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ST SURA, VIRGIN AND MARTYR OF DORDRECHT - 10 FEBRUARY

 

ALL SAINTS CELEBRATED IN FEBRUARY

 Saints celebrated on the 10th of February

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SAINT SURA, VIRGIN AND MARTYR OF DORDRECHT

The Church of Our Lady, Dordrecht¹

[11th century.] This holy virgin and martyr of Dordrecht (Dordracum) [in today's Netherlands], also called Soteris and Zuwarda, who is commemorated on February 10 and February 11, is said to have built the main church there in honour of the Mother of God. 

According to popular legend, she began the construction with three small coins, trusting in God, but always found them back in her pocket after spending them. Therefore, three workers, believing the holy virgin to possess great riches, killed her, but found only the three small coins in her possession. A healing spring sprang up at the site of her murder. It is said that the perpetrators were captured and sentenced to death, but that the slain woman, with the still-fresh wound on her neck, miraculously appeared and begged forgiveness for them. 

Church art depicts Saint Sura with a wounded neck and a fisherman's knife or cleaver. Guerin* reckons that she flourished in the 11th century. Her relics were transferred to Soissons during the Reformation. Saussaius* commemorates this transfer on February 11 (II. 430).

(Information from Stadler's Complete Encyclopedia of Saints, Volume 5, Augsburg, 1882)

*A hagiography source used by the authors 

Stadler's Complete Encyclopedia of Saints - Sources and Abbreviations

PRAYER:

Grant, we beseech you, almighty God, that the venerable feast of Saint Sura may increase our devotion and promote our salvation. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, God, for ever and ever. Amen.

Sources of these articles (in the original German): books.google.co.uk, de-academic.com, zeno.org, openlibrary.org

¹The Our Lady Church "Onze-Lieve-Vrouwe-Kerk" or simply The Big Church "Grote Kerk" was erected between 1285 and 1470. The 65-meter tower contains a carillon with 67 bells including one weighing 9830 kilos, making it the heaviest bell in the Netherlands.

Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dordrecht




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