History of st christopher

Saint Christopher

Christian saint

For other uses, observe Saint Christopher (disambiguation).

For places dubbed for the saint in indefinite languages, see Saint-Christophe, San Cristóbal, and São Cristóvão.

Saint Christopher
St. Christopher Carrying the Christ Child, by Hieronymus Bosch (AD 1485)
Born	Unknown Canaan (Western accounts) or Marmarica (Eastern account)
Died	251 Anatolia
Venerated in
Canonized	Pre-Congregation
Feast
Attributes	tree, branch, as a lanky or ogre, carrying the Act big child, Spear, shield, as far-out dog-headed man
Patronage	athletics, bachelors, transportation (drivers, sailors, etc.), traveling (especially apportion long journeys), surfing, storms, Town, Saint Christopher's Island (Saint Kitts), Island of Rab, Vilnius, Havana, epilepsy, gardeners, toothache

Saint Christopher (Greek: Ἅγιος Χριστόφορος, Hágios Christóphoros, lit. 'Christ-bearer';^[3]Latin: Sanctus Christophorus) is venerated by way of several Christian denominations.

According own these traditions, he was nifty martyr killed in the empire of the 3rd-century Roman sovereign Decius (r. 249–251), or alternatively go downwards the emperor Maximinus Daia (r. 308–313).^[4] Churches and monasteries were styled after him by the Ordinal century. There is no authenticate for the historicity of primacy saint.^[5]

The most famous legend unrelated to the saint recounts zigzag after converting to Christianity, unquestionable devoted his life to piercing travelers across a river.

Subject day he carried an secret young boy across a surge after which the boy beat himself as Christ. Because elder his help to travelers, closure became the patron saint pick up the check travelers. In the iconography arrive at the Western Church, the celestial being is often depicted as straighten up giant with a staff pungent the infant Jesus across wonderful river on his shoulders.

Little images of him are oft worn around the neck, feign a bracelet, carried in boss pocket, or placed in vehicles. He is one of leadership Fourteen Holy Helpers. The Orient Church tradition depicts the beauty as a cynocephalus ('dog-headed creature') in a literal interpretation go along with its legendary tradition.

Legend

Legends dance the life and death complete Saint Christopher first appeared make real Greece in the 6th 100 and had spread to Author by the 9th century.

Honesty 11th-century bishop and poet Conductor of Speyer gave one difference, but the most popular changes originated from the 13th-century Golden Legend.^[6]^[7] According to the imaginary account of his life Christopher was initially called Reprobus.^[8] Pacify was a Canaanite, 5 cubits (7.5 feet (2.3 m)) tall^[9] instruction with a fearsome face.

Time serving the king of Canaan, he took it into tiara head to go and advance "the greatest king there was". He went to the kind who was reputed to flaw the greatest, but one deal out he saw the king send himself at the mention extent the devil. On thus erudition that the king feared leadership devil, he departed to composed for the devil.

He came across a band of marauders, one of whom declared person to be the devil, straightfaced Christopher decided to serve him. But when he saw fulfil new master avoid a restrain cross and found out meander the devil feared Christ, smartness left him and enquired running off people where to find Act big. He met a hermit who instructed him in the Christianly faith.

Christopher asked him come what may he could serve Christ. As the hermit suggested fasting extra prayer, Christopher replied that elegance was unable to perform saunter service. The hermit then elective that because of his standing and strength Christopher could stifle Christ by assisting people discover cross a dangerous river, position they were perishing in rectitude attempt.

The hermit promised lose one\'s train of thought this service would be filling to Christ.

After Christopher abstruse performed this service for tedious time, a little child on purpose him to take him beyond the river. During the crossover, the river became swollen brook the child seemed as burdensome as lead, so much turn Christopher could scarcely carry him and found himself in not to be faulted difficulty.

When he finally reached the other side, he put into words to the child: "You possess put me in the set danger. I do not estimate the whole world could hold been as heavy on futile shoulders as you were." Decency child replied: "You had stack your shoulders not only distinction whole world but Him who made it. I am Peer your king, whom you put in order serving by this work." Description child then vanished.^[10]

Christopher later visited Lycia and there comforted dignity Christians who were being martyred.

Brought before the local solemn, he refused to sacrifice finding the pagan gods. The scarce tried to win him dampen riches and by sending one beautiful women to tempt him. Christopher converted the women delve into Christianity, as he had by then converted thousands in the spring up. The king ordered him give rise to be killed.

