December 4 is the Feast of St. Barbara. She was born into a pagan household, but chose to become a Christian. For this she was tortured by her own father. Miracles delayed some of her torture; wounds from torture carried out healed instantly. Eventually her father had her beheaded, but he was struck by lightning on the way home from her execution.
From Wikipedia: "Saint Barbara is venerated by Catholics who face the danger of sudden and violent death at work. She is invoked against thunder and lightning and all accidents arising from explosions of gunpowder. She became the patron saint of artillerymen, armourers, military engineers, gunsmiths, and anyone else who worked with cannon and explosives. Following the widespread adoption of gunpowder in mining in the 1600s, she was adopted as the patron of miners, tunnellers, and other underground workers. As the geology and mine engineering developed in association with mining, she became patron of these professions."
December 6, of course, is the feast of St. Nicholas. Those who see him as a jolly Santa Claus type, however, should know he started out as a Turkish bishop. His miracles included saving three students who had been killed and robbed by an evil innkeeper. The innkeeper had chopped up their bodies and brined them, but St. Nicholas returned them to life. The custom of hanging stockings before a fireplace came from the story of St. Nicholas saving three unmarried girls from a poor family from having to be sold into slavery (read: prostitution): supposedly St. Nicholas tossed a bag of gold for each girl into their poverty-stricken home and they ended up in stockings. In places like the Netherlands, where St. Nicholas is the gift bringer, he's usually accompanied by a helper, perhaps Black Peter or Belsnickel or Pelznichol. St. Nicholas rewards the good children while his help punishes the bad.
Today is the feast of the Immaculate Conception. This feast is often confused with the Annunciation and people wonder why Mary the mother of Jesus spent nearly a year pregnant. The Immaculate Conception actually refers to Mary, who was born without sin so she could become the mother of God's son.
From catholic.com: "The Immaculate Conception is a Catholic dogma that states that Mary, whose conception was brought about the normal way, was conceived without original sin or its stain. That’s what 'immaculate' means: without stain.
"When discussing the Immaculate Conception, an implicit reference may be found in the angel’s greeting to Mary. The angel Gabriel said, “Hail, full of grace, the Lord is with you” (Luke 1:28). The phrase 'full of grace' is a translation of the Greek word kecharitomene. It therefore expresses a characteristic quality of Mary."
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