtYCZVt8NxFNddt-HlYdjOM4o5sx8_Nvf8VucIDckZC11XT08oXLXZ4hB7ddiGSU/s320/abby.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Abigail Adams was the matriarch of the Adams family, but not – I’m afraid – a saint</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">(thanks anyway, Google Images)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>#9 Remaclus (Sept 3)</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Representation: </b> with a wolf nearby</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Slavering, watching his every move, ready to pounce at any minute …</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Actually, the wolf was really just Remaclus’s companion. Couldn’t find any more how that actually came about … but there you have it.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBtaj8vaSDVHl37AsK-gjXxx7gQF4Yg0c3RFH2Ar4tiG1oHlgbJdHHghhWViAmQTucGH7GC0CZuHpiej-0zQ_mWLRpmuyyKiwu13tvOPQa4rLA42uGbjBlt8ozlUOehKh8tloDh81hWyI/s1600/remaclus.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBtaj8vaSDVHl37AsK-gjXxx7gQF4Yg0c3RFH2Ar4tiG1oHlgbJdHHghhWViAmQTucGH7GC0CZuHpiej-0zQ_mWLRpmuyyKiwu13tvOPQa4rLA42uGbjBlt8ozlUOehKh8tloDh81hWyI/s400/remaclus.jpg" width="113" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">A really small, totally non-threatening wolf, mind you …</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Remaclus himself was quite a busy guy. Raised in the Aquitanian court, he helped start the famous French monasteries of Malmedy, Stavelot, and Solignac. He was also a bishop, an advisor to kings, and mentor to several other saints as well.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>#8 Gideon the Judge (Sept 1)</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Representation: </b> man wringing dew out of a fleece</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Sure, why not? The guy was caught in a rainstorm, right? I mean, who hasn’t had to wring out their fleece before?</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Another OT saint. He was one of those guys that God chose to get the Israelites back on track when they went a little astray. And part of that involved defeating another of the their many enemies – in this case, the Midianites – on the field of battle. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Now, here’s the story about that fleece:</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Gideon said to God, “If indeed you are going to save Israel through me, as you promised, I am putting this woolen fleece on the threshing floor. If dew comes on the fleece alone, while all the ground is dry, I shall know that you will save Israel through me, as you promised.”</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">That is what took place. Early the next morning he wrung the dew from the fleece, squeezing out of it a bowlful of water. Gideon then said to God, “Do not be angry with me if I speak once more. Let me make just one more test with the fleece. Let the fleece alone be dry, but let there be dew on all the ground.” That night God did so; the fleece alone was dry, but there was dew on all the ground.</span><br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">So, I stand corrected. That said, I’m not sure I follow it all, but there you go. </span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhs3bSXCKXbweZaRZ1JdOxh57vKGVr68caj4Mq4W35gsK9-gT8XFTvUKj46lOEKgRJ6c4jZ5IOesdEEGzde0TLLNpsFq0QeAx1YHTLIwfhFQgnj6XMymGBLmncbihqH7sF9ttS1Hu9g9Uc/s1600/gideon.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhs3bSXCKXbweZaRZ1JdOxh57vKGVr68caj4Mq4W35gsK9-gT8XFTvUKj46lOEKgRJ6c4jZ5IOesdEEGzde0TLLNpsFq0QeAx1YHTLIwfhFQgnj6XMymGBLmncbihqH7sF9ttS1Hu9g9Uc/s320/gideon.jpg" width="220" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">He’s also famous for his trumpet</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>#7 Castor of Apt (Sept 2)</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Who? What? Did you say Aptor of Cast? Cast of Aptor? Apt of Castor? Castor of Aptor?</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">So, this guy was a Frenchman who lived in the 3rd & 4th Centuries. Starting out rather secularly – he was a lawyer and was married – he would later become a bishop (with his wife becoming a nun).</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">What’s interesting about this guy, however, is that doing a Google search on him brings up things like the following:</span><br />
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<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Apartments for Rent in Castor, Philadelphia, PA</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Oxford Circle/ Castor, PA Apartments for Rent</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Castor Gardens Apartments for Rent | Philadelphia, PA</span></li>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">In fact, only 3 of the top 10 search have anything to do with the saint.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUFSmf9rLZP-gUwz6atULEs7HQwE0KUCrUcmzsWhGoVU3BOwvXqlErbFLkbRYr-YyMJaze2Y7ABQNgyM9x9XFHO2jgapQ_Yd1HJU_7UduCzuIZiQCiX0vBRvbmlNbsMok5oUzV6rDtPKM/s1600/castor.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="212" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUFSmf9rLZP-gUwz6atULEs7HQwE0KUCrUcmzsWhGoVU3BOwvXqlErbFLkbRYr-YyMJaze2Y7ABQNgyM9x9XFHO2jgapQ_Yd1HJU_7UduCzuIZiQCiX0vBRvbmlNbsMok5oUzV6rDtPKM/s320/castor.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I think it’s probably the one above the dry cleaners</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>#6 Cloud (Sept 7)</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Know anybody named Cloud? Any <i>guys </i>named Cloud?</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I didn’t think so. At the same time, you’ve probably heard of St. Cloud, the city in Minnesota. You may also be familiar with a town in Florida, as well as a swanky suburb of Paris, with the same name. And, yes, all of them were named after our guy. And, yes, he is indeed a guy.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Cloud – who is also known as Clodoald, Cloudus, and Clodoaldus – was a grandson of Clovis, king of the Franks, as well as a son of Chlodomer, king of Orleans. And if those aren’t enough names beginning with “cl” for you, Cloud’s story also includes additional relatives with names like Clotilde, Clodomir, and Clotaire.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Cloud actually came to the church by fleeing from all these people. Turns out – as often happened with royals in the Middle Ages – these folks were all at each others’ throats. To escape them and their machinations, Cloud first became a hermit, in Provence. He eventually returned to Paris when the coast was clear. Where he hung out there would eventually become that swanky suburb.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Almost forgot … In addition to being patron of all these different places, Cloud is also patron <i>for </i>nail markers and <i>against </i>carbuncles.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXvQ1rasrrV-Z4qcoBF91E6rr-5tPTOOtXfrUP57G5THd3vqoPamtpURRHZhXMKTlxzTgBTl4XW0P4d7UZ5Of4qxUFjF0Sqt37PuKq_Xh7kIF1nSkUVmVZ30S6QymsO0UsVOkCCj5rulA/s1600/cloud.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXvQ1rasrrV-Z4qcoBF91E6rr-5tPTOOtXfrUP57G5THd3vqoPamtpURRHZhXMKTlxzTgBTl4XW0P4d7UZ5Of4qxUFjF0Sqt37PuKq_Xh7kIF1nSkUVmVZ30S6QymsO0UsVOkCCj5rulA/s320/cloud.jpg" width="255" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">6.5 / 10 on IMDb</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>#5 Giles (Sept 1)</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Patronage: </b>noctiphobia</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">If I told you all that meant “fear of the dark,” would it make a little more sense? </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Now, as for why Giles can be invoked for that? I’m afraid I haven’t a clue.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Born in Greece in the 7th Century, Giles moved to France to become a hermit. <i>His </i>animal companion just so happened to be a deer. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">St. Giles was also one of the Fourteen Holy Helpers. I haven’t talked about these folks before, but they were a group of saints, assembled in the Middle Ages, who were particularly good at interceding for you with your problems. Giles was known in particular for working wonders with plague, but was also helpful for good confessions, cripples, beggars, blacksmiths, childhood fears, convulsions, and depression. Busy guy!</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPHWb1YJJWyXGTgpQcwZArP_-OGoECH6OW6eqpEvt9ERfVUrAjzu8UTCUva9lf5yBtOJmd0yhRczKIDj2qgbS83C1olY_46CsILY6qKoqHZ8twK6phpvmlnihT4dG6xl_uS4JJdO8_0No/s1600/giles.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPHWb1YJJWyXGTgpQcwZArP_-OGoECH6OW6eqpEvt9ERfVUrAjzu8UTCUva9lf5yBtOJmd0yhRczKIDj2qgbS83C1olY_46CsILY6qKoqHZ8twK6phpvmlnihT4dG6xl_uS4JJdO8_0No/s320/giles.jpg" width="192" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">St. Giles and his companion animal</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>#4 Ida of Herzfeld (Sept 4)99</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Representation: </b> filling a tomb with food for the poor</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Man, couldn’t she have just used a cooler?</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Born a countess, Ida would later become a duchess, and then a very rich widow. It was at this point that she devoted herself to the poor. And she did, in fact, fill up that coffin – every day – with food for them. She also built some churches and, in general, lived a pious life.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">She is a patron saint for both brides and widows. She’s typically portrayed holding a church, with a dove over her head, or with a deer.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiq4fZbzy4yoTGRDET5LS1KbH7wqlpnZYjaNi6qdzHae_1w0yDawMjmL6LQPxfq5sRJPj06AiGkdyiMYj1GQghtnnH3dAtpqS6sJ8uL7X9CCB84aMrt31RB27qr00yP2-MHNYb0Gh6O6tQ/s1600/ida.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="220" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiq4fZbzy4yoTGRDET5LS1KbH7wqlpnZYjaNi6qdzHae_1w0yDawMjmL6LQPxfq5sRJPj06AiGkdyiMYj1GQghtnnH3dAtpqS6sJ8uL7X9CCB84aMrt31RB27qr00yP2-MHNYb0Gh6O6tQ/s320/ida.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Ida with <i>her </i>companion animal</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>#3 Agricola of Avignon (Sept 2)</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Patronage: </b> storks</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Now, the only question here is whether Agricola is for or against them.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I’m afraid catholicsaints.info is a little equivocal on the matter:</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">His blessing ended an invasion of storks, leading to his patronage of them, and his emblem in art.</span><br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">You can also count on Agricola for the following:</span><br />
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<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Against misfortune</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Against plague epidemics</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Avignon, France</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">For rain</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">For good weather</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">For good harvests</span></li>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The son of a saint, Agricola would become a senator, monk, priest, and bishop. He lived in the 600s.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxio0qY9ReP2nn3grb9A3mr7t9dfWV9-_0eyEx_lvjjnWulcsPfBV6PpgqBWfcqg3JI6PHG9gejloO8aox5olKDvvqH7j_xUQZM2jdUzopjqNcHMj8R2braAYln2LoE4jJMOQnywMxZ2k/s1600/agricola.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxio0qY9ReP2nn3grb9A3mr7t9dfWV9-_0eyEx_lvjjnWulcsPfBV6PpgqBWfcqg3JI6PHG9gejloO8aox5olKDvvqH7j_xUQZM2jdUzopjqNcHMj8R2braAYln2LoE4jJMOQnywMxZ2k/s320/agricola.jpg" width="209" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Oddly, I couldn’t find any images of his “with storks”</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>#2 Regulus of Rheims (Sept 3)</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Representation: </b> bishop telling the frogs to keep silence while he preaches</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Now, what I want to know is whether they obeyed him or not.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Interestingly, this isn’t the only odd representation for this fellow. I’ve also got him down for:</span><br />
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<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Bishop with a fountain springing from his tears</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Bishop holding a staff and following his own funeral procession</span></li>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Which is all rather interesting, as there doesn’t seem to be much more out there about him. Apart from these representations, all I’ve got him down for is: 600s, archbishop, monastic founder …</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>#1 Magnus of Fussen (Sept 6) </b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Patronage: </b>caterpillars</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I’m thinking this is <i>against </i>caterpillars, but you never really know, do you?</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">However that may be, I’m giving Magnus extra points for that wonderful name. Fussen’s in Germany, by the way – in Bavaria, right on the border with Austria. It looks like a lovely place – on a beautiful blue river, with plenty of picturesque mountains surrounding it.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">So, what was Magnus doing there? Well, how about founding the Benedictine monastery nearby? Yup, all the way back in the 7th Century. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Everything else about Magnus appears to be a tad on the fantastic side and – oddly – typically involves animals. For example, we’ve got tales of Magnus expelling snakes and dragons. In one version of the latter, “he spared an infant dragon who helped local farmers by hunting rats, mice and other crop-damaging vermin.” I think this one might be my favorite though:</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">While on a walk in the woods near the monastery, he encountered a bear who showed him a vein of iron ore; he gave the bear some cake. The bear followed Magnus back to the abbey where the saint rounded up some tools and monks; the bear then led them all to several other iron ore sources in the nearby mountains, thus helping found the area’s most lucrative industry. (catholicsaints.info)</span><br /></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjytLEDka3TVjmAGCfmAQhgkfgzXLw61KODf3wJvAThyphenhyphenKB5i-vkmny9zU-Wka9y-tccN-JnHCvgNu4OuwU4UnLzX1Tny3N5GSyibf1UkiDsG8fI6-lH_xbz_K-BvT2DmCorm_efPUKUQYY/s1600/magnus.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjytLEDka3TVjmAGCfmAQhgkfgzXLw61KODf3wJvAThyphenhyphenKB5i-vkmny9zU-Wka9y-tccN-JnHCvgNu4OuwU4UnLzX1Tny3N5GSyibf1UkiDsG8fI6-lH_xbz_K-BvT2DmCorm_efPUKUQYY/s1600/magnus.jpg" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Looks like he wrestled alligators as well</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">(Oh, wait, I guess that’s a dragon)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Honorable Mention</b></span><br />
<ul>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Brocard</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Hereswitha</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Laetus of Dax</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Victorious</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Anselm of Anchen</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Romulus of Rome</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Herman of Heidelberg </span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Elpidius the Cappadocian</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Zeno of Armenia</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Dinooth</span></li>
</ul>
Cliffhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12109085007044124766noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4997980458204946458.post-59821144995119450752016-08-22T17:11:00.003-07:002016-08-22T17:20:18.079-07:00August 22-31<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">It’s a pretty big week this week. We’ve got Bartholomew (the apostle), Rose of Lima, Augustine, his mother St. Monica, the Beheading of John the Baptist, and the Queenship of Mary.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#10 Bartholomew the Apostle (Aug 24)</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Representation: </b> elderly man holding a tanner's knife and a human skin</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">God, I hope that’s not Bartholomew’s.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Unfortunately, that is indeed the way this poor fellow was martyred. Seems like he was also beheaded, so at least we’re spared that.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmlxhhWpP72bks-1JBH4pfDCwfasgC4wbAezkctjcOrAxe43sBJ7dGMGXWeUaJGBPv-r3kEgUmjf1ONvcDRfczRYw1TLHdb749JtPXZ4uM9Ghg90wP8QRIAvwKeT0aMyMQugEAOKhrvVs/s1600/bart.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmlxhhWpP72bks-1JBH4pfDCwfasgC4wbAezkctjcOrAxe43sBJ7dGMGXWeUaJGBPv-r3kEgUmjf1ONvcDRfczRYw1TLHdb749JtPXZ4uM9Ghg90wP8QRIAvwKeT0aMyMQugEAOKhrvVs/s320/bart.jpg" width="222" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">From the Sistine Chapel Ceiling</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">(the face on the skin is actually Michelangelo’s)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">We know surprisingly little about this guy. There are a couple of mentions in the NT, plus some legends about his going very far afield – Egypt, Iran, Armenia, and India – to preach the gospel.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">By the way, Bartholomew also has several interesting patronages, including Florentine salt merchants, whiteners, the Aeolian Islands, and “against twitching.”</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#9 Eutychius of Troas (Aug 24)</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Eutychius was a student of St. Paul. In fact, Eutychius may have been the young man that Paul raised from the dead. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Of course, the poor lad had originally fallen asleep listening to Paul drone on, then fell out of a window from three stories up. So, I guess Paul kind of owed it to him.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Interestingly, Eutychius come from the Greek for “fortunate.” I guess that applies to the second part of the story, and not the first.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Jonathan Swift once referenced Eutychius in relation to the poor state of preaching in his time, “whereby preachers 'may exceed St. Paul in the art of setting men to sleep, [but] do extremely fall short of him in the working of miracles.”</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#8 Louis IX (Aug 25)</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Patronage: </b>French monarchs</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Not a very large group, mind …</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Louis was indeed a king of France himself. He ruled for almost 25 years in the 13th Century.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">He accomplished quite a bit during his reign, both secularly and spiritually. As for the former, he annexed Normandy and Provence, defeated the English, supported the arts, established the Sorbonne, and reformed the judicial system. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">As for the latter, perhaps his biggest accomplishment was leading a couple of Crusades. He would, in fact, die overseas on Crusade #8. Personally, he was very devout, and had a special devotion to the poor.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">He’s also a man of many patronages, including haberdashers, button makers, and hairdressers. St. Louis, MO is named after him as well.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#7 Augustine of Hippo (Aug 28)</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I know this guy is one of the better known saints out there. That said, that “of Hippo” always got me.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Hippo was actually a town in what is now Algeria. It’s where Augustine was ordained, made bishop, and died.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Augustine might be most well-known for his <i>Confessions</i>, probably the original conversion story, as well as the first modern autobiography. His theological and philosophical writings were enormously influential.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">A modern interpretation</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#6 Levkadia Herasymiv (Aug 26)</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">No, I didn’t just put elbow on the keyboard. This is actually this saint’s name.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Levkadia is a modern saint (she’s actually a Blessed), one of the Martyrs Killed Under Communist Regimes in Eastern Europe. She was a Greek Catholic, and was born in 1911, in the Ukraine. She took her vows in 1933, survived World War II, and was then arrested by the NKVD in 1951. She died a year later in a Siberian gulag from overwork and the TB she had contacted there.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#5 Genesius of Rome (Aug 25)</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Patronage:</b> comedians</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Last week, we featured Lawrence of Rome, another patron saint for comedians. Honestly, how many patrons do these guys need?</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Well, catholicsaints.info informs me that there’s one other, St. Vitus. So, basically, this blog’s got ‘em all covered.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The story behind Genesius’s patronage might be the most interesting one though. Genesius actually <i>was </i>a comedian. In fact, he had his conversion experience while in the middle of a play that mocked Christianity – right in front of the Emperor Diocletian.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Genesius actually has no shortage of interesting patronages. In addition to comedians, he’s also looking out for:</span><br />
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<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Clowns</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Converts</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Dancers</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Epileptics</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Lawyers</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Magicians</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Musicians</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Printers</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Stenographers</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Torture victims</span></li>
</ul>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#4 Genesius of Arles (Aug 25)</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Patronage: </b> against scurf</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Hmm, I wonder what the medical billing code is for that?</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Well, actually, I do know that. “Scurf” is just an old-fashioned way of saying “dandruff.” And the code for that is ICD-10-CM. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">So, another Genesius, huh? This one, though, is from the south of France. The two did, however, live around the same time.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">In fact, the two may have been majorly confused together. Now, Genesius of Arles was a court notary. And that may explain Genesius of Rome’s patronage of lawyers, printers, and stenographers. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">GofA’s story is pretty good too:</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">When on a certain day he found himself called upon to begin transcribing the proclamation of an imperial edict mandating the persecution of Christians, Genesius could not bring himself to record the offensive words against his faith. Rising from his seat, he hurled down his wax tablet before the judge and immediately resigned. (catholic.org)</span><br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The scurf? Don’t really know where that comes from, I’m afraid.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">This could be GofA</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">(Google Images seems to mix them up majorly as well)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#3 Fiacre (Aug 30)</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Patronage: </b> costermongers</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Well, someone who mongers costers, of course. Why do you ask?</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">What’s a costermonger, really? It’s just someone who sold things from a cart. Simple as that.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Now, why is Fiacre their patron? I really haven’t a clue.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I do know that Fiacre was an Irishman, born in the 7th Century. He later moved to France, where he lived as a hermit, and would subsequently die and be buried.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">He was a famous herbalist, which explains why he’s patron saint of gardeners and florists. He was also famous for curing people by the laying on of hands, which explains why you can invoke him against the following:</span><br />
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<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Blindness</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Fever</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Hemorrhoids</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Kidney stones</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Sterility</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Tumors</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">VD</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Worms</span></li>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">There are also plenty of opportunities to purchase an effigy of him as your very own garden gnome.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#2 Tydfil (Aug 23)</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Isn’t that like something you take for a headache?</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Now, would it surprise you that Tydfil is Welsh? No? Well, would it surprise you that Tydfil was a girl? Yup. Poor thing.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">We don’t really know that much about her other than that she was Welsh, was the daughter of a Welsh king, started her own little monastic community, and was martyred by some pagans. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">She’s the namesake of a Welsh Town, Merthyr Tydfil, where there is a shopping center named after her. The town, which means “martyrdom site of Tydfil,” actually has just slightly over 60,000 inhabitants. It was once the largest town in all of Wales, and was formerly known for its ironworks. In more recent times, Merthyr (as it is usually called) made the news where the unique properties of Viagra (originally, a treatment for angina) were discovered. Laura Ashley, the fashion designer, is from there.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Old, abandoned factory, Merthyr Tydfil</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#1 Eufrasia of the Sacred Heart of Jesus Eluvathingal (Aug 29)</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Honestly, I swear I did not make this one up.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Back to modern times with this one. Eufrasia was born in 1870, in India. She became a nun, experienced visions and miraculous healings, and was a very effective Mother Superior. She was known as the “Praying Mother” (makes sense) and the “Mobile Tabernacle” (maybe not so much). </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Plus, she has her own website:</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">http://euphrasia.in/</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Honorable Mention</b></span><br />
<ul>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Pandwyna</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Secundus the Theban</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Rumwold the Prince</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Carpophorus</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Malrubius of Merns</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Hunegund of Homblieres</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Ludovicus Baba</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Buenaventura Gabika-Etxebarria Gerrikabeitia</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Ptolemy of Nepi</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Louis-Wulphy Huppy (God, I love this one)</span></li>
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Cliffhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12109085007044124766noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4997980458204946458.post-75707816935287050452016-08-15T18:15:00.001-07:002016-08-15T18:30:14.588-07:00August 15-21<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">This week features a holy day of obligation, the Assumption. That’s when Mary was bodily taken up into heaven, much like Jesus (and the only two – that I know of at least – to have done that). </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#10 Helena (Aug 18)</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Patronage: </b> nail smiths</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I don’t know about you, but I really can’t recall ever knowing any real nail smiths.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Helena was a Roman empress during the 3rd and 4th Century. In fact, she was the mother of Constantine, the first Christian emperor. It’s not certain how much influence she had on him though.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Her biggest claim to fame appears to be finding the True Cross on a pilgrimage she made to the Holy Land. And that’s what’s behind that rather odd patronage.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Helena has been the namesake for a remote island in the Atlantic (where Napoleon was held), an Evelyn Waugh novel, and a Napa Valley winery.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">In case your Latin’s a little rusty, that’s her head</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#9 Bernard of Clairvaux (Aug 20)</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Patronage: </b> wax melters</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Can’t recall knowing any wax melters either, for that matter.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Bernard’s another fairly well-known saint. He was a monastic reformer, advisor to kings, crusade organizer, schism ender, Albigensian fighter, papal advisor, and Doctor of the Church. He was also born a French noble, and was in fact the brother of <a href="http://reallystrangesaints.blogspot.com/2016/02/february-8-14.html">Humbelline of Jully</a> (remember her?).</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Oh, the wax bit? That probably comes from Bernard’s being a beekeeper. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Not that that helps to explain what a wax melter is though. Now, when I Google that particular phrase, I do get plenty of hits for a machine that candle makers use. The patronage, however, seems to imply some sort of occupation. Interestingly, I get only one hit that combines “wax melter” and “occupation” – and that’s the page where I got that odd patronage from in the first place!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The dog is actually not named after him, but after St. Bernard Pass, in the Alps</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">(That quote is from Bernard, though, and basically means, “Love me, love my dog.”)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#8 Louis of Toulouse (Aug 19)</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Representation: </b>boy bishop</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Ditto for boy bishops.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Well, if you consider someone who’s 23 years old a boy, that is. Yup, that’s when Louis was made bishop. Interestingly, his episcopacy would only last 6 months, with the young lad passing away most likely of typhus. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">This is as boyish as I could find</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Prior to his being made bishop, Louis was born a royal and actually would have become king. (He renounced all claims to the House of Anjou when he became a Franciscan.) He also spent 6 of his short 23 years as a hostage.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">After sainthood, he became the namesake of San Luis Obispo, CA (obispo means “bishop” <i>en espanol</i>).</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#7 Zacchaeus the Publican (Aug 20)</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Likewise on the publicans. Wait a minute … Isn’t that just a fancy way to say “barkeep”?</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Actually, it is. In our case, however, we’re going to have to go with definition 2: “(in ancient Roman and biblical times) a collector of taxes” (dictionary.com).</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Zacchaeus’s is actually one of my favorite New Testament stories. He was the little guy who climbed a tree to get a glimpse of Jesus. The crowd was shocked (tax collectors were as unpopular then as they are now) when Jesus stopped, addressed Zacchaeus, and invited himself to Zacchaeus’s house. Note that that’s Zacchaeus’s house, and not his pub.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">From bigbibletown.com</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#6 Drithelm (Aug 17)</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Nor have I made the acquaintance of any Drithelms over the years.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Drithlem may have been the first recorded instance of the life after death phenomenon. Here’s how catholic.org describes it:</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Drithelm, of Northumbria, England, was living a virtuous life as a husband and father when he fell gravely ill. On the morning after he was thought to have died, as his family mourned beside his bed, Drithelm suddenly sat up, alive and well. Most of those present fled in terror, but his wife, "who loved him more dearly," remained. To her he declared that he had been returned to life to live thereafter very differently.