Handmade St. Brigid Statue

Product Description

Patron of Infants, Students and Ireland; Saint for House-Blessing

As a young woman, Brigid (ca. 450–525) was a slave. However, because she gave away her master’s goods so readily to the poor, he gave her freedom, lest she bankrupt him. She was baptized by St. Patrick and began to perform miracles. Some of these cured were infants: for this reason christening robes and babies’ blankets bearing an image of Brigid or St. Brigid’s cross are common gifts in Ireland. Brigid’s wisdom (thus she is the patron of students and scholars) was also widely admired. This small statue of Brigid incorporates two symbols often associated with her. First, between her arms she holds St. Brigid’s cross: a legend holds that, as a teaching device, Brigid wove a cross of reeds or rushes, to use in explaining Christianity to Irish pagans. The cross, over the years, became a symbol of hope and is often used to bless houses in Ireland. Second, at the base of the statue burns St. Brigid’s flame. The story here is that in the pre-Christian era a sacred flame was tended year-round by Druids on a hill near Kildare, where they invoked a Celtic goddess named Brigid. When St. Brigid built her church and monastery at Kildare, she kept the tradition and the flame alive, saying that the flame represented the new hope offered by Christianity. Brigidine Sisters kept the flame burning until at least the 12th century, but it was extinguished during the suppression of the monasteries in the 16th century. In 1993, the flame was relit in Market Square in Kildare, and since then the flame has been lovingly tended by nuns.
Handcrafted by Hank Schlau and hand painted by his wife, Karen. Can stand or hang. Coated to be placed outside. Also comes boxed with a card with the history of Saint Brigid.

9 x 4 x 2 inches