There is good reason for Christians to celebrate St George’s Day

Why is there good reason for Christians in England to celebrate St George’s Day on 23 April? Because St George was a Christian, who in AD 303 (or thereabouts) was sentenced to death for refusing to renounce his faith in Jesus and so became a Christian martyr.

Some of the other stories about St George are simply legends. For instance, the famous story of St George killing the dragon is just a made-up story. According to the story, the dragon was a local pest who terrorized the whole country. Every day it was appeased with an offering of two sheep, but when these grew scarce, a human victim, chosen by lot was to be substituted instead. The lot had fallen on the king’s daughter, who went to her fate dressed as a bride. But St George attacked the dragon, pierced it with his lance, and let it captive with princesses’ girdle, as if it were completely tame. St George told the people not to be afraid: if they would believe in Jesus Christ and be baptized, he would rid them of the monster. The king and his people agreed; St George killed the dragon and 15,000 men were baptized. St George would take no reward, but asked the king to maintain churches, honour priests, and show compassion to the poor. As a result St George became the patron saint of England in the fourteenth century, replacing St Edmund the Martyr.

Now almost two thousand years later, for many English men and women Saint George is one whom they seek to emulate in the way in which they live. Although here are no dragons, there are still monsters which as a nation we still need to deal with. For instance, in 1939 Britian and its allies went to war with Germany because Germany was taking over countries to which they had no right. Eventually after the war was over in 1945, the monster of fascism was slain, but at a fearful cost. Some 70-80 million people had died, of whom 21-25 million personnel had died.

The sacrifices of the English men and women reflected the spirit of the first verse of the well-known hymn, ‘I vow to thee my country’:

I vow to thee, my country, all earthly things above
Entire and whole and perfect, the service of my love
The love that asks no question, the love that stands the test;
That lays upon the altar, the dearest and the best,
The love that never falters, the love that pays the price,
The love that makes undaunted the final sacrifice.

The second verse goes on to reflect the Christian faith of many:

And there’s another country, I’ve heard of long ago
Most dear to them that love her, most great to them that know.
We may not count her armies, we may not see her king.
Her fortress is a faithful heart, her pride is suffering.
And soul by soul, and silently her shining bounds increase
And her ways are of gentleness, and all her paths are peace.

I would like to think that St George would have been proud of his fellow countrymen, both then and now. For in their differing ways many of them seek to face up to the challenges of today’s world, and in so doing they do their best to live out their faith in Jesus through the way in which they serve the poor and the disadvantaged and bring down the present day ‘dragons’ who spoil the world for ordinary people. This is why there is good reason for Christians to celebrate St George’s Day.