home Human Chakras Saints, saints, martyrs - as they call different saints. name day

Saints, saints, martyrs - as they call different saints. name day

Among the large number of saints revered by Christians, there is also the martyr Christopher, who is depicted on icons in a rather unusual way. This saint is traditionally depicted with the head of a dog or a horse, however, he is quite rare and practically unknown to Orthodox Christians.

ROGOZHSKAYA CARRET The Holy Martyr Christopher.
Vetka. End of the 18th century Wood, gesso, tempera. 44.9x37.6 cm. On the back side there is an inscription in cinnabar: “To the house of Alexander Dimi / Triev Shyshkin”.
The martyr Christopher is represented dog-headed, to the waist, turning to the left. On his left shoulder is a thin red spear, which he holds with his left hand, right hand raised in duplicity. Human eyes stare at the viewer, brown hair falls in long curls over her shoulders. The armor, the clasp of the cloak and the tip of the spear are gold, with a niello pattern on the same sheet gold that also covers the halo of the saint, the background and margins of the icon. The personal letter is executed in the usual sankir technique: a lighter reddish ocher is placed on a light brown substrate, followed by highlights. As a result, a swarthy skin color is transmitted. The master manages to give the animal mask a blissful touchingly trusting expression. In the modeling of fabrics, the dependence on the style of baroque and rococo is palpable. On the cloak, the pattern and shading of the folds are brown-crimson, the final highlights are made with a gold-white technique. In the upper part of the centerpiece there is an inscription: "FROM(VYA)TY MU(CHENIK) CHRISTOPHER".
The color of the icon is based on the combination of the crimson tone of the cloak with the blue tone of the saint's shirt and the brown tone of the personal. Dense yellow gold serves to unite them and create a conditional depth. The work of the master with color, the methods of shaping the form, as well as the color and rhythm of the stripes that make up the frame of the middle center and the entire icon, are characteristic of Vetka’s icon painting of the late 18th century. // V.M. Forty.

Rare frame
At the entrance to the Intercession Church there is another almost unknown icon with the image of St. Christopher.

The Holy Martyr Christopher is depicted among the martyrs

The last weighty argument for organizing the study was a letter from a reader of the Starowe website:

"Good evening! Today I was in the Sofrino store of church utensils and icons of the Russian Orthodox Church MP. I wanted to order an image of the martyr Christopher in ancient writing (with a dog's head). They tell me: “The image is not canonical. It was forbidden by the Holy Synod in the 18th century. Not everything that is on the Internet, right. The true image is this ... "(and they show me on their computer the martyr Christopher in the form of a man carrying the Divine Infant on his shoulders). I answer: "The Council of 1971 canceled all oaths to the old rites, canons, icons and removed anathemas from the Old Believers. A similar spelling of Christopher is still used in many local Orthodox Churches. "They answer me:" This is not our business. The confessor of the plant forbade making. What you want is blasphemy. order the icon, who will make it for you, but the true image is only with us.”
So here it is ... “Like not the former” were not oaths, but the decisions of the Council of 1971 and all subsequent Councils of the Russian Orthodox Church. We are talking about the store of the art and production enterprise "Sofrino" of the Russian Orthodox Church of the Moscow Patriarchate. There are two company stores in Moscow: 1) on Kropotkinskaya (central); 2) in Sokolniki (on the territory of the Church of the Resurrection of Christ), where I tried to place an order."

Nikonov-Petrovsky "news" in action: "corrected" image of St. Martyr Christopher on top of an ancient fresco in Yaroslavl

This note is based on a scientific study by S.K. Chernova, a leading specialist of the Cherepovets Museum Association.
Cherepovets also houses the image of St. martyr Christopher Pseglavets, dated to the 17th century, but this is not the only place where people became interested in history unusual image. Blogger carabaas shares the story of the appearance of the image of St. Martyr Christopher with a dog's head from the collection of icons of the Rostov Museum:
This icon was originally located in the Rostov Museum, and got there by order of the New Believer Archbishop Jonathan (with whose blessing the museum itself was created in 1883). The prehistory of the appearance of the icon was described in the Diocesan Gazette as follows:
“When surveying the diocesan churches in August 1880, His Eminence in the church of the village of Bogorodskoye in Oseka, among other things, saw an icon of the martyr Christopher, in the growth of a man, with the head of an animal, namely a dog. Vladyka noticed all the indecency in the temple of such an icon and ordered that it be taken out of the temple ...
Christopher is a holy martyr, revered by the Orthodox and Catholic churches, who lived, according to legend, in the 3rd century AD. The life of St. Christopher, which spread in Cyprus and later in Russia, says that the saint was very handsome, but in order to avoid temptation, he begged the Lord to disfigure his appearance. Modern theologians, as well as the Rogozhsky old-timers, adhere to this version, emphasizing the original ordinaryness of the saint and at the same time "reconciling with the mythologized Russian image of the saint that has taken root in the centuries." (quote from the Encyclopedia "Myths of the peoples of the world". M., 1982. Vol. 2, S. 604).

Examples of the traditional depiction of St. torment. Christopher

Eastern tradition of veneration of St. mch. Christopher

The tradition of the Eastern tradition says (see: Lives of the Saints, in Russian, p. 290; Menaion - May. Ch. 1, p. 363) that during the reign of Emperor Decius Trajan, a man who bore the name Reprev was captured during battles with tribes in eastern Egypt. He was a man of enormous stature, cynocephalic (that is, with a dog's head), like all representatives of his tribe.
Even before baptism, Reprev professed faith in Christ and denounced those who persecuted Christians. Emperor Decius sent 200 soldiers after him. Repreve obeyed without resistance. Miracles happened on the way: the rod in the saint's hand blossomed, and through his prayer, bread multiplied, like the multiplication of bread by the Savior in the wilderness.

Saint Christopher. Greek icon. Constantinople

The soldiers who accompanied Reprev were amazed by miracles, believed in Christ, and together with Reprev were baptized by the Bishop of Antioch, Babyla. After baptism, Reprev received the name "Christopher". When Christopher was brought to the emperor, he called two harlot women and ordered them to persuade the saint to renounce Christ, but the women, returning to the emperor, declared themselves Christians, for which they were subjected to cruel tortures and died martyrs. Decius sentenced Christopher to death, and after severe tortures, the martyr's head was glazed. (see: Lives of the Saints, in Russian, p.290). One of the miracles of the martyr was that he remained unharmed after the emperor ordered him to be placed in a red-hot copper box.

Saint Christopher. Greek icon. 18 century

In Antioch, the memory of the martyr began to be venerated not immediately after his death, but some time later, so that even his real name was forgotten and was replaced by the honorary title of Christ-bearer (Christophoros). This is quite understandable, since the saint was not a member of the local Church, but was a foreigner who served in a special cohort of the Roman army in Syria. Moreover, Christopher was baptized not by the Bishop of Antioch, but by the Alexandrian presbyter Peter, who was in exile, who after the execution ransomed the body of the saint and sent it home. In the art of Byzantium, there were several options for depicting the martyr, which were formed already in the early era. The most common image is of a young man dressed in patrician clothes (frescoes of Dechan and the Church of St. Clement in Ohrid) or in military armor. The latter option is represented by the paintings of the Old Church (Tokali Kilisse in Goreme, Turkey, X-XI centuries), in the mosaics of the Osios Loukas monastery (second quarter of the XI century). In Russia, the image of St. Christopher as a young warrior is preserved in the arch of the deacon of the church of St. George in Staraya Ladoga (the last quarter of the 12th century).