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Drithelm divulged that before coming back to life he had experienced a vision of purgatory and the gates of heaven and hell. His account of the souls in purgatory that were nearly ready to enter heaven (as retold by Saint Bede) is particularly heartening. They appeared as joyful young people, clothed in white robes, sitting in a "very broad and pleasant meadow" flooded with light and fragrant with "the scent of spring flowers."</span><br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Drithelm would subsequently enter a monastery, where he lived as a hermit and was famous for many extreme forms of penance.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">"Detmold is a flaxen-haired, taciturn mage from Ban Ard. He and his brother, Drithelm, were in the service of King Esterad of Kovir. During the Thanedd coup, ..." (The Official Wicher Wiki)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#5 Bruno Zembol (Aug 21)</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Okay, this one is just funny.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The name, I mean. Bruno’s story is not funny at all. He was one of many Catholic clergy who were sent by the Nazis to the concentration camps during WWII. He was a Polish monk.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#4 Agapitus the Martyr (Aug 18)</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Representation: </b> young man hanging upside down over a fire</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Now, those are some pretty imaginative torturers, let me tell ya.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Interestingly, though, Agapitus wasn’t the only saint to go this way. We’ve also got <a href="http://reallystrangesaints.blogspot.com/2016/05/may-15-21.html">Venantius of Camerino</a>.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Agapitus lived in Rome during the 3rd Century. Found out as a Christian, he was scourged, starved, thrown to wild animals (they ignored him), had live coals dumped on top of his head, was hung upside down over a fire, had boiling water poured on him, had his teeth knocked out, and – finally – was beheaded. Oh, and he was only 15.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#3 Roch (Aug 16)</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Representation: </b> pilgrim with a dog carrying a loaf of bread in its mouth</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Nor is Roch the first saint to have a dog fetch him stuff. In fact, I’ve got <a href="http://reallystrangesaints.blogspot.com/2016/08/august-8-14.html">St. Benedict</a> down for having his pooch carry a torch for him (in a literal way, mind you).</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Roch was born the son of the governor of the French town of Montpelier, at the start of the 14th Century. He came into this world with a very distinct cross-shaped birthmark.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">When his parents died when Roch was 20, he gave everything to the poor, and became a penniless pilgrim to Rome. Along the way, he came to a town that was experiencing an epidemic of the plague, stopping his pilgrimage to minister to the many plague victims.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Not too surprisingly, Roch contracted the plague himself, and was then unceremoniously banned from the town. He went off to die in the forest, but was kept alive by a spring that miraculously sprang up, as well as dog that brought him food.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">He miraculously survived the plague, then set about to return to Montpellier. There, he was falsely arrested as a spy, was too humble to claim his noble lineage, and subsequently died in captivity. Upon his death, however, he was identified by his birthmark. At that point, he was venerated by the townsfolk and miracles attributable to him started happening right and left.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">He’s usually depicted showing off a little leg</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">(and typically pointing to some of his plague sores)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#2 Jacobo Kyushei Gorobioye Tomonaga (Aug 17)</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">So, we’ve got Italian for the first name, Japanese for the second, Ethiopian for the third, and Samoan for the fourth?</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Jacobo was actually Japanese. After travelling to the Philippines to become ordained, he returned to Japan, was found out, and was tortured and killed. </span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAMHEyWowc9jQMEUWXSAk-dr8xr3aKz5o5X6V4_X1g8h9Ia6mwx0UZiOPKE6QxBmjluy3ZM91CGF50hPXtrfY-hCM1lMRi0NS8G7UwVvOUOjIDfKe7jd0nScLnybmpnQsnScK5raXgw7M/s1600/jake.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="265" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAMHEyWowc9jQMEUWXSAk-dr8xr3aKz5o5X6V4_X1g8h9Ia6mwx0UZiOPKE6QxBmjluy3ZM91CGF50hPXtrfY-hCM1lMRi0NS8G7UwVvOUOjIDfKe7jd0nScLnybmpnQsnScK5raXgw7M/s320/jake.png" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">From the very odd site vipfaq.com</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">By the way, he’s also known as Jacobo Kyushei Gorobioye Tomonaga de Santa Maria. That’s 42 characters – possibly a new world record!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#1 Mamas (Aug 17)</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">He was a real mama’s boy!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Sorry. He actually was a boy though. Also known as Mammes of Caesarea, Mamas was – like Agapitus – only 15 when he was martyred. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Mamas’s semi-legendary status has him variously down for:</span><br />
<ul>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Being tortured personally by the Emperor Aurelian</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Being freed from jail by an angel</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Hiding in a cave in Israel / Cyprus</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Befriending / riding a lion</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Being killed by being stabbed with a trident / eaten by lions</span></li>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjq32_-GDcCQcEHXs3LWDXDkfVUj6aqKo7FGshegr8_LN20oYpff25K8oju_ltdGUlL7aHplt9voyPb8B_xGm25ScVfTN2jp6jn3IJOjggBMK3CgxKo7eiHvvOODanl9BN1WwrJDhhjtjM/s1600/mama.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjq32_-GDcCQcEHXs3LWDXDkfVUj6aqKo7FGshegr8_LN20oYpff25K8oju_ltdGUlL7aHplt9voyPb8B_xGm25ScVfTN2jp6jn3IJOjggBMK3CgxKo7eiHvvOODanl9BN1WwrJDhhjtjM/s320/mama.jpg" width="182" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">That has to be the worst depiction of a lion I’ve ever seen</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Honorable Mention</b></span><br />
<ul>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Myron of Cyzicus</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Amor of Amorbach</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Firminus of Metz</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Gobert of Apremont</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Anastasius Cornicularius</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Hyacinth Odrovaz</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Euprepius of Verona</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Frambaldo</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Porphyrius of Palestrina</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Burchard of Worms</span></li>
</ul>
Cliffhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12109085007044124766noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4997980458204946458.post-83457086717229440202016-08-09T15:58:00.001-07:002016-08-09T16:44:42.646-07:00August 8-14<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">This week actually features three of my favorite saints – Clare (best friends with Francis of Assisi), Maximilian Kolbe (a Holocaust victim), and Edith Stein (ditto and also a convert from Judaism). Clare’s the only one who made the list however – for a rather surprising patronage (see below).</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>#10 Alexander the Charcoal Burner (Aug 11)</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Not sure what exactly’s so funny about this one, but it just really struck me.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">If you think about it for a second, though, this is just a guy whose occupation was making charcoal. I guess I just had an image of some dude in the backyard with his Weber and a little Kingsford …</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Alexander was a 3rd Century Greek. Well-born and well educated, he gave it all up to follow Christ, picking one of the lowliest occupations he could imagine. Indeed, catholicsaints.info says that Alexander was “noted for being exceptionally ragged and filthy.”</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">That didn’t, however, stop a council from picking him as their bishop. Turns out they had been given directions to “ignore outward appearance, and choose the most spiritual person among them.” When Alexander was dragged in front of the council as something of a joke, he managed to impress them with his knowledge and spirituality.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsDD5TIgHJY9M4fzoZ1rStiB0GSdj8IstIV73Q7uz-Ywl8OheitxjxC7-U3VENBakfPfGOqC6q16TJY-bugvoIztDYdAfgVdL5vOX4VAm9lmX6n4jlzXvt1dMQRfeP-q0XIJAujdJTLcQ/s1600/al.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsDD5TIgHJY9M4fzoZ1rStiB0GSdj8IstIV73Q7uz-Ywl8OheitxjxC7-U3VENBakfPfGOqC6q16TJY-bugvoIztDYdAfgVdL5vOX4VAm9lmX6n4jlzXvt1dMQRfeP-q0XIJAujdJTLcQ/s320/al.jpg" width="229" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">"Here, let's trade hats"</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>#9 Werenfridus (Aug 14)</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I really like the name on this one, but also think this guy should get some points for his various patronages:</span><br />
<ul>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Against gout</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Against stiff joints</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Vegetable gardeners</span></li>
</ul>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">He’s also got some pretty interesting representations as well:</span><br />
<ul>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Priest vested for Mass holding a ship with a coffin in it</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Dead priest laid in a ship</span></li>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">As for those representations, turns out he was buried in one Dutch town then had his coffin float down an offshoot of the Rhine to another Dutch town where he resides to this day. </span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-PkJRK9EnBAPQfNmnDbExs5D5-PKAso3fdbS-PNv4F0Bf6NGnfdqw_Y6PqoYePI1-bfDYpOyNKtVHN1G1-qvWfTWAfe2LUzTQ1Ge2dgENp0IXbPt4EPZeXrly2iUoKUnvDL0hl1SF87I/s1600/frid.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-PkJRK9EnBAPQfNmnDbExs5D5-PKAso3fdbS-PNv4F0Bf6NGnfdqw_Y6PqoYePI1-bfDYpOyNKtVHN1G1-qvWfTWAfe2LUzTQ1Ge2dgENp0IXbPt4EPZeXrly2iUoKUnvDL0hl1SF87I/s320/frid.jpg" width="174" /></a></div>
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"Do you like my boat?"</div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>#8 Concordia of Rome (Aug 13)</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Patronage: </b> wet nurses</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">There’s a job description you don’t hear too much of these days. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">In fact, I’m not sure it actually fits Concordia all that well either. I have her down as a “foster mother” for another saint, Hippolytus. Now, “wet nurse” and “foster mother” might actually have been the same thing back in the day. If so, though, why not make Concordia patron saint for both wet nurses and foster mothers?</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjw61yL8AioZm_ditM__MJPHjon_Z5lqnnyu5454t-p8TQqNoEOvWGZWj_WQo_Xa7A39WAIPIBLBe9-Xm3cD8kmLOr_oxWVbQ4O5kkB5II2qfdNB_BUc81bfnzQbZJLxnjgyheGWyaml78/s1600/conc.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjw61yL8AioZm_ditM__MJPHjon_Z5lqnnyu5454t-p8TQqNoEOvWGZWj_WQo_Xa7A39WAIPIBLBe9-Xm3cD8kmLOr_oxWVbQ4O5kkB5II2qfdNB_BUc81bfnzQbZJLxnjgyheGWyaml78/s320/conc.jpg" width="176" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Here’s everything you need to know about Concordia:</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Saint Concordia was the foster mother of St Hippolytus, and she was whipped with olive branches before being executed. Her body was thrown in an unclean place, but was later recovered by Sts Irenaeus and Abundius. She was then buried beside St Hippolytus. (Orthodox Church in America)</span><br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>#7 Radegunde (Aug 13)</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Patronage: </b>against scabies</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I don’t know what it is, but it sure sounds like something I would never want to get.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">And I was right! Here, let Wikipedia explain:</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Scabies, known as the seven-year itch, is a contagious skin infestation by the mite <i>Sarcoptes scabiei</i>. The most common symptoms are severe itchiness and a pimple-like rash.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Radegunde? She was a 6th Century German royal. Forcibly married to some barely Christian French low-life. she would leave him to became a nun and abbess.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbf6b03ANVIys4zHhJjzczs1ucp6KrR9p35EPNqymqBrKCQpYwawVv35NfJXkPGioRp7_mjK1llhlg-zfhEiyQ7ReKBaoXWw6XUwpMOTbVYgt3gWgDZldZwwilnucubM6P8Qi58ZznyaQ/s1600/rad.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbf6b03ANVIys4zHhJjzczs1ucp6KrR9p35EPNqymqBrKCQpYwawVv35NfJXkPGioRp7_mjK1llhlg-zfhEiyQ7ReKBaoXWw6XUwpMOTbVYgt3gWgDZldZwwilnucubM6P8Qi58ZznyaQ/s1600/rad.jpg" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I’m surprised she’s not invoked against strabismus as well </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The really great thing about Radegund’s bio, though, are all the wonderfully odd Anglo-Saxon names it contains, including:</span><br />
<ul>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Ingund</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Aregund</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Chunsina</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Clothar</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Chlodomer</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Berthachar</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Baderic</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Theuderic</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Theudebald</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Hermanfrid</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Wuldetrada</span></li>
</ul>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>#6 Dominic de Guzman (Aug 8)</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Representation: </b> dog with a torch in its mouth</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Some dogs get their masters their slippers. Dominic’s, on the other hand …</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjAQxKMCjYAPF0eIw8yI3xgd1xLGb1piCBg8AIue_OVEqm3ip4LSa_j8pEI-F4boB3ncWAQfVsYnNaWGogGdl5ESGVvlhZWZ08sCVYVtfLs0lXp8-48Q4BCufeDW6LwHND5UqUmj6jO0I/s1600/dom.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjAQxKMCjYAPF0eIw8yI3xgd1xLGb1piCBg8AIue_OVEqm3ip4LSa_j8pEI-F4boB3ncWAQfVsYnNaWGogGdl5ESGVvlhZWZ08sCVYVtfLs0lXp8-48Q4BCufeDW6LwHND5UqUmj6jO0I/s320/dom.jpg" width="184" /></a></div>
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This is right before the dog set the tablecloth on fire</div>