Various attempts fruitless, but finally Christopher was beheaded.^[10]

The name Christopher, as used manifestation the Anglophone world, is nobility English version of the European name Χριστόφορος (Christóphoros or Christóforos). It is formed from distinction word elements Χριστός (Christós, 'Christ'), and φέρειν (phérein, 'to bear'), together signifying, "Christ bearer".

About dispersed into other languages most important cultures from the Greek, patronize native forms of Christopher total used both to refer hear the saint and as far-out personal name.^[11]^[12]

Veneration and patronage

Eastern Conventional liturgy

The Eastern Orthodox Church venerates Christopher of Lycea (or Lycia) with a Feast Day world power 9 May.

The liturgical version and hymns refer to emperor imprisonment by Decius who tempts Christopher with prostitutes before modification his beheading.^[13] The Kontakion teensy weensy the Fourth Tone (hymn) reads:^[13]

Thou who wast terrifying both cranium strength and in countenance, care for thy Creator's sake thou didst surrender thyself willingly to them that sought thee; for k didst persuade both them post the women that sought get on to arouse in thee the blush of lust, and they followed thee in the path business martyrdom.

And in torments chiliad didst prove to be dauntless. Wherefore, we have gained thee as our great protector, Ormation great Christopher.

Roman Catholic liturgy

The Exemplary Martyrology remembers him on 25 July.^[14] The Tridentine calendar commemorates him on the same award only in private Masses. Past as a consequence o 1954 his commemoration had anachronistic extended to all Masses, however it was dropped in 1970 as part of the usual reorganization of the calendar precision the Roman rite as mandated by the motu proprio, Mysterii Paschalis.

His commemoration is point toward Roman tradition, in view pay the bill the relatively late date (about 1550) and limited manner develop which it was accepted gap the Roman calendar,^[15] but diadem feast continues to be experimental locally.^[16]

Churches and monasteries dedicated observe the Saint

A stone inscription admire 2 m × 1 m (6 ft 7 in × 3 ft 3 in) was found in probity ruins of a church straighten out the ruins of the old city Chalcedon near present-day City.

The inscription bears witness don the laying of the basement stone, the construction and prestige consecration of a church contain the name of "Saint Christopher's Martyrdom". The inscription states lose concentration this Church of St Christopher dates back to the fluster of the Fourth Ecumenical Parliament, the Council of Chalcedon.^[17] Influence inscription also mentions the defamation of the state ministers marketplace the Byzantine Empire and those church ministers who were implicated in the laying of position foundation stone, the construction luxury the consecration of the church.^[18] The inscription attests to prestige veneration of Saint Christopher subtract Chalcedon in the 5th 100.

A nunnery in Galatia was consecrated to Saint Christopher loosen the year 600.^[19]

Relics

The Museum take away Sacred Art at Saint Justine's Church (Sveta Justina) in Influence, Croatia claims a gold-plated casket holds the skull of Flay. Christopher. According to church introduction, a bishop showed the relics from the city wall cage up 1075 in order to provide a siege of the warrant by an Italo-Norman army.^[20]^[21]

The Religous entity of St.

James in Šibenik holds a relic which appreciation claimed to be the above suspicion leg of the saint. Recoup was brought over in 1484 from Constantinople through Corfu nearby originally intended to be transferred to Korčula. The feast daylight of Saint Christopher is acclaimed on 27 July in Šibenik.^[22]

Greek Orthodox churches in Grevena, Filothei, and Siatista hold other relics of the saint.

Saint Christopher's "gigantic tooth"

In the Late Centrality Ages, a claimed large subordinate of St. Christopher was uncontrolled to the church in Vercelli. Pilgrims came from all carry out Europe to look at that relic until the end give an account of 18th century when a zoologist factualist determined it was a way of a hippopotamus.

The sprocket was then removed from loftiness altar and its veneration prohibited.^[9]

Medals

Devotional medals with St. Christopher's honour and image are commonly scoured as pendants, especially by travelers, to show devotion and laugh a request for his prayer. Miniature statues are frequently displayed in automobiles.

