Why you should drink Keystone Beer & Cocktails "on the Rocks" today

Happy Feast of St. Peter – the first pope

And I say also unto thee, That thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.

~ Matthew 16:18

For Beer Drinkers

Celebrate today’s Feast of St. Peter with some Keystone Beer from Coors.

Drink to St. Peter and recall the “Key” for the Keys given to St. Peter by Jesus.

Drink to St. Peter and recall the “Stone” for the rock that is St. Peter.

If you buy Keystone Light, you can drink to Peter being the “Light of the Gospels” that Peter hand on to the world.

For Liquor Drinkers

If you can’t find any Keystone or Keystone Light beer, you can also celebrate with hard liquor.

Drink a cocktail and recall that the “cock” crowed 3 times when Peter denied knowing Jesus.

Be sure to drink your cocktail “on the rocks” to recall Jesus telling Peter that he is the Rock on which Jesus founds his church.

For Wine Drinkers

            There are many varieties of wine named for St. Peter.

            Look for Vina San Pedro in Chilean wines.

            French wines: Chateau Saint-Pierre, Caves Saint-Pierre (Rhone), Domaine de Saint-Pierre (Languedoc), Saint-Peray (sparkling white).

Here is the toast to St. Peter roughly translated from today’s collect of the Mass of St. Peter:

            “May Almighty God, who has made us sold on the rock of Apostolic faith, never allow us to be busted up by trouble.”

I will also celebrate today by smoking a “Fighting Cock” cigar.

Today's Menu: Honey, Grasshoppers, Snails & Whiskey

As you know, St. John lived on locusts and honey while preaching in the desert.

So, you should celebrate his birthday today with:

Honey-flavored whiskey

Honey-flavored beer, wine

Honey-flavored wine, brandy, port

And

The Grasshopper

2 oz. cream

¾ oz. green crème de menthe

1 oz. light crème de cacao

Pour all into a shaker filled with ice and shake 40 times.

Strain into a cocktail glass.

Oh! And eat some snails.  It is a Roman custom to eat snails on the Feast of John the Baptist.

Music Heard in England Today

Here are some song requests now that the UK and the EU are getting a divorce . . .

Breaking Up Is Hard To Do – Neil Sedaka

https://youtu.be/E4ddyGNINr4

I Fall To Pieces by Patsy Cline

https://youtu.be/iuZTk1hdpMs

Go Your Own Way – Fleetwood Mac

https://youtu.be/6ul-cZyuYq4

Hello, Goodbye – The Beatles

https://youtu.be/rblYSKz_VnI

Land of Hope and Glory – God Save The Queen

https://youtu.be/diiBa70F-rM

Slogan of the Day: “Last country to leave the EU gets stuck with Greece!”

St. John's Wort

On the Feast of St. John, it is customary to gather the perennial herb "St. John's Wort" (Hypericum perforatum), named for our Saint. It's long been seen as a means to keep evil away, and since medieval times, the herb has been hung over doors, windows and icons (its genus name -- hypericum -- means "above a picture") to keep witches and evil spirit away. It is also used medicinally, and was used thus by the Knights Hospitallers. To harvest, cut off the top third of the plant and hang in bundles to dry. To use it medicinally as a tonic or for the treatment of mild depression, sleep disorders, chronic tension headaches, menopausal disorders, bedwetting, and mild neuralgic and rheumatic pain, try one of these two methods:

Infusion:
Put two teaspoons of the dried herb in a cup of boiling water for 15 minutes, and drink thrice daily.

Tincture:
Into a pint jar with a lid, put either 3 ounces of the dried flowers or enough of the fresh herb to fill the jar. Pour 100-proof vodka into the jar to fill, and shake the contents hard. Let steep for two weeks, shaking the jar once a day, then strain and pour into 1 oz dropper bottles (the liquid should be a bright red, the color of St. John's blood, the spilling of which is remembered on 29 August). Drink two droppers full three times a day (half the amount for children). This method is more "cost-effective" than the infusion method in that it makes better use of the quantity of the herb.

