Help appeal to the saints in the context of theft

The purpose of the article is to focus on the images of same Saints patronizing the thieves and their crime victims. The study is based on the data of peasant culture of the middle of 19th - early 20th centuries. The author identifies causes for the choice of particular Saints patronizing participants of the conflict. Special attention is paid to the images of Saint Nicholas and St. John the Warrior who are characterized by the bi-directional functions. Both the thieves and their victims appealed to these Saints for help. The author of the article concludes that this phenomenon can be explained both by the fundamental principle of reciprocity inherent to anthropological and sociological sciences and by the belief that theft is a punishment sent by God.