Saints are everywhere. From street names, to buildings, to the names of certain herbs and plants. For a time, their stories and miracles were familiar to many of us. And yet, when one chooses to look a bit closer at the Saints and the cult of the Saints, something fairly magical emerges. Going through the Saints and their Magic with us, is W.- the host of the excellent podcast about Saints, Folk Catholicism and Mysticism, Saint Anthony’s Tongue!
Saint Anthony’s Tongue is a Podcast covering Folk Catholicism, Mysticism and Saint folklore. The Host W. shares stories involving Saints, Folklore, and more – and then uncover the ways certain Saints, tools, and prayers are used in magical and mystical practices. Be sure to check out W.’s Instagram page which gets updated regularly with all sorts of amazing content as well as the Twitter account! Of course, if you enjoy the Podcast, be sure to support all that W. does on the St. Anthony’s Tongue Patreon! For all things St. Anthony’s Tongue, click on the logo below!
Care to dive into St. Anthony’s Tongue Podcast? Start Here!
- Reconstruction: Catholic Mysticism and Magic
- St. Francis of Assisi
- St. John the Baptist
- Demonic Origins
- The Holy Rosary
Show Notes
- The Cult of the Saints: Its Rise and Function in Latin Christianity by Peter Brown – Although fairly academic, this book changed many perspectives about Early Christianity and the Cult of the Saints. Must Read stuff here, Peter is an absolutely amazing scholar and all of his books are well worth seeking out
- Did the veneration of Catholic saints directly transition from the worship of Roman deities? – from Reddit
- Pagans and Christians by Robin Lane Fox – Excellent book
- The Saints: A Short History by Simon Yarrow
- A History of Christianity: The First Three Thousand Years by Diarmaid MacCulloch – Pretty much the best History of Christianity you’re going to find
- If you prefer to watch your history, Diarmaid MacCulloch produced a Documentary called The History of Christianity. Be sure to find all 6 parts, this is an amazing series
- A Brief History of Saints by Lawrence Cunningham
- Saints for Dummies by John Trigilio Jr. – No snickering, this is actually a pretty sweet introduction to Saints
- Why Can the Dead Do Such Great Things?: Saints and Worshippers from the Martyrs to the Reformation by Robert Bartlett – This is one of my favourite books about Saints, Highly Recommended. Fantastic information in this one
- Popular Christianity and Lived Religion in Late Antique Rome: Seeing Magic in the Catacombs
- The Early Modern Invention of Late Antique Rome by Nicola Denzey – This book is currently (as of uploading this episode) blowing my mind. It is a bit of a refutation of the work of Peter Brown. Specific to the city of Rome, there certainly seems to be some shenanigans there involving an invented history of Saints. Great stuff here
- Golden Legend
- Thinking with Saints: Sanctity and Society in the Early Modern World by Simon Ditchfield – JSTOR but well worth reading if you can get it
- Italian Folk Magic
- Encyclopedia of Mystics, Saints & Sages by Judika Illes – A wonderful book filled with many Saints, their stories and tonnes of practical information. Recommended
- The Oxford Dictionary of Saints – Pretty much the only Saint Dictionary I’ll recommend
- The Bone Gatherers: The Lost Worlds of Early Christian Women by Nicola Denzey
- Catholicsaints.info – Has a pretty comprehensive Calendar of Saints and their Feast Days
- The other in the spirituality of the Desert Fathers
- The Head-Carriers: Headless Saints from Saint Denis to Saint Nicasius
- Medal of Saint Benedict
- Hadean Press has many chapbooks devoted to Saints with amazing info as well as practical Magical utility! Have a look, there’s some amazing work here
- A Personal Note: Repatriating ‘Christian’ Magic – From Frater Acher – Well worth a read
- The Saints and the Catholic Magician
- The Fantastically Bejeweled Skeletons of Catholicism’s Forgotten Martyrs
- Frank Graziano had done some fantastic work covering Folk Catholicism in Mexico. Cultures of Devotion as well as Miraculous Images and Votive Offerings are worth reading
- The Sublunar Space Almanac now has feast days for both Orthodox and Catholic Saints, as well as their Patronage – The Sublunar Space Almanac is without a doubt one of the best (if not the best) magical tools we have available these days for Magical timing. And it keeps getting better!
- Fifth Business by Robertson Davies – One of my favourite books of all time. Magic swirls about the pages of this one, the first in the Deptford Trilogy
- Another episode of mine has some obvious parrallels with this Episode – Christianity & Magic with Rev. Michael Lux
**Correction – September 10th is not the Feast Day of Saint Nicholas of Myra, but in fact Saint Nicholas of Tolentino (another awesome saint, no less). Got them mixed up.**
What Magic is This? 