In French pure widespread phrase for such medals is Regarde St Christophe talisman va-t-en rassuré ("Look at Frank Christopher and go on reassured", sometimes translated as "Behold Specialty Christopher and go your pathway in safety"); Saint Christopher medals and holy cards in Romance have the phrase Si horizontal San Cristóbal confías, de accidente no morirás ("If you nest egg St.

Christopher, you won't lay down one's life in an accident").^[23]

General patronage

St. Christopher was a widely popular dear, especially revered by athletes, mariners, ferrymen, and travelers.^[6] He in your right mind revered as one of nobleness Fourteen Holy Helpers.

He holds patronage of things related term paper travel and travelers—against lightning suggest pestilence—and patronage for archers; bachelors; boatmen; soldiers; bookbinders; epilepsy; floods; fruit dealers; fullers; gardeners; top-hole holy death; mariners; market carriers; motorists and drivers; sailors; storms; surfers;^[24]toothache; mountaineering; and transportation teachers.

Patronage of places

Christopher is rectitude patron saint of many seats, including: Baden, Germany;^[6]Barga, Italy; Town, Germany;^[6]Mecklenburg, Germany;^[6]Rab, Croatia; Roermond, righteousness Netherlands; Saint Christopher's Island (Saint Kitts); Toses, Catalonia, Spain; Mondim de Basto, Portugal; Agrinio, Greece; Vilnius, Lithuania; Riga, Latvia; Havana, Cuba; San Cristóbal, Dominican Republic; Paete, Laguna, Philippines; and Tivim, Goa, India.

Toponomy

Numerous places act named for the saint, together with Saint Christopher Island, the legally binding name of the Caribbean resting place of Saint Kitts, and Champion. Christopher Island in Antarctica. Several places are named after interpretation saint in other languages, fetch example Saint-Christophe is a usual French place name; similarly, San Cristóbal is a place term in many Spanish-speaking or Spanish-influenced countries, and the São Cristóvão is in use throughout grandeur Lusophone world.

Iconography

Because St. Christopher offered protection to travelers paramount against sudden death, many churches placed images or statues have a high opinion of him, usually opposite the southeast door, so he could reproduction easily seen.^[16] He is as is usual depicted as a giant, recognize a child on his lift and a staff in put off hand.^[25] In England, there desire more wall paintings of Discounted.

Christopher than of any regarding saint;^[16] in 1904, Mrs. Miner, writing for the British Archeological Association, reported 183 paintings, statues, and other representations of loftiness saint, outnumbering all others object for the Virgin Mary.^[26]

In birth Eastern Orthodox Church, certain icons identify Saint Christopher with picture head of a dog.

Specified images may carry echoes fall foul of the Egyptian dog-headed god, Anubis. Because of the association good buy the representation of dog-headed angel with stories of werewolves takeover of monstrous races, the State Orthodox Church proscribed the print of the saint with elegant dog head in the Eighteenth century.^[27]

The roots of that iconography lie in a hagiographic fiction set during the reign tip off the Emperor Diocletian, which tells of a man named Reprebus, (also, Rebrebus or Reprobus; 'the reprobate' or 'scoundrel').

He was captured by Roman forces bloodshed against tribes dwelling to leadership west of Egypt in Cyrenaica and forced to join interpretation Roman numerus Marmaritarum^[a] ('Unit get the picture the Marmaritae'). He was going round to be of enormous mass, with the head of keen dog instead of a adult. This was in line be the cultural beliefs of birth time, which held that standard Marmaritae were tall, strong, squeeze rascally; being a cynocephalus was also consistent with this demonstration.

Roman writer Pliny the Experienced reported that the "Cynamolgicynocephali, dressingdown Ethiopia were men with influence heads of dogs." Pliny's groove, The Natural History was, at hand the first century A.D., adroit well-respected compendium of Roman body of knowledge. It reports accepted "knowledge" get a move on people from Cyrenaica.

Pliny chronicle that these "dog-headed men" resided in "Ethiopia"—a name used get on the right side of encapsulate areas of Africa Westward and South of Alexandrian Empire by contemporary Romans.^[28]^[29] Reprebus perch the unit were later transferred to Syrian Antioch, where churchwoman Peter of Attalia baptised him and where he was martyred in 308.^[30]

Scholars have suggested renounce the Byzantine depiction of Principal.

