Now we all know St. Patrick chased all the snakes out of Ireland, but did you know there's another Saint out there who did something even cooler? This would be St. Urho. He chased all the grasshoppers out of Finland, saving the all-important wine grape. The incantation he uttered, translated in English, is "Grasshopper, grasshopper, go to hell!"
His feast day is the day before St. Paddy, giving Finns a day head starts on the Irish.
They'll need it.
(Some say St. Urho is a myth made up by American Finns, but for those of you who want to start your revels early, you now have a reason).
19 comments:
If he got rid of those big f'n grasshoppers, I would make him a saint to.
Is there a saint for stinkbugs?
There is no patron saint for insects. Seems unfair, bc there is a patron saint for lawyers.
Finns -- that's with a double "n" -- wouldn't be the only ones who have fashioned their own saint. The Irish confection of St. Patrick (never declared a Catholic saint)is perhaps the gold standard in the field. And grasshoppers pose a much greater danger than snakes -- some are known as locusts, for example, so good for Urho. Full disclosure: half of me is Finnish. The country is one of the most accomplished and sophisticated on earth. Check it out.
Ken, I corrected my spelling error with respect to the Finns. This past weekend, I listened to a radio program about that county's short work week. The people there believe those who work long hours are inefficient and lack balance. One American working there got lousy evaluations bc she worked too hard.
But let me correct you. St. Patrick is indeed a Catholic saint. It's certainly true that many fables have arisen about him bc, after all, he lived in the land of many tall tales. But he is recognized by the Church.
https://www.americancatholic.org/features/saints/saint.aspx?id=1325
This is about the most magnificent statue I have ever seen, what is his location Bernie?
That statue is at Menahga, Minnesota.
http://www.sainturho.com/menahgamn/menastatue.htm
Bernie,
Ye of little faith. Ask and the good Lord sends answers:
http://saints.sqpn.com/patrons-against-insects/
These are Catholic. Unlike "saint" uhro.
I was asked to identify a patron saint for insects. Stinkbugs, specifically. There is none. There are two saints (at least) against them.
I agree that my faith is weak, and thank you for your link.
Perhaps I misunderstood "for" as being in support of stink bugs.
Stink Bugs first identified in Allentown.
You could look it up.
Credit where credit is due.
Isn't it time for an Allentown Stink Bug
Fest
Fondness even veneration of St. Patrick by the Irish no doubt qualifies him for sainthood of a kind but no pope ever declared him a saint of the church. Historians don't even quite know whether he was one person or a conflation of two or more. So far as the Finns are concerned: given the denigration of the Irish based on shallow or deliberatly false sketches, I'd be very careful about stereotyping Finns based on a radio show. It is in the tradition of egregious smears.
my just sent message wasn't intended to be anonymous. sorry
Ken, St. Patrick is a Catholic saint even though he was never officially canonized. The reason for this is bc he lived in the 5th century, long before the Popes started making these decisions. There are numerous Catholic saints, including Peter the Apostle, who were never formally canonized. Holy men and women were recognized as such locally, and as I understand it, bishops would add them to the calendar. So though never canonized, he is recognized in the Catholic Church as a saint.
Also, I must add that no denigration of Finns is intended, either by me or the NPR show I listened to this past weekend.
Bernie --
Yes, it does depend on how "saint" is defined. St. Paul used the term to refer to ordinary members of his scattered Christian communities. And exemplary Christians were certainly honored on local and regional bases. But I think you'd agree that the common meaning now, at least among Catholics, is reserved for those who have been vetted and declared such by the pope for the whole church. It was that status Patrick never attained, not least because ordinary screening would be unable to establish the reality of his existence as a singular, extraordinary person. No discredit to the folk life; it's probably a better means of setting aside saintly character than the one used now, but a distinctly different category. Thanks for the discussion and I withdraw my jumpiness about the Finns
No need, Ken. Your jumpiness gave me an opportunity to explain that the Finns were portrayed in a very positive light. In fact, I 'm watching a Chinese-Finnish movie right now. That 's how I celebrate St. Patrick's Day.
Bernie --
If you have a chance I'd love to know the name of the movie. St. Patrick has the kind of adventurous reputation that would appreciate that. As you may know, Finnish origins aren't Germanic, as are Swedes, Norwegians or Danes, or otherwise European. The best guess is Central Asia -- so the Chinese connection may be distant family. Thanks
Jade Warrior. The movie is in Finnish (I think) and Mandarin (I know). It is inspired by a Finnish story, I've read.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jade_Warrior_(film)
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