Name Day is a holiday that is also called Angel Day. At its core, it is dedicated to the saint, by whose name a person is named. Such a saint of God is considered the heavenly patron and intercessor before God for all who are named in his honor. Accordingly, the name day celebration is a purely Christian tradition. So it does not make sense to celebrate it with those who hold different views. Below we will consider on which days the birthdays of George fall.
About Name Day
Name days are determined solely by the name with which the person was baptized. One who has not passed this initiation rite in the tradition of Christianity, in principle, cannot celebrate a birthday. The name at baptism is given in honor of some saint, who later becomes the heavenly patron of the newly baptized. This special spiritual connection remains for life. Name day is considered the day on which the church honors the memory of this saint.
It often happens that several saints have the same name. But the patron will still be only one of them. If it is not known for certain which particular saint was baptized from the list of God's servants with the same name, then the patron saint is selected by date of birth: that holy namesake whose memory in the church calendar is closest to the person’s birthday is his protector. However, if you feel a special connection with any other of the saints of the same name, you can choose him.
Birthday of George
Most often, boys with the name George are baptized in honor of the holy martyr George the Victorious, whose image adorns the state emblem and Russian coins of small denomination. The horseman, piercing the dragon with a spear, this is he - George the serpent, carrying victory. However, this is far from the only saint in the Orthodox clergy with such a noble Greek name, which once called Zeus himself. Consider what other days may be the birthday of George on the church calendar.
June
In June, the 19th, the memory of St. George is celebrated. This is a kind of holy ghost, in the sense that the memory of him in the church has been preserved, but there is no information about his life.
July
July 4 - the name day of George, who was baptized in memory of the eponymous saint confessor, archimandrite, who died in Nizhny Novgorod in 1932, and during his lifetime he repeatedly suffered from repressions of the Soviet regime.
The definition of “ghost” also applies to the other Rev. George, who is listed in the holy calendar July 16. However, there are many such saints.
August
On August 3 and 13, the church honors the two holy martyrs George. Nothing is known about both of them.
September
September 21 - holy confessor Yuri (Mkheidze), archimandrite. He died in the 60s in Georgia.
October
On October 2, the memory of St. George Olgovich, Grand Duke of Kiev and Chernigov, is honored. In the world, he bore the name of Igor, and the name with which he entered the priesthood was given to him under monastic rule for monasticism, after, as a result of a conspiracy, the prince was ousted from the throne. Subsequently, the enemies of his family did not spare the monk of princely blood. He was taken for reprisal directly from the liturgy and thrown into a trap in the middle of the city square.
November
November 20 is celebrated on the birthday of George, named after the martyr George (Yurenev). During his lifetime, he worked as a judge in the city of Vitebsk, until in the 1920s he was expelled from the city. In the 30s he was accused of counter-revolutionary activity and sentenced first to the camps, and then, on November 20, 1937, for belonging to one of the branches of the catacomb Orthodox Church, to death.
December
December 16, the church recalls the holy confessor George Sedov. During his lifetime, he was a layman who suffered at the hands of the Soviet authorities in the 30s and 40s. He served as a headman in various churches until a staircase collapsed on him in the Resurrection Tutaevsky Cathedral . From his injuries a year later, he died.
December 31 is the memorial day of St. George the pillar. Where this saint labored is unknown.
January
January 30 is the name day of Yuri, named after the eponymous holy martyr, who suffered in 1838 at the hands of Muslims who accused the young man of betraying Islam. Being forced to accept the religion of the prophet Muhammad, he refused to renounce Christ, for which he was hanged at the city gate in the city of Paramitya, Turkey.
February
February 10 commemorates the unknown St. George. Only the name has survived.
February 17 - the memory of Yuri, the holy Blessed Prince of Vladimir. One of the Russian holy princes.
March
March 23 - Rev. George. The place of the feat is unknown.
March 18 - martyr Yuri. Tradition did not save the date of death.
April
April 17 - Rev. of the Peloponesse. He lived and died in one of the local monasteries.
April 26 is the name day of George, another unknown saint. Again, only the name is preserved.
May
May 6 - three holy namesakes at once: Shenkur the holy fool, Ptolemaid miracle worker, and also George the Victorious. The last of them is the great martyr, beheaded in 303 or 304. During his life he was a military commander and one of the favorites of the emperor Diocletian, until he openly admitted to him that he professed Christianity. Eight days the martyr was tortured, trying to get him renounced, but, not having achieved success, they put him to death.
May 10 is a memorial day for George, brother of the holy pillar of Simeon of Cilicia. In addition, there is no more information about him.
Conclusion
This is the main list of saints named George. Orthodox name-days can also be confined to the memory of other saints - little-known or not included in the general church edition of the clergy. So in choosing your patron you can show flexibility and refer, for example, to the list of Arab Orthodox saints, who are practically unknown in Russia.
According to the church calendar, the names of George are considered to be a public holiday for a person, similar to Birthday. However, this day is supposed to not only have fun, but first of all to show respect and honor the memory of your patron by praying in the church at the liturgy and sharing communion of holy secrets.