My youngest granddaughter, Madison, chose Dorothy for her confirmation name. Am I pleased? You bet! She picked that name because of her great-grandmother. My mother -- Dorothy.
Mother died December 19, 2011. Madison and her sister, Meagan associated my mother with Dorothy in the "Wizard of Oz." The few times they visited with Mother, she wore red shoes. My the girls grinned in delight! So when Mother died my granddaughters were there to support me.
The question popped in my head ... just who is St. Dorothy? Here's what I found.
Dorothy, which means "Gift of God," is patron saint of brides, florists and gardeners. Her feast day is February 6. Dorothy suffered a martyr's death for her love of God. Her parents also were martyred before her in the Diocletian persecution.
She was from Cappodeocia, now Turkey. Fabritius, govenor of Caesarena, sent her to her death. Roman soldiers treated her cruelly in an effort to break her faith. She was put to death in mid-winter, on February 6, 311 A.D. in the city of Caesarea, now Cappadocia, during the persecution of Christians by the Roman Emperor Diocletion.
Dorothy reused to marry or worship idols. The Roman soldier who escorted her to death laughed at her suggesting she send him some fruits and flowers from the garden she spoke of where she said she was going to meet her groom. At the executioners block where she knelt, Dorothy prayed that the soldier's request be fulfilled.
After she died, a basket was delivered to the soldier by an angel. The soldier recognized the apples and roses were not native to the arid steppes of Turkey. He then believed Dorothy!
Thank you, Madison. I am proud to call you St. Dorothy!
