When did people start praying to saints for things like their bunions, or some luck at the track?
Well, that goes right to the notion of patron saints, which also comes to us from Rome—the patron-client relationship. The patron was the rich, influential guy in the big house at the end of the street, and the clients were the poor neighbors down the street who would go to him for favors. The idea was totally steeped in Roman society, and it segued easily into Christianity. If the saints are in heaven with God, they thought, why not ask them to use their influence with the Lord to ask for favors on their behalf? It made perfect sense to Roman Christians. Ah, I now understand “The Godfather” on a whole new level… How did people know which saints to pray to? At first, you went to whatever saint you had a personal relationship with, regardless of your needs. “St. Agatha is my patron saint because she always answers my prayers.” But then things shifted, and the saints started becoming specialists. How did that happen? People looked at the lives of the saints and saw them doing things that
