The names of Varvara in Orthodoxy

Name days are not to be confused with the day of the Angel. It can be two different days in a year. Angels are holy immortal spirits, created by the Lord before the visible world, which fulfill the will of God. To each person, at the baptism, the Guardian Angel is sent, which from that moment will always be near, guide and help. Therefore, the day of the Angel is the day on which a person received the Sacrament of Baptism.

Varvara: Orthodox christmas-trees

Every baptized person has a holy heavenly patron. Saints are people who, in their earthly life, have benefited God and are ranked by the Church as saints. Day of memory of the saint, whose name is called a person, and there are name-days. On what day he falls for a particular person, he will recall the church calendar of the name-day. Varvara is a name that occurs on the calendar several times a year.

Earlier in Russia, at the baptism of a man, he was given the name of a saint whose memory fell on that day. Accordingly, the day of Baptism became for him both the day of the Angel and the Name Day simultaneously.

Varvara's Names on the Church Calendar

Name days in Orthodoxy - the day in which the Church celebrates the memory of the holy heavenly patron of man. Every day the memory of a saint is celebrated. One name can have several days of memory in a year, since it can be worn by several different saints. Varvara's names for the church calendar fall on the following dates:

• January 11 - martyr Varvara Derevyagin.
• March 6 - martyr Varvara Losev.
• April 5 - the Monk Martyr Varvara Konkin.
• July 18 - the Monk Martyr Varvara (Yakovleva) Alapaevskaya.
• December 17 - Great Martyr Varvara of Iliopolska.

All these holy wives were glorified by the Orthodoxy Church in the face of saints. The feast day of St. Barbara (from the above), the nearest one after his birthday, is the name day of Varvara.

There is an opinion of people that if a holy (or holy) patron is a martyr, then the life of a person should be marked by martyrdom. This is not only prejudice, but also sin. Some go so far as to want to change their name, choosing a patron - not a martyr. Such an action refuses the patronage of his saint.

In Orthodoxy there is no faith in fate, predestination, fate. There is a free will of man in choosing the path to salvation or destruction, and is God's providence, guiding us to salvation, but not interfering in our free will. The holy martyrs deserve God's mercy for their deed, and now have the boldness before Him to pray for us.

Life of the Great Martyr Varvara of Iliopol

The Great Martyr Varvara - the daughter of a noble person named Dioscor - lived in the city of Iliopol (Phoenician, now Syria). The father, wanting to save his daughter from extraneous views and Christian communication, did not allow her to leave the palace. When it was time to extradite Varvara, the father received a decisive refusal from his daughter in the execution of his will.

Wanting to persuade Varvara to marry, Dioscorus allowed her to leave the palace, suggesting that communication with her friends would change her decision. At this time, the saint met with Christians who told her about faith in Jesus Christ and the One God. Varvara from childhood thought that the gods, in which her father believed and all those around her, could not create peace, and could not be true. Hearing the Gospel message of Christ, she accepted the Sacrament of Baptism.

The father, having learned about the baptism of his daughter, tried to force her to renounce the Christian faith. Seeing the inflexibility of the saint, he took her to the ruler, betraying him to torment. Ruler Martian also persuaded Varvara to abandon Christ and worship pagan idols. Saint Varvara did not renounce faith, but she suffered great torments before she was executed (beheaded) by her father Dioscorus.

According to the legend, the relics of the great martyr Varvara were buried by pious people, and miracles and healings took place from them in a multitude.

The relics of the Great Martyr Varvara of Ilium

Later, the relics of the great martyr Varvara were transferred from Greece to Kiev, it happened in the 12th century. At that time, recently baptized Russia was in close friendship with Byzantium. Russian princes married sisters and daughters of Greek rulers. The Grand Duke of Kiev, Mikhail Izyaslavovich, married Greek princess Varvara, who brought with her to Kiev the gift of her father - the power of the great martyr Varvara.

The holy relics are still in the Vladimir Cathedral in Kiev today.

How to properly celebrate the name day of the Barbarians

Since the day of the name-day is a holiday of the heavenly patron, first of all it needs to be pious. Come to church and pray to your holy Barbara, thank, ask for help, put a candle, order a prayer.

Our ancestors honored their name days more than birthdays. Because it is a holy holiday, a holy feast. It was obligatory on this day to be in the service and receive communion.

Today it often turns out that Varvara's name-day and Angel's day are two different days of the year, but this does not prevent us from the day of the Name-Day from bringing thanksgiving to our Guardian Angel.