For many people, it has become a tradition to choose a name for the child according to the holy calendar. In addition, you can also identify your saints from this list. So, on October 17, the name day is celebrated by the owners of many names. These include both women and men. In this article we will consider this issue in more detail.
Female names
On this day, girls with beautiful and rare names celebrate Angel Day. So, the women’s birthday on October 17 is celebrated by Veronica, Domnina and Proskudia. Interestingly, all these names are very closely related to each other and this date.
It is on October 17 that the memory of the martyr Domnina and her daughters Veronica and Proskudia is revered. They lived in Syria and suffered for Christ in 304. Mom herself was very beautiful and wealthy, but at the same time she also had a rich inner world. In the same spirit, she raised her two daughters. The whole family was persecuted for their faith. When they were caught, Domnina and her daughters jumped into the river, which flowed nearby. They decided for themselves that such a death would be an escape to God, and that it would be better than betraying their souls into slavery to demons. Since then, women's namesday is celebrated on October 17 in honor of this family.
Male names
For a boy born on this day, the choice of names is even greater. Men's birthday on October 17 is celebrated: Guri, Peter, Vasily, Stepan, Tikhon, Mikhail, Dmitry, Yakov, Anisim and Nikolai. But among these saints there are some who are especially revered on this day.
The first of them is the Kazan and Sviyazhsky bishop Gury. It is to him that they pray that day for the protection of children and adults from various misfortunes.
St. Gury
He accepted this name with tonsure, but in fact his name was Grigory Grigorievich Rugotin. He was born in a poor family, from a young age was forced to work. So, he was in the service of Prince Ivan Penkov and held the position of manager in his house. Saint Gury was a deeply religious man and deliberately refused to communicate with women. But by the will of fate, he was undeservedly accused of being connected with the prince’s wife and thrown into prison.
But even there he did not give up. St. Guri wrote small textbooks. They briefly stated the letter for the education of children. He even managed to sell his works, and he gave the money to the poor. After some time, St. Guri was released. He immediately took tonsure at one of the strictest monasteries - Joseph-Volokolamsk. Some time later, St. Gury became the abbot of this monastery and stayed for 9 whole years.
During this time he built many monasteries, churches and temples, as well as one Annunciation Cathedral. It was in him for a long time that the relics of St. Gurius rested. At the moment they are in the cemetery of Kazan. Since the name Guri is quite rare in our time, on October 17, George also marks the name day.
Rev. Pavel the Apostle and Saint Dmitry of Rostov
Speaking about this date, one cannot help but recall such a saint as Paul the Simple. He lived in the 4th century and was a fairly simple and kind person. It is October 17th that all men who bear the proud name of Pavel celebrate name day. He had a wife. At 60, he found out that she was cheating on him, so he left her and never returned. Paul dedicated the rest of his life to God. He came to the cell of St. Anthony and began to ask him to accept, but he refused him. Paul stood there for three days. Saint Anthony took pity on him and let him in. The Monk Paul the Simple was very humble, he fasted and lived in constant prayer. For such a feat, the Lord granted him the gift of casting out demons.
You can also ask for help from St. Dmitry Rostov on this day, because during his lifetime he worked a lot of miracles. Dmitry Rostovsky was a good pastor, a wonderful writer, a pious ascetic. All his life he prayed, lived in accordance with God's laws, helped all those who suffer and ask for help.