Happy Saint Bridgets Day to all Irish people everywhere! Saint Brigid, also known as Saint Bridget, Saint Brigit, and Mary of the Gael Lifetime: 451 - 525 in Ireland Feast Day: February 1st Patron Saint Of: Babies, midwives, children whose parents arent married, scholars, poets, travelers (especially those who travel by water), and farmers (especially dairy farmers) Famous Miracles: God performed many miracles through Brigid during her lifetime, believers say, and most of them have to do with healing. One story tells about Brigid curing two sisters who couldnt hear or talk. Bridget was traveling on horseback along with the sisters when the horse she was riding got startled and Brigid fell off, hitting her head on a stone. Brigids blood from her wound mixed with the water on the ground, and she got the idea of telling the sisters to pour the mixture of blood and water onto their necks while praying in Jesus Christs name for healing. One did so, and was healed, while the other one was healed simply from touching the bloody water when she bent down on the ground to check on Brigid. In another miracle story, Brigid healed a man afflicted by leprosy by blessing a mug of water and instructing one of the women in her monastery to help the man use the blessed water to wash his skin. The mans skin then completely cleared up. Brigid was close to animals, and several miracle stories from her life have to do with animals, such as when she touched a cow that had already been milked dry and blessed it to help hungry and thirsty people. Then, when they milked the cow, they were able to get 10 times the amount of milk as usual from it. When Brigid was looking for land she could use to build her monastery, she asked the reluctant local king to give her only as much land as her cloak would cover, and then prayed for God to miraculously expand her cloak to convince the king to help her out. The story says that Brigids cloak then grew bigger as the king watched, covering a large area of land that he then donated for her monastery. Biography: Brigid was born in 5th century Ireland to a pagan father (Dubhthach, a chieftain of the Leinster clan) and Christian mother (Brocca, a slave who had come to faith through Saint Patricks preaching of the Gospel). Considered a slave from birth, Brigid endured mistreatment from her slave owners growing up, yet developed a reputation for showing extraordinary kindness and generosity to others. She once gave away her mothers entire supply of butter to someone in need and then prayed for God to replenish the supply for her mother, and butter miraculously appeared in response to Brigids prayers, according to a story about her childhood. Her physical beauty (including deep blue eyes) attracted many suitors, but Brigid decided not to get married so she could devote her life fully to Christian ministry as a nun. An ancient story says that when men didnt stop pursuing her romantically, Brigid prayed for God to take away her beauty, and he did so temporarily by afflicting her with facial blemishes and swollen eyes. By the time Brigids beauty returned, her potential suitors had gone elsewhere to search for a wife. Brigid founded a monastery underneath an oak tree in Kildare, Ireland, and it quickly grew to become a full-scale monastery community for both men and women that attracted many people who studied religion, writing, and art there. As the leader of a community that became Irelands centre of learning, Brigid became an important female leader in the ancient world and in the church. She eventually assumed the role of a bishop. At her monastery, Brigid set up an eternal flame of fire to represent the Holy Spirits constant presence with people. That flame was extinguished several hundred years later during the Reformation, but light again in 1993 and still burns in Kildare. The well that Bridget used to baptize people is outside Kildare, and pilgrims visit the well to say prayers and tie colorful ribbons on a wishing tree beside it. A special type of cross known as Saint Brigids cross is popular throughout Ireland, and it commemorates a famous story in which Brigid went to the home of a pagan leader when people told her that he was dying and needed to hear the Gospel message quickly. When Brigid arrived, the man was delirious and upset, unwilling to listen to what Brigid had to say. So she sat with him and prayed, and while she did, she took some of the straw from the floor and began weaving it into the shape of a cross. Gradually the man quieted down and asked Brigid what she was doing. She then explained the Gospel to him, using her handmade cross as a visual aid. The man then came to faith in Jesus Christ, and Brigid baptized him just before he died. Today, many Irish people display a Saint Brigids cross in their homes, since it is said to help ward off evil and welcome good. Bridget died in 525 AD, and after her death people began to venerate her as as saint, praying to her for help seeking healing from God, since many of the miracles during her lifetime related to healing.
Posted on: Sat, 01 Feb 2014 11:16:08 +0000
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