The infusion or tincture is also applied to the skin as an anti-bacterial agent and as an astringent. Pregnant women, those with high blood pressure, and those taking anti-coagulants or antidepressants should talk to their doctors before using. Possible side effects include photosensitivity (so avoid the sun when using), increase in blood pressure, gastrointestinal upset, and dermatitis in those who are sensitive to the herb.
In addition to gathering St. John's wort, it's also customary to gather flowers to make wreaths to wear and to hang in your home or, especially, on the front door. In some places, such as Poland, some of these wreaths are floated down the river in honor of Christ's Baptism by St. John in the Jordan. Make a wreath of flowers that dry well, and hang in your home all year to be replaced next St. John's Day. Alternatively, flowers can be tied together in bunches with beautiful ribbons and hanged upside-down to decorate your home all year.

http://fisheaters.com/customstimeafterpentecost3.html

The Man from Ein Karem

Happy Birthday, Saint John

June 24:  Birthday of Saint John the Baptist

According to Christian tradition, John the Baptist was born in Ein Karem, leading to the establishment of many churches and monasteries there.  In 2010 the neighborhood had a population of 2,000.  It attracts three million visitors a year, one-third of them pilgrims from around the world.

According to the Bible, Mary went "into the hill country, to a city of Judah" when she visited the home of Zechariah and Elizabeth. .   Theodosius (530) says that the distance from Jerusalem to the place where Elizabeth, the mother of John the Baptist, lived is five miles. The Jerusalem Calendar (dated before 638) mentions the village by name as the place of a festival in memory of Elizabeth celebrated on the twenty-eighth of August.

How Christians used to celebrate St. John’s Birthday:

            Go to Mass at midnight, dawn, and 3pm

            Burn “St. John’s Fire” (bonfires) on every village hilltop on St. John’s Eve

            Postpone all battles until tomorrow (Battle of Fontenay in 841 was postponed by one day)

            Make a pilgrimage to his head which may rest in the Umayyad Mosque in Damascus, Syria

            Make a pilgrimage to one of the many churches which claim to have some of his bones such as in Sophia, Bulgaria.

St. John’s day of martyrdom will be celebrated on August 29.

Bonfire Song

Here’s the happy birthday song to sing while standing around your St. John’s Eve bonfire smoking cigars tonight!

I like the second version – a mystical meditation.

Birthday song for St. John the Baptist – the origin of the Do-Re-Me song.

St. John the Baptist: Ut Queant Laxis

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3tmLARdqaIo

 "Hymn to St. John the Baptist" meditation

This hymn to "St. John the Baptist" was said to impart great spiritual blessing.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fVgWbLUkgY4

The first stanza is:

Ut queant laxis

resonare fibris,

Mira gestorum

famuli tuorum,

Solve polluti

labii reatum,

Sancte Iohannes.

It may be translated: So that your servants may, with loosened voices, resound the wonders of your deeds, clean the guilt from our stained lips, O Saint John.

A paraphrase by Cecile Gertken, OSB (1902-2001) preserves the key syllables and the meter:

Do let our voices

resonate most purely,

miracles telling,

far greater than many;

so let our tongues be

lavish in your praises,

Saint John the Baptist

Ut queant laxis or Hymnus in Ioannem is a Latin hymn in honour of John the Baptist written in Horatian Sapphics and traditionally attributed to Paulus Diaconus, the eighth-century Lombard historian.

It is famous for its part in the history of musical notation, in particular solmization. The hymn is sung to a Gregorian chant, the original do-re-mi music.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ut_queant_laxis

Why You Should Burn A Witch & Smoke A Cigar Tonight

Remember to burn a witch tonight.    If you don’t have a witch or a bonfire, you should at least honor the day by smoking a cigar . . .

For the Vigil of St. John (today, as I write) in the old Roman Ritual the priest would once bless bonfires!

