Friends in Christ, today is the feast of St. George[i] and also St. Adalbert.
Today, St. George:
St. George was a martyr who died for the Faith in 304AD, but he is perhaps most famous for his encounter with the dragon.
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According to legend, it happened that near the city of Selena, there was a large lake, wherein lurked a dragon, perhaps a sort of sea-monster, like the Loc Nest Monster. Many times the dragon would come up to the city walls and poison people by his breath, because he was infected with the plague.
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To appease this monster, the townspeople fed him two sheep every day, to keep it satisfied. But as they were running out of sheep, they painfully decided to feed him one sheep and one person. The name of the person was drawn by lot. But soon almost all the young people had been eaten up.
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Then one day the lot fell upon the only daughter of the king. The king was beside himself with grief, and ready to give anything except his daughter, but the girl courageously began walking down toward the lake.
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At this moment George, who was a Knight, happened to be passing by, and seeing the girl in tears, he asked her why she wept. When she told him, he said, ‘Don’t be afraid, I am going to help you in the name of Christ. ‘Oh, Brave knight she said, save yourself, otherwise you will die with me.
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Just then, the dragon reared his head out of the lake and began coming toward them. George, mounting his horse and arming himself with the sign of the cross, bravely went after the dragon, and with his lance, he dealt the beast a serious wound. Then he called to the girl and had her throw her apron around the neck of the beast. When she had done this, the dragon followed her by her apron strings like a little dog on a leash.
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She led him toward the city and the people cried ‘we will be eaten alive!’ but George said: the Lord has sent me to deliver you from this dragon, believe in Christ and be baptized, and I will slay it. Then the king and all the people were baptized, and George, drawing his sword put an end to the beast. On that day twenty thousand were baptized.[ii]
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In this story, the dragon represents the devil. The King, is God the Father. His beloved daughter, is the Church. And St. George, who slays the dragon, represents Jesus Christ.
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[i] St. George was a Christian from his youth, and he joined the army under emperor Diocletian. He became a Colonel. But when a persecution was begun against Christians in 304, George openly professed his Faith, even under horrific tortures.
[ii] The king built a magnificent church there in honor of the Blessed Virgin and St. George,
and from the altar flowed a spring whose waters cure all diseases.