Saint Christopher. Greek icon

Icon from the Yegoryevsk Historical and Art Museum

Saints Christopher and George slay snakes. Terracotta. Vinick. Macedonia. 6th-7th centuries

Saint Christopher and Yaroslavl Wonderworkers. Russian icon. 18 century. GIM

Saint Christopher. Icon. 18th century State Museum history of religion, St. Petersburg

The modern image of St. Christopher, created under the influence of Catholic legends

Old Believer hagiographic icon of St. Christopher

Saint Christopher with a wolf's head. Lubok picture

Later spellings of the chapter of St. Martyr Christopher in Russia

Saints Flor, Laurus and Christopher. Perm icon. 1888

Modern icon of St. Christopher Pseglavets

In Russia, the veneration of St. Christopher is not so widespread, and on the icons sold in the church shops of the ROC MP one can only find the image of the Saint in human form with the Divine Infant on his shoulders. The image of Christopher the Cynocephalus is revered unchanged only among the Old Believer Church and remained only on those rare icons and church paintings that the New Believers did not have time to “moderate”.

A patron saint and intercessor is a saint named after you, to whom you can pray as your intercessor.

The day of your name day will be the day of memory of the saint, in whose honor you are named in Baptism. In addition, you can choose your own patron saint if you have not yet been baptized or do not know who you are named after.

Saint - what kind of person is this

Every Orthodox Christian knows and reveres many saints. Prayer to the Lord Jesus Christ and His Most Pure Mother is a common petition that accompanies the life of a believer. But often it seems to us that our requests are small for God, and doubts overcome: will He hear us, will He have mercy ... In such cases, they pray to spiritual patrons - saints. Traditionally, it is customary to pray in different areas of life to different saints, for example, for the healing of serious illnesses - Panteleimon the Healer, for animals - Saints Florus and Laurus.

In addition, every Christian has his own patron - the namesake saint. The patron saint is usually found by date of birth.

Saints and Angels - intercessors before God

Such saints are also called "our Angels", but this is not entirely true. “Your Angel” is a Guardian Angel who has been protecting you since Baptism, a Heavenly Being. Every baptized Orthodox Christian his Guardian Angel, but we do not know his name. Angels are personalities, but their nature is different from human and animal. They are higher, more perfect than people, although they also have limitations. The angel is usually depicted in ancient clothes - a cloak and a tunic with a gold edging around the collar and around the wrists, with golden wings.

And the patron saint is an ascetic or martyr who lived a holy life on earth and shone in the Kingdom of God for his exploits.

Dates of holy names

They will be a saint or saint (for girls and women), whose memory is celebrated in the days after the birthday. For example, if you were born on October 6 and bear the name Sergei, then your patron will be St. Sergius of Radonezh (his memory is October 8), and if on October 10 is the martyr Sergius (his memory is October 20).

Parents can be given advice at the birth of a child to check with the calendar - the Orthodox calendar. Try to name the child after the saint whose memory is celebrated that day or the next. For example, do not neglect the patronage of the great saints for children born on their holidays:

Saint Nicholas the Wonderworker is perhaps the most revered saint in the whole world. Both Catholics and Orthodox pray to him. It is not in vain that he bears the name of the Miracle Worker. Both during his life and after his death, he became famous for many wondrous deeds, showing the power of God's grace: through his prayers, the sick were healed, those perishing at sea were saved, justice was restored.

The saint lived in the 4th century, but even today remains dear and beloved to many people: he continues to hear prayers, help those who turn to him, save from death, poverty, longing and many troubles, turning to the Lord Jesus Christ. No wonder the relics of the saint, a rib from which was brought to Russia from Italy for the first time in 900 years, were lined up for many hours in huge queues.

The saint has the grace to help in many areas of life.

In childhood with Reverend Sergius a miracle happened. The future Saint Sergius, whose childhood name was Bartholomew before his name was changed in monasticism, was the son of a local prince and therefore had to learn to read and write. But he did not understand the doctrine at all. Classmates laughed at him, teachers "taught" with rods, he himself was very worried.

Once, not far from the house, the lad Bartholomew met a monk. Being pious and hospitable, the boy invited the monk to visit his parents' house and rest. The monk turned out to be an angel who appeared to the child: thanking Bartholomew for his hospitality, he offered to pray to God for the fulfillment of the boy's cherished desire. Bartholomew asked for "understanding the letter." The angel monk blessed Bartholomew, went outside the gates of his house and disappeared. The boy immediately began to understand the letter, learned to read and write. Everyone understood that a miracle had happened, and Bartholomew eventually took the monastic vows and, having received the blessing of the monastic authorities, went into the forests and founded the monastery himself. Today it is the Holy Trinity Sergius Lavra - one of the largest monastic cloisters in Russia.

The saint has great grace to help in studies and, of course, in spiritual life, in all needs.

The image of the young martyr, Saint Tatyana, reminds us of the heavenly reward for all who remain faithful to God, and the heavenly punishment for cruel theomachists: the face of the martyr, who led many people to the Lord, is bright and joyful. She is portrayed as young, because it was in her youth that she died a painful death. Saint Tatiana lived in the 1st-2nd centuries of our era. The formation of the Church of Christ in the world passed through the labors and martyrdom of the apostles and the first disciples of Christ. Tatyana, a young girl, had to endure death for Christ during the years of persecution of the first Christians. St. Tatiana is revered in Russia as an assistant to students. She was not a student herself and did not help students during her lifetime, but it was on her day, in 1755, that the Russian Empress Catherine II signed a decree on the construction of the first University of Russia. Today it is called Moscow State University named after M. Lomonosov.

The image of the Holy Great Martyr Demetrius of Thessalonica is one of the most beautiful icons. It is often confused with the image of St. George the Victorious, but on the icon Dmitry of Thessalonica strikes a wicked man with a spear. This is a miracle from his life. The saint is also called Dmitry Myrrh-streaming: his relics exuded myrrh, a special miraculous liquid, the composition of which no one on earth knows. Day of celebration of the memory of St. Demetrius of Thessalonica - October 26. The saint was especially honored on this holiday in Russia: the battle on the Kulikovo field in 1380 was carried out shortly before the memory of the holy warrior-defender, through prayers to him, the Russians won.

Among the apostles, the apostles Peter and Paul, who are called the supreme ones, stand out in particular. Peter was one of the witnesses of the earthly life of Christ, his closest disciple, but when Christ was arrested, he denied Him. And Paul at first was even a persecutor of Christ - during His earthly life, he did not meet Christ. However, these two apostles are the most famous, they worked for the sake of the Lord and for the enlightenment of people, they were able to ascend to the height of holiness, despite their previous deeds.

