Who is

St. Florian
 St. Florian—an officer in the
Roman army who died
protecting his faith—is without a
doubt reaping his reward in
heaven as promised by God.
Put to death for refusing to kill
Christians as ordered by
Emperor Diocletian, St. Florian
is the man who has been given
the title of patron saint of
firefighters and floods.
Florian was born in 250 AD in
Cetium, what is now Austria. As
a young man he joined the
Roman army, and proved to
have the makings of quickly
climbing the ranks. The
emperor at the time—
Diocletian—recognized his
dedication and ability to work
well with people, and appointed
Florian to a high administrative
post in Noricum, now part of
Austria.
 However, Diocletian had no
intention of using Florian to do
good deeds. During the Roman
Empire, the rise of the Christian
doctrine was not tolerated.
Anyone proclaiming to be a
Christian was sought out and
punished by being put in prison
or to death. The only way
Christians could be spared
prison or death, is if they were
willing to renounce their religion
and offer sacrifice to the Roman
gods or emperor.
St. Florian Dares to Disobey
Emperor Diocletian
As an official working under
the Emperor, St. Florian was
expected to carry out his
duties persecuting Christians
in the areas he commanded.

St. Florian refused.

 Angered that he was being
disobeyed, the emperor sent
one of his assistants, Aquilius,
to speak to Florian. When
Aquilius asked Florian why he
wasn’t fulfilling his orders,
Florian replied, “Tell the
Emperor that I am a Christian
and will suffer the same fate
as the Christians.”
 Stunned by Florian’s
confession, Aquilius tried to
entice Florian into
abandoning his faith by
offering him a promotion.
Florian would not be swayed.
In retaliation, Aquilius
ordered that Florian be
whipped and beaten. In
response, Florian expressed
that he wouldn’t mind
enduring a “few scratches” for
his faith and personal beliefs.
St. Florian Faces His Death
Without Fear
Becoming angered and fearful
that Florian would convince
other Christians to rebel against
him and the emperor, Aquilius
ordered his soldiers to burn
Florian to death. When Florian
surrendered himself to Aquilius’
soldiers, he stood on the pyre
(structure made of wood) with
confidence.
Rather than being fearful for
his impending death, Florian
challenged the soldiers to go
ahead and light the fire,
saying, “If you do, I will
climb to heaven on the
flames.” Irritated, Aquilius
decided not to burn Florian,
but instead ordered him to
be scourged and drowned by
throwing him into the Enns
River with a rock tied around
his neck.
 St. Florian died 304 AD.
His body was recovered
and he was given a proper
burial.
 Patron Saint
of Firefighters
and Floods
There are several reasons why
it’s believed Saint Florian
earned the title of patron saint
of fire and firefighters: legend
says that during his life, St.
Florian put out a massive fire
with only one bucket of water,
saving a village from ruin. St.
Florian is often depicted in
artwork pouring water from a
bucket or small vessel. Many
years after St. Florian’s death,
a man said he was saved from
a deadly fire when he called
on St. Florian, begging for his
intercession.
 Because he was killed by
drowning, Saint Florian is
also often sought out as
protector against the dangers
of water including drowning
and flooding.
 Protect a
Firefighter
 The feast of St. Florian is
celebrated May 4, coinciding
with International
Firefighter’s Day. If you
have a loved one who is a
firefighter, consider giving
them the gift of St. Florian’s
protection. Medals,
pendants, visor clips, and
prayer cards with the image
of St. Florian on it can be
worn or kept nearby as a
reminder to pray to the saint
for his protection in the
most dangerous situations.
The St. Florian commemorated in the Roman
Martyrology on May 4th, was an officer of the
Roman army, who occupied a high
administrative post in Noricum, now part of
Austria, and who suffered death for the Faith
in the days of Diocletian. His legendary "Acts"
state that he gave himself up at Lorch to the
soldiers of Aquilinus, the governor, when they
were rounding up the Christians, and after
making a bold confession, he was twice
scourged, half-flayed alive, set on fire, and
finally thrown into the river Enns with a stone
around his neck.
 His body, recovered and buried by a pious
woman, was eventually removed to the
Augustinian Abbey of St. Florian, near Linz. It is
said to have been at a later date translated to
Rome, and Pope Lucius III, in 1138, gave some of
the saint's relics to King Casimir of Poland and to
the Bishop of Cracow. Since that time, St. Florian
has been regarded as a patron of Poland as well as
of Linz, Upper Austria and of firemen. There has
been popular devotion to St. Florian in many parts
of central Europe, and the tradition as to his
martyrdom, not far from the spot where the Enns
flows into the Danube, is ancient and reliable.
Many miracles of healing are attributed to his
intercession and he is invoked as a powerful
protector in danger from fire or water. His feast
day is May 4th.