FAMILY SAINT

Nikolai Kofanov- Russia

Today is the feast of SAINT GEORGE  (c. 275/280 – April 23, 303), the patron saint of England and also of my family- the Georges!  He is patron saint of soldiers, archers, cavalry and chivalry, farmers and field workers (George means farmer in Greek), riders and saddlers, and he helps those suffering from leprosy, plague and syphilis. In recent years he has been adopted as patron saint of Scouts.  He is also known as one of the Fourteen Holy Helpers, a group of saints venerated together because their intercession is believed to be particularly effective, especially against various diseases, including those caused by virus!

He is the patron saint of many other countries including Greece, Portugal, Palestine, Ethiopia, Georgia, and Russia. Moscow alone has 41 Churches with the name of Saint George, and the Moscow city Coat of Arms is of St George on a horse killing the dragon.

The Ethiopians attributed their victory over invading Italian colonizers at the Battle of Adwa on the feast day of St George in 1896 to the Dragon Slayer's intercession.

St George stands out among other saints and legends because he is known and revered by both Muslims and Christians.

If we look at the amount of art through the centuries, it can be said that he is the most popular saint in history. There are literally thousands of holy icons surviving, of St George killing a dragon, found in all parts of the Christian world, spanning centuries.

 

Olaf Rude- Danish

 The story of St George and the Dragon symbolizes when good wins over evil, and is very famous. Compare Book of Revelation chapters 12-13.  According to a legend, St George of Lydda killed a dragon and saved the lives of many people. It is sometimes called 'The Golden Legend'. 

In Sweden, the Princess symbolizes the nation of Sweden, and the dragon represents a foreign army of enemies. The story was passed from parent to child through songs in Russia.

We are all familiar with the tale of the knight on the white steed, coming to the rescue of a princess in peril who is about to be sacrificed to a dragon, terrorizing the local citizenry. Stalwart in his faith in God, George slays the evil monster, converts the pagan state to Christianity, then, gives his reward away to the poor and/or marries the princess.

A holy dragon-killer certainly carries the aura of victory about him, and there have been numerous battlefield sightings of St George. He is said to have appeared in the 11th century to help Crusaders at the Siege of Antioch and lead them in scaling the walls of Jerusalem. He was also a frequent combatant on the side of Christians in their battles with the Moors in Spain. St. George favored the English with a visitation, when they defeated the French at Agincourt in 1415, and there are stories of British troops seeing him with a heavenly cavalry over the battlefield of Mons in 1914 during World War I.

Feodosiy Humeniuk- Ukraine

Sifting through the miraculous dragon and torture tales, is there anything we can say with certainty about St George? Yes and no. 

                           God of hosts,
                           who so kindled the flame of love
                           in the heart of your servant George
                           that he bore witness to the risen Lord
                           by his life and by his death:
                           give us the same faith and power of love
                           that we who rejoice in his triumphs
                           may come to share with him the fullness of the resurrection;
                           through Jesus Christ our Lord.

                                                (Anglican collect on April 23: the Festival of George)