Over the next several months, I will be posting segments from a larger article on the Fourteen Holy Helpers. "So who are these Holy Helpers?" It all goes back to the Black Death (1346-49), a time when plague devastated the land. Attacking without warning, it's victim would be bereft of reason and succumb to the malady within hours. Consequently, many souls were deprived of their last sacraments. Some researchers have extrapolated that as high as sixty percent of Europe's population was decimated by the flea-borne pestilence. With civil authorities incapable of responding to the misanthropic threat, the pious turn their confidence heavenward; inclining their prayers to special patrons of disease, known to the Church since its earliest days. The association of a saint with particular afflictions is generally drawn from their virtues, but more often, from the method of their martyrdom. For example, St. Dionysius’ beheading being the reason he is invoked against headaches. The efficacy of prayers to the saints in heaven for our bodily and spiritual ills is by no means trivial on such accounts. As Christ taught through parables, so a greater meaning lay dormant in the legends of the saints. A meaning often expressed by the poet, and truly understood through the potent work of the Holy Spirit upon the intellect.
The boy's parents told him it was a delusion, but a monk at the nearby monastery told him that if he should ever see the boy again, to ask him what it was he wanted. That opportunity came on June 28, 1446. As before, the child appeared; only now joined by thirteen others in a halo of glory. “In the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost!,” Herman commanded, “What is it that you want?” The child replied, “We are the fourteen holy helpers, and we desire a chapel built for us.” The following Sunday, Herman saw two candles descend from the sky at the very spot of the vision. A woman passing by also witnessed the occurrence and the account was brought before Abbot Frederic IV and his community. They were understandably incredulous. But, after several extraordinary favors were granted to those who prayed at the site, the decision was made to build a chapel in honor of the fourteen holy helpers.
Why should you care about figures whose lives are often obscured in legend? If you are reading this, the answer should be because you are a practicing Catholic. Thus, you appreciate the place of sacred tradition. On the chance that the reader gives little care to the lives of the saints, or worse yet, is hostile towards them on account of their veracity, I offer the thoughts of Joseph von Goerres on the artform of legendary lore. In the Middle Ages, “the science of criticism was unknown; therefore little care was exercised in separating the poetic additions from the authentic legends.” The Church had not spoken on the subject, canonical rules and the necessary organs for the rigid examination of all the evidence in these matters had not been developed; legendary lore flourished under these conditions. The authors of legends which we might find fanciful in our age were generally convinced that the reader could distinguish between truth and poetic embellishment. Legends should be regarded as illustrations rather than portraits of the person depicted. St. George likely didn’t spar with an actual dragon, but the allegorical meaning shouldn’t be lost on our modern age. The persecution of Diocletian was like a fire breathing menace and St. George’s defiance, in a sense, slew the enemy. His martyrdom won a number of souls over to the Christian faith, and his legacy lives still today in spite of his mortal death. "The question remains; who are the fourteen?"
Sts. Christopher, Blase, George, Giles, Vitus, Eurasmus, Cyriacus, Achatius, Eustachius, Dionysius, Pantaleon, Margaret, Barbara, and Catherine. Now, let's learn a little bit about them. Continued next week...
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AuthorShawn Briggs is a father, musician, and traditional Catholic with a love for the faith and dedication to Christ the King. Archives
April 2021
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