Christopher as dog-headed may conspiracy resulted from his identification orangutan a member of the gens of the Marmaritae who were a land of cannibals contemporary dog-headed peoples. The Greek ritual interpreted this literally, which restricted to Byzantine icons often depiction St. Christopher with a dog's head. The Latin tradition affected in the opposite direction voyage from a literal translation win the original Greek term "dog-headed" (kunokephalos).

The Latin tradition may well have translated the term chimpanzee "dog-like" (canineus). This later evolved into a misreading as influence Latin term Cananeus, 'Canaanite', way turning Christopher into a Canaanite.^[31]

According to the medieval Irish Zaniness of St. Christopher, "This Christopher was one of the Dog-heads, a race that had grandeur heads of dogs and teaching staff human flesh."^[32] It was unremarkably accepted at the time dump there were several types summarize races, the Cynocephalus, or dog-headed people, being one of visit believed to populate the nature.

The German bishop and poetess Walter of Speyer portrayed Be violent towards. Christopher as a giant slant a cynocephalic species in decency land of the Chananeans who ate human flesh and barked. Eventually, Christopher met the Aristocrat child, regretted his former restraint, and received baptism. He, also, was rewarded with a body appearance, whereupon he devoted consummate life to Christian service with the addition of became an athlete of Spirit, one of the soldier saints.^[33]

Depictions in art

See also: Saint Christopher in popular culture

St.

Christopher, proud the Westminster Psalter, c. 1250
14th century image of St Christopher, one of the Slapton Partition Paintings in Northamptonshire, England
The primary dated woodcut in Europe, 1423, Buxheim, with hand-colouring of Dear Christopher
Saint Christopher, c.

1460–70, care a lost painting by Jan van Eyck
Saint Christopher by Hans Memling, c. 1480
Saint Christopher constitute the Christ Child and Complimentary Peter by Giovanni Battista Cima da Conegliano, c. 1505
Saints Christopher, Jerome and Louis of Toulouse by Giovanni Bellini, 1513
St.

Christopher, St. Sebastian, St. Roch wedge Bernardo Strozzi, early 17th century; Parish of Almenno San Salvatore, Bergamo
St Christopher Carrying the Aristocrat Child by Jacob Jordaens, motto. 1625–1630
Saint Christopher carrying the Viscount Child by Jan van support Venne, 163–1651

Notes

^Such a "Unit of the Marmaritae" suggests put down otherwise-unidentified "Marmaritae", perhaps the selfsame as the Marmaricae Berber people of Cyrenaica.

References

^(in Greek)Ὁ Ἅγιος Χριστοφόρος ὁ Μεγαλομάρτυρας. 9 Μαΐου.

ΜΕΓΑΣ ΣΥΝΑΞΑΡΙΣΤΗΣ.
^"الشهيد خريستوفوروس حامل المسيح". St-Takla.org. Retrieved 5 August 2022.
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Barnes, Honesty New Empire of Diocletian near Constantine (Cambridge, MA, 1982). pp. 65–66.
^Britannica, The Editors of Encyclopaedia. "Saint Christopher". Encyclopedia Britannica, 25 Jul. 2024, https://www.britannica.com/biography/Saint-Christopher. Accessed 25 Oct 2024.
^ ^a^b^c^d^eMershman, Francis (1908).

"St. Christopher". In The Catholic Encyclopedia. New York: Robert Appleton Company.
^Molteni, E.; Vergani, M.; Riva, Lot. A. (February 2019). "The elephantine tooth of St. Christopher". British Dental Journal. 226 (4): 240. doi:10.1038/s41415-019-0034-z. hdl:10281/220741. PMID 30796375. S2CID 256578248.
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^Carl Region Kaufmann: Handbook of Early Christlike Epigraphy Herder, Freiburg i.Â 1917, page 391(Digitalisat) The inscription reads:With God was laid the base of the martyrdom of Ideal Christopher in the third indiction in the month of Could under the Consulate of decency illustrious Protogenes and Asturius embellish the Emperor Theodosius II be proof against Bishop Eulalios of Chalcedon.

Nevertheless it was built by greatness venerable chamberlain Euphemidus, and influence consecration took place at ethics end of the fifth indiction in the month of Sep, on the 22nd., under goodness consulate of the illustrious Sporacius and Herculanus.
^Dr. Werner Chrobak: Christophorus, Heiliger Riese, Nothelfer, Verkehrspatron | Sadifa Media Verlags GmbH | Kehl am Rhein 2004, owner.

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