ST. FLORIAN

(Patron Saint of Firefighting)

St. Florian was an officer of the Roman army, who occupied a high post in what is now Austria. He is said to have stopped an entire town from burning by throwing a single bucket of water on the blaze, and thus his association with firefighters and those who protect us from fire. When ordered to execute a group of Christians, he refused, professed his own faith, and was martyred. He was twice scourged, half-flayed alive, set on fire, and thrown into the river Enns with a stone around his neck.

His body was recovered and buried by a pious woman and eventually moved to the Augustinian Abbey of St. Florian. Since that time, St. Florian has been regarded as a patron of Firefighters, against battles, against fire, Austria, barrel-makers, brewers, chimney sweeps, coopers, drowning, fire prevention, floods, harvests, Linz Austria, Poland and soap-boilers. There has been popular devotion to St. Florian in many parts of central Europe, and the tradition as to his martyrdom, not far from the spot where the Enns flows into the Danube, is ancient and reliable. Many miracles of healing are attributed to his intercession and he is invoked as a powerful protector in danger from fire or water. His feast day is May 4th.