P

eople in Medieval Europe rarely knew the date or month of the year. In fact, it was rare for a commoner to know the date of his or her own birth. But if asked, they could tell you on what saint day they were born.

Commoners in the Middle Ages calculated the march of their year against the holy days, or holidays as we say it now. Holy days didn’t just include the few major days we recognize and celebrate these days, such as Christmas and Easter. Back then, there was almost something—or someONE—to celebrate every week. What is a saint? The Catholic Church had, and still has, a very specific list of criteria that must be met before sainthood can be applied. First, the person being considered for sainthood had to have lived a heroic or virtuous life, and had to be dead. After death, they needed to reach back to the living and perform a few posthumous miracles, which the Catholic Church could research and deem factual.

 

 

 

Having a saint in your church was a sure way to bring blessings to your community. If you couldn't get the whole saint, then a bit would do, and I do mean a bit! Even today beautiful reliquary boxes in churches across Europe house finger bones, toe bones, arm bones, shrouds, capes—you name it—of saints.

What if you couldn't afford a bit of a more famous saint? Medieval commoners were quick to create their own demi-deities. Almost every bustling village or good sized town had a local saint, someone who shared their blood and could be trusted to protect them in tough times.

To know the flow of the year the way a commoner in the Middle Ages did, you have to know the saint days and what celebrating that day meant to them.

 

See the October article of Living by the Bells for Denise's biography.

 

Next month look for

St. Martin and garlic!

 

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