St. Dymphna

Dymphna, a virgin and martyr is the patron of people suffering mental and nervous disorders, but no historical facts are known of her life. According to oral tradition she was the daughter of a pagan king in Ireland. She and her mother were secret Christians. After her mother died, the king became mentally disturbed and wanted to marry his daughter because she looked like her mother. Dymphna and her confessor Father Gerebernus, along with some loyal servants fled to Antwerp and lived in the village of Gheel. Her father found her and had his couriers kill Gerebernus; he struck off his daughter’s head when she refused to accept his offer of marriage. The martyrs bodies were put in sarcophagi and placed in the cave were they had been living. They were later found by the villagers of Gheel, who buried Dymphna in their church. None of this can be verified by historians, but under the patronage of the saint, Gheel became an important center for compassionate care of the mentally ill; after a period of professional treatment, mental patients are taken into the homes of the villagers and treated like family. St. Dymphna’s feast is May 15 and many miraculous cures have been attributed to her.