As is now tradition, on February 3rd at the Lope de Vega International School, we blessed the "Sant Blai buns." The 5th grade students made their own buns in the school kitchen using the traditional recipe, while the other students in preschool and elementary school brought theirs from home. At 15:00 p.m., we all gathered in the courtyard. Our chaplain, Father Javier, explained the story of Saint Blaise and encouraged us to proclaim Jesus and never remain silent about his love for each of us. Afterward, he offered a blessing over each of the children and teachers, as well as over the buns. Following the blessing, he sprinkled us all with holy water. After enjoying these blessed buns, our chaplain gave each of us a holy card with the image of Saint Blaise and a prayer.
Saint Blaise was a physician and bishop of Sebaste, Armenia. He lived as a hermit in a cave on Mount Argeus. Saint Blaise was known for his gift of miraculous healing. He saved the life of a child who was choking on a fishbone lodged in his throat. This is the origin of the custom of blessing throats on his feast day. Sick animals were also brought to him for healing, but they did not disturb him during his time of prayer. When the persecution of Christians by Agricola, governor of Cappadocia, reached Sebaste, his hunters went to the forest of Argeus to find animals for the arena games and found many of them waiting outside Saint Blaise's cave. There they found Saint Blaise praying and arrested him. Agricola tried unsuccessfully to make him renounce his faith. In prison, Saint Blaise healed some prisoners. Finally, he was thrown into a lake. Saint Blaise, standing on the surface, invited his pursuers to walk on the water and thus demonstrate the power of their gods. But they drowned. When he returned to land, he was tortured and beheaded in the year 316.