And in Bavaria, witches are burned!  A priest friend who shares my feast sent me a spiffing photo (below – a little hard to see at this size, but I assure you, there is a witch in there):

If you have any unwanted witches, send them to Bavaria next year for a nice vacation.

In other places, cast-off or unneeded things are burned… in a way parallel, I suppose, to throwing things away at the other end of the year after the Winter Solstice.

This is custom calls to mind that many places celebrated the feasts of saints with great festivity.

In any event, have a nice bonfire!  The evening is about as long as the year can offer, so a great party could be had well into the night with much cooking in the open and revelry.

The blessing for the bonfire is beautiful.  After the usual introduction, the priest would bless the fire saying:

Lord God, almighty Father, the light that never fails and the source of all light, sanctify + this new fire, and grant that after the darkness of this life we may come unsullied to you who are light eternal; through Christ our Lord. All: Amen.

At this point the fire is sprinkled with holy water and everyone sings the hymn Ut quaent laxis which is also the Vespers hymn.

It is almost as if the fire, and our celebration, is baptized.

Build a fire tonight, even if you can’t burn a witch, and sing something in honor of St. John!  I will enjoy cigars, I think, and maybe burn some old personal records I no longer need … and think about witches.

http://wdtprs.com/blog/2014/06/the-vigil-of-st-john-bonfires-and-witch-burnings-solstices-and-snails-2/

Fantasia

Scary song and images from Walt Disney’s Fantasia (1941)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SLCuL-K39eQ

REMINDER: Build a Bonfire Tonight

The evening of 23 June, St. John's Eve, is the eve of celebration before the Feast Day of Saint John the Baptist.

The Gospel of Luke (Luke 1:36, 56–57) states that John was born about six months before Jesus; therefore, the feast of John the Baptist was fixed on 24 June, six months before Christmas Eve. This feast day is one of the very few saints' days which commemorates the anniversary of the birth, rather than the death, of the saint being honored. 

The Feast of St. John closely coincides with the June solstice, also referred to as Midsummer in the Northern hemisphere. The Christian holy day is fixed at 24 June; but in most countries festivities are mostly held the night before, on St. John's Eve.

Beware: Big Bad Voodoo Tonight!

How To Celebrate St. John's Eve Today - Do You Voodoo?

United States  Historically, this date has been venerated in the practice of Louisiana Voodoo. The famous Voodoo priestess Marie Laveau was said to have held ceremonies on the Bayou St. John, in New Orleans, commemorating St John's Eve.  Many New Orleans residents still keep the tradition alive.

England  The feast of St. John the Baptist, is one of the quarter days in England. The town of Midsomer Norton, in Somerset, England, is said to be named after the Feast Day of St John the Baptist, which is also the parish church.

France  In France, the "Fête de la Saint-Jean" (feast of St John), traditionally celebrated with bonfires (le feu de la Saint-Jean) that are reminiscent of Midsummer's pagan rituals, is a Catholic festivity in celebration of Saint John the Baptist. It takes place on June 24, on Midsummer day (St John's day). In certain French towns, a tall bonfire is built by the inhabitants in order to be lit on St John's Eve. In the Vosges region and in the Southern part of Meurthe-et-Moselle, this huge bonfire is named "chavande".

Ireland  In some rural parts of Ireland, particularly in the north-west, Bonfire Night is held on St. John's Eve, when bonfires are lit on hilltops.   Many towns and cities have "Midsummer Carnivals", with fairs, concerts and fireworks, around the same time.

Italy  The feast of Saint John the Baptist has been celebrated in Florence from medieval times, and certainly in the Renaissance, with festivals sometimes lasting three days from 21 to 24 June. Such celebrations are held nowadays in Cesena from June 21 to 24, also with a special street market. Saint John the Baptist is the patron saint of Genoa, Florence and Turin where a fireworks display takes place during the celebration on the river. In Turin Saint John's cult is also diffused since medieval times when the city stops to work for two days and people from the surroundings comes to dance around the bonfire in the central square.

