Peter Gonzalez, Saint

Peter Gonzalez, Saint (gonzā'lis) [key], 1190–1246, Spanish Dominican priest. He worked first among the Moors, then among the mariners of NW Spain. As a patron of sailors he acquired the name St. Elmo, perhaps in confusion with an earlier mariners' saint of that name, a 4th-century martyr. Saint Elmo's fire was regarded as a mark of his protection. Feast: Apr. 14.

The Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia, 6th ed. Copyright © 2007, Columbia University Press. All rights reserved.

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