In the classic western Who Shot Liberty Valance, the protagonist wins a shootout with the eponymous baddie by a complete fluke. Years later he confesses the truth to a newspaper editor of what really happened. The editor says, “When the legend becomes fact, print the legend.” Something similar has been going on with the story of Saint George ever since he was martyred.
Legends tell stories about a world as people think it should be. They have a beginning, things go well, things go badly, and there is a resolution which unravels the knot of the plot and satisfies the audience. Legends are dramatic. They teach the audience about an aspect of the human condition and insist that good overcomes evil. The legend of Saint George fits this pattern perfectly. It mirrors the Greek myth of Perseus and Andromeda and attaches the dramatic elements of that story to an individual martyr.
The cult of Saint George began very soon after his death by beheading during the Emperor Diocletian’s persecution. George was canonised by Pope Gelasius I in 494. The canonisation recognises that virtually nothing is known about the saint: the Pope declared that George is one of those people “whose names are rightly reverenced, but whose acts are known only to God.” The Venerable Bede knew enough about George to number him among the martyrs and that is all.
It is often believed that the cult of Saint George was brought back to England in the 12th century by the Crusaders. However, when the Diocese of Durham had its centre in Chester-le-Street between 883 and 999, Saint George is mentioned in the cathedral liturgy. The story of how George killed the dragon doesn’t appear before the time of the Crusades. He was recognised as the patron saint of England by the end of the 14th century. Perhaps the facts that he had no fixed shrine and was venerated all over the country were seen as a unifying force.
The same facts may account for the adoption of George as a patron saint by Muslims living around Bethlehem, by some Jews who identify him with Elijah, and by Christians everywhere from India to Moscow, and Georgia to Spain. In Sweden, the princess rescued by George from the wicked dragon is identified with the country itself. The dragon represents invaders. His feast is celebrated by thousands in Mons in Belgium. The dragon is played by a troupe of actors and the crowds vie with one another to get hold of a piece of the dragon.
The feast of Saint George is a public holiday in places as far apart as Rio de Janeiro and Bulgaria. The Bulgarian army celebrates with a parade of military power through the capital, Sofia. Here in England the St. George’s All Party Parliamentary Group will mark St George’s Day at the Houses of Parliament this year (2009) with a reception in the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association Room at the House of Commons. Miss England, Laura Coleman, will be attending, as well as various MPs and Peers.
There are some likely facts about George quite apart from the legend. There is very little argument about when he lived and died or about his being a soldier in the Roman army as his father had been before him. He may have been a member of the Imperial Guard. When the Emperor decided to root out Christianity from his army he gave his troops a simple choice. Sacrifice to pagan gods or be executed as a Christian.
The battle between good and evil is a universal fact of the human condition. Whatever the facts about George’s life and death, the legend has been used to support the Gospel down the ages. George is a fluke of history. He represents all those brave people who have stood up for their faith in times of persecution.
Author: C B Whittle