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and they ended up on YouTube</div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">St. Dominic’s kind of a biggie. He started the Dominican Order, which today number over 6,000. He’s also the patron saint of Europe, invented the rosary (maybe), and raised four people from the dead.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The dog? Here’s what catholicsaints.info has to say about that:</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">While pregnant, Blessed Joan [his mother] had a vision that her unborn child was a dog who would set the world on fire with a torch it carried in its mouth; a dog with a torch in its mouth became a symbol for the Order which he founded.</span><br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>#5 Lawrence of Rome (Aug 10)</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Patronage: </b> comedians</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">So, this saint walks into a bar …</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Lawrence was a Roman deacon and was responsible for the papal treasury, including alms-giving. He was martyred in the 3rd Century during the persecution of the Emperor Valerian.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">That martyrdom was particularly gruesome, with Lawrence tied to a large iron grill that was lowered over some live coals. After cooking there for awhile, Lawrence uttered the immortal line, “Turn me over. I’m done on this side.”</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">And that is why Lawrence of Rome is the patron saint of comedians. Honestly, I couldn’t make this stuff up.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHa6kTZSD5tR6RcPHmKvCoGWKghJDPRVia2XOfSNv0pi2oU2LY9uEDyQchQD2iYFxG4-fI3qDLn5d0-JLyTRigsg4CiCUdQHqM0Uk2sKS9zHqaUkJiZ8DrV1x5NyjXpfxpnRaI_Sf5rig/s1600/larry.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHa6kTZSD5tR6RcPHmKvCoGWKghJDPRVia2XOfSNv0pi2oU2LY9uEDyQchQD2iYFxG4-fI3qDLn5d0-JLyTRigsg4CiCUdQHqM0Uk2sKS9zHqaUkJiZ8DrV1x5NyjXpfxpnRaI_Sf5rig/s1600/larry.jpg" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">"I'll be here all week, folks."</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>#4 Clare of Assisi (Aug 11)</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Patronage: </b>television writers</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">When Clare of Assisi first came to work for EWTN, the studios were located in Assisi. In fact, that’s where she met Francis, who was working as an assistant executive producer at the time …</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3bkUS_XBFaMhAWqgW6NqOkuuRif9rESTgrdmQXx7UQT2yew5dotEnLY3uz1s4_HCV38h7eAK4DYUPwHdysnNEzouitJqTq8Z2asyOrkQqVWP1kHhTJ2FrYHuSsdfYO28Bd4LDWOE8RKk/s1600/clare.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3bkUS_XBFaMhAWqgW6NqOkuuRif9rESTgrdmQXx7UQT2yew5dotEnLY3uz1s4_HCV38h7eAK4DYUPwHdysnNEzouitJqTq8Z2asyOrkQqVWP1kHhTJ2FrYHuSsdfYO28Bd4LDWOE8RKk/s1600/clare.jpg" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Only $98 at <a href="http://www.catholicchild.com/SAINT-CLARE-OF-ASSISI/productinfo/21007/">catholicchild.com</a></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">If you’re not familiar with Clare’s story, it is a wonderful one. She was basically a female St. Francis. In fact, they were very devoted to each other – as close as brother and sister or father and daughter.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Like Francis, Clare started her own order – known today as the Poor Clares. Clare was, in fact, the first woman to write a set of monastic rules.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">As for that interesting patronage, turns out Clare, when she was too ill to attend mass, miraculously saw it on the wall of her cell.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>#3 Cassian of Imola (Aug 13)</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Representation:</b> man being stabbed by children</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Kids these days!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Especially them pagan kids. Let me explain …</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Cassian was a teacher in 4th Century Rome. Found out as a Christian, he was put to death … by his students! Sounds like the authorities figured that would be a particularly fitting end for him and invited the students to do what I’m sure every school kid has fantasized about at least once.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgh_qMLvhQuRnhihQe1_cQlr4lgcIeHYXKUMwv8NcxLXvSwQsz4FVu5KTPR6MB8m0AKwuc8YXnc71f9dnwYDIgNJKb-MFQJ3Th0LFgfe6dehJIvr_zEABkHr0_h84lH5UrNOuNQ5WNw6kE/s1600/cass.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgh_qMLvhQuRnhihQe1_cQlr4lgcIeHYXKUMwv8NcxLXvSwQsz4FVu5KTPR6MB8m0AKwuc8YXnc71f9dnwYDIgNJKb-MFQJ3Th0LFgfe6dehJIvr_zEABkHr0_h84lH5UrNOuNQ5WNw6kE/s1600/cass.jpg" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">And that great story is what’s behind Cassian’s being remembered to this day. In particular, he’s called out in John Kennedy Toole’s <i>Confederacy of Dunces</i> and in Annie Dillard’s <i>The Living</i>. Bethel College, in Kansas, also named one of their faculty lounges after him. I love that last one.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>#2 Wigbert of Fritzlar (Aug 13)</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Not to be confused with Fritzbert of Wiglar …</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Born in 7th Century Britain to a noble family, Wigbert would later become a Benedictine monk. Invited by his friend Boniface, Wigbert would then become a missionary to the Germans. There, he would become an abbot as well.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCJj7krPxrS-DrTYrS2RCAiuhddkerPIMQ9pVCh_RbaSyHjS4sTDw9I2PgXsCD8ZVHUsMs_A-V_Y3gnvGt9SL7eRjivhJFjFSit1k6P2UfHhfk2trKN11j5JIxwTdn5LrFLBI7rs62IWc/s1600/wig.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCJj7krPxrS-DrTYrS2RCAiuhddkerPIMQ9pVCh_RbaSyHjS4sTDw9I2PgXsCD8ZVHUsMs_A-V_Y3gnvGt9SL7eRjivhJFjFSit1k6P2UfHhfk2trKN11j5JIxwTdn5LrFLBI7rs62IWc/s320/wig.jpg" width="141" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">"Here, have some grapes!"</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>#1 Smaragdus (Aug 8)</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Go ahead, say it out loud. Music to the ears, huh? Pure poetry, right?</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">But would you believe it’s from the Greek for “emerald”? Further, would you believe it’s the basis for the rather lovely girls name of Esmeralda?</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Other than that, unfortunately, we don’t know a whole lot about this <i>guy</i>. It does sound like he was martyred during the persecutions of Diocletian. He was part of a group led by St. Cyriacus. Like Cyriacus, Smaragdus probably ministered to slaves who were building the Baths of Diocletian. His marytrdom was particularly gruesome, including the rack, being beaten with clubs, and beheading.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAJgBu7Kn_q5v8v2HF1IkFx0ULuF7jv0MDImgBwVknYYJR_wRakEXDkTK1mY2IHrkRD2WmydJ4epjpeZMqMaRWhaaq9P1T3eWpA_a3K4w_qD6-anHyp0GZXKnw3qX88fMgTS_CrF-0Oyo/s1600/snail.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="186" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAJgBu7Kn_q5v8v2HF1IkFx0ULuF7jv0MDImgBwVknYYJR_wRakEXDkTK1mY2IHrkRD2WmydJ4epjpeZMqMaRWhaaq9P1T3eWpA_a3K4w_qD6-anHyp0GZXKnw3qX88fMgTS_CrF-0Oyo/s320/snail.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Lunella smaragdus</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">(Emerald moon turban)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Honorable Mention</b></span><br />
<ul>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Plettrude</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Thiento of Wessobrunn</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Francois François</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Jambert of Canterbury</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Ust</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Ultan of Crayke</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Mummolus of Fleury</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Chromatius the Prefect </span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Discolio IV of Vercelli</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Myron the Wonder Worker</span></li>
</ul>
Cliffhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12109085007044124766noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4997980458204946458.post-63006364525022221112016-08-03T17:50:00.002-07:002016-08-03T18:05:17.541-07:00August 1-7<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The Catholic Church celebrates two feasts this week, the Dedication of the Basilica of Santa Maria Maggiore and the Transfiguration of the Lord. The first one is pretty much what is says. As for the latter, I’ll let Matthew tell the story:</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">And after six days Jesus took with him Peter and James, and John his brother, and led them up a high mountain by themselves. And he was transfigured before them, and his face shone like the sun, and his clothes became white as light. And behold, there appeared to them Moses and Elijah, talking with him. And Peter said to Jesus, “Lord, it is good that we are here. If you wish, I will make three tents here, one for you and one for Moses and one for Elijah.” He was still speaking when, behold, a bright cloud overshadowed them, and a voice from the cloud said, “This is my beloved Son,[a] with whom I am well pleased; listen to him.” When the disciples heard this, they fell on their faces and were terrified. But Jesus came and touched them, saying, “Rise, and have no fear.” 8 And when they lifted up their eyes, they saw no one but Jesus only.</span><br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#10 Agathangelus Nourry (Aug 7)</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Based on my limited knowledge of Greek, I believe this name translates as “good angel.” Which, I must admit, I rather like. The meaning … not the name. That’s just too much of a mouthful.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Agathangelus was a Frenchman who was born at the very end of the 16th Century. He became a Capuchin, taught theology, and then became a missionary. As a missionary, he went to Egypt and then Ethiopia, where he was subsequently martyred. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">And, yes, he does indeed have <a href="https://www.facebook.com/pages/III-Bl-Agathangelus-Nourry-of-Vendome/620205208098081">his own Facebook site</a>. Wait a minute … He has his own Facebook site?</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikAu4LHNDWRG0G5yTKMTx0HReaQD54vdJCWH7biely9Ytne4z6Ea9km70eYvI0qQBR8gd1r1PwHoYGo8k52_XH39GHSYi8hSslRYxs5yVCq6-X5loDmuTNTyaddMqlu5WBdFOaU0N8704/s1600/ag.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikAu4LHNDWRG0G5yTKMTx0HReaQD54vdJCWH7biely9Ytne4z6Ea9km70eYvI0qQBR8gd1r1PwHoYGo8k52_XH39GHSYi8hSslRYxs5yVCq6-X5loDmuTNTyaddMqlu5WBdFOaU0N8704/s1600/ag.jpg" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">With his martyr BFF Cassian</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#9 Margaret the Barefooted (Aug 5)</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Well, at least she wasn’t Margaret the Discalced.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Every heard of the Discalced Carmelites? They’re really just another monastic order. The “discalced” part is from when they were formed and went about barefoot (yup, “discalced” is how you say “barefoot” in Latin).</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Margaret lived during the 14th Century, in Italy. The victim of an unhappy marriage, Margaret was abused by her husband for her faith and, in particular, for her devotion to the poor. That devotion is actually what led her to go barefoot – to more completely identify with her charges.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">There’s actually a <a href="http://www.amazon.com/The-Barefoot-Girl-Margaret-Patroness/dp/B000VYIYBM">book out there</a> all about her.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRGXb8wAIuYgUvKJ4qOp2YPc7rwPkv8a9TlI6ReHlmp31KOUdX7gB3EPQI4oJnorPhENTqHhHRLYG7FKUXBUMj86pHf4pQdA4Uz86x1l7vm2c4gMQTBNSguoO3bfVSFB8z4f_wLp3kxd4/s1600/marge.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRGXb8wAIuYgUvKJ4qOp2YPc7rwPkv8a9TlI6ReHlmp31KOUdX7gB3EPQI4oJnorPhENTqHhHRLYG7FKUXBUMj86pHf4pQdA4Uz86x1l7vm2c4gMQTBNSguoO3bfVSFB8z4f_wLp3kxd4/s320/marge.jpg" width="142" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Is it just me, or does Margaret seem to have a little attitude in this rendering?</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#8 Sithney (Aug 1)</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Patronage: </b>hydrophobia</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Fear of water?</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Well, actually, no. Wikipedia tells me that Sithney is also “the patron saint of mad dogs.” Who would have thought that rabid canines have their own patron saint?</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I don’t want to call into question anything that I read on such an esteemed source as Wikipedia, but I do have a funny feeling that they might have meant “against mad dogs.” </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Now, how did that rather interesting patronage come about? Well, it gets even better:</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">A Breton folk story, an adaptation of a tale associated with Ciarán of Saigir, states that God asked Sithney to be the patron saint of girls seeking husbands, but Sithney said he would rather be the patron saint of mad dogs and get some rest.</span><br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Dang, I guess Wikipedia was right after all.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Hydrophobia? It’s just an old-fashioned term for rabies.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEituf5CvsT9XgJtn5AbUh1Ml165P5FjKqfxvjbfK4YRF5HEUb5qVQY5igxn7wIvly4a5LoFcMqJhqLXHswdoXHXPZlF-facH-Y8xMGyoAHqRPipdedg4EECU9mrQVozmqIhIY-33NjHTHY/s1600/sith.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEituf5CvsT9XgJtn5AbUh1Ml165P5FjKqfxvjbfK4YRF5HEUb5qVQY5igxn7wIvly4a5LoFcMqJhqLXHswdoXHXPZlF-facH-Y8xMGyoAHqRPipdedg4EECU9mrQVozmqIhIY-33NjHTHY/s1600/sith.jpg" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#7 Hormisdas (Aug 6)</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Do you think his friends called him Hormy?</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">So, first of all, this guy was a pope – for a little less than 10 years in the 6th Century. His main claim to fame seems to be getting rid of the Acacian schism, another of the many, many schisms that plagued the early church.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgtxvFSiKa6lcXgBx9-ewOzJzzybVHIWBVcnJ31wLylO5oqeCdxHi7Dr3RnLX8WZQsjXlnXLh10g1dYolkgUZrgEmNOKWBmNLyIriw1JXdGqVtVr94QDxXguyIFbxVl_OgnY6SRAyj49U/s1600/horm.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgtxvFSiKa6lcXgBx9-ewOzJzzybVHIWBVcnJ31wLylO5oqeCdxHi7Dr3RnLX8WZQsjXlnXLh10g1dYolkgUZrgEmNOKWBmNLyIriw1JXdGqVtVr94QDxXguyIFbxVl_OgnY6SRAyj49U/s1600/horm.jpg" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">"Oh, dear Lord, save me from these Acacians"</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Interestingly, Hormisdas was married. In fact, one of his sons, Silverius, would go on to become pope himself. Not something that happens much these days …</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">If you’re wondering about that odd name, it’s probably from the Persian, from the name Hormizd. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#6 Etheldritha (Aug 2)</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I’m guessing her friends called her Ethel.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Etheldritha was actually a princess. Her father was Offa, King of the Anglo-Saxon kingdom of Mercia. She was also set up to marry Ethelbert, King of East Anglia (and a saint as well). When Ethelbert was killed, though, Etheldritha fled to a monastery, where she became a recluse, dying there 40 years later.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Man, that sure is a lot of ethels.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirmWVmlfdiLSjXJcnlYPmbJvFQeN0CGdg9uZKFJvPFD5YSG4HwxaJb45ulGQQxGRuMaJyA4zxnQFDd83GIGESl6hz7jvy79SBSlpGR3f1P3cqPBU-XroDOxTrsb1GeFHYXARdm3orhYF0/s1600/ethe.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirmWVmlfdiLSjXJcnlYPmbJvFQeN0CGdg9uZKFJvPFD5YSG4HwxaJb45ulGQQxGRuMaJyA4zxnQFDd83GIGESl6hz7jvy79SBSlpGR3f1P3cqPBU-XroDOxTrsb1GeFHYXARdm3orhYF0/s320/ethe.png" width="187" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Etheldritha is also the name of some dopey anime character</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#5 Alphonsus Maria de Liguori (Aug 1)</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Patronage: </b>against scrupulosity</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Wait a minute … Are you saying there’s something wrong with being “careful, thorough, conscientious, honest, moral, upstanding” …?</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Scrupulosity, actually, is something totally different. You can kind of think of it as a combination of faith and obsessive-compulsive disorder. Someone who suffers from scrupulosity likely feels “pathological guilt about moral or religious issues” (Wikipedia). They may get totally caught up in adhering to the exact letter of the law, to the exclusion of all else.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">So, Alphonsus did indeed suffer from scrupulosity. At the same time, however, he also was quite the renaissance man. He was an author, composer, musician, artist, poet, lawyer, philosopher, theologian, and lawyer. He was also a bishop and founded the Redemptorist order as well. Recognizing his major contributions, Alphonsus was made a Doctor of the Church in 1871.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#4 Afra of Augsburg (Aug 7)</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I think I just like the alliteration on this one.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">There’s a little uncertainty about this saint. Different stories have Afra as both a princess and a prostitute. One story has her martyred by beheading, while another has her burned at the stake. One has her dying alone; another has her with some companions. Finally, her story also seems to include details from the life of Venerea, a virgin martyr from the Middle East.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTdOwlE90cIwzJIa1NhcMJ-lChVTvjA2F4Z5T52N7Rliv2C42RHnFZishaNDs6FmSS2En3U69n-4AT37xO0cSIyWIhmAGiWDYejzC6kedL1ExqSpdTKq1Nre3f2fycYaoWwet_rAXQr2g/s1600/afra.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTdOwlE90cIwzJIa1NhcMJ-lChVTvjA2F4Z5T52N7Rliv2C42RHnFZishaNDs6FmSS2En3U69n-4AT37xO0cSIyWIhmAGiWDYejzC6kedL1ExqSpdTKq1Nre3f2fycYaoWwet_rAXQr2g/s320/afra.png" width="230" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">From <a href="http://www.christopher-winter.com/gallery/martyrdoms/bottom">this very interesting site</a></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#3 Lydia Purpuraria (Aug 3)</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">You know this has something to do with the color purple, right?</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Sure enough, Lydia’s sobriquet comes from her being a dealer in purple dye. The town she was from, Thyatira, was famous for their dye works, and purple was a very popular color in the ancient world. That’s because it was made from a certain kind of sea shell, was hard to produce, and kept its color exceptionally well. It was, in fact, a real luxury good, and was often reserved for the upper classes.