An image shared on X claims to show a statue of St. Michael the Archangel slaying a dragon outside the United Nations (UN) building.
Verdict: Misleading
The image shows St. George, not St. Michael. The statue portrays a version of the famous story of St. George slaying a dragon.
Fact Check:
A group of Nuns, known as Nuns on the Bus & Friends, started a cross-country tour to encourage Catholics not to be single-issue voters, according to the Philadelphia Inquirer.
Social media users are sharing an image of a statute, claiming it shows St. Michael the Archangel slaying a dragon outside the UN building. (RELATED: Did JD Vance Follow Trump Would-Be Assassin On Social Media?)
“Fun fact: There’s a statue of Archangel Michael slaying a dragon whose body is a nuclear missile outside of the UN building,” one user wrote.
This claim is misleading. The statue does exist, but it identifies the wrong saint. The saint in the statue is St. George, according to the UN website. St. George is known for the famous legend of slaying a dragon, per the National Catholic Register.
“Seen here is a human defeating a dragon, as in the story of Saint George and the Dragon. The tale tells of St. George slaying a dragon that demanded sacrifices from nearby villagers. Once the villagers ran out of livestock, they offered humans and when a well-loved princess was selected to be sacrificed, the saint rescues the lady. Here we have a new interpretation of the story,” according to the UN website.
St. Michael the Archangel does fight a dragon in the Bible. In Chapter 12 of the Book of Revelation, St. Michael and “his angels” fought the “great dragon” and defeated him.
“The great dragon—the ancient serpent who is called the devil, or Satan, the deceiver of the whole world—was hurled down to earth, and his angels were cast down with him,” Revelation 12:9 states.
Former President Donald Trump shared the St. Michael the Archangel prayer on social media on Sept. 29, which is the saint’s feast day, according to the National Catholic Reporter.