Portal:Catholic Church/Patron Archive/February 3

Blaise of Sebaste (Greek: Ἅγιος Βλάσιος, Hágios Blásios; Latin: Blasius martyred 316 AD) was a physician and bishop of Sebastea in historical Lesser Armenia (modern Sivas, Turkey) who is venerated as a Christian saint and martyr. He is counted as one of the Fourteen Holy Helpers.

Blaise is a saint in the Catholic, Western Rite Orthodoxy, Eastern Orthodox and Oriental Orthodox Churches and is the patron saint of wool combers and of sufferers from ENT illnesses. In the Latin Church, his feast falls on 3 February. In the Eastern Churches, it is on 11 February. According to the Acta Sanctorum, he was martyred by being beaten, tortured with iron combs, and beheaded. (Full article...)
Prayer: O God, deliver us through the intercession of Thy holy bishop and martyr Blase, from all evil of soul and body, especially from all ills of the throat; and grant us the grace to make a good confession in the confident hope of obtaining Thy pardon, and ever to praise with worthy lips Thy most holy name. Through Christ our Lord. Amen.
Attributes: Wool comb, candles, tending a choking boy or animals
Patronage: Animals, builders, drapers, choking, veterinarians, throats, infants; Bradford, England; Maratea, Italy; Sicily; Dubrovnik; Ciudad del Este, Paraguay; Campanário, Madeira; Rubiera; stonecutters, carvers, wool workers
See also: Ansgar; Claudine Thévenet, France