Puerto Rico  On the island of Puerto Rico, originally named San Juan Batista, after the saint, by Christopher Columbus, a night-long celebration is held. After sunset, people travel to a beach or any accessible body of water (e.g. river, lake or even bathtub) and, at midnight, fall backwards into it seven or twelve times. This is done to cleanse the body from sin and give good luck for the following year.

Scandinavia  In the Scandinavian countries, in which the evening is called Sankt Hans or Jonsok, short for Saint Johannes or Saint John's Wake, the tradition is to gather around a large fire. In some countries (Denmark) a witch burning is included. The witch is represented by a doll, often made by the children, wearing old clothes and having an evil look. This evening is a large celebration, often enjoyed together with drinking, dancing and festiveness for the whole town. In Sweden the celebration is called midsummer and takes place on a Friday close to the actual date. Swedish historian Olaus Magnus in 1555 recorded this traditional outdoor celebration including numerous bonfires, dancing and singing of traditional songs.

In Other Countries  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/St_John's_Eve

Will You Spend Tonight on Bald Mountain?

Night on Bald Mountain

Do you remember this scary music from the Walt Disney movie Fantasia?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iCEDfZgDPS8

Mussorgsky's (1839-81) Night on Bald Mountain was actually titled St. John’s Night on the Bare Mountain.

St. John’s Night, or St. John’s Eve, is the night before the Feast of St. John which happens to fall around the summer solstice. Eastern Europeans have long celebrated it with a mixture of pagan trick-or-treat traditions and religious observances and bonfires.

The first version appeared in 1867 and was revised around 1872 and again in 1880. In this last version he added a hauntingly beautiful quiet ending in which a church bell announces the dawn and daybreak chases away the evil spirit.

Night on Bald Mountain has remained an audience favorite ever since its appearance in Walt Disney’s landmark movie, Fantasia.

June 23:  Happy Midsummer’s Eve!   Happy St. John’s Eve!   Happy St. John’s Night!

June 24:  Happy Saint John’s Birth Day!   Happy St. John’s Feast Day!

Drinks For Dad

My Father’s Day Drinks Wish List

·         KEVIN KOSAR – American Spectator – www.spectator.org

Mom might want to help with the shopping.

Man does not live by bread alone. And a father, well, he needs even more, what with the middle of the night wake-ups, the tantrums, and the exploded filthy diapers. I have four children. Under the age of 10. Just this evening, my four-year old got out of bed 7 or 8 times with assorted excuses, including “My eye hurts.”

Yes, my needs are many.

Come Father’s Day, my hope is that I can slip out at the sunrise and head to the river. There I’ll rent a rowboat, and make my way onto the water still turbid from today’s rain. Cormorants and other birds will lead me to a promising spot. I’ll pitch my anchor, bait treble hook rigs, and let the heavy line from two rods sink in the Potomac. With any luck, the catfish will hit, and I’ll return to dock midday feeling like a master caster.

That’s how I want to start my day.

And I will conclude Dad Day sitting outside with a glass in hand. A special day justifies a special drink, one I know and love. The possibilities are many, but any of these would do quite nicely:

Four Roses Small Batch Bourbon: I really like this whiskey. It comes in a bulbous, perfume-like bottle that shows its deep amber color. Sometimes I can handle this 90 proof drink straight up; but usually I prefer it with a single ice cube, which softens it so I can better enjoy its rich flavors. It is worth every penny of the $30 to $35 a bottle my local retailer charges.

Knob Creek Bourbon: One of my happier memories is visiting the Beam distillery on lovely September morning some years ago. I watched as the bung was popped from a barrel, and uncut Knob glugged into a trough. I scooped up a little in a paper cup and sipped it. Knob’s renown fat maple note was present but delivered by 120+ proof spirit. It was really something, and each time I taste Knob Creek I recall that experience.

Hibiki 12-Year Old Whisky: The Japanese began making Scotch-like whisky in the first half of the 20th century. They do it very well. A friend gave me a bottle of Hibiki 12 to repay me for a small kindness. What a reward. This whisky is terrific — it is loaded with subtle floral and fruit notes. It feels like honey in the mouth, and I only take it neat.

