As of yet, it does not appear that there is an official Patron Saint of Bloggers although many have been suggested: St. Augustine (patron of printers), St. Jerome (patron of letter-writers), & St. Hugh of Lincoln (patron of sick people & swans?!). Hinduism is widely used as an example of polytheistic religions: they have over 700 gods!! and right-thinking monotheists should be duly shocked & disgusted. The further I get from the faith of my family, the more I hear people talking about the “goddess” of Catholicism, Mary, the Mother of God. But there is a staggering number of Catholic saints, or minigods.
For every occasion, there seems to be a saint (or more than one). Certainly for every profession: doctors, veterinarians, firefighters, lawyers, teachers, even prostitutes. The one that I generally prayed to was St. Anthony, the Patron Saint of Lost Causes. I inherited my mother’s ability to worry over nothing. And the loss of a necklace that I wanted to wear that morning would cause what I now recognize as a physical stress reaction: sweaty palms, shallow breathing, increased heart-rate…while there is a specific prayer to St. Anthony, my prayers generally took the form of “St. Anthony, please help me find [insert object here]. Please, please please help me find [object again]. (repeat as needed)”. I now do not believe that The Divine, or even holy persons, take the time to actually pluck the battery to my Discman from St.-Anthony-only-knows-where to place it directly in front of my eyes, but it was calming to me to know that I wasn’t in this small crisis alone.
St. Anthony came to my mind last night, I’m not sure why, I didn’t lose anything and I haven’t prayed to him in many years, but it made me think. Do Catholics have saints because they think their God is too busy to deal with their mundane problems (like wanting a beer)? Or because so many early Christian converts came from polytheistic faiths? There are some great “saints” whose historical existence is questionable at best and whose patronage and feast day mirrors that of a local divinity (mostly Irish; see: St. Bridget & St. Finbar). Maybe it’s to acknowledge unworthiness to approach The Divine unaided—to have someone make your case in person. Like the person who answers the phone when you call your senator. Or is it simply so that they can imagine themselves not alone? For every stress of life, there is a patron saint: remodeling the kitchen, passing that O-Chem test, embezzlement, you name it.
In my own quest for The Divine, I’ve come to recognize that I believe in one, all-encompassing, undivided Divinity. Something, somewhere, that my brain can’t even comprehend, let alone name. So I find it necessary to name my gods (or goddesses). Old polytheist religions help fill this desire in me: I have Mars when I need courage; Hestia when I need to find worth in doing dishes & cooking; St. Francis of Assisi when I feel like throttling my husband’s cats. Maybe the plethora of saints stems from the same urge. The Divine is so big, so all-encompassing that we cannot even pray to it without parcelling it up. Muslims have their 99 names, Catholics have their saints, I have my indices of Greek, Roman, Mesopotamian, and Catholic minigods; Gods of only one thing at a time.
Maybe this is (grudging) acknowledgment that none of us has a monopoly on The Divine: we can only see or touch a piece of it at a time. I’d like to think that, anyway.
8 responses so far ↓
1 John // Oct 4, 2006 at 10:44 pm
Beautifully spoken, Miko. When Mahayana Buddhism rolled through Tibet, China and Japan (and many other places), many of the local deities converted to Buddhism. Some became Buddhas or Bodhisattvas in their own right. I have a couple of favorites, including Guanyin/Kannon and Jizo, who is the Japanese manifestation s of the Bodhisattva of Compassion. They are embodiments of important principles, ideals, feelings, and move me when I stand before their idols in the temples I visit.
It’s intriguing to me that in my quest for the divine, I’ve come to find that there is no divine other than what we as humans are able feel or describe, but that I still feel drawn to the these Buddhas, God/desses, and Saints. And I even invoke their names.
