March 7 St. Perpetua and St. Felicity

Patron Saint of Cattle

St. Perpetua was a noble woman in Carthage in Northern Africa during the third century. She, along with her maid St. Felicity were imprisoned for their beliefs. St. Perpetua had a nursing child and St. Felicity was pregnant, so they were granted a reprieve from death. St. Perpetua spent her time writing letters and keeping a diary. Her diary was a major influence in the early church, often put on the same level as the Gospels. Her diary ends the night before her death, but was finished by an unnamed Christian.  They were put in the gladiators ring with three men condemned to die, a leopard, a bear and a mad cow.  The men were finished off by the leopard and the bear. St. Perpetua and St. Felicity were gored by the bull. Hence, both being listed as Patron Saints of Cattle.

For the next eighteen hundred years, St. Perpetua’s diary was favored over the Bible for spiritual direction and lessons. It was often read at mass and many people were more familiar with these two ladies than the apostles.

March 5 St. Piran

Patron Saint of Cornwall, England and Tin Miners

St. Piran’s life can be divided into Five Acts.

Act I – St, Piran shows up in Wales. Tradition says he arrived from his home country of Ireland. He became friends with St. Finnian of Clonard.  The two started a couple of monasteries, took some colleges classes and spent their young adulthood  ministering to the needs of the people of Cardiff, Wales.

Act II – Needing a little adventure, the two friends set off for Ireland. Piran traveled amongst the islands off the west coast of Ireland. He founded monasteries and communities before returning to the mainland and starting a college along the banks of the Shannon River. Act II ends with the pagan rulers of the area attaching a millstone around his neck and tossing him off a cliff into a stormy sea.

Act III – Miraculously, after being thrown into the sea, the skies clear, the sea calms and the mill stone floats. St, Piran rides the millstone to Cornwall England. He  immediately began converting the locals – starting with a badger, a fox and a bear. He built several churches in Cornwall and legend has that he became the chaplain to King Arthur. He traveled in old age to France, founding churches along the way.

Act IV – Upon returning to Cornwall, St. Piran chose a large black rock as a fireplace  stone. When heated to high heat,  a white liquid oozed from the stone. He shared his discovery with the locals who started what would become Cornwall’s claim to fame for centuries to come – tin work.

Act V – The people were so glad to be free of poverty, they threw a party for St. Piran. After many toasts, St. Piran found himself quite drunk, coining the English saying, “As drunk as a Perraner”. St. Piran died quietly in his little hermitage cave by the sea. The trickled of white metal upon a black background remains as the White Cross of Saint Piran on the Cornish national flag.