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">From <a href="http://saintsandspinners.blogspot.com/2006/02/saints-as-action-figures-part-ii.html">this very cool site</a></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Lydia was also Paul’s first convert at Philippi (which makes her the first in Europe as well). All of this took place in Greece, in the 1st Century.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#2 Holy Maccabees (Aug 1)</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Holy Maccabees, Batman! It’s Antiochus IV Epiphanes!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Let me explain … The Holy Maccabees are also known as the Woman with Seven Sons. They were all martyred in the 2nd Century BC. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Yup, BC. Further, they were martyred for refusing to eat pork. Not sure how they ever became saints. </span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-1c5b7ceabImV_wz04XsIQz0ImeX6v1fc-e3I3JAiL7NQ6yGAfR-CxDmbCKLU4CbfXHD20n88_8VEkAOK1DAxozibc-Dq13eAY4_CHG1hvc1XJahXfDX-LPVcDbmSqr_naSoU5aOUof8/s1600/mac.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-1c5b7ceabImV_wz04XsIQz0ImeX6v1fc-e3I3JAiL7NQ6yGAfR-CxDmbCKLU4CbfXHD20n88_8VEkAOK1DAxozibc-Dq13eAY4_CHG1hvc1XJahXfDX-LPVcDbmSqr_naSoU5aOUof8/s320/mac.jpg" width="234" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Oh, Antiochus IV Epiphanes? He was the guy in charge – the guy who actually did in the eight of them. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#1 Oswald of Northumbria (Aug 5) </b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Representation: </b>king in crown, carrying sceptre and orb, ciborium, sword, palm-branch, and/or with his raven</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Hey, wait a minute! I think we forgot the kitchen sink. (Love the “and/or” part about the reaven.)</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Like Etheldritha (#6), Oswald was another royal. Oswald, however, was a king. He ruled the Anglo-Saxon kingdom of Northumbria, for a little less than ten years during the 600s. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">It does, however, sound like he did manage to accomplish quite a bit during his short time on the throne. On the secular side, he reunited the Northumbrian kingdom and was the strongest ruler in Britain. On the sacred side, he helped spread Christianity in northeast England and was also himself very devout. Oswald’s death, at the hands of the pagan Mercian king Penda, is also considered something of a martyrdom.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">From <a href="http://www.earlybritishkingdoms.com/kids/oswald.html">Early British Kingdoms for Kids</a></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The raven? Sounds like it has something to do with Oswald’s death:</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">King Oswald's body was hacked to pieces by the victors and his head and arms stuck on poles. An old legend has one arm taken to his sacred ash tree (Oswald's Tree) by his constant companion, a pet raven. Where it fell, a holy well sprang up. (Britannia.com)</span><br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Honorable Mention</b></span><br />
<ul>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Gezelin of Schlebusch</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Maria Imelda of the Eucharistic Jesus</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Cecilia Cesarini</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Plegmund</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Martyrs of the Salarian Way</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Auspicius of Apt</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Leodebodo</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Martyrs of Philadelphia</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Emerico of Quart</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Gonzalo Gonzalo y Gonzalo</span></li>
</ul>
Cliffhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12109085007044124766noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4997980458204946458.post-90843526682202915782016-07-22T15:43:00.003-07:002016-12-22T06:17:08.629-08:00July 22-31<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#10 Abdon (July 30)</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Patronage: </b>bucket makers</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Not sure how many of you there are out there … But this just goes to show that there’s a patron saint for pretty much everybody.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Abdon was a Persian official and closet Christian. He was found out by his Roman rulers, and led back to the capital to serve as entertainment in the Coliseum. The wild animals failed to touch him, however, and he was eventually dispatched by some gladiators. We’re talking roughly the year 250 here.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">He’s almost always pictured with his bud (and fellow martyr) Sennon</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The bucket makers? Haven’t a clue.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#9 Christina of Bolsena (July 24)</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Representation:</b> woman holding a millstone and standing on a pagan</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Usually, representations show the saint being martyred. In this one, though, it sounds like the tables might just have been turned.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I’m afraid that Christina’s just a tad on the confusing side, unfortunately. Bolsena, for example, is in Italy. Her “legend,” however, puts her in Tyre, a Phoenician city that is now part of Israel.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Said legend goes on to say that Christina was a young virgin who converted in the 3rd Century. She was found out, however, and tortured in a remarkably varied number of ways, including:</span><br />
<ul>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Iron hooks</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Grilling by fire</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Thrown in a furnace</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">On the wheel</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Poisonous snakes</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Tied to a millstone & throw in a river (well, that at least explains the millstone)</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Shot by arrows (these are what actually did her in)</span></li>
</ul>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">To make all this even worse, all this happened when Christina was only 11. Further, it was her father, a rich and powerful Phoenician magistrate, who initiated it.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Millstone? Check. Arrows? Got it. Snakes? Yup. Now, what are we missing?</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#8 Edward Thwing (July 26)</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Patron thaint of thwingerth, I underthtand.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Sorry about that. Blessed Edward was one of (many) English Catholic priests who were put to death during the Tudor years. Like most of them, Edward was born in England, educated and ordained in France, returned to England clandestinely, was found out, and then was drawn and quartered. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Like I said, Edward was just one of many martyrs who have almost the same bio. It’s actually rather surprising – and definitely sobering – how bloody the English Reformation was … on both sides.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The only thing that really distinguishes poor Edward is his odd last name and his friendship with the equally oddly named – and fellow martyr – Robert Nutter.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Hard to believe there are two people that have that same name</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#7 Serapia of Syria (July 29)</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Suffering saintly succotash!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">And would you believe that St. Serapia sold herself into slavery, to a mistress named Sabina? Seriously.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZQV4gmbqABa3h3ka-tJHZjKnle1AU1H2x-6dpt2_jVZHm-Lipa8_XddfEMyaHtMwj_lsdm20BhvwrQvZaY-hc2PTqquB2jUORZy3Jj8cNuIgoFwQE-8-VwukF_of0KKp08pWAiCTzHho/s1600/sera.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZQV4gmbqABa3h3ka-tJHZjKnle1AU1H2x-6dpt2_jVZHm-Lipa8_XddfEMyaHtMwj_lsdm20BhvwrQvZaY-hc2PTqquB2jUORZy3Jj8cNuIgoFwQE-8-VwukF_of0KKp08pWAiCTzHho/s320/sera.jpg" width="227" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Serapia was originally from Antioch, in ancient Syria. Her family fled from there to Rome during persecutions there. When her parents died, she sold all of her inheritance so she could give the money to the church. She then sold herself as well!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">She then converted her mistress. The two would subsequently be martyred together under the emperor Hadrian.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Serapia is also known as Seraphia and Seraphima.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#6 Germanus of Auxerre (July 31)</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Representation: </b> bishop trampling on a judge</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I say, there sure is a lot of saintly violence in this post.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Germanus was born of a noble family in the late 4th Century in Gaul. Things started very secularly for Germanus – he studied law, married, and was made a provincial governor. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">He would later become a monk and then a bishop, build a large monastery, act as a missionary to Britain, help convert Ireland, perform some miracles, defeat some pagans in battle, and mentor some saints and discover and promote others. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Unfortunately, I have no idea who the judge was.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">St. Germanus, as portrayed in the movie <i>Arthur</i></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">(no, not that <i>Arthur</i>)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#5 Neot (July 31)</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Patronage: </b> fish</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Can’t decide which is worse – the name or the patronage.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">A quick search on Google for “neot” gets you lots of hits to the ticker symbol for a company called Neothetics:</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Neothetics is a clinical-stage specialty pharmaceutical company developing therapeutics for the aesthetic market. Our LIPO-202 has the potential to be a best-in-class injection for localized fat reduction and body contouring, offering an approximately five minute or less, non-surgical procedure that effectively and safely reduces abdominal bulging in non-obese patients, with no downtime. (neothetics.com)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">A quick search of “<i>st</i> neot” tells us that the saint lived in the 9th Century, in Cornwall. After beginning life as a soldier, Neot became a hermit and monk. He was known for his good works for the poor, and was sought out for advice by no less a personage than King Alfred (who he may have been related to).</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The fish bit? Haven’t a clue.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Surprisingly, they are called the Saints, and not the Fish</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#4 Botwid (July 28)</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Not a baby name you hear a lot these days …</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Botwid is a Swedish saint. He was born of pagan parents there, but converted while on a business trip to England (seriously).</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">He was murdered, in 1120, by a slave he had bought, converted and freed. Geez, talk about ingratitude.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Botwid is known as the Apostle of Sweden. Alternate versions of his name include Botvid, Botwinus, Botuid, and Botuidus. I think I still like Botwid the best.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">And it looks like his representation might be “with axe and fish” </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#3 Gleb (July 24)</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Short, sweet … Actually, it’s really the total opposite of sweet. Go ahead, say it out loud. More like short and sour.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Gleb – along with his brother Boris – are actually pretty well-known saints in Russia (but are also recognized by the Catholic Church). Their main claim to fame, however, seems to be getting murdered by their brother, the wonderfully named Svyatopolk the Accursed. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The three were sons of Vladimir I, Grand Prince of Kiev (who was also a saint as well). When Vladimir died, he split his kingdom up among his three sons. Svyatopolk, though, wanted to rule alone. Though Gleb and Boris put up no resistance to that wish, Svyatopolk had them murdered anyway. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Gleb remains a popular Russian name to this day, including for this hunky guy, Gleb Savchenko, from <i>Dancing with the Stars</i></span> <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">(and, yes, he is Mr. May)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#2 Seven Sleepers of Ephesus (July 27)</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">You’re gonna love this one. These guys are kind of like a bunch of saintly Rip Van Winkles. Here, let me explain …</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">It’s the year 250. In the town of Ephesus (in present-day Turkey), seven young men are found out as Christians. They subsequently run off and hide in a local cave. While they sleep there, though, they are found out and walled in.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">180 years later, they wake up. Many things have changed – including the Roman emperor, who is now a Christian. Cool story, huh? You think Washington Irving stole this one?</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">It’s a popular story in Islam as well</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>#1 Christina the Astonishing (July 24)</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">You’ve heard of Christina, surely? One of the Six Totally Awesome Virgins? You know, Kaitlyn the Incredible, Ashley the Amazing, Jessica the Spectacular, Madison the Fabulous?</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">So, seriously, what was so astonishing about Christina anyway? Well, would you believe that she once arose from the dead? At her own funeral mass? Sounds pretty astonishing to me.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">And if that wasn’t enough, she also levitated up to the rafters of the church and, when she came down, related a tour she had had of Heaven, Hell, and Purgatory. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">After that pretty wild experience, Christina spent the rest of her life as an extreme ascetic. In fact, her asceticism was so extreme that many thought she was merely insane – something that explains her many patronages:</span><br />
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<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Against insanity</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Against madness</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Against mental disorders</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Against mental handicaps</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Against mental illness</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Lunatics</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Mental health caregivers</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Mental health professionals</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Mentally ill people</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Psychiatrists</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Therapists</span></li>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Of course, the fact that she was born in the County of Loon (in Belgium, in 1150) might have had something to do with that as well.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Honorable Mention</b></span><br />
<ul>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Modesto Vegas Vegas</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Pablo Díaz de Zárate y Ortiz de Zárate</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Donatilla of Tebourba</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Movean of Inis-Coosery</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Rasyphus of Rome</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Jaum Buch Canals</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Godo of Oye</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Ebrulfus</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Callinicus of Paphlagonia</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Hatebrand</span></li>
</ul>
