(d.1606) Nicholas was the son of a carpenter in Oxford. He became a skilled carpenter and stone worker during the persecution of the Church under Queen Elizabeth. He was briefly imprisoned for speaking out against the martyrdom of Saint Edmond Campion. Nicholas was employed by the Superior of the English Jesuits to construct secret rooms and passageways in mansions throughout England to hide persecuted priests. His work is estimated to have saved more than a 100 of lives and he was eventually arrested, imprisoned, tortured in London, and martyred.
This patron saint of illusionists and escape artists worked in secrecy and has no existing writings or quotes. He used his specialty in craftsmanship to serve God and others in a very unique way. How do you quietly serve through actions rather than words?
“Let us love not in word or speech but in deed and truth” (1 John 3:18).
Reflection by Brad Farmer