Feast Day of St. Blaise, patron of throat illnesses

Photos by Jane Winstead 

 Most Catholics know St. Blaise as the patron of throat illnesses. The Blessing of the Throats was part of Mass on Monday at St. Raphael. Tradition holds that a boy was brought to St. Blaise with a fishbone stuck in his throat. St. Blaise healed him.

While St. Francis of Assisi gets most of the press when it comes to animals, St. Blaise is a patron saint of animals, too. He was a bishop in Armenia at a time when Christians were being persecuted. He hid in the mountains but Roman soldiers searched for him. They found him treating injured and sick animals at a cave. On the way back for trial, legend has it, he convinced a wolf to release a pig that belonged to a poor woman. After St. Blaise was sentenced to be starved to death, the woman secretly brought him food. Eventually, the Roman governor had him beheaded.

Saint Blaise is also the patron of veterinarians, infants, stonecutters, wool workers, and builders.

Feast of St. Blaise and Blessing of the Throats

Photo by Jane Winstead

Today is the feast of St. Blaise and the annual Blessing of the Throats. Father Tim blesses a tiny visitor named Dominic during 8 a.m. Mass today. Dominic, held by his mother, Francesca, is the godson of St. Raphael seminarian Bob Angel. Although she is a parishioner at St. Paul parish in downtown St. Petersburg, she and Dominic attend daily Mass at St. Raphael. Few facts are known about St. Blaise. He is believed to have been a bishop in Armenia (now Turkey). He died in 316. A legend that he healed a boy with a fishbone stuck in his throat gave rise to the tradition of the Blessing of the Throats. You can read more about the tradition of St. Blaise at uCatholic.com.