The Holy Apostle Andrew is called First-Called because he became the first disciple of Christ. His Lord was the first of the people to invite them to follow Him, learning His teachings. And after the Resurrection and Ascension of the Lord into Heaven, together with other apostles, Saint Andrew labored and preached the teachings of Christ. His path was longer and longer than that of other missionaries. It was the Apostle Andrew who brought Christianity to the earth. future Russia. But he did not die among the barbarians, but ended his life as a martyr not far from his homeland, preaching the Cross of Christ and His teachings by his very death.

In Russia, many churches were dedicated to Saint Elijah: he was widely revered due to his help in growing crops. Reverent awe seized people at his name: it was believed that he commanded even thunder, he could incinerate a sinner with lightning. Perhaps this is the most revered of the saints and righteous men of the Old Testament. AT modern Russia the prophet Elijah is revered as the patron saint of landing troops - after all, he ascended to heaven alive in a chariot.

George the Victorious is the great patron of Moscow, the capital of Russia, and therefore of every Russian. He has long been revered as the patron saint of all unjustly offended and powerless to justify himself, an assistant in the struggle for truth, in any good deed.

Empress Elena was canonized as a Saint Equal to the Apostles, that is, the Church, thanks to the missionary and educational activities of Elena, equated the saint with the apostles themselves, the first disciples of Christ. On the icon, she is depicted with a large Cross, because she found the Cross on which Christ himself was crucified, and in royal clothes. Often next to her is depicted her son - also glorified in the face of the Equal-to-the-Apostles Constantine the Great. He was the first Roman emperor to convert to Christianity, stopping the persecution of Christians.

Baptism by another name

We have listed the most common names of the most famous saints in Russia. However, you can baptize a child in honor of your favorite saint and even in honor of your relative, making any namesake saint the patron saint of the child. This does not require any special customs. It is only necessary before Baptism, for example, Alexander, to warn the priest that the heavenly patron of the child will be the right-believing Prince Alexander Nevsky or the Monk Alexander Svirsky.

You cannot baptize a child in honor of the Lord Jesus Christ and Holy Mother of God, Virgin Mary. Their names have long been revered. The names of Mary are given in honor of the martyrs, and Jesus - this is a rare monastic name - in honor of the Old Testament righteous Joshua.

In addition, you can baptize a person with a different name than the name in the passport. This is necessary when the name you have chosen for the child is not in the calendar - for example, Amelia or Svetozar. Therefore, you can baptize your girl by name, for example, Aramina, with the name Irina. But this can be done just as you wish. Then in church records for commemoration at the Liturgy, for example, it will be necessary to write this particular name.

It is impossible to baptize a person because of a name change or for its sake.
If you do not know how to choose a name for a child whom you did not name according to the calendar ( Orthodox calendar), take a baptized name that sounds close to yours.

Prayer to your namesake patron

About the saint, in whose honor we are named and who patronizes us, we must remember not only on the name day. In daily morning and evening prayer rule there is a short common prayer to the namesake praying saint.

People should turn to their holy intercessors in all needs. It is known that there are no unimportant prayers for saints: it seems to us that the loss of some things is not worth prayer, but if it plunges you into despair, it is better to pray to your saint and calm down, she will not refuse help.

Prayer to the saint in all needs for every day, if you bear this name, you can read online according to the text below:

“Pray to God for me, holy saint of God (holy saint of God) (name), because I diligently ask for your intercession, helper (tsy) in everything and a prayer book (tsy) for my soul.”

A donated or purchased icon of the patron saint is placed in your home iconostasis. It can be in any room of the house. The place where the images stand in the room is called the "red corner" - usually it is located opposite the door, by the window, in any clean and bright place. It is necessary that it is convenient for you to take pictures in front of the icons during prayer, it is convenient to read the prayer book and there are no distractions nearby.

On a special shelf for icons, which can be bought in shops at churches, in the center they put the image of the Lord Jesus Christ, on the left - the Most Holy Theotokos, and on the right - a revered saint, usually named after you or your loved ones. Icons can also stand on a shelf with books, better spiritual content.

It may turn out that you are wearing rare name and you cannot find an icon of your heavenly patron in church shops. Then purchase and place in the home iconostasis the icon of All Saints, where absolutely all Orthodox saints are symbolically depicted.

Angel Day, name day, birthday

On the day of the celebration of the memory of the patron saint, name days are celebrated, or Angel Day is one and the same thing. Previously, name days were celebrated simultaneously with a person’s birthday.

Orthodox believers visit the temple on name days, prepare for the sacraments of Confession and Communion of the Holy Mysteries of Christ. You can at least visit the temple on this day if you cannot start the Holy Mysteries. In the evening or afternoon, you can invite relatives and friends to a festive meal (lunch or dinner). If the name day falls on a fast day, then the treat should be made fast.

If your name day falls on a weekday during fasting time (on one of the big seasonal fasts: Veliky, Petrov, Uspensky, Rozhdestvensky), it is better to postpone their celebration to Sunday.

A birthday gift should be appropriate, have a religious context.

Gift editions of the book of the saint's life or about the time in which he lived;
The Bible is a family book that can even be passed down through generations;
Paid pilgrimage to the holy places of your region;
A modest but elegant gift is a bottle of church Cahors with interesting glasses;
A beautiful icon lamp for the "red corner" - the home iconostasis of the house;
Chain for pectoral cross;
Ring "Save and Save" with a cross and a prayer;
Bracelet with a prayer or with a cross (both men's and women's are now on sale);
The most traditional option is a beautiful, painted or self-embroidered icon of the patron saint;
Vessel for holy water;
Audio and video discs of spiritual content.

Help from a patron

The Church Fathers themselves, the priests, while still on earth, said that heavenly patrons, by the grace of the Holy Spirit, see our life and our deeds. “With their love, the saints embrace the whole world,” said St. Silna of Athos. “They see and know how we are exhausted from sorrows ... and, without ceasing, they intercede for us before God.”

How, then, not only to ask for help from the saint, but also to please him? To imitate his earthly deeds and deeds, his great faith in God - otherwise we only use his or her prayers.

Another Saint Ambrose of Optina - reverend elder XIX century - said: "Let your life be by name." The patron saint should not only be a prayer book for us, but, most importantly, a role model.

You need to know well the life and deeds of your patron: we cannot sincerely love our saint if we do not know him. Many lives of saints are described in fiction: for example, in the book "Paterik" by Nikolai Leskov, the life of many ancient saints is described; in the book of Archpriest Nikolai Agafonov "The Myrrh-Bearing Women" - the life of the patron saints of all Mary, Jeanne, John, all bearers of the names of the apostles.

Consider where you could follow your saint's example. According to the nature of Orthodox deeds, saints are traditionally divided into faces (classifications, categories): apostles, Equal-to-the-Apostles, saints, prophets, martyrs (great martyrs, reverend martyrs, holy martyrs), righteous, reverend, holy fools, faithful, confessors, etc.

Try to pay attention to their exploits and imitate them a little with your life.

