Patron

St. Nicholas of Bari, bishop

Patronal feast day: December 6

Charity is the greatest "miracle" born of faith: caring for the last, for one's neighbor in general, today is the most prophetic and revolutionary message St. Nicholas leaves us. Born between 250 and 260 in Patara, Lycia, he became bishop of Myra in a time of persecution and also faced imprisonment: he was saved by the freedom of worship granted by the Edict of Constantine in 313. A defender of orthodoxy, he participated in the Council of Nicaea in 325. Tradition attributes to him a special concern for the needy, such as young girls who were only able to marry because of the bishop's gift of a dowry. He died around the year 335, and in 1087 his relics arrived in Bari, where he is venerated as a patron saint and also considered a protector of the bridge of dialogue uniting West and East.

Rule of faith,
icon of meekness,
master of temperance,
the testimony of your life
manifested you to your flock.
For this, humbling thyself,
thou hast been exalted,
and by making thyself poor,
thou hast obtained riches.
O great Shepherd, Father Nicholas,
intercede for the salvation of our souls
Before Christ who is God.