I have said the blog is my personal life , all of it since birth; just search around and you will know me. It is my past time and have fun telling you of many places on earth, sharing my experiences with the world, and learning some more. In my family we are not and never will be extremists but we are a conservative traditional family and we believe in God, just that. There are many who claim to be but really do not, we are simple followers of good and do good and like to see good for all. I like to tell you a personal touch of Santa Barbara !!! Hope you enjoy the post as I.
The legend of Saint Barbara tells that in the 3C in Asia Minor, a very pretty young girl named Barbara lived, according to the will of her father, recluse in a tower to protect her from her suitors. But one day, while his father was away, Christ appeared to her. Barbara decided to convert to Christianity, and had a third window cut into her tower, symbolizing the Trinity. This decision made the father of the young woman mad with rage. Brought before a judge, Barbara refused to renounce the Christian religion, and was condemned to be tortured. Despite all the abuse she endured, she felt no pain, thanks to the intervention of God. Her father decided to end it and beheaded her. He was then immediately struck by lightning and reduced to dust.
When the Christians come to ask for the body of the young martyr, not wanting to use her pagan first name nor reveal themselves using her Christian baptismal name, they can only refer to her as “the young barbarian woman”, hence the name of Barbara given to her. The Byzantine emperors particularly venerated his relics, which they had transferred in the 6C to Constantinople. A part was taken to Italy by the Venetians, and another in the 11C by the daughter of Alexius Comnenus to Kyev, where they are still in St. Vladimir’s Cathedral in Kiev, Ukraine. Since then, Saint Barbara has become the patron saint of trades facing the dangers of fire and explosions: firefighters, pyrotechnicians and miners celebrate her every year on December 4. A day off for miners, this day was more than a religious event during which a statue of Saint Barbara was blessed and then lowered into the galleries to grant her protection. to workers. On the surface, the party becomes popular and shared by all, all religions combined.
Her worship was confirmed by Pope Saint Pius V in 1568 and she became one of the fourteen holy helpers of the Saints. At the time of the Napoleonic wars, the sacred relics were taken to the temple of Saint Martin on the island of Burano, where they are still kept. until today. The remains are in a chapel dedicated exclusively to Santa Bárbara In the Church of San Juan del Hospital, Valencia, is the column where she was martyred, in a chapel dedicated to the saint. This relic was brought to the city of Valencia by the Empress Constanza Augusta of Greece. In the Church of San Jaime de Moncada ,also, in Valencia, there is a one-finger phalanx of the Saint brought from Rome to Moncada. Saint Barbara is often associated with three other saints who have taken a vow of chastity: Sainte Catherine of Alexandria, Sainte Marguerite of Antioch and Sainte Genevieve of Paris. This is the case for the altar of the Virgins of the Notre-Dame de Croaz Batz Church in Roscoff (Finistère 29 ) presenting a statue of Saint Barbara accompanied by those of Sainte Catherine and Sainte Geneviève.
Santa Barbara is usually represented young, either with the palm of martyrdom, or with peacock feathers, since this animal is a symbol of resurrection or immortality, and it already appears in the oldest known representation, dating from the 8C. It also usually appears with her attribute, a tower with three windows, sometimes enclosed in it and other times the tower appears at her side or in miniature on one of her hands. The meaning of this tower with three windows is the refuge of faith in the Holy Trinity. And she usually wears a crown, which admits of variations: in some it is that of a princess and in others it is a complete crown made up of several towers. The image of Saint Barbara is also sometimes associated with the sword with which she was beheaded, which has contributed to her being associated with war, but said sword represents a symbol of unwavering faith. With a chalice, which signifies her conversion to Catholicism.
The Santa Barbara is the patron saint of coal miners in Asturias,Spain. She is, also, the patron saint of my native town of Punta Brava in Cuba, and venerated by all my family anywhere in the world. The National Sanctuary of Santa Barbara can be found in the town of Arroyo Naranjo just 22 km south of Havana. The building has an eclectic style and was built in just a year with the local community’s help and funded by the Archbishop of Havana, Manuel Arteaga Betancourt and first lady Martha Fernandez (Fulgencio Batista’s wife), and it was inaugurated on the day that commemorates her,December 4, 1953.
A bit of Rome for Santa Barbara: Her first depiction is perhaps in Rome, in a fresco in Santa Maria Antiqua, and both the oratory attached to the Church of San Gregorio al Celio and the Church of Santa Barbara dei Librai also have remote origins. In 16C Rome devotees of Saint Barbara were inevitably the forerunners of the modern artillerymen, that is, the bombardiers in charge of the defense of Castel Sant’Angelo. At their own expense, they restructured one of the chapels in the Church of Santa Maria in Traspontina, dedicating it to their patroness and decorating its walls with astonishing stucco thrusters, mortars, cannons, howitzers, balls, bullets and barrels of gunpowder. Organized into a confraternity since 1594, the papal bombardiers enjoyed a number of privileges and exemptions, including the possibility of releasing a condemned prisoner twice a year, on 29 September, for the feast of St. Michael the Archangel, and precisely on 4 December for Santa Barbara.
A great prayer known to my family is as follows: «Saint Barbara, blessed virgin, great with immense power, God be with you and you with me on the path of good. With your winning sword deliver me from evil, injustice, envy and evil eyes. With the power of lightning protect me from my enemies, glorify the muzzle of my cannon and allow me to be victorious. With the chalice of your cup and the wine, keep the strength of my body and spirit for the hard struggle and combat. Receive my apples and daisies as an offering that I always have you present in my thoughts and in my home, and I beg you to never abandon me and come to me every time I claim you to defend my faith, my land, my family and my fights; and that in the end you always take me to glory like you. Amen.”
An unofficial site on the life of Santa Barbara :http://www.stebarbe.com/stebarbe.php
The St Peter’s Basilica of Rome on Santa Barbara: http://stpetersbasilica.info/Exterior/Colonnades/Saints/St%20Barbara-36/StBarbara.htm
There you go folks, a wonderful story of faith and peservering in our difficult times then and even more today, In my days of sorrows, I had the comfort of my family and Santa Barbara with statues kept by my dear late mom Gladys at home which I am showing here for the record, for the history, for my blog ,me and the world, Again, hope you enjoy this personal post on a personal saint, Santa Barbara as I
And remember, happy travels, good health, and many cheers to all !!!
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