Women bearing the names of myrrh-bearing women can serve God and people by preaching, teaching the Law of God.
If you bear the name of a confessor or martyr, think about how to tell people about the Orthodox faith. Endure harassment and ridicule.
If you bear the name of a saint, help your loved ones find the path to salvation by your own example and a story about the books you read.

Reverend monks can be imitated in asceticism, independence from earthly pleasures, special diligence to protect themselves from the sins of the flesh and in keeping the purity of thoughts.

Through the prayers of all the saints, may the Lord bless you!

Many people wonder what patron saints by name and date of birth they have. Our article is entirely devoted to the answer. You will learn the name of your patron saint, and information will also be provided on how best to celebrate name days. This day is incredibly important for every person. So, please read the information below carefully.

In our time, more and more people, after a long break, begin to revive interest in their heavenly patrons and name days. But many continue to confuse the concepts of “name day”, “birthday” and “guardian angel day”. Also, often people simply don’t think about why their name day is celebrated, say, today, and not tomorrow or some other day. Even more often, having learned that there are several saints with a certain name, people begin to wonder which of these saints is the patron saint for this or that person. Let's try to understand these questions and find answers to them. These concepts simply need to be distinguished.

I think everyone knows about what a birthday is and loves to celebrate it, convene guests and receive gifts. Everything is simple here: birthday is the day on which a person was born. But let's think about it, why is it that quite often a person is called a “birthday man” on his birthday? This happens because, thanks to a long atheistic period throughout the post-Soviet space, people simply began to confuse the birthday and the day of their name day, sometimes combining them into one date. However, “birthday” and “name day” are different concepts. It is worth mentioning that before the revolution in Tsarist Russia, name days for the Orthodox were a much more important holiday than birthdays. Nowadays, they are celebrated much less frequently. This is due to the ignorance of people about the significance of the name day. But every year the situation changes and more and more people show interest in them and their heavenly patrons. So what is this day? Believers also designate it with the word "the namesake". Do you know the meanings of the words "namesake", "teza"? They denote a person who has the same name. So: a certain calendar day, on which one or another saint or several saints are remembered at once, is a namesake, festive for a person bearing the name of the saint who is remembered on this day. In the common people, especially in the western parts of Ukraine and Belarus, the name day is often referred to as “the day of the angel”, “the day of the guardian angel (guardian angel)”, which, of course, is also not entirely correct. The mistake occurs for the reason that believing people sometimes call their saints angels, guardian angels. But this is not a saint, this is precisely an angel, a good spirit, given by God to a person during baptism, so that he would instruct a person during his earthly life on the path of salvation. But a person cannot know his personal name, since he is invisible to a person. Therefore, for each guardian angel, a separate day is not assigned for his remembrance. But installed certain days in which all heavenly angelic powers are honored.

How to find out the name of the patron saint

So how do you find out, and when is the day of veneration of your saint appointed? And what are the patron saints by name and date of birth for each of us? After all, who decides all this? So, in order: firstly, in order to find out which of the saints is our heavenly patron, we need to look into the Saints, or, as this church-folk calendar is also called, the Months. It is there that the names of all the saints and the dates for their memory are recorded. And these dates are set by the Church, which ranks this or that person as a saint. Secondly, patron saints are usually identified by name and date of birth. Well, this is understandable, because we know our name. However, what should we do if several saints with our name are mentioned in the Saints at once? In such a case, we must choose the saint whose memory is honored closest to our birthday. It should also be noted that the list with saints is constantly updated, as more and more saints are glorified. For example, at the Bishops' Council in 2000, the New Martyrs and Confessors of Russia were glorified, and if a person was baptized before 2000, then the saints by name and date of birth are determined according to the publications of the Saints earlier than 2000. And if after, then the saint is determined from a wider list by date of birth, according to the publications of the Saints later than 2000. But what if we don’t find a saint with his own name in the Saints? For example, if a person has a non-Christian name? In this case, we must choose a patron saint close in name to ours. So, Dina becomes Evdokia, Angelica becomes Angelina, Zhanna Ioanna, and Svetlana becomes Photinia. But Yuri at baptism is called George. Does this mean that a person in ordinary worldly life is called by this new name? No. In worldly life, of course, he remains Yuri. And in church life, at, say, confession or communion, naming himself, he must name church name: George. When submitting notes about health or repose, the church name of a person is also written. Previously, when they decided to name and baptize a newborn, they usually looked into the Saints and looked at the memory of which saints the Church honors on this day, and chose a patron saint for the baby by name from this list. It is on the day of the baptism of the child, and not on the day of his birth. Now this is a forgotten tradition, and in our time, few adhere to it. They now name them mainly in honor of their relatives or in honor of some favorite characters in books or films, but not in honor of saints. This also happens because many do not know which patron saints exist by date of birth and name. Using the example of some names, let's see how many saints there are in one name.

Saint patron named Andrew

The name Andrew is of Greek origin. In translation, it means "courageous, brave." Because the given name very common - that was the name of one of the twelve apostles of Christ - then, accordingly, there should be a lot of saints with that name. Let's see, is that right? Let's take a look at Saints. Yes, indeed, there are many saints named Andrew. Here they are. Hieromartyr Andrew, Bishop of Ufa (January 8), Martyr Andrew of Lampsakia (May 31), Apostle Andrew the First-Called (July 3, July 13, December 13), Saint Andrei Rublev, icon painter (July 17), Martyr Andrew of Crete (October 30).

So, as we can see, the choice is rich. This is far from a complete list. Remember that Andrew, in order to determine his heavenly patron, needs to choose a saint named Andrew from the list, which would be the closest to his birthday.

Vladimir

What is the patron saint named Vladimir? It is Slavic. The first part of the name goes back to the Proto-Indo-European basis and means the word "strength, power." The second part of the name is borrowed from the Germanic languages \u200b\u200bwith the meaning "great, famous." However, this second part (-mers) among the Slavs, under the influence of the word "peace", took on a different meaning, corresponding to the indicated word. It turns out that the name Vladimir means the combination "owning the world"; at the same time the world in the meaning of "the Universe, the globe", and the world in the meaning of "peace, peace". The original name was pagan. But after the baptism of Russia, subsequently, the name Vladimir was canonized, since Russia was baptized by Prince Vladimir Svyatoslavich. There are much fewer saints with this name than in the case of Andrei. Let's take a look at Saints. Hieromartyr Vladimir, Metropolitan of Kyiv and Galicia (February 1), Martyr John Vladimir, Prince of Serbia (June 4), Equal-to-the-Apostles Grand Duke Vladimir (July 28), Martyr Priest Vladimir (August 29), Right-Believing Prince Vladimir Yaroslavich of Novgorod (October 17) .

Name Dmitry

Now we will find out which patron saint named Dmitry. it Greek name means "dedicated to the goddess Demeter". The established church form of the name is Demetrius. There are also many saints with this name, since the name Dmitry is very common to this day. What kind of saints with the name Demetrius do the Saints mention? Rev. Demetrius Skevophylax (February 7), Righteous Demetrius of Yuryevsky, son of the Right-Believing Prince Svyatoslav (February 16), Passion-Bearer, Blessed Tsarevich Demetrius of Uglich and Moscow (May 28, June 5, June 16), Martyr Demetrius of Kazan (October 15), Martyr Demetrius ( November 28), Righteous Demetrius (December 14).