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Cliffhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12109085007044124766noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4997980458204946458.post-9881216597010815582016-07-15T17:53:00.000-07:002016-07-15T17:58:10.880-07:00July 15-21<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>#10 Irmengard (July 16)</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Representation: </b> Benedictine nun with heart in her hand </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Please tell me this isn’t Irmengard’s.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTlBV7h3VLjjqo5KzIhgQERWMAUaEITyU2z09rwCJMWBOsUwct-ahqPeX0ke-hu9u0rmTU0ZrpgWgaglPv96cuOH4UmVycoZkjBAZR1jOxZKa4xANtUEpCwDNDCU5iLbNfFyGnTh5dqbs/s1600/irm.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTlBV7h3VLjjqo5KzIhgQERWMAUaEITyU2z09rwCJMWBOsUwct-ahqPeX0ke-hu9u0rmTU0ZrpgWgaglPv96cuOH4UmVycoZkjBAZR1jOxZKa4xANtUEpCwDNDCU5iLbNfFyGnTh5dqbs/s320/irm.jpg" width="222" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Unfortunately, we may never know. There’s not a lot out there on her. Or, as one of the sites I Google-translated from the German puts it, “The life and work of the blessed few historical sources have survived.”</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">We do know that she was a princess, as well as a Benedictine and abbess. She lived in the 9th Century, in Germany.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>#9 Plechelm of Guelderland (July 15)</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I’m not sure if that first bit is a real saint or just someone clearing their throat.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I do know that the second bit is a province of the Netherlands though. And after a little research, I can also tell you that Plechelm was an English monk, priest, and bishop, as well as a missionary to the Dutch.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">He was also buds with the wonderfully named Wiro, Otger, and Willibrord of Echternach. In fact, that last one, Plechelm, Bavo of Ghent, and Andrew the Apostle are all patron saints of the Netherlands. It’s not usually seen as a Catholic country, but Catholicism actually is the largest religion there.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMwKX3bEBjI3_dbRWKsjIotsivgY0yqAXD94zKwJ8PZnR__HGItGS5QIOxOIRlJLvQxjYxDY2Bw8gpmuL1wC0f5U23FmDwnjOSb6aIsJMdp9Uw_8H4EmRAjyOwYuTswP1mLO3WoXDeWCI/s1600/plech.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMwKX3bEBjI3_dbRWKsjIotsivgY0yqAXD94zKwJ8PZnR__HGItGS5QIOxOIRlJLvQxjYxDY2Bw8gpmuL1wC0f5U23FmDwnjOSb6aIsJMdp9Uw_8H4EmRAjyOwYuTswP1mLO3WoXDeWCI/s320/plech.jpg" width="214" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>#8 Rufillus of Forlimpopoli (July 18)</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Poetry, pure poetry.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Rufillus was actually Formlimpopoli’s first bishop. Like St. George, Rufilius supposedly drove a dragon from the area. We’re talking 4th Century here.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9THdrXrVLAgJJ8mqQx-W-WyFPHtS5TSPdUhKImpFnjvPyR5Ty4xkDJJ2-yOFrdG6y_b3YzoGOOR_aQ_AMsWbKM4OyhJUuWE1dQZRsXN2EKPFSBqoxtJH1u2mBRRKXWq3_25TmWVnU00o/s1600/ruf.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9THdrXrVLAgJJ8mqQx-W-WyFPHtS5TSPdUhKImpFnjvPyR5Ty4xkDJJ2-yOFrdG6y_b3YzoGOOR_aQ_AMsWbKM4OyhJUuWE1dQZRsXN2EKPFSBqoxtJH1u2mBRRKXWq3_25TmWVnU00o/s320/ruf.jpg" width="138" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Look closely. I think that’s an extremely small, very poorly rendered dragon under Ruffy’s foot</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Believe it or not, Forlimpopoli is an actual Italian town, situated in the province of Emilia-Romagna. The name comes from the Latin Forum Popilii - i.e., a marketplace most likely named after the consul Publius Popilius Laenas.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>#7 Fredegand of Kerkelodor (July 17)</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The opposite of poetry.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Fredegand lived in the 7th and 8th Century. Born in Ireland, he later moved to Belgium, where he was abbot of the monastery of ... Kerkelodor.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">His relics are in a church in the little town of Moustier, also in Belgium. They have a procession with his statute every year to commemorate his having saved them from the plague.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Oh, almost forgot … Sounds like Fredegand might have actually hung out with our old friend Willibrord of Echternach. Wiro, Otger, Plechlem, Willibrord, Fredegand – what a team!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>#6 Tarsykia Matskiv (July 17)</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Even more so.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Tarskyia is our first saint this week who was alive in the last thousand years. In fact, she was lived and died within the last <i>100 </i>years.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbtiLFsD6RElCA6thjipWRrPB5dB8J7m102kZ22Ht1QPKWmVKTiJnnCSkgP8bxj1HSL2oOAT7Le95McWR62yMztQGSQ7bgC1gFgIN4zPwifiLJS0AYG7_BFCHQVC9yZcMgPDXqCG1_DrU/s1600/tarsk.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbtiLFsD6RElCA6thjipWRrPB5dB8J7m102kZ22Ht1QPKWmVKTiJnnCSkgP8bxj1HSL2oOAT7Le95McWR62yMztQGSQ7bgC1gFgIN4zPwifiLJS0AYG7_BFCHQVC9yZcMgPDXqCG1_DrU/s320/tarsk.jpg" width="231" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Born in 1919 in Ukraine, Tarskyia would become a nun in the Sister Servants of Mary Immaculate in 1940. At the end of WWII, when Soviet soldiers came to destroy her convent, she answered the door, and was shot on the spot.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>#5 Kenelm (July 17)</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Representation: </b>boy king trampling his disloyal sister</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">And this is how you get to be a saint?</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Kenelm was a boy king of the Anglo-Saxon kingdom of Mercia. He was also a martyr, murdered by a scheming relative.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj34NU8ijVtYefDmuWS1jYQtvcZiQXzuR4B6NRRIfg9gmcXAaJIj4FSZLyMCzmisOEgRGIIL_jVFgGUY5SZeFh7iZlveTW1nbpmWYpbuLuPeEhCnVFMPFQm-JFdHLiIC5mnCUamEOzsk8s/s1600/ken.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj34NU8ijVtYefDmuWS1jYQtvcZiQXzuR4B6NRRIfg9gmcXAaJIj4FSZLyMCzmisOEgRGIIL_jVFgGUY5SZeFh7iZlveTW1nbpmWYpbuLuPeEhCnVFMPFQm-JFdHLiIC5mnCUamEOzsk8s/s1600/ken.jpg" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">As with any story from the Anglo-Saxons, Kenelm’s is filled with wonderful names, such as:</span><br />
<ul>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Coenwulf </span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Cwenthryth</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Quendryda</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Burgenhilda</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Askobert</span></li>
</ul>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Sorry, really couldn’t find anything about the representation.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>#4 Elijah the Prophet (July 17)</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Patronage: </b> Romanian Air Force</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Well, you’ll be happy to know that it’s just not the Romanian Air Force, but all air forces in general. Not too sure why the <a href="http://catholicsaints.info/patrons-of-the-romanian-air-force/">Romanians</a> were called out specifically.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">You’re probably familiar with Elijah, possibly the major prophet from the Old Testament. You may, though, not be aware that there are indeed some OT figures who have become saints. Others include Moses, David, Daniel, and Abraham.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">As for the air force bit, I have a funny feeling it’s from the way Elijah ascended into heaven:</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">And it came to pass, as they still went on, and talked, that, behold, there appeared a chariot of fire, and horses of fire, and parted them both asunder; and Elijah went up by a whirlwind into heaven. (2 Kings 2:11)</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqUZLHso_LAdCyHYEC8MF0LjKsyO-Ts4uNBnUEYm_qywwJANYLh5s_VGhmwiMyeHMvOu6D8hSX-9Z2-LADSBAZKqitMcsXqxtRMiv2znEDTC_DP_2-KqVaOytdP_z7gTQkDlaKvQxtqSo/s1600/elijah.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqUZLHso_LAdCyHYEC8MF0LjKsyO-Ts4uNBnUEYm_qywwJANYLh5s_VGhmwiMyeHMvOu6D8hSX-9Z2-LADSBAZKqitMcsXqxtRMiv2znEDTC_DP_2-KqVaOytdP_z7gTQkDlaKvQxtqSo/s320/elijah.jpg" width="225" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Probably something like this</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>#3 Joseph Barsabas (July 17)</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Representation: </b>child blowing bubbles</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Poor Joseph will always be known for coming in second. When the Apostles looked to replace Judas Iscariot, they narrowed it down to two guys, Matthias and Joseph. Guess who won?</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Other than that very slim fact, we really don’t know a lot about this guy. As for the bubbles, this is just so darn weird that I have a funny feeling that representation might even be a typo. I only found it mentioned on one site, and that with no explanation whatsoever.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhq-RcSD_PXd-r9WudFrQEmLhVcCrDTtXSc_K03Z1syKyrReoESbXlRYFxnYny3w8CiEZyVy_nhJXQw4png_cCBn518_VhR1Jr5nOAJjtDrAar3CN1NtnK9wThvhMi9QqD93N1L7LeN6gE/s1600/joe.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhq-RcSD_PXd-r9WudFrQEmLhVcCrDTtXSc_K03Z1syKyrReoESbXlRYFxnYny3w8CiEZyVy_nhJXQw4png_cCBn518_VhR1Jr5nOAJjtDrAar3CN1NtnK9wThvhMi9QqD93N1L7LeN6gE/s320/joe.jpg" width="226" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">And this is as close as I could come image-wise</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>#2 Daminh Dinh Dat (July 18)</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Did Daminh do dat? He did, he did! Daminh did do dat!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Another Martyr of Vietnam. Apart from their interesting (to our ears at least) names, we really don’t know that much about them. I actually had to translate a page from the Vietnamese to learn that Daminh was:</span><br />
<ul>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Also known as Dominic</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Born in 1803</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Martyred in 1838</span></li>
</ul>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-_jXxIw8TkoW2nt4Rnq9R4IOA4eEl_29oHTJfog3_7LMHbWpA5tDFZGl8tn99Ws_LmOynTtLHlqLIkIKX-MFGu58apn0dOdogA7PuUGyTTSG95ahmUEfuBAldgEEie5Du_ts3yCZ0Ayg/s1600/dom.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="178" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-_jXxIw8TkoW2nt4Rnq9R4IOA4eEl_29oHTJfog3_7LMHbWpA5tDFZGl8tn99Ws_LmOynTtLHlqLIkIKX-MFGu58apn0dOdogA7PuUGyTTSG95ahmUEfuBAldgEEie5Du_ts3yCZ0Ayg/s320/dom.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">And with that last bit by strangulation, by the way</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">That page also had the following passage, which might just as well have been in Vietnamese, for all I could make out of it:</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Written communication card he finished broadcasting watchdog Scoring for handling forensic taken away. Along the way he just say prayers. Upon arrival processing, mat leggings were available there, he knelt on mats Scoring still continued prayers forever. One time, remove the shackle TV, projector made him lie down, then tie the soldiers in his neck. When ready, supervisors give commands. Zipper executioners until he dies</span><br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Google Translate – time to step up our game, huh?</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>#1 Pambo of the Nitrian Desert (July 18)</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Hmm. Sounds like one of those cheezy 1950s B movies.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Pambo is actually one of the Desert Fathers, a bunch of hermits who hit the deserts in Egypt in the 4th Century and thereabouts. Pambo himself was a founder of monasteries, spiritual guide, and mentor to St. John the Dwarf. </span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJ8tdJ_xsoyP55obKsEE7wnfCXdC2Fe9OelsIBu3y3JyurA4azS73TZeFf73fL0cKsbX7RV5a5TCFRu4NkkUENWM7ylGZGU2aIuUu6VrhRslHKVEu8UksyKCZJZpLlKy8zfAqEMDTeiiM/s1600/pambo.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJ8tdJ_xsoyP55obKsEE7wnfCXdC2Fe9OelsIBu3y3JyurA4azS73TZeFf73fL0cKsbX7RV5a5TCFRu4NkkUENWM7ylGZGU2aIuUu6VrhRslHKVEu8UksyKCZJZpLlKy8zfAqEMDTeiiM/s320/pambo.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Actually, I’m surprised <i>anybody </i>is named that</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The Nitrian Desert? Just head left from Cairo. Can’t miss it.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Honorable Mention</b></span><br />
<ul>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Arbogast of Strasburg </span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Bernard of Baden </span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Felix of Tubzak</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Ambrose Autpertus </span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Gumbert of Ansbach</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Szymon of Lipnicza </span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Abudemius of Bozcaada</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Elisabeth Qin Bianshi Elisabeth</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Kragon</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Barhadbescialas</span></li>
</ul>
Cliffhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12109085007044124766noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4997980458204946458.post-78807463023260594082016-07-10T16:08:00.002-07:002016-07-10T16:14:42.068-07:00July 8-14<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Couple of heavy hitters this week – Ss. Augustine and Benedict – with the latter actually making it into the top 10.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>#10 Agigulf (July 9)</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Not a lot out there on this guy. We do know he was active in the 8th Century, in what is now France. He was a monk, the abbot of the interestingly named Stavelot-Malmedy, and the archbishop of Cologne as well.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">He also just so happened to be murdered by the king of France. An advisor to one king, Agigulf made the bad move of advising against the guy who would eventually become the next king. So, when the old king died, Agigulf paid the price. That’s kinda the way things worked in the 8th Century.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">About the only other thing I can say about Agigulf is that typing his name into Google generated some rather interesting search results:</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEip73qz6H7P3KroCSDeKI_bWhqyAT8uiMpElDitMYFwGkVFMJa-JkCrvZgf3QTyyN55b9zKVDwjzQ9Jon7qkb2_mXOLdgoBhyphenhyphenqGQh5SlIfVO4PwpHt7fHY1LoC2ks0n4qPB_Dwltz1iB68/s1600/agi.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="360" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEip73qz6H7P3KroCSDeKI_bWhqyAT8uiMpElDitMYFwGkVFMJa-JkCrvZgf3QTyyN55b9zKVDwjzQ9Jon7qkb2_mXOLdgoBhyphenhyphenqGQh5SlIfVO4PwpHt7fHY1LoC2ks0n4qPB_Dwltz1iB68/s400/agi.png" width="400" /></a></div></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>#9 Benedict of Nursia (July 11)</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Patronage: </b> servants who have broken their master’s belongings</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I sure do hate it when that happens. I’ll definitely have to remember this Benedict guy for the next time that happens.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Benedict is actually famous for a little more than that particular patronage. In fact, he’s considered the father of monasticism. He’s known in particular for his “Rule” and of the order he founded, the Benedictines.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1cEESqgnQUXc31tHNGqbrRht1lBN6Hqq8RlQ7C60FGl-DenrhvUo1dkZwqv7fE3_W6SSuzt2q2lfzC4Rqf0uUUUGG2DZWrVb4KMS9ITatQPw5_AvuYJiUGvMI-B1krSTxHnsHME6M9fY/s1600/ben.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1cEESqgnQUXc31tHNGqbrRht1lBN6Hqq8RlQ7C60FGl-DenrhvUo1dkZwqv7fE3_W6SSuzt2q2lfzC4Rqf0uUUUGG2DZWrVb4KMS9ITatQPw5_AvuYJiUGvMI-B1krSTxHnsHME6M9fY/s320/ben.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Available on <a href="http://www.zazzle.com/st_benedict_of_nursia_trucker_hat-148619724559725338">Zazzle</a></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">In addition to those servants, Benedict is also looking out for:</span><br />
