Saints & Martyrs
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The Death of Columba of Sens

In 257 A.D., during the Roman occupation of the Iberian Peninsula, Columba was born. She grew up on the south slope of the Pyrenees, probably near what is now Andorra. Her ancestors had been Pagans for 30,000 years and believed in the lessons of nature. They relied on animals, not only for food, but to teach them how to survive in their harsh winter climate. The bear was the greatest teacher of all.

Columba would have been the first generation of her family to hear the story of Christ from the missionaries who were spreading east from the Mediterranean Sea. She and a small group of believers fled north through the mountains to escape the persecution of The Emperor Aurelian.

The little group of Christians were tracked down and imprisoned. During the first night, Columba escaped. In the morning, the soldiers interrogated the prisoners and were told an unbelievable story. They claimed they had been terrified when a bear broke into the jail, but the girl had happily gone away with it.

Columba and the bear traveled north to Sens. In 273 A.D., she was recaptured and beheaded. She was just 16 years old.

The teddy bears and votive candles have become a near universal symbol of regret and loss. What would Teddy Roosevelt have thought? The flame in the votive candles is gold leaf.
The landscape in the painting is borrowed from Albrecht Durer’s etching “Saint Chrysostom”. I was not previously familiar with this Saint’s story, but I looked him up to see if I should include his figure in my piece. It was such a wonderful match to my Bear Stories that he is there crawling on hands and knees.

The story of Saint John Chrysostom

In 16th century Croatia, there lived a hermit named John Chrysostom. He had left his religious community seeking the solitude of a wilderness cave. There, like hermits before, he would devote his life to prayer and contemplation.

His solitude was shattered when a royal princess arrived in great distress. She asked to take shelter in his cave and he refused. She begged to take shelter in his cave for she would surely perish if left out in the cold and the dark. He relented on the condition they would draw a barrier down the middle of the cave and he would stay on his side.

In spite of these precautions, the sin of fornication was committed. In an attempt to hide his sin, Chrysostom took the princess to a precipice and threw her over.

Overwhelmed with guilt, he returned to Rome and asked for absolution. He was refused. Realising the appalling nature of his crimes, he returned to his cave and vowed to punish himself. He would crawl on the ground like a bear for the rest of his life. He would eat grasses and roots, subjecting himself to the deprivations of the wilderness like any wild beast.

He did just that until one day the royal princess returned carrying their child. She forgave him for throwing her off the precipice and he, in turn, forgave himself.

He was later given sainthood by his peers.