Laphroaig 10-Year Old Single Malt Scotch: They can bury me with a bottle of this stuff. I love it. Pour three fingers in a glass, and buckle up — this 86-proof whisky is not for the faint of palate.  Laphroaig reeks of smoke, iodine, and seaweed, which seems fitting seeing as the distillery is right next to the Irish Sea.

El Buho Mezcal: Tequila long has garnered the limelight, but another Mexican spirit finally is getting its due. Mezcal is a remarkable spirit which is nearly as varied in flavors as single malt Scotch whiskies. El Buho is a steal for $35. The flavor is really a trip — it begins sweet then shifts to smoky and a touch salty. You don’t need ice or water because this liquor is incredibly smooth.

Any one of these distilled spirits would put a bow on my Father’s Day. Unfortunately, I so enjoy these spirits that none of them presently reside in my liquor cabinet. The District of Columbia permits Sunday sales of liquor. (Hint, hint, my dear family.)

Walter Siegmund/Creative Commons

http://spectator.org/my-fathers-day-drinks-wish-list/

Father & Son Sing with Frank Sinatra & Sammy Davis Jr.

Just in time for Father’s Day . . .

http://www.newslinq.com/father-and-son-sing-frank-sinatra/

"Go to Hel"

In Norse mythology, Hel is a being who presides over a realm of the same name, where she receives a portion of the dead. Hel is attested in the Poetic Edda, compiled in the 13th century from earlier traditional sources, and the Prose Edda, written in the 13th century by Snorri Sturluson. In addition, she is mentioned in poems recorded in Heimskringla and Egils saga that date from the 9th and 10th centuries, respectively. An episode in the Latin work Gesta Danorum, written in the 12th century by Saxo Grammaticus, is generally considered to refer to Hel, and Hel may appear on various Migration Period bracteates.

In the Poetic Edda, Prose Edda, and Heimskringla, Hel is referred to as a daughter of Loki, and to "go to Hel" is to die. In the Prose Edda book Gylfaginning, Hel is described as having been appointed by the god Odin as ruler of a realm of the same name, located in Niflheim. In the same source, her appearance is described as half blue and half flesh-colored and further as having a gloomy, downcast appearance. The Prose Edda details that Hel rules over vast mansions with many servants in her underworld realm and plays a key role in the attempted resurrection of the god Baldr.

A British Video That Every American Should See

Warning:  some scenes of violence against women

         NONE ARE SO BLIND AS THOSE WHO REFUSE TO SEE.

THE LINK BELOW IS TO A VIDEO PRESENTATION BY AN ARTICULATE BRITISH CITIZEN BLASTING PM DAVID CAMERON FOR HIS FOOLISH VIEW & ENABLING OF MUSLIMS / ISLAM ENTRY AND EXPANSION IN ENGLAND.  IT IS ABSOLUTELY THE BEST STATEMENT  SEEN TO DATE ABOUT THE DANGER OF MUSLIMS / ISLAM IMPORTATION.  

https://player.vimeo.com/video/167607521?title=0&byline=0&portrait=0

The Latest Gun Grab Ploy

From a Facebook friend . . .

So the latest in gun control (in a shameless move to take political advantage of a horrible situation) is to prevent anyone on the "terrorist watch list" from owning or buying a gun. On the surface this sounds like "common sense gun control" - right? Who wants terrorists to be able to buy weapons? Certainly not me! Here's the problem, like most gun control positions, it just doesn't stand up to logic. It sounds good, but you're being mislead.

Currently there have been no... published standards for what a person must do to get placed on this list, how to get of off it (if that's even possible), or even whether or not a person on the list would even be notified that they were on the list. Who adds people to this list? Can groups of people be added (like NRA members, Veterans, people who espouse a certain political view)?

We must remember those on the list have not been convicted of anything, they are merely under suspicion (though there is no standard for what they may be suspected of).

