Saint Blase was a physician and bishop of Sebastea in Armenia during the early fourth century, a time when Christianity was still a dangerous profession in many parts of the Roman Empire. According to ancient tradition, Blase was so beloved by his people for his holiness and compassion that he was chosen as their bishop by popular acclaim. He combined the healing arts of a physician with the spiritual authority of a shepherd, tending to the bodies and souls of his flock with equal devotion.
When the persecution under Emperor Licinius intensified around the year 316, Blase withdrew to a cave on Mount Argeus to live as a hermit. There, in the solitude of the wilderness, he devoted himself to prayer and was said to have been attended by wild animals who came to him for healing and blessing. Birds brought him food, and beasts waited patiently at the entrance of his cave for his benediction before going on their way.
"The LORD is my shepherd; I shall lack nothing. He makes me lie down in green pastures. He leads me beside still waters. He restores my soul. He guides me in the paths of righteousness for his name’s sake." — Psalm 23:1-3
The most famous episode in the life of Saint Blase occurred during his arrest. As soldiers led him to prison, a distraught mother brought her young son to him. The child was choking on a fishbone lodged in his throat and was near death. Blase prayed over the boy, and the bone was dislodged, saving the child's life.
This miracle gave rise to the ancient and beloved custom of the Blessing of Throats, which is celebrated in Catholic churches on February 3, the feast of Saint Blase. Two candles, blessed on the previous day (the Feast of the Presentation), are held in the form of a cross against the throat of the faithful while the priest prays for protection from diseases of the throat and all other ailments. The practice has continued for over seventeen centuries, a living link to the compassion of this holy bishop.
Blase was tortured with iron combs that tore his flesh and was finally beheaded around the year 316. He is venerated as one of the Fourteen Holy Helpers, a group of saints invoked for their powerful intercession against various diseases and calamities.
Born in 801 near Amiens in France, Ansgar entered the Benedictine monastery of Corbie as a young boy. He was a student of extraordinary piety and intellect, and from his earliest years he felt a burning desire to bring the Gospel to those who had never heard it. Visions of the Blessed Virgin Mary and of the saints confirmed his missionary vocation.
In 826, when the exiled Danish King Harald sought baptism and asked for missionaries to accompany him back to Denmark, Ansgar volunteered without hesitation. He was the first Christian missionary to set foot in Scandinavia, entering a world of Norse paganism, Viking warriors, and harsh northern winters.
"For so has the Lord commanded us, saying, ‘I have set you as a light for the Gentiles, that you should bring salvation to the uttermost parts of the earth.’'" — Acts 13:47
Ansgar's missionary work in Denmark and Sweden was fraught with difficulty. He established the first Christian church in Sweden at Birka, a major trading center, and the first in Denmark at Hedeby. But his progress was repeatedly undone by pagan reactions, Viking raids, and political upheaval. Pirates attacked his mission, destroying his possessions and scattering his companions.
Despite these setbacks, Ansgar never despaired. His approach to evangelization included:
In 831, Pope Gregory IV appointed him the first Archbishop of Hamburg, with responsibility for all missionary work in the northern lands. When Hamburg was sacked by Vikings in 845, Ansgar was given the additional see of Bremen, creating the combined Archdiocese of Hamburg-Bremen that would become the base for centuries of Scandinavian evangelization.
The Church celebrates Saint Blase and Saint Ansgar together on February 3, and their pairing is rich with meaning. Blase, the physician-bishop of the ancient East, and Ansgar, the missionary-bishop of the medieval North, represent two faces of the same apostolic love.
Both men served in conditions of great danger and hardship. Both placed the needs of others above their own safety. Both demonstrated that the Christian faith is not a comfortable philosophy but a demanding way of life that calls its followers to sacrifice everything for the love of God and neighbor.
Saint Blase remains one of the most popular saints in the Catholic tradition, invoked by millions each year for the Blessing of Throats. His patronage extends to those suffering from ailments of the throat, and he is also the patron of wool combers, recalling the instruments of his torture.
Saint Ansgar, though less widely known, is revered as the father of Christianity in Scandinavia. He died on February 3, 865, in Bremen, having spent nearly four decades laboring for the conversion of the North. Though he did not live to see the full flowering of Scandinavian Christianity, the seeds he planted would eventually bear abundant fruit.
Their shared feast day invites us to embrace both the compassionate healing of Blase and the courageous missionary spirit of Ansgar, recognizing that both are essential expressions of the Gospel of Jesus Christ.