Alexandra

Let's talk about which patron saint is named after Alexander. This is the female form of the name Alexander; is of Greek origin and translates as “protector of people”, “brave”. There are, frankly, few saints with this name, here they are: Martyr Alexandra of Pontus (April 2), Martyr Alexandra of Rome, Nicomedia, Empress (May 6), Martyr Alexandra of Corinth (May 31, November 19), St. Alexandra Diveevskaya (June 26 ), Holy Martyr Empress Alexandra (July 17). In Russia, by far, the most popular saint bearing this name is the Russian empress, wife of Nicholas II, the last Russian emperor.

Anna

It is worth talking about which patron saint named Anna. If all the previous names we are considering (with the exception of Vladimir) were of Greek origin, then this name is Hebrew, and translates as "grace, favor, mercy, dear." This name is biblical. Since the name is very common throughout the world, there are, of course, many saints with this name, unlike Alexandra: prophetess Anna (February 16, December 22, martyr Anna Gotfskaya (April 8), blessed Grand Duchess Anna Kashinskaya (25 June, August 3, October 15), St. Anna of Bithinskaya (June 26, November 11), Martyr Anna (July 18).

Elena

What are the patron saints named after Elena? It is of Greek origin. Interestingly, its etymology is still unclear. There were suggestions that it is associated with the sun god Helios or indicates the self-name of the Greeks - the Hellenes. However, despite their popularity, there are very few saints with this name. Martyr Elena (January 28), Equal-to-the-Apostles Empress Elena (June 3), Martyr Elena, daughter of the Apostle Alpheus (June 8), Rev. Elena Diveevskaya (June 10), Equal-to-the-Apostles Olga, Grand Duchess of Russia, in holy baptism Elena (July 24), Righteous Elena, Queen of Serbia (November 12).

A little about the icons of patron saints

There are many icons depicting saints. And it is very good if a person has at home or carries with him an image of his heavenly patron saint. You can turn to the saint with any request, our patron saints hear us and help. In order to choose the right icon with the image of our saint, we need to know about our patron, how he is depicted on the icons, go to the church shop and choose the right one. It will be good if the icon of the patron saint by name will always be next to you. In addition, let's say that it would be nice to know at least one prayer addressed to your saint.

How to celebrate the patron saint's day?

If you understand the difference between a name day and a birthday, you certainly understand the difference between celebrations. On the name day, we, first of all, remember our saints so that they also remember us. On the day of the name day, believers usually go to the temple, confess and take communion. But, of course, there are no obstacles for guests, a gala dinner and gifts. But it should not be noisy fun and a feast with alcoholic drinks. It is better if it is a sincere conversation filled with meaning and content. It is worth noting that if your name day falls during Lent, you only need to cook meatless dishes. Follow this rule. If your name day falls on a weekday in Lent, they must be moved to Sunday or Saturday.

Some people do not celebrate their name day in any way. This is extremely wrong, because, in addition to religious overtones, it is also just a good bright day filled with joy.

It is very important to teach children from an early age to celebrate name days, take them to church for communion, and also give them small gifts and arrange a quiet feast with the family. In the future, the child throughout his life will treat this day as a festive and special one.

And further. Never forget to congratulate your relatives and friends on their birthday. Give them small gifts. Your attention on this day will be very pleasant to them. Visit them whenever possible. Knowing which patron saints your loved ones have by date of birth and name will help you with choosing a gift if you decide to present an icon.

We really hope that this article was helpful to you. You know what patron saints are by name and date of birth, as well as how to identify them. That's not all. You found out which patron saint is named after you. We also hope that you will find interesting information on how to celebrate name days. For many people, this is another reason for a feast, which is not right. Now you will know what actions are best done on this day of his name day, wonderful for every person. How to find out the name of the patron saint? It's not that hard. You just need to show a keen interest.

Nika Kravchuk

Saints, saints, martyrs - as they call different saints

It is easy to see that different saints in the church are called differently: there are apostles, martyrs, reverend, faithful, confessors, martyrs ... How to distinguish them? And is it necessary, if they are already worthy of the Kingdom of Heaven?

All these names indicate the way these people came to God, how they used the talents given to them. The Orthodox Church honors the saints of God in various ranks: prophets, apostles, Equal-to-the-Apostles, saints, reverends, martyrs, great martyrs, hieromartyrs, confessors, faithful, unmercenaries, holy fools and passion-bearers for Christ's sake.

O prophets we know from the Old Testament. These are the ascetics who received a special gift from God - to know the Will of the Creator about people and the fate of the world. The Lord revealed the future to them.

For example, from the Old Testament we know about the so-called four Great Prophets: Isaiah, Jeremiah, Daniel and Ezekiel. Especially revered in our time are St. Elijah and John the Baptist. The Church also knows the names of the wives whom God has rewarded with such a gift (righteous Anna also belongs to them).

Apostles- followers of Christ and in fact the first preachers of Christianity. From ancient Greek, this word is translated as ambassadors, that is, messengers of Jesus. The Church especially honors the memory of the 12 apostles, among which Peter and Paul are considered the foremost.

But this is far from a complete list. In fact, there were much more disciples and followers of Christ, therefore they call the number 70 or even 72. The names of most of them are not present in the Gospel, so a complete list was already compiled in IV-V centuries based on Holy Tradition.

Those saints who lived several centuries after the first sermons of Christianity, but also labored in spreading the teachings of the Church, are called equal to the apostles. For example, Equal-to-the-Apostles Constantine and Elena, Equal-to-the-Apostles Princes Vladimir and Olga.

Saints It is customary to call representatives of the third degree of the priesthood - bishops, archbishops, metropolitans and patriarchs, who pleased God with their service to the flock. There are a lot of them in the Orthodox Church, but the most revered are Nicholas of Myra, Basil the Great, Gregory the Theologian and John Chrysostom (also called ecumenical teachers, expounded the Orthodox doctrine of the Holy Trinity).

Reverend those who served God in the monastic rank are called. Their most important work is fasting and prayer, taming their own will, humility, chastity.

There are a lot of saints who shone in this face, because it is difficult to find a monastery that has its own history, but does not have saints of God. Another question is that time must pass for the saints to be canonized. The Kiev-Pechersk Lavra is known for the Reverend Fathers of the Caves. Seraphim of Sarov and Sergius of Radonezh are well-known and especially glorified.

The largest number of saints came to the Kingdom of Heaven as martyrs. They endured terrible suffering and death for their faith. There were especially many such confessors during the time of persecution of Christians.

Those who have suffered especially severe torment are called great martyrs. For example, the healer Panteleimon, Varvara and Catherine. Also have holy martyrs(accepted death in holy dignity) and venerable martyrs(suffered while in monastic vows).