<ul>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Dying people</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">School children</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Farm workers</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Architects</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Civil engineers</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Coppersmiths</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Spelunkers</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Italian architects</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Italian farmers</span></li>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">If you hadn’t guessed it from those last three, Nursia is in Italy, and is where Benedict was born. Ben was active in the 5th and 6th Centuries.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>#8 Menulphus (July 12)</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Oh, what might have been… Menulphus’s main claim to fame was being bishop of the wonderfully named French town of Quimper. Can you imagine it? … Menulphus of Quimper. I would’ve probably had to bump him up to #1.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">About the only other things we know about this guy was that he was born in Ireland and died on the way back from a pilgrimage to Rome. I believe we’re talking 7th Century here. Sorry – not that much about him.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEit520UeBaFoqdfn7B5BByHXPsv-RW-Fe_zgFrWALrhxcSWMrzBO-PdF01MYeE6Gd4xE3IXQfYJgutgM4UJq_Bb4YJrHrI5auB4MqAdInheK46G5-0J8EgjwyBMoo5kCJA-yFooxSBXjjY/s1600/men.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEit520UeBaFoqdfn7B5BByHXPsv-RW-Fe_zgFrWALrhxcSWMrzBO-PdF01MYeE6Gd4xE3IXQfYJgutgM4UJq_Bb4YJrHrI5auB4MqAdInheK46G5-0J8EgjwyBMoo5kCJA-yFooxSBXjjY/s320/men.jpg" width="212" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Somehow or other, though, we do have a photo of his final resting place (?!?!)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>#7 Hidulf of Moyenmoutier (July 11)</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Another pretty obscure guy, Hidulf was a monk, abbot, and bishop who lived in the 7th and 8th Century and was active in Germany and France. And that’s about it …</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Poor guy, Wikipedia isn’t even sure of some of the basic facts:</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">A contemporary view is that he was not a diocesan bishop, nor abbot of Saint-Dié Abbey in France.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I do know, though, that he was also a man of many names:</span><br />
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<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Hidulphus</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Hildulph</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Hydulphe</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Idulfo</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Idolfo</span></li>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6JezerTLr3jlwz5JEwkuMvotrCBvZuy0AuZNfa8B8cx_fgXevGzLyR7HBJELxrOWpthtw4BBXH98UCzSXneuWyDRjZ8uL9MVCbmqp1FlgP-vR27_qGIIPnM2vnb4oaTSyemA3NM7rFUw/s1600/hid.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6JezerTLr3jlwz5JEwkuMvotrCBvZuy0AuZNfa8B8cx_fgXevGzLyR7HBJELxrOWpthtw4BBXH98UCzSXneuWyDRjZ8uL9MVCbmqp1FlgP-vR27_qGIIPnM2vnb4oaTSyemA3NM7rFUw/s1600/hid.jpg" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Looks like we’ve also got a picture of <i>his </i>final resting place as well (!?!?)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>#6 Grimbald (July 8)</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">More obscurity. 9th Century, born in France, moved to England. Benedictine, monk, abbot, tutor to King Alfred. May have been first divinity professor at Oxford. AKA Grimbald of St. Bertin.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiD7Z6umgM1yddPv8Nyixg4yH_Z2inuok5ff31ADjR7jIUwTyRM5LAJ4a9Q3LLWp6_cyUirXaSPtI__fSHqCB3-QweRFyyiVx74qzd4F3w6Ptvn6dIhXuRnl8CyGq2i-dhCipgpnlwYCMc/s1600/grim.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiD7Z6umgM1yddPv8Nyixg4yH_Z2inuok5ff31ADjR7jIUwTyRM5LAJ4a9Q3LLWp6_cyUirXaSPtI__fSHqCB3-QweRFyyiVx74qzd4F3w6Ptvn6dIhXuRnl8CyGq2i-dhCipgpnlwYCMc/s320/grim.png" width="136" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Also appears to be a character in some video game</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>#5 Hroznota of Bohemia (July 14)</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I think this might be as obscure as you can get. I only found one site that talks about this guy (and that was good ol’ catholicsaints.info, who talk about everybody). There, however, we do learn a thing or two about him. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">First, Hroznota was a guy. He was born in the 12th Century to a family of Bohemian nobles. He married and had kids, but when his wife died, he founded a monastery and retired as a monk there. Somehow or other (it’s all a little hard to follow), he got thrown into a dungeon by some robbers, and subsequently starved to death there.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The thing I really like about that page, though, is all the great Czech names that it contains:</span><br />
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<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Bozena</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Hroznetin</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Karlovarský</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Stáry Kynsperk</span></li>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLpkQdj_akHLF52KaIYaXOiiRwy7nxYbsbZtJO9gR-pc42jXy5NIhpeOubS9EY2K53SeUHJ-BrwYeqLwYkHy6_D23Yto2K-8xY32hJhKdBCqnBGwWh2yIFv2sCbJznWcHJ7t8ywEzWwuo/s1600/hroz.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="116" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLpkQdj_akHLF52KaIYaXOiiRwy7nxYbsbZtJO9gR-pc42jXy5NIhpeOubS9EY2K53SeUHJ-BrwYeqLwYkHy6_D23Yto2K-8xY32hJhKdBCqnBGwWh2yIFv2sCbJznWcHJ7t8ywEzWwuo/s400/hroz.png" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Like I said, obscure</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>#4 Everild of Everingham (July 9)</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The obscurity continues …</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Everild was also known as Everilda and Eoforhild (though that last one just looks like a spelling mistake). It means “wild boar” … which is rather unfortunate, as Everlid was indeed a lady.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Everild was born in the 7th Century of a noble Anglo-Saxon family. A convert, she would run away to become a nun, eventually founding an abbey.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">There are two churches dedicated to Everilda, one in the eponymous Everingham and the other in the wonderfully named Nether Poppleton.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>#3 Amalburga (July 10)</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Representation: </b> woman standing on a giant sturgeon</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The patron saint of surrealism, I would imagine …</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Finally, a saint whose bio has a little meat to it. In fact, I can even explain that particularly odd representation. Turns out one of her “pious legends” has her riding across a lake on the back of said fish.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Apart from that, she was another married saint. In fact, it sounds like she raised quite the holy family. Three of her daughters – Gudula, Emebert, and Reineldis – were saints as well. And both she and her husband retired to Benedictine houses after their youngest was old enough to fend for herself.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAT1wS16NWyFRD-68Ar9jZrQ8rpLa32EsvMXeFYrUdKvVLAYrYJJ9TioOv5eqeV952kzfAss-Zw0esCbuN8VfOagtNYrlWEKT42weo_hiTjiZjEmBbXMktqwVuaxIrePKuV6lqB2giOU4/s1600/amalburga.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="274" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAT1wS16NWyFRD-68Ar9jZrQ8rpLa32EsvMXeFYrUdKvVLAYrYJJ9TioOv5eqeV952kzfAss-Zw0esCbuN8VfOagtNYrlWEKT42weo_hiTjiZjEmBbXMktqwVuaxIrePKuV6lqB2giOU4/s320/amalburga.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">She also seems to have been the inspiration for this “Indonesian Deathcore” band </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">(Repunt the Amalburga in case you couldn’t read that font)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Alternative representations for Amalburga include geese and a sieve. I’m afraid I don’t know the “pious legends” behind those ones. (By the by, “pious legend” is really just politically correct terminology for “cute story that we’re pretty sure was made up.”)</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>#2 Agnes De (July 12)</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Maybe you have to be Catholic to really appreciate this one.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The Agnus Dei is a central part of the mass. It means, “Lamb of God,” and the rest of the prayer goes something like this:</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>Agnus Dei</i> (Lamb of God)</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>Qui tollis pecata mundi </i> (Who takes away the sins of the world)</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>Dona nobis pacem </i>(Give us peace)</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>Agnus Dei</i> (Lamb of God)</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>Qui tollis pecata mundi </i> (Who takes away the sins of the world)</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>Dona nobis pacem </i>(Give us peace)</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>Agnus Dei </i>(Lamb of God)</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>Qui tollis pecata mundi </i> (Who takes away the sins of the world)</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>Miserere nobis</i> (Pray for us)</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">As for our saint here, well, I’m afraid we’re back to obscurity again. Searching on “agnes de,” pretty much all I got was results for Agnes De Mille, a “famous” dancer and choreographer (I, at least, never heard of her).</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Searching for “st. agnes de” doesn’t help much either. Doing that gets me hits for:</span><br />
<ul>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Blessed Agnes de Jesus Garland</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">St Agnes of Rome</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">St. Agnes of Bohemia</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">St. Agnes of Montepulciano</span></li>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I did get a few real hits, though, so at least we know our poor Agnes wasn’t a typo. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Perhaps, though, you know her as Anê Lê Thi Thành or maybe even Bà Ðê. And if you couldn’t already tell from all those funny things on the letters, Agnes was Vietnamese. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">She is, in fact, one of the Martyrs of Vietnam. This group of over 100 saints and beati met their end during the 19th Century, when the French were busy taking over Indochina and spreading the Catholic faith.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXx1Fod9XNWbreANMfh5Sh7XnxIRgBhlmW2ieSfxVxMr_Ryh_NoEOyva6JmZLJSdtpHQRq-RzpkI0gxpkLnRUTzRbAAaesafrLZSI2T3wFxfPqCt_eDLkJo_OS7UgLDkEQqtgrn3rdcxg/s1600/agnes.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="192" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXx1Fod9XNWbreANMfh5Sh7XnxIRgBhlmW2ieSfxVxMr_Ryh_NoEOyva6JmZLJSdtpHQRq-RzpkI0gxpkLnRUTzRbAAaesafrLZSI2T3wFxfPqCt_eDLkJo_OS7UgLDkEQqtgrn3rdcxg/s320/agnes.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Pretty much all the Martyrs of Vietnam get this illustration on catholicsaints.info</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">(as you can imagine, they’re each pretty obscure individually)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>#1 Ansbald of Prum (July 12)</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">So, let’s wrap this thing up with one more really obscure saint, shall we? Now, Ansbald does seem to definitely have some sites out there. Unfortunately, they all appear to be in German.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Running them through my handy-dandy Google translatin’ machine, though, does allow me to learn that:</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">As the Prüm Abt Egil (Egilo) 860 voluntarily resigned the office was Ansbald Abbot in Prüm and built by the Normans destroyed on 6 January 882 Abbey again. He gained, inter alia, with the support of Emperor Charles III. (Charles the Fat) the confirmation of old and new privileges. So he reached among other things that in Rommersheim a market and a mint was established in favor of the Abbey.</span><br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">And, just in case you need a translation for <i>that </i>, here’s all they list on the only English site I could find (catholicsaints.info, of course):</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Monk at Prüm Abbey near Trier, Germany. Abbot of Saint-Hubert in the Ardennes. Abbot of Prüm Abbey in 860. Prüm was burned by Vikings in 882, but Ansbald managed to re-build.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBTnG9B_mCp_r_oo0p92BYc3R2UgASk-736gNinuSKpD66Rl1eYDxvg1w-oG01gKPmHsn0aVNh7ZshE7CFH8ufCPNxE8TCgRKgiRSyHaiksRlG7agT4D63uXtJo2PfNz7AtHimcgv6X54/s1600/ansbald.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBTnG9B_mCp_r_oo0p92BYc3R2UgASk-736gNinuSKpD66Rl1eYDxvg1w-oG01gKPmHsn0aVNh7ZshE7CFH8ufCPNxE8TCgRKgiRSyHaiksRlG7agT4D63uXtJo2PfNz7AtHimcgv6X54/s320/ansbald.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Honorable Mention</b></span><br />
<ul>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Proclus of Ancyra</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Proculus of Bologna </span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Totnan of Thuringia</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Glyceria of Heraclea</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Idus of Ath Fadha</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Mancius Araki Kyuzaburo</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Thurketyl </span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Martyrs of Orange</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Dogfan</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Priscilla the Tent Maker</span></li>
</ul>
Cliffhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12109085007044124766noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4997980458204946458.post-38323456720027106622016-07-03T07:28:00.004-07:002023-07-02T14:46:46.189-07:00July 1-7<span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">The big day this week is the feast of St. Thomas. You know, one of the Apostles, the doubter, the namesake of that Caribbean Island …</span><br />
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<span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif"><b>#10 Swithun (July 2)</b></span><br />
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<span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">Swithin lived in 9th Century England. He was a royal chaplain & tutor, and then bishop of Winchester Cathedral:</span><br />
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<span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif"><i>Winchester Cathedral</i></span><br />
<span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif"><i>You're bringing me down</i></span><br />
<span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif"><i>You stood and you watched as</i></span><br />
<span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif"><i>My baby left town</i></span></div>
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<span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">St. Swithin is mostly known as one of those saintly meteorologists (others include <a href="http://reallystrangesaints.blogspot.com/2016/06/june-8-14.html">Medard</a> and <a href="http://reallystrangesaints.blogspot.com/2016/06/june-15-21.html">Protase</a>). For Swithin, whatever the weather is like on his feast day, you’ll get more of the same for 40 more:</span><br />
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<span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif"><i>St Swithun's day if thou dost rain</i></span><br />
<span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif"><i>For forty days it will remain</i></span><br />
<span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif"><i>St Swithun's day if thou be fair</i></span><br />
<span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif"><i>For forty days 'twill rain nae mare</i></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjU9iZI4Ib9vut-jQRzoEu4tXGuMr-3WtxfmpuDspyYO2t1MhZtb0MDbV1-FfsKvIYUyZaZgE4WY9rNe4BDpo3x_IFZs6IUVQGDN2-LhtwMuHF-ZtSWQ0l7vf0jS_Muv-gqX1aqDHWWjsk/s1600/swith.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjU9iZI4Ib9vut-jQRzoEu4tXGuMr-3WtxfmpuDspyYO2t1MhZtb0MDbV1-FfsKvIYUyZaZgE4WY9rNe4BDpo3x_IFZs6IUVQGDN2-LhtwMuHF-ZtSWQ0l7vf0jS_Muv-gqX1aqDHWWjsk/s320/swith.jpg" width="244" /></a></div>
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<span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">Interestingly, St. Swithin’s Day is actually July 15. That’s the day that Swithin’s relics were transferred from outside the cathedral to inside. For some reason, that’s a big deal. His actual feast day is still the 2nd though.</span><br />
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<span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif"><b>#9 Monegundis (July 2)</b></span><br />
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<span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">Geez, what an unattractive name. To make matters worse, though, would you believe Monegundis was a girl? Yup, poor thing.</span><br />
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<span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">Monegundis lived in 6th Century France. She started out fairly secular – getting married and having two kids.</span><br />
