If you are reading this right now and feel depressed or suicidal, please get help. Talk to a friend, a family member, or call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline (1-800-273-8255). I write this today because many people who are seeking help online often find themselves reading my blog.
They search for a saint that will keep them from jumping off a bridge or some such thing. Although I believe the saints will help, if a person is that far along, they need quick intervention. For the sake of happiness, please read my blog for fun, too.
St. Bibiana is a patron saint against depression and mental illness. She was born in Rome, Italy in the 4th century. When St. Bibiana was a teenager, a local woman tried to force into prostitution. This went on for many months and the young girl continued to refuse, so she was locked away in a mental institution and beaten to death in 361. St. Bibiana's feast day is Dec. 2.
It's not every day, you get the chance to travel to Rome. I'm fortunate to have made the trip three times. There's a small church there dedicated to St. Bibiana which includes her remains . It is located at 154 Via Giovanni Giolitti. Although it was originally a 5th century structure, in the 17th century it was rebuilt and designed by Gian Lorenzo Bernini, when he was just 26 years old. He sculpted the beautiful statue of St. Bibiana pictured above.
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