Confessors are those who openly recognized themselves as Christians (professed), but did not die a martyr's death. Many confessors appear during times of persecution for the faith.

the faithful the saints of Christ are called, who in the world were monarchs (for example, princes or kings) and with their righteous life pleased God. For many, they are associated with Alexander Nevsky, Andrei Bogolyubsky, Dmitry Donskoy and others, glorified in the Russian Church. In fact, this face of saints originated in the Church of Constantinople (byzantine emperors and their wives were glorified).

Unmercenaries they had a special gift from the Almighty - they could heal from bodily and spiritual illnesses, but they did not take money for their help (for example, Cosmas and Damian).

For Christ's sake fools- perhaps one of the most interesting and difficult paths to God. These people deliberately dressed themselves in the guise of insanity, although they had nothing to do with clouding their minds. They lived on the street, led a very modest and unpretentious life: they endured the hot sun and the burning frost, ate a small part of the alms, dressed in rags, that is, they did not take care of themselves at all. For this, God gave them a special gift - to see the spiritual illnesses of other people.

Therefore, the holy fools were engaged in denunciation, they could even directly tell the king if they saw that he was getting bogged down in vices. In addition, they hid their virtues, and for revealing the iniquities of others they often suffered insults or even beatings (although, for example, in Russia they were considered “God’s people”, therefore beating a holy fool was considered a great sin, but human malice violated this unwritten rule). A striking example of such a path to salvation is Ksenia of Petersburg.

Sometimes holy fools for the sake of Christ are also called blessed (for example, Basil the Blessed), but this word has different shades of meaning.

Passion-bearers they call those people who did not die a natural death, but, being Christians, suffered not for their faith, but for a righteous way of life, or who gave their own lives for the well-being of others. Princes Boris and Gleb were considered the first martyrs in Russia. In this face of saints, representatives of the family of the last emperor of Russia, Nicholas II, were canonized, who really led Christian life, but were killed as representatives of the monarchy.

We also know the names of some saints who are called righteous. Usually these are lay people (also representatives of the white clergy), who led a righteous life, fulfilled the commandments. This includes the forefathers (they also include the Old Testament patriarchs) and God-fathers (first of all, the parents of the Virgin Mary - Joachim and Anna), as well as the righteous John of Kronstadt, Simeon of Verkhoturye and others.

The example of all these saints indicates that the paths to God can be very different, but there is one fundamental thing: the presence of boundless faith and its reinforcement good deeds, following the gospel commandments.

Take it, tell your friends!

How to determine the name day

In the church calendar, there are several days of commemoration of the same saint, and many saints also bear the same name. Therefore, it is necessary to find in the church calendar the day of memory of the saint named with you, the closest after the day of your birth. These will be your name days, and the saint whose memory is remembered on this day will be your heavenly patron. If he has other days of memory, then for you these dates will become “small name days”.

If we want to name the child strictly according to church tradition, then this will be the name of a saint whose memory is celebrated on the 8th day after the birth of the child. Cm.

When determining the name day, the date of the canonization of the saint does not matter, because it only fixes a fait accompli. In addition, as a rule, it takes place dozens of years after the transition of the saint to heavenly abodes.

The name received by a person at baptism not only remains unchanged throughout his life (the only exception is the case of becoming a monk), but is also preserved after death, passes with him into eternity. In prayers for the dead, he also remembers their names given in baptism.

Name day and Angel Day

Sometimes name days are called Angel Day. This name name recalls that in the old days, heavenly patrons were sometimes called the Angels of their earthly namesakes; it is incorrect, however, to confuse saints with angels. Name day is the day of remembrance of the saint whose name the person is named, and Angel Day is the day of baptism, when a person is assigned by God. Each baptized has his own Guardian Angel, but we do not know his name.

Honoring and emulating one's patron saint

About the prayerful help of the saints, the monk wrote: “Saints, in the Holy Spirit they see our life and our deeds. They know our sorrows and hear our ardent prayers... The Saints do not forget us and pray for us... They also see the suffering of people on earth. The Lord gave them such great grace that they embrace the whole world with love. They see and know how we are exhausted from sorrows, how our souls have dried up, how despondency has bound them, and, without ceasing, they intercede for us before God.

The veneration of the saint consists not only in praying to him, but also in imitation of his feat, his faith. “Let your life be by your name,” said the monk. After all, the saint whose name a person bears is not just his patron and prayer book, he is also a role model.

But how can we imitate our saint, how can we at least follow his example in some way? For this you need:

First, to know about his life and exploits. Without this, we cannot sincerely love our saint.
Secondly, you need to turn to them with prayer more often, know the troparion to him and always remember that we have a protector and helper in heaven.
Thirdly, of course, we should always think about how we could follow the example of our saint in this or that case.

By the nature of Christian exploits, saints are traditionally divided into faces (ranks): prophets, apostles, saints, martyrs, confessors, reverend, righteous, holy fools, faithful, etc. (see).
The person who bears the name confessor or martyr, it is quite possible to fearlessly confess their faith, to act like a Christian always and in everything, without looking back at dangers or inconveniences, in everything to please, first of all, God, and not people, regardless of ridicule, threats and even oppression.
Those who are named after saints may try to imitate them, denouncing errors and vices, spreading the light of Orthodoxy, helping their neighbors find the way to salvation both by word and by their own example.
Reverend(i.e. monks) can be imitated in detachment, independence from worldly pleasures, keeping the purity of thoughts, feelings and actions.
Imitate holy fool- means, first of all, to humble yourself, to cultivate selflessness in yourself, not to be carried away by the acquisition of earthly riches. The continuation should be the education of will and patience, the ability to endure the difficulties of life, the struggle with pride and vanity. You also need the habit of meekly enduring all insults, but at the same time not being shy about exposing obvious vices, telling the truth to everyone who needs admonition.

Names after angels

Also, a person can be named after (Michael, Gabriel, etc.). Christians named after the archangels celebrate their name day (November 8, according to the old style), on the day of the Celebration of the Cathedral of the Archangel Michael of God and others Heavenly Forces incorporeal.

If the name is not in the calendar

If the name that you were called is not in the calendar, then at baptism the name that is closest in sound is chosen. For example, Dina - Evdokia, Lilia - Leah, Angelica - Angelina, Jeanne - John, Milan - Militsa. According to tradition, Alice receives the name Alexandra in baptism, in honor of St. Passion-bearer Alexandra Feodorovna Romanova, before the adoption of Orthodoxy, bore the name Alice. Some names in the church tradition have a different sound, for example, Svetlana is Photinia (from the Greek photos - light), and Victoria is Nika, both names in Latin and Greek mean "victory".
Only the names given in baptism are written in.

How to celebrate name day

Orthodox Christians visit the temple on their name days and, having prepared in advance, the Holy Mysteries of Christ.
The days of "small name days" are not so solemn for the birthday man, but it is advisable to visit the temple on this day.
After communion, you need to keep yourself from all fuss, so as not to lose the festive joy. In the evening, you can invite loved ones to a meal. It should be remembered that if the name day falls on a fast day, then the festive treat should be fast. In Great Lent, name days that occur on a weekday are transferred to the next Saturday or Sunday.
Cm. Natalya Sukhinina

What to give for a birthday

In celebration of the memory of the patron saint, the best gift for a birthday person will be something that can contribute to his spiritual growth: an icon; vessel for , container for and ; beads; high-quality wax candles or a lamp for home prayer; books, audio and video recordings of spiritual content; scarf and scarf (this is a headdress married women); pilgrimage ticket.