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<span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">When her children died, though, Monegundis experienced a deep depression. To climb out of it, she subsequently got religion. With her husband’s permission, Monegundis became a hermit, attracted some followers, and started a convent.</span><br />
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<span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">I’m kind of surprised she’s not a patron saint for depression sufferers or parents who have lost children. Maybe I’ll write a letter about it to Pope Francis.</span><br />
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<span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif"><b>#8 Ulric of Augsburg (July 4)</b></span><br />
<span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif"><b>Representation: </b>against moles</span><br />
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<span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">Now, are these the kind on your face, or the ones beneath your lawn?</span><br />
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<span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">Ulric was born in Switzerland at the very end of the 9th Century. His noble family offered him to the church at birth, and he was subsequently raised in a monastery. He later toyed with becoming a courtier, but ended up as bishop of the German city of Augsburg. Overall, he seems to have been more on the political than the spiritual side.</span><br />
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<span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">Ulric was the first saint to be canonized. Back in Ulric’s day, this simply meant being vetted by the pope (up until to that time, there really wasn’t any process). Today, canonization involves evidence; trials; the religious equivalents of briefs, defense attorneys, and prosecutors – all the trappings of a legal proceeding. </span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdbh7jdHB7NP1S11PvdQjUJk3ycDo2oTYiIB0qaMO09bk0a2KBkOqeBHMvIoekeeNn5sK8L10v2kuLXzFbad_24Up-BZNw0iMW69MxHHIxuL1h-YntDC7Dq6FlAxQjImUbqt7KbfabgUU/s1600/ulric.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdbh7jdHB7NP1S11PvdQjUJk3ycDo2oTYiIB0qaMO09bk0a2KBkOqeBHMvIoekeeNn5sK8L10v2kuLXzFbad_24Up-BZNw0iMW69MxHHIxuL1h-YntDC7Dq6FlAxQjImUbqt7KbfabgUU/s1600/ulric.png" /></a></div>
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<span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">For some reason, one of his representations is “with fish”</span></div>
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<span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">Oh, those moles are the furry kind, by the way. You’ll be interested to know that you can also invoke Ulrich against mouse troubles as well. Not sure about any other vermin though.</span><br />
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<span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif"><b>#7 Willibald of Eichstatt (July 7)</b></span><br />
<span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif"><b>Representation: </b> monk with a crown at his feet as he talks to a man cutting down a tree</span><br />
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<span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">Hmm, that's pretty detailed. I wonder what they were talking about though.</span><br />
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<span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">Willibald and Ulric actually have a surprising number of commonalities. Willibald was also dedicated to God by his parents early in life. Willibald’s parents, however, were royals. Willibald was also made a bishop, and of a German city as well (Eichstatt, in Willibald’s case). Though both were active in the Middle Ages, Willibald predated Ulric by about 100 years.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimL8wR7b53EjepRx_o9QtomILP54uUWYktzL9e70NR_BZi6ROfUgWwblmhRvpwCXADYZnLG9CvnN8lFuBgtGCBi8iD7AKV6O_5LZyzFgRZ9FTybgEG8RJDpVoRVE06jqBtOhAtAl3EXrU/s1600/will.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimL8wR7b53EjepRx_o9QtomILP54uUWYktzL9e70NR_BZi6ROfUgWwblmhRvpwCXADYZnLG9CvnN8lFuBgtGCBi8iD7AKV6O_5LZyzFgRZ9FTybgEG8RJDpVoRVE06jqBtOhAtAl3EXrU/s1600/will.jpg" /></a></div>
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<span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">That’s Willibald on the left, Walburga on the right, and Mary in the middle</span></div>
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<span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">By the way, that representation above is not the only odd one for this saint. Catholicsaints.info also has him down for:</span><br />
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<li><span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">Bishop overseeing construction of a church</span></li>
<li><span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">Pilgrim with Saint Richard the King and Saint Winnebald of Heidenheim</span></li>
<li><span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">Monk or bishop with the words fides, spes, and charitas on his cloak or arm</span></li>
<li><span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">Bishop holding two arrows</span></li>
<li><span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">Bishop with a broken glass</span></li>
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<span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif"><b>#6 Nazju Falzon (July 1)</b></span><br />
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<span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">I’m not sure how many saints there are from Malta. I’m pretty sure of at least one though – and that’s this guy. </span><br />
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<span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">Nazju is a more contemporary saint, having lived and died in the 19th Century. He made a name for himself teaching catechism to children, ministering to British servicemen, writing tracts and a book, and generally tending to his flock and doing good works.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgC-WujwBeDOM4-6kKkG6XjSa7fM7dvXM4JHOycPLrtY3G8E09SCn76uKwHe_ePddOFIumSUSwsE_VFPJGntNg01lDkPHTWvoCOCs6i8pX6LzlKf9HP4M68yqGJYrZllR7c9veXGWSr0Ks/s1600/naz.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgC-WujwBeDOM4-6kKkG6XjSa7fM7dvXM4JHOycPLrtY3G8E09SCn76uKwHe_ePddOFIumSUSwsE_VFPJGntNg01lDkPHTWvoCOCs6i8pX6LzlKf9HP4M68yqGJYrZllR7c9veXGWSr0Ks/s320/naz.jpg" width="218" /></a></div>
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<span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">Skużani! Mhux qiegħed nifhem bil-Malti</span></div>
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<span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">(Maltese for “Sorry! I don’t speak any Maltese.”</span></div>
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<span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">Well, except for that. And I only got that from <a href="http://www.omniglot.com/language/phrases/">this cool site</a>.)</span></div>
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<span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">Nazju is actually only a beatus, I’m afraid. And his beatification only happened back in 2001.</span><br />
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<span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">I could only find one other Maltese saint, one Publius of Malta. He was the first bishop of Malta, back in the 2nd Century, and actually knew St. Paul. Oh, he was also a real, live saint too. Of course, he doesn’t have the cool name that Nazju has. </span><br />
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<span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif"><b>#5 Athanasius the Athonite (July 5)</b></span><br />
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<span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">If you’re like me, you’re probably wondering what the heck an Athonite is. It’s actually a pretty interesting story …</span><br />
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<span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">Have you ever heard of Mount Athos? It’s an Orthodox monastery on the top of the Greek mountain of the same name. It’s been around for over 1000 years, houses almost 2,000 monks, and is particularly well-known for its inaccessibility. </span><br />
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<span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">Well, guess what? Athanasius was its founder. </span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDh15WRE5cWJn7vsqvBOZBtLsrv6LHkuHsjOpune_tGCNSRVz_ZPGed0-svAQEod8a5G5H1bB9hNQ1ZTbBD7rD-g9CTucD0agRagdTl79OeNkawlUT_Zj5jXPnZtVqcIHdjCHn-20TNOQ/s1600/ath.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="177" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDh15WRE5cWJn7vsqvBOZBtLsrv6LHkuHsjOpune_tGCNSRVz_ZPGed0-svAQEod8a5G5H1bB9hNQ1ZTbBD7rD-g9CTucD0agRagdTl79OeNkawlUT_Zj5jXPnZtVqcIHdjCHn-20TNOQ/s400/ath.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">Looks like something from <i>The Lord of the Rings</i>, but it’s actually real</span></div>
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<span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif"><b>#4 Zoe of Rome (July 5)</b></span><br />
<span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif"><b>Representation: </b>woman hanging by her hair in a tree</span><br />
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<span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">There’s a story behind this one. I just know there is.</span><br />
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<span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">Sure enough, this just so happens to represent the particularly gruesome form of Zoe’s martyrdom. Let me explain …</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBkMvp_VpzUoa0hF1YPfrbP1fgtapRoqPk_DJByrmv54ThnTsqsHNJ9NogmckEGwBrI-NcwboywYHM6zsJSDeAmhBXjkzrwBhoa_FHMK7R07OVAbLnl1ThnXB6krhvzmfLFSgXAivihzY/s1600/zoe.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBkMvp_VpzUoa0hF1YPfrbP1fgtapRoqPk_DJByrmv54ThnTsqsHNJ9NogmckEGwBrI-NcwboywYHM6zsJSDeAmhBXjkzrwBhoa_FHMK7R07OVAbLnl1ThnXB6krhvzmfLFSgXAivihzY/s1600/zoe.jpg" /></a></div>
<span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif"><br /></span><span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">First, the bad guys tied Zoe to a tree limb by her long, flowing hair. Next, they built a fire under her. Finally, Zoe did her bit by inhaling the smoke and dying. </span><br />
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<span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">All this happened in 3rd Century Rome, during the persecutions of Diocletian.</span><br />
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<span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif"><b>#3 Goar of Aquitaine (July 6)</b></span><br />
<span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif"><b>Representations: </b>man hanging his hat on a sunbeam</span><br />
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<span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">I think I like this one better than Zoe’s.</span><br />
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<span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">Turns out there’s a story behind this one as well. Unfortunately, none of the explanations I could find make all that much sense.</span><br />
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<span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">Nor do I know what’s behind these other rather interesting representations:</span><br />
<ul>
<li><span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">Hermit being given milk by hinds</span></li>
<li><span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">Hermit with the devil on his shoulder</span></li>
<li><span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">Hermit with the devil under his feet</span></li>
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<span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">I do know, though, that Goar was a hermit who, though born in France, made his hermitage in Germany, in the area of Trier. </span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhcYVAGHpiPeLDRSNPzoNLWee6QTo0HYhyo0qNHoGnd2as-RNtap7KcZLo6PpxrxxPAEH1shkQHc-SkwI6h1QZDVVgzmc1cAHXSvjv_nA0p3oo10aflQ9ogtILjYg96PF_IQIcYur7Yt54/s1600/goar.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhcYVAGHpiPeLDRSNPzoNLWee6QTo0HYhyo0qNHoGnd2as-RNtap7KcZLo6PpxrxxPAEH1shkQHc-SkwI6h1QZDVVgzmc1cAHXSvjv_nA0p3oo10aflQ9ogtILjYg96PF_IQIcYur7Yt54/s1600/goar.png" /></a></div>
<span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif"><br /></span><span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">He was also a particularly hospitable hermit, which explains his patronage of innkeepers. He’s also a patron saint for potters and vine growers. The story behind those last two? Not too surprisingly, I have no idea at all.</span><br />
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<span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif"><b>#2 Peter To Rot (July 7)</b></span><br />
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<span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">There’s just no getting around the fact that this guy’s last name sounds just like “toe rot.” Right?</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFhWI8mIIrJ0WxXAw4Cr7rwZ327jZtQ-gnjQenAtrU5NxoHLcHBC1CFZkVHE3YaDDm8rZHV15R8N_RBujrsdTPef1OQxMu5N94f60UUyXuqW6E6JVrylAKqVfLpPBWvjB9JfP3Zcm0Bek/s1600/pete.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFhWI8mIIrJ0WxXAw4Cr7rwZ327jZtQ-gnjQenAtrU5NxoHLcHBC1CFZkVHE3YaDDm8rZHV15R8N_RBujrsdTPef1OQxMu5N94f60UUyXuqW6E6JVrylAKqVfLpPBWvjB9JfP3Zcm0Bek/s320/pete.jpg" width="195" /></a></div>
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<span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">Possibly the weirdest holy card I’ve ever seen</span></div>
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<span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">Peter’s a rather an interesting saint (he’s actually only a Blessed). One, he’s from the 20th Century. Two, he’s from the rather obscure country of Papua New Guinea. Here’s his story … </span><br />
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<span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">When the Japanese invaded his village during WWII, Peter was asked by the village priest to take over the village’s spiritual needs when the priest was sent off to prison camp. Though only a catechist (i.e., a religious instructor), Peter did a bang-up job.</span><br />
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<span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">Unfortunately, some of the locals turned Peter in to the Japanese. Peter was then beaten, tortured, and sent off to a prison camp himself, where he would in turn be murdered.</span><br />
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<span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">After doing a little research, I’m happy to report that Peter’s last name is actually pronounced “toe rote.” Whew!</span><br />
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<span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif"><b>#1 Bertha of Blangy (July 4)</b></span><br />
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<span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">Too bad she isn’t a beata. That would make her Blessed Bertha of Blangy. Blimey!</span><br />
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<span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">Alas, she’s a saint. She also just so happened to be a princess, the daughter of the King of Kent. Like Monegundis, Bertha started out married with children. When she subsequently became a widow, she retired to a convent she had built, along with two of her daughters.</span><br />
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<span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">By the by, Bertha also goes by the much more mellifluous titles of Bertha of Artois and Bertha of France.</span><div><br />
<span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">Whatever you do, though, don’t confuse her with </span><a href="http://reallystrangesaints.blogspot.com/2016/05/may-15-21.html" style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">Bertha of Bingen</a><span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif"> </span><br />
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<span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif"><b>Honorable Mention</b></span><br />
<ul>
<li><span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">Namphanion the Archmartyr</span></li>
<li><span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">Marie-Gabrielle-Françoise-Suzanne de Gaillard de Lavaldène</span></li>
<li><span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">Ailill of Cloonown</span></li>
<li><span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">Daughters of Cathbadh</span></li>
<li><span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">Cyrilla of Cyrene</span></li>
<li><span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">Byblig</span></li>
<li><span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">Guthagon</span></li>
<li><span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">Mucian of Mesia</span></li>
<li><span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">Juthware</span></li>
<li><span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">Veep</span></li>
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</div>Cliffhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12109085007044124766noreply@blogger.com0