COVER PAGE Saints-protectors from Diseases and the Sanctuary of the Mother of God at Trsat

The picture representing St. Catarine surrounded by virgins and martyrs (front page) was painted by friar Serafin Schön, in 1631, for the altar of St. Catherine in the Sanctuary of the Mother of God at Trsat near Rijeka. The church and the Franciscan monastery were built in the 15th century. The church is the oldest and best-known Croatian shrine of the Virgin Mary (1,2). In the center of this fine painting, St. Catherine, the protectress against mouth and tongue diseases, abortion and accidents, is represented together with virgins and martyrs. One can easily recognize some of them by their characteristic attributes. St. Agatha, the protectress of nursing women and against breast diseases, holds the amputated breasts on a tray, while St. Lucia, the protectress of the eyesight and against eye diseases, holds her eyes on a tray. There are also St. Clare (the nun in the background with the host), as the protectress of the eyes, and St. Barbara (on the right, beside the tower), the protectress against fever and burns (3). There are many different reasons why some saints have been considered protectors from diseases or disasters, or were chosen as patrons (3). Some saints were believed to have healing powers. Some were physicians themselves. The best known are the Apostle Luke, Alexander Lyonnaise, Zenobius of Sidon, Dionysius, Pantaleon, Cosmas and Damian, Emilian and about fifteen others, including our contemporaries such as Giuseppe Moscati, Jacques Desiré Laval, and Riccardo Pampuri (4). Numerous saints were considered protectors against various diseases because they suffered themselves and, in their affliction, displayed great courage and endurance. The examples are St. Frances, who had liver disease and hydrops, St. Rochus who caught plague, St. Lazarus with leprosy, St. Anthony the Hermit who had skin disease, St. Jerome who had problems with poor eyesight in old age, St. Gregorius the Great was afflicted with gout, and many others. The powers to protect particular parts of the body were attributed to martyrs according to the torture they underwent or injury they suffered. For example, St. Apollonia, the patron saint of dentists, had all her teeth knocked out; St. Agatha, patron saint of breast disease and nurses, had her breasts cut off; St. Bartholomew was flayed alive, and St. Lawrence was burned to death over hot coals. Some of the martyrs miraculously survived the tortures and diseases, like the apostles St. John and St. Benedictus, who survived poisoning attempt, and St. Paul who did not die after being bitten by a venomous snake (5).