Prayer to your saint

About the saint, in whose honor we receive a name, we must remember not only on the name day. In the daily morning and evening there is a prayer to the saint, we can also turn to him at any time and in any need. The simplest prayer to the saint:
Pray to God for me, holy servant of God (name), as I diligently resort to you, a quick helper and prayer book for my soul.
You also need to know your saint.

In addition to the icons of the Savior - the Lord Jesus Christ, and the Virgin, it is desirable to have your own saint. It may happen that you bear some rare name, and the icon of your heavenly patron will be difficult to find. In this case, you can buy an icon of All Saints, which symbolically depicts all the saints glorified by the Orthodox Church.

Patristic sayings about birthdays

“We began to choose names not according to God. By God, this is how it should be. Choose a name according to the holy calendar: either on what day the child will be born, or on which it is baptized, or in the interval and three days after baptism. Here the matter will be without any human considerations, but as God wills, for birthdays are in the hands of God.
saint

The history and symbolism of the celebration of name days

Like many others religious traditions, the celebration of name days in Soviet times was in oblivion, moreover, in the 20-30s of the twentieth century it was subjected to official persecution. True, it turned out to be difficult to eradicate age-old folk habits: they still congratulate the birthday man on his birthday, and if the hero of the occasion is very young, they sing a song: “as on ... name day we baked a loaf”. Meanwhile, name day is a special holiday that could be called a day of spiritual birth, since it is associated primarily with the sacrament of Baptism and with the names that our heavenly patrons of the same name bear.

The tradition of celebrating name days has been known in Russia since the 17th century. Usually, on the eve of the holiday, the family of the birthday boy brewed beer, baked birthday cakes, pies and loaves. On the day of the holiday itself, the birthday man with his family went to church for mass, ordered a prayer service for health, put candles and kissed the icon with the face of his heavenly patron. In the afternoon, birthday cakes were distributed to friends and relatives, and often the filling and size of the cake had a special meaning, determined by the nature of the relationship between the birthday man and his relatives. In the evening there was a festive dinner.

The tsar's name-days (Tezoname Day), which were considered a public holiday, were celebrated especially splendidly. On this day, the boyars and courtiers came to the royal court in order to bring gifts and take part in a festive feast, at which they sang for many years. Sometimes the king personally handed out pies. Huge birthday cakes were distributed to the people. Later, other traditions appeared: military parades, fireworks, illuminations, shields with imperial monograms.

After the revolution, a serious and systematic ideological struggle began with name days: the rite of baptism was recognized as counter-revolutionary, and they tried to replace it with “Oktyabrins” and “Stars”. A ritual was developed in detail, in which the newborn was congratulated in strict sequence by the Octobrist, the pioneer, the Komsomol member, the communist, “honorary parents”, sometimes the baby was symbolically enrolled in the trade union, and so on. The fight against "survivals" reached ridiculous extremes: for example, in the 1920s, censorship banned K. Chukovsky's "Fly-Tsokotukha" for "propaganda of name days."

Traditionally, name days are attributed to that day of memory of the named (named) saint, which follows immediately after the birthday, although there is also a tradition of celebrating name days on the day of memory of the most famous saint of the same name, for example, St. Nicholas the Wonderworker, the Apostle Peter, St. Alexander Nevsky, etc. e. In the past, name days were considered a more important holiday than the day of “corporal” birth, in addition, in many cases these holidays practically coincided, because traditionally the child was baptized on the eighth day after birth: the eighth day is a symbol of the Kingdom of Heaven , to which the baptized person joins, while the number seven is an ancient symbolic number denoting the created earthly world. Baptismal names were chosen according to the church calendar (saints). According to the old custom, the choice of name was limited to the names of saints whose memory was celebrated on the day of baptism. Later (especially in urban society) they abandoned this strict custom and began to choose names, guided by personal taste and other considerations - in honor of relatives, for example.
Name days turn us to one of our incarnations - to a personal name.

Perhaps to the ancient motto "Know thyself" one should add: "Know thy name." Of course, the name primarily serves to distinguish people. In the past, a name could be a social sign, indicating a place in society - now, perhaps, only monastic (monastic) names stand out sharply from the Russian nomenclature. But there is also a mystical meaning of the name, almost forgotten now.
In ancient times, people attached much more importance to the name than now. The name was considered a significant part of a person. The content of the name is related to inner meaning man, it seemed to be invested inside him. The name controlled fate (" good name — good sign"). A well-chosen name became a source of strength and prosperity. Naming was considered a high act of creation, guessing the human essence, invoking grace.
In primitive society, the name was treated as a part of the body, like eyes, teeth, etc. The unity of the soul and the name seemed undoubted, moreover, it was sometimes believed that as many names as there are so many souls, therefore, in some tribes, before to kill the enemy, it was supposed to find out his name in order to use it in his native tribe. Often the names were hidden in order not to give weapons to the enemy. Harm and trouble were expected from bad treatment with a name. In some tribes it was strictly forbidden to pronounce (taboos) the name of the leader. In others, it was customary to assign new names to the elders, giving them new strength. It was believed that the sick child was given strength by the name of the father, who was shouted into the ear or even called him by the name of the father (mother), believing that part vital energy parents will help to overcome the disease. If the child cried especially much, then the name was chosen incorrectly. Different nationalities have long preserved the tradition of naming "deceptive", false names: true name was not uttered in the hope that death and evil spirits maybe they won't find the baby. There was another version of protective names - unattractive, ugly, frightening names (for example, Nekras, Nelyuba and even Dead), which averted adversity and misfortune.

AT Ancient Egypt personal name was carefully guarded. The Egyptians had a "small" name, known to all, and a "big" one, which was considered true: it was kept secret and was pronounced only during important ceremonies. The names of the pharaohs enjoyed special reverence - in the texts they were distinguished by a special cartouche. With great respect, the Egyptians treated the names of the dead - improper handling of them caused irreparable harm to otherworldly existence. The name and its bearer were one whole: the Egyptian myth is characteristic, according to which the god Ra hid his name, but the goddess Isis managed to find out by opening his chest - the name literally turned out to be inside the body!

From time immemorial, the change of the name corresponded to the change of the human essence. New names were given to teenagers at initiation, i.e., upon joining adult members of the community. In China, there are still children's "milk" names, which are abandoned with maturity. In ancient Greece, newly minted priests, renouncing old names, carved them on metal plates and drowned them in the sea. Echoes of these ideas can be seen in the Christian tradition of naming monastic names, when a person who has taken tonsure leaves the world and his worldly name.