Would it not make more sense to say "if someone is on the terrorist watch list we should investigate them and if they are guilty of a crime we should convict them and send them to prison where they will be unable to carry out a terrorist attack."?

Interesting fact: According to the Inspector General of the United States as of last August there are 72 employees of the Department of Homeland Security who are on the "terrorist watch list". Maybe they should fix that first?

There are already provisions to make it illegal for felons, drug addicts, those convicted of domestic violence, those dishonorably discharged from the military, and those committed due to mental issues that make them a danger to themselves or others, to own or purchase firearms. It is also illegal to purchase a gun for someone else (straw purchase). Please don't let them fool you just because it sounds good.

Question everything.

How To Live To Be 105 Years Old

For better digestion, I drink beer.

In case of appetite loss, I drink white wine.

In case of low blood pressure, I drink red wine.

In case of high blood pressure, I drink scotch.

When I have a cold, I drink Schnapps.

When do I drink water?

I've never been that sick.

Red Rocks

Remember when we were there and saw this?

What a night!

Or, maybe not. . .

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rGKfrgqWcv0

Happy National Best Friends Day

Give a cigar to a buddy today. 

After all, it is National Best Friends Day.

Why you should drink Jagermeister today

Why you should drink German liqueur or wine today . . .

St. Boniface’s feast day is June 5.

St. Boniface chopped down an oak tree that was worshipped by pagans in Germany.

Liqueurs

Jagermeister is aged in oak barrels.

                The Benedictine Abbey of Ettal in Germany makes an Ettaler Klosterliqueur  from distilled herbs that are aged in oak barrels.

Wines

Riesling-based wines in Germany are usually stabilized in old oak barrels.

Cocktail

                The Lumberjack

If you don’t have any of the above, you can always drink a beer from Germany!

Do Pets Go to Heaven When They Die?

Do Pets Go to Heaven When They Die? Fr. Mike Schmitz Answers

https://churchpop.com/2016/05/30/will-my-pet-be-in-heaven/

Sacred Heart Devotion

Devotion to the Sacred Heart (also known as the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus) is one of the most widely practiced and well-known devotions, taking Jesus Christ's physical heart as the representation of his divine love for humanity.

This devotion is predominantly used in the Catholic Church and among some high-church Anglicans and Lutherans. The devotion especially emphasizes the unmitigated love, compassion, and long-suffering of the heart of Christ towards humanity. The origin of this devotion in its modern form is derived from a Roman Catholic nun in France, Marguerite Marie Alacoque, who said she learned the devotion from Jesus during someapparitions occurred between 1673 and 1675,^[1] and later, in the 19th century, from the mystical revelations of another Roman Catholic nun, inPortugal, Mary of the Divine Heart, countess Droste zu Vischering, who requested that Pope Leo XIII consecrate the entire world to the Sacred Heart of Jesus. Predecessors to the modern devotion arose unmistakably in the Middle Ages in various facets of Catholic mysticism.^[2]

In the Roman Catholic tradition, the Sacred Heart has been closely associated with Acts of Reparation to Jesus Christ. In his encyclical Miserentissimus Redemptor, Pope Pius XI stated: "the spirit of expiation or reparation has always had the first and foremost place in the worship given to the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus".^[3] The Golden Arrow Prayer directly refers to the Sacred Heart.

Devotion to the Sacred Heart is sometimes seen in the Eastern Catholic Churches, where it remains a point of controversy and is seen as an example of Liturgical Latinisation.

The Sacred Heart is often depicted in Christian art as a flaming heart shining with divine light, pierced by the lance-wound, encircled by the crown of thorns, surmounted by a cross and bleeding. Sometimes the image is shown shining within the bosom of Christ with his wounded hands pointing at the heart. The wounds and crown of thorns allude to the manner of Jesus' death, while the fire represents the transformative power of divine love.

The Feast of the Sacred Heart has been in the Roman Catholic liturgical calendar since 1856, and is celebrated 19 days after Pentecost. As Pentecost is always celebrated on Sunday, the Feast of the Sacred Heart always falls on a Friday.