Mostly though, I like to worship my fellow humans. I like the idea of six billion gods and goddesses, all with incredible individual and collective potential. There are angels and demons, devis and devils. Some are more worthy of worship than others: my wife and my children, Gandhi, Emily Dickinson, Stephen Colbert, Audrey Tautou…
2 PodMonkeys // Oct 5, 2006 at 3:58 am
This could be helpful for the serious blogger:
Saint Remigius (St. Remy)
[For a period he suffered from various temptations … ] For this reason St. Remigius is efficiently invoked in temptations of flesh and spirit. Those who have difficulty in meditating or comprehending the divine mysteries also find a great support in St. Remigius.
—–
I find this one kind of fun in light of John’s quest for spiritual enlightenment. When John finds himself lost or being tempted by a round of World of Warcraft when he should be studying, he can always look to the possible relative, Saint Remy.
I like your idea John. The idea of the 6 billion gods and goddesses. I think Steve Irwin would be pretty high up on my list, if not at the top. I’ve taken a more general (encompasing?) approach. I like the idea of the human spirit. The embodiment of all that is good and hopeful of the human intellect. As a group, people can be pretty amazing. As an individual, people can call on the human spirit to do amazing things. It’s not so much divine, so much as humans acting as part of a larger organism. Thats about the best I can explain that one.
3 Rich // Oct 5, 2006 at 4:57 am
I’m with you on Audrey Tautou, John!
My first (yes, I took it twice) Calculus teacher used to describe some of the “magic” of calculus as this big, pink amorphous cloud that accepted some input, and spat out something amazing. Maybe God is like that.
My nephew served an LDS mission in Russia, and one day met a woman who included in her orthodox pantheon of Saints a small icon she kept hidden away for special prayers (the Russians love icons). It turned out to be a plastic Obi-Wan Star Wars figurine she picked up somewhere. Apparently there are more gods even than all the living… ;o)
4 pilgrimgirl // Oct 5, 2006 at 4:23 pm
Not having been schooled in the tradition of praying to Saints, I can’t really think of one that has particular resonance with me.
However, when I was younger there were often church leaders or figures from LDS history that I found particularly inspiring. And while I didn’t pray to them, I looked to them to help me make decisions, as a kind of moral compass. While I was suffering from depression the story of the Sumerian goddess Inanna was particularly empowering to me. While I didn’t revere her as deity, I found her helpful as an archetypal figure.
Oh, and there are a few Remys in my personal pantheon. Two of them are sitting nearby doing their homework as I type this message. The third will read this comment soon and smile.
5 ebrown // Oct 7, 2006 at 6:50 am
Catholics do not regard saints as “minigods.” Saints are individuals who have demostrated and been recognized for heroic virtue; they are completely human and not, in any way, to be mistaken for gods.
6 Jonathan // Oct 7, 2006 at 10:24 am
One of my favorite authors, Henri Nouwen, a Catholic priest, discussed the mysterious concept of saints in a book called “Life of the Beloved” - a book describing the spiritual life and the one who lives it: the “Beloved” of God. He is describing that it is the nature of the Beloved to give themselves completely to others, and this is ultimately consummated in their deaths:
Anyone wanting a description of the spiritual life couched entirely in philosophical terms should read this book! It is the best I’ve ever read, bar none.
7 Miko // Oct 9, 2006 at 12:16 pm
ebrown: I agree that saints are presented to the catholic as being fully human, but my dictionary defines god as “a superhuman being or spirit worshipped as having power over nature or human fortunes”. Prayer to saints is still prayer (worship) even if all one desires is that the saint pray on your behalf to God (power over…human fortunes). It was that dichotomy that I was going for. There was no offense intended.
I like Mr. & Ms. Pilgrim’s view of saints-in-the-house.
Jonathan–I’ve added it to my list!
8 ebrown // Oct 10, 2006 at 6:30 am
The ancient liturgical churches, both Roman and Orthodox, view the Church as the Body of Christ, that is all believers living and dead. Worship is not given to saints. Prayer to saints is no different than asking a living person to pray for something. Of course, human behavior and attitudes are multi-facented and one cannot overlook the fact that individuals may be superstitious or overwrought in their attitudes. Prayer is not necessarily worship: it can also be request.
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