Many peoples taboo names pagan gods and spirits. It was especially dangerous to call evil spirits (“cursing”): in this way it was possible to call out “evil force”. The ancient Jews did not dare to call the Name of God: Yahweh (in the Old Testament it is the “ineffable Name”, the sacred tetragram, which can be translated as “I am who I am.” According to the Bible, the act of naming often becomes God’s work: the Lord gave names to Abraham, Sarah , Isaac, Ishmael, Solomon, renamed Jacob to Israel.The special religious gift of the Jewish people manifested itself in a variety of names that are called theophoric - they contain God's "indescribable Name": this is how a person contacted God through his personal name.

Christianity, as the highest religious experience of mankind, takes personal names with all seriousness. The name of a person reflects the sacrament of a unique, precious personality, it implies personal communication with God. During the sacrament of Baptism, the Christian Church, taking into its bosom new soul, connects it through a personal name with the name of God. As he wrote about Sergei Bulgakov, “human naming and name-incarnation exists in the image and likeness of the divine incarnation and naming… every person is an incarnate word, a realized name, for the Lord himself is the incarnate Name and Word.”

The purpose of Christians is holiness. Naming the baby with the name of a canonized saint, the Church tries to direct him on the true path: after all, this name has already “realized” in life as a saint. The bearer of the holy name always keeps in himself the exalting image of his heavenly patron, "helper", "prayer book". On the other hand, the community of names unites Christians into one body of the Church, into one "chosen people."

Reverence for the names of the Savior and the Mother of God has long been expressed in the fact that in Orthodox tradition it is not customary to give names in memory of the Virgin and Christ. Previously, the name of the Mother of God was distinguished even by a different accent - Mary, while other holy women had the name Maria (Marya). The rare monastic (schema) name Jesus was assigned in memory not of Jesus Christ, but of the righteous Joshua.

The Russian Christian name book has evolved over the centuries. The first extensive layer of Russian names arose in the pre-Christian era. The reasons for the emergence of a particular name could be very different: in addition to religious motives, the circumstances of birth, appearance, character, etc. played a role. Later, after the Baptism of Russia, these names, sometimes difficult to distinguish from nicknames, coexisted with Christian calendar names ( up to the 17th century). Even priests sometimes had nicknames. It happened that one person could have as many as three personal names: a “nickname” name and two baptismal names (one is explicit, the other is hidden, known only to the confessor). When the Christian name book completely supplanted the pre-Christian "nickname" names, they did not leave us for good, moving into another class of names - in surnames (for example, Nekrasov, Zhdanov, Naydenov). Some pre-Christian names of canonized Russian saints subsequently became calendar ones (eg Yaroslav, Vyacheslav, Vladimir).
With the adoption of Christianity, Russia was enriched with the names of all human civilization: with the Byzantine calendar, Greek, Jewish, Roman and other names came to us. Sometimes under the Christian name, images of more ancient religions and cultures were hidden. Over time, these names became Russified, so much so that the Hebrew names themselves became Russian - Ivan and Marya. At the same time, one should keep in mind the lofty thought of Fr. Pavel Florensky: "There are no Jewish, Greek, Latin, or Russian names - there are only universal names, the common property of mankind."

The post-revolutionary history of Russian names evolved dramatically: a mass campaign of "de-Christianization" of the name-word was carried out. The revolutionary obscurantism of some sections of society, combined with a tough state policy, was aimed at reorganizing, and therefore at renaming the world. Along with the renaming of the country, its cities and streets, people were renamed. “Red calendars” were compiled, new, “revolutionary” names were invented, many of which now sound just like curiosities (for example, Malentro, i.e. Marx, Lenin, Trotsky; Dazdraperma, i.e. Long live May Day, etc. .). The process of revolutionary name-creation, characteristic of ideological revolutions in general (it was known in France at the end of the 18th century, and in republican Spain, and in the countries of the former "socialist camp"), did not last long in Soviet Russia, about a decade (20-30s ). Soon these names became the property of history - here it is appropriate to recall another thought about. Pavel Florensky: “you can’t think of names”, in the sense that they are “the most stable fact of culture and the most important of its foundations”.

The change in the Russian personal name also followed the line of borrowing from other cultures - Western European (for example, Albert, Victoria, Zhanna) and common Slavic Christian names (for example, Stanislav, Bronislava), names from Greek and Roman mythology and history (for example, Aurelius, Aphrodite , Venus), etc. With time Russian society again returned to calendar names, but "de-Christianization" and a break in tradition led to an extraordinary impoverishment of the modern name-book, which now consists of only a few dozen names (the general property of "mass cultures" also played its role - the desire for averaging, standardization).

Hieromonk Macarius (Markish):
From ancient times it has been customary to give a newly received member of the Church the name of a saint. Thus, a special, new connection arises between earth and Heaven, between a person living in this world and one of those who worthily passed his life path, whose holiness the Church testified and glorified with her conciliar mind. Therefore, every Orthodox must keep in mind the saint after whom he is named, know the basic facts of his life, and, if possible, remember at least some elements of the service in his honor.
But the same name, especially from the common ones (Peter, Nikolai, Maria, Elena), was worn by many saints of different times and peoples; therefore, we have to find out in honor of which saint, who bore this name, the baby will be named. This can be done using the detailed church calendar, which contains an alphabetical list of saints revered by our Church with the dates of the celebration of their memory. The choice is made taking into account the date of birth or baptism of the child, the circumstances of the feat of life of the saints, family traditions, and your personal sympathies.
In addition, many well-known saints have several days of remembrance during the year: it can be the day of death, the day of finding or transferring relics, the day of glorification - canonization. You have to choose which of these days will become a holiday (name day, name day) of your child. It is often referred to as Angel Day. Indeed, we ask the Lord to give the newly baptized his Guardian Angel; but this Angel must by no means be confused with the saint after whom the child is named.
Sometimes when giving a name there are some difficulties. There are many Orthodox saints known in history, but not included in our calendars. Among them are saints Western Europe who lived and glorified even before the fall of Rome from Orthodoxy (until 1054 the Roman Church was not torn off from Orthodoxy, and we also recognize the saints revered in it by that time as saints), whose names have gained popularity with us in recent decades (Victoria, Eduard and others), but are sometimes listed as "non-Orthodox". There are also reverse situations when the usual Slavic name does not belong to any of the Orthodox saints (for example, Stanislav). Finally, there are often formal misunderstandings associated with the spelling of the name (Elena - Alena, Xenia - Oksana, John - Ivan) or its sound in different languages (in Slavonic - Svetlana and Zlata, in Greek - Photinia and Chris).
If necessary, the child can be given a baptismal name that is different from the one recorded on the birth certificate, choosing it, for example, by consonance (Stanislav - Stakhiy, Karolina - Kaleria, Elina - Elena). There is nothing flawed in this: among the Serbs, for example, almost everyone has one name in everyday life and another in baptism. Note that in the Russian Church, unlike some other Orthodox Churches, the beloved name Mary is never given in honor of the Most Holy Theotokos, but only in honor of other saints who bore this name. You should also know that since 2000, our Church has been counting as saints many of our countrymen and fellow citizens - the new martyrs and confessors of the 20th century - and calls on believers to name their children in their honor and memory.