Do you know anyone named "Kevin"?

Happy St. Kevin’s Day 

ST. KEVIN OF GLENDALOUGH

St. Kevin of Glendalough (498-618) lived in Ireland during the age of the great early Irish saints, many of whom were his contemporaries.

He was baptized by St. Cronan, and from age 7 was taught by St. Petroc. From age 12 he studied under the Irish monks as a student of St. Eonagh, and he eventually became a monk himself. Among his friends were St. Comgall, St. Columba, St. Cannich, and St. Kieran.

After his ordination he lived a penitential life as a cave-dwelling hermit for seven years. Word of his holiness spread, and he attracted a group of followers which led him to found the famous monastery at Glendalough. Because of his fame this remote spot soon became a town and then a city, with offshoots of several other monastic foundations rising up around it. He served as abbot at Glendalough, and once the monastery was well-established he withdrew to live as a hermit again for four years.

He was then called back to Glendalough, and continued to serve as abbot there until his death at age 120.

St. Kevin has many legends surrounding him involving wild animals obeying his commands, seeking him for refuge, and helping him feed others. St. Kevin is the patron of blackbirds, Glendalough, the Archdiocese of Dublin, and he is one of the patron saints of Ireland. His feast day is June 3rd.

St. Elmo, Colorado - A Ghost Town

Does St. Elmo’s Ghost haunt the ghost town of St. Elmo?

St. Elmo is a ghost town in Chaffee County, Colorado, United States. Founded in 1880, St. Elmo lies in the heart of the Sawatch Range, 20 miles (32 km) southwest of Buena Vista and sits at an elevation of 9,961 feet (3,036 m). Nearly 2,000 people settled in this town when mining for gold and silver started. The mining industry started to decline in the early 1920s, and in 1922 the railroad discontinued service.

The community is listed on the National Register of Historic Places as the St. Elmo Historic District. It is one of Colorado's best preserved ghost towns.

What is St. Elmo's Fire?

Saint Elmo (Erasmus of Illyricum) may have become the patron of sailors because he is said to have continued preaching even after a thunderbolt struck the ground beside him.

This prompted sailors, who were in danger from sudden storms and lightning, to claim his prayers.

The electrical discharges at the mastheads of ships were read as a sign of his protection and came to be called "Saint Elmo's Fire".

Why is St. Elmo the patron of stomach problems?

St. Elmo was tortured and killed in the Roman province of Illyricum, after boldly preaching and converting numerous pagans to Christianity. Legend says that his stomach was slit open and his intestines wound around a windlass. This version may have developed from interpreting an icon that showed him with a windlass, signifying his patronage of sailors.

Besides his patronage of mariners, Erasmus is invoked against colic in children, abdominal pain, intestinal ailments and diseases, cramps and the pain of women in labor, as well as cattle pests.

Got Stomach Pain? Call Elmo!

St. Elmo (Erasmus)

St. Erasmus of Formia (d. 303 AD), also known as St. Elmo, was an Italian bishop during the reign of Roman Emperors Diocletian and Maximian Hercules. During their persecution against Christians, St. Elmo left his diocese and fled to Mount Lebanon where he lived for seven years. An angel advised him to return to his diocese in order to vanquish his enemies. As he traveled he was questioned by soldiers and declared himself a Christian. He was brought to trial before Diocletian himself, and Elmo confessed his faith in Christ and denounced the emperor for his impiety. He was tortured and thrown into prison, but an angel freed him so that he would continue on his way to Italy and save many souls.

Two more times he would endure the cycle of performing miracles, baptizing thousands of people, getting arrested and mercilessly tortured, and being miraculously freed before arriving back in his own diocese.

During his travels he suffered a myriad of horrible tortures, but according to the oldest tradition he died at peace in Formia, though later accounts have him being martyred there by disembowelment.

St. Elmo is the patron of mariners and sailors, abdominal pain, intestinal cramps, and women in labor.

His feast day is June 2nd.