Feasts and Saints

(†) Feast of the Theophany of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ

Orthodox Calendar, January 6 Feast of the Theophany of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ Theophany is the Feast which reveals the Most Holy Trinity to the world through the Baptism of the Lord (Mt.3:13-17; Mark 1:9-11; Luke 3:21-22). God the Father spoke from Heaven about the Son, the Son was baptized by the Saint…

Jan 6, 2026basilica.ro

Hieromartyr Theopemptus the Bishop of Nicomedia; Martyr Theonas; Venerable Syncletica of Alexandria Eve of the Theophany of our Lord. Strict Fast)

Orthodox Calendar, January 5 Holy Martyrs Theopemptus and Theonas They suffered in Nicomedia in the year 303. Saint Theopemptus was bishop in Nicomedia in the time of Diocletian (284-305). Speaking out against idolatry, he defended the faith in Christ. Because of this, he became one of the first victims of the Diocletian persecution. The saint…

Jan 5, 2026basilica.ro

Synaxis of the Seventy Apostles; Ven. Theoctistus; Ven. Apolinaria; Saint Nikēphóros the Leper; Forefeast of the Theophany

Orthodox Calendar, January 4 The Synaxis of the Seventy Apostles The Synaxis was established by the Orthodox Church to indicate the equal honour of each of the Seventy. They were sent two by two by the Lord Jesus Christ to go before Him into the cities He would visit (Luke 10:1). Besides the celebration