A Touch of Saintliness Quiz | Thematic Fun

Quiz Answer Key and Fun Facts

1. If you were calling on Saint Christopher to protect you, which of the following would you most likely be doing?

Answer: travelling

Saint Christopher is the patron saint of travellers. He is supposed to have lived during the 3rd century. An old legend tells how he carried a child across a raging river torrent - a child who grew so heavy that Saint Christopher could barely struggle against the current. Upon reaching the opposite bank, he discovered that he had been carrying the Christ child who was bearing the sins of the world on his shoulders.

2. According to an old proverb, if it rains on the 15th of July, it will do so for the following forty days. Whose saint's day is this?

Answer: Saint Swithin

The following little rhyme about Saint Swithin's day is taken from 'Poor Robin's Almanack' of 1697:
'In this month is St. Swithin's day,
In which if that it rain they say,
Full forty days after it will,
Or more or less some rain distill.'

3. Do you know what word is missing from the following lines taken from a poem by John Keats? 'St. Agnes' Eve - Ah, bitter ___ it was! The owl, for all his feathers, was a-cold. The hare limped trembling through the frozen grass; And silent was the flock in woolly fold.'

Answer: chill

These are the opening lines of 'The Eve of St. Agnes' which is a very long poem and generally thought to be one of Keats' finest works. Saint Agnes is the patron saint of virgins. Her feast day is January 21st. Keats based this lengthy poem on a superstitious belief that a young girl could dream of her future husband if she lay on her bed, on St. Agnes' Eve, with her hands clasped behind her head and without looking behind her.

4. In the nursery rhyme 'Oranges and Lemons Say the Bells of St. Clements', mention is made of a debt of four farthings. What did the Great Bell of Bow reply when it was asked, 'When will you pay me'?

Answer: I do not know.

The origins of this well-known rhyme are unknown. The last two lines about heads being chopped off don't appear in earlier written versions and have nothing in common with the rest of the chant about bells, so it wasn't meant to describe public executions.

The bells mentioned in the rhyme are in London (England). Similar rhymes, based on local churches and their bells, used to be sung in other parts of England on festival days and the bells would be rung at the same time.

5. Do you know the little anonymous poem about Saint Jerome and his lion? Here is an extract from it with one word missing: 'St. Jerome in his study kept a great big cat, It's always in his pictures, with its feet upon the mat. Did he give it milk to drink in a little dish? When it came to ___ did he give it fish?' Can you find the missing word in the following list?

Answer: Fridays

Because this poem is amusing, I decided to share it with you in this quiz. Here is the rest of it:
'If I lost my little cat, I'd be sad without it,
I should ask St. Jeremy what to do about it;
I should ask St. Jeremy, just because of that,
For he's the only saint I know who kept a pussy cat.'

6. The Saltire (Saint Andrew's Cross) is a heraldic symbol. You can see it as a white X on a blue background on the flag of one of the countries in The British Isles - which country?

Answer: Scotland

Saint Andrew is Scotland's Patron Saint. It is said that just before his martyrdom the apostle refused to be crucified on a cross of the same shape as the one upon which Jesus died, choosing instead one in the shape of the letter X which became known as Saint Andrew's Cross.

7. If you have ever recited the Apostles' Creed you will know the following excerpt from it, but do you know what the missing word is? 'The Holy Catholic Church, the ___ of Saints, the Forgiveness of sins, the Resurrection of the body, and the life everlasting.'

Answer: communion

There are various, very-similar versions of this creed used by several western churches. The small extract above was taken from the Apostles' Creed as found in the Book of Common Prayer (1662).

Some people think that this creed was jointly created by the Apostles themselves - with guidance from the Holy Spirit. Others think that it was put together using phrases from the New Testament.

8. Here's one for the Irish and all lovers of that beautiful land. When is Saint Patrick's Day celebrated throughout the world?

Answer: March 17th

March 1st is Saint David's Day. He is the Patron Saint of Wales. April 23rd is Saint George's Day. He is the Patron Saint of England. November 30th is Saint Andrew's Day. He is the Patron Saint of Scotland. Which leaves us, of course, with Saint Patrick who is Ireland's Patron Saint.

9. According to Shakespeare, just before the battle of Agincourt, English soldiers were called upon to fight the French with these stirring words in a speech by King Henry V : 'Follow your spirits; and upon this charge Cry 'God for Harry! England and St. George'!' The battle was fought on the 25th of October, which is not Saint George's Day. Can you name the saint whose feast day it is?

Answer: Saint Crispin

Saints Crispin and Crispinian are the Patron Saints of cobblers, tanners and leather workers. They were martyred in the 3rd century AD. All this seems to have no connection with the fact that many famous battles were fought on their feast day - Agincourt (1415), Balaklava during the Crimean War (1854) and the Battle of Leyte Gulf, in the Pacific, (1944) - to name but a few.

10. It is generally accepted that one of the following list of saints was the first Pope of the Roman Catholic Church. Do you know which one it was?

Answer: Saint Peter

Many denominations recognize that the apostle Peter - a name which means 'stone' or 'rock' - became the first Pope.

In the Gospel according to Saint Matthew, chapter 16 verse 18 of the King James version of the Bible, we read how Jesus said to Peter, 'And I say unto thee That thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.'

Source: Author Jomarion

This quiz was reviewed by FunTrivia editor Pagiedamon before going online.
Any errors found in FunTrivia content are routinely corrected through our feedback system.

A Touch of Saintliness Trivia Quiz

The idea of saintliness is not explored to any depth in this quiz. Saints are mentioned frequently in prose, poetry and titles. See if you can recall any of these examples.

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