Saint Christopher

Description

Saint Christopher (Greek: Ἅγιος Χριστόφορος, Hágios Christóphoros, lit. ’Christ-bearer’; Latin: Sanctus Christophorus) is venerated by several Christian denominations. According to these traditions, he was a martyr killed in the reign of the 3rd-century Roman emperor Decius (r. 249–251), or alternatively under the emperor Maximinus Daia (r. 308–313).[4] Churches and monasteries were named after him by the 7th century. There is no evidence for the historicity of the saint.

The most famous legend connected to the saint recounts that after converting to Christianity, he devoted his life to carrying travelers across a river. One day he carried an unknown young boy across a river after which the boy revealed himself as Christ. Because of his help to travelers, he became the patron saint of travelers. In the iconography of the Western Church, the saint is often depicted as a giant with a staff carrying the infant Jesus across a river on his shoulders. Small images of him are often worn around the neck, on a bracelet, carried in a pocket, or placed in vehicles. He is one of the Fourteen Holy Helpers. The Eastern Church tradition depicts the saint as a cynocephalus (‘dog-headed creature’) in a literal interpretation of its legendary tradition.