Saint Barbora

Saint Barbara civic association is named after a Christian saint, whose life legend puts into the second half of the 3rd century AD, or to the beginning of 4th century. It was a period of mix of the original antique Hellenic views on the world and lifestyle with the Christian concept. Barbara was born in Nicomedia (Minor Asia, now Izmir in Turkey) in the family of a wealthy merchant Dioscurus, who lived with Hellenistic principles. He was afraid that his only daughter could be infected by Christian thinking, so he held her in a stone tower, which gave her all the comfort available. According to the presumptions (which probably confirms all parents of teenagers), that had exactly the opposite effect: Barbara became convinced Christian - reportedly because of one of the servants who brought her food.

 

They are different stories about her death. According to one of them, her father beheaded her, when he learned of her conversion to Christianity. Allegedly she was killed by a bolt from the blue. According to another story, her father gave her to the Roman courts. After a long torture and useless persuasion to abandon Jesus, she was executed during some of the waves of Christian persecution in the Roman Empire, probably during the reign of emperor Maximian Galerius (reigned from 305-311 AD).

 

St. Barbara is depicted in Christian iconography with the chalice and communion (which reportedly gave her an angel before her execution), cross, peacock feather, a miniature of the tower, where she was kept. She is the patroness of all professions, with a danger of sudden death, not only miners, but also artillery, firefighters, bell molders and others. And from not very well known reasons, also mathematicians and architects. She also protects against lightning and plague hits. In the past, her picture hanged on the warships above the chamber with the storage of gunpowder.

 

Her great admirer was Pope Gregory I (540-604 AD). In the 15th century, she was included among the 14 helpers in need, patrons to be taken to pray, in the worst situation. Her memorial is celebrated on the 4th December.