Elements, animals and objects

Miracles Related to Storms and Thunderstorms

Storm miracles put a community, ship, city, or travelers in the face of threatening winds and thunderstorms. Sources attribute to a saint's prayer the calming of the elements, their diversion, or, more rarely, their triggering against a danger. The motif can be maritime, but it is not to be confused with drowning: the storm is here the main event, even when it threatens lives. It is also distinguished from harvests when hail or rain are only evoked in relation to fields. The corpus is small but geographically varied, which allows for comparing sea, mountain, and urban territory. The page must indicate what the account says about the phenomenon and its beneficiaries without reconstructing meteorology. The image favors the scale of the landscape, human fragility, and the return to calm rather than a spectacular effect.

Accounts
20
Saints
18
Period
1st century – 17th century
An ancient ship leaves a storm and joins calmer waters.
An ancient ship leaves a storm and joins calmer waters.

Definition

Understanding this type of miracle

Storm miracles put a community, ship, city, or travelers in the face of threatening winds and thunderstorms.

Forms included from the sources

  • storm, thunderstorm, wind, and bad weather

Not to be confused with…

  • individual drowning and rain only for agricultural purposes

Documented examples

Major figures

Explore all accounts
  1. Saint Anselm of Canterbury 11th century · 1 account
    « Calming of a storm at sea through prayer »
  2. Saint Solange of Berry 9th century · 1 account
    « Dissipation of storms and contrary winds »
  3. Saint Laurence of Dublin 12th century · 1 account
    « Calming of a storm at sea after the vow to consecrate a church »
  4. Saint Gregory of Tours (Archbishop) 6th century · 1 account
    « Dissipation of a thunderstorm by his reliquary »

Classified sources

Accounts in the corpus

20 results

Mastery of the elements
Vengeful storm after the martyrdom
ViolenceStorms
« Divine storm after their martyrdom »
Saint Simon and Saint Jude (Apostles)·Suanyr·1st centuryToposCertainty: Hagiographic topos
Mastery of the elements
Destruction of pagan temples by a storm
Storms
« Miraculous storm destroying pagan temples »
Saint Vitus (Guy)·4th centuryToposCertainty: Hagiographic topos
Mastery of the elements
Protection against a snowstorm
Storms
« Sudden snowstorm blocking the path to lead him back to the priest Sansalas »
Saint Sabas the Goth·Gothie·4th centuryToposCertainty: Hagiographic topos
Mastery of the elements
Calming of a storm by the reliquary
Storms
« Dispelling of a storm by his reliquary »
Saint Gregory of Tours (Archbishop)·Tours·6th centuryToposCertainty: Hagiographic topos
Mastery of the elements
Calming of a storm at sea
Storms
« Calming of a storm at sea »
Saint Bonitus (Bonet)·7th centuryToposCertainty: Hagiographic topos
Mastery of the elements
Calming of a storm at sea
Storms
« Cessation of a storm at sea through prayer »
Saint Walpurga·8th centuryToposCertainty: Hagiographic topos
Mastery of the elements
Calming of storms by Saint Solange
HarvestsStorms
« Dispelling of storms and contrary winds »
Saint Solange of Berry·9th centuryToposCertainty: Hagiographic topos
Mastery of the elements
Calming of a storm for Admiral de Guichen
Storms
« Calming of a storm for Admiral de Guichen »
Our Lady of the Marsh (Fougères)·10th centuryTraditionCertainty: Tradition
Mastery of the elements
Calming of a storm at sea
DrowningsStorms
« Calming of a storm at sea through prayer »
Saint Anselm of Canterbury·11th centuryToposCertainty: Hagiographic topos
Mastery of the elements
Calming of a storm at sea
Storms
« Calming of a storm at sea after a vow to consecrate a church »
Saint Laurence of Dublin·12th centuryToposCertainty: Hagiographic topos
Mastery of the elements
Calming of a storm at sea
Storms
« Instant calming of a storm at sea after invocation by Henry II »
Saint Hugh of Lincoln·12th centuryToposCertainty: Hagiographic topos
Mastery of the elements
Cessation of torrential rains
Storms
« Cessation of torrential rains through her prayers »
Blessed Emily Bicchieri·Verceil·13th centuryTraditionCertainty: Tradition
Mastery of the elements
Calming of a storm in Alba
Storms
« Calming of a storm in Alba »
Blessed Margaret of Savoy·Albe·15th centuryToposCertainty: Hagiographic topos
Prophecy / infused knowledge
Don de prophétie de Jakov Varingez
PropheciesLevitationsIncorrupt bodies
« Don de prophétie »
Jakov Varingez·Bitetto·15th centuryToposCertainty: Hagiographic topos
Incorruptibility
Incorruptibilité de la dépouille de Jakov Varingez
Incorrupt bodiesPropheciesLevitations
« Incorruptibilité de la dépouille découverte intacte en 1505 »
Jakov Varingez·Bitetto·15th centuryTraditionCertainty: Tradition
Levitation / bilocation
Lévitations mystiques durant la prière
Incorrupt bodiesPropheciesLevitations
« Lévitations durant la prière »
Jakov Varingez·Bitetto·15th centuryToposCertainty: Hagiographic topos
Mastery of the elements
Calming of a storm at sea
DrowningsStorms
« Apparition on a ship to calm a storm at sea »
Saint Thomas of Villanova (the Almoner)·16th centuryToposCertainty: Hagiographic topos
Mastery of the elements
Dispersion of a Barbary fleet by a storm
Storms
« Destruction of a fleet of twenty Barbary galleys by a squall after his prayer on the beach »
Blessed Alexander Sauli·16th centuryToposCertainty: Hagiographic topos
Mastery of the elements
Preservation during a storm
Storms
« Prediction of a storm and survival of the passengers »
Saint Francis Caracciolo·16th centuryToposCertainty: Hagiographic topos
Mastery of the elements
Calming of a storm at sea
Storms
« Calming of a storm at sea with a sign of the cross »
Blessed Joseph Oriol·17th centuryToposCertainty: Hagiographic topos

Editorial transparency

Method and sources

Sancteo presents these accounts as hagiographic and historical traditions, without ruling on their origin or making medical or spiritual promises.

Volumes are calculated from technically validated classifications in the canonical database. Each figure above has a quotation directly linked to this theme. Last recalculated: .

Editorial responsibility: Sancteo · Corpus source: Les Petits Bollandistes and documented enrichments. Version: miracle-topic-editorial-en-v1.