martha served

st. martha (ironically) is the bible's consummate hostess, often serving jesus as a guest in her home. for this, she is the patron saint of cooks and waiters/waitresses.

the brewmaster

picture a man who is consumed by parties and wordly ambitions, living a life seeped in impurity and pride. he believes christianity is the one true religon, but is not a christian because he does not believe he can lead a pure life. this man looks a lot like the guy on the left, st. augustine of hippo, patron saint of brewers. he earned his title because of his conversion from a former life of loose living and serves as an inspiration to those who struggle with a particular vice or habit.

st. augustine was thought to be one of the most intelligent people who ever lived, and is quoted before his conversion as saying to his friend,"we, with all our knowledge, are so cowardly that we keep rolling around in the mud of our sins!"



he became an influential theologian and argued in the early 400s that god alone could suspend the normal laws of the universe. in his view, neither satan nor witches had supernatural powers or were capable of effectively invoking magic of any sort. if witches are indeed powerless, the church need not overly concern itself with their spells or other attempts at mischief. the late medieval church accepted this view, and felt little need to bother itself with tracking down witches or investigating allegations of witchcraft.

the yeast also rises

st. elizabeth of hungary died at the ripe old age of 24 after having three children, being widowed during the crusades, building a franciscan hospital, and tending to the sick. i am not sure how she got the gig as patroness of bakers. interestingly, she is also the patron saint of countesses, death of children, the falsely accused, the homeless, nursing services, tertiaries, widows, and young brides. busy lady.

fruit of the vine

st. morand was born to a noble family in germany, but gave up his wealth and prestige to become a benedictine monk. he once survived a whole lenten season (40 days not including sundays, for those unacquainted) eating nothing but a bunch of grapes. this miracle earned him the resplendent patronage of wine growers.
in my humble opinion, he does good work.

a saint a day keeps the devil at bay

i don't know what made me start thinking about this. i believe it was when i was eating that huge bacon sandwich last week i started wondering if there is a patron saint of bacon. someone who could intercede on my behalf and allow me to consume the entire sandwich and yet avoid the imminent gastrointestinal disturbance. alas, i do not believe any such saint exists, unless you count this. while amusing, not sanctioned by the catholic church.

i then searched for a patron saint of bloggers and came up with st. jerome. again, not officially registered as such at the big house in rome, although he was a prolific letter writer, so it makes sense. there is also no patron saint of foodies.

there are patron saints of a heck of a lot of other things, though. so, since i obviously have a lot of time on my hands this month and more than just a slight case of pharmacy school senioritis, i will regale you randomly with food-related saints. humor me. i'm bored and would like to procrastinate.

up first is the patron of where it all begins - the farmers. st. isidore was kind to animals and farmed the lands of a wealthy spanish nobleman. his miracles included feeding many poor people with a small amount of food and striking the earth to bring water forth. it is also said angels helped him with his work in the fields to make up the time lost while he was at mass.

whatever you may believe about angels and miracles, isidore was a man who shared what little he had with those less fortunate. he asked that riches offered to him be instead given to the poor. his prayer encourages "all farmers in their labors" and hopes to "help them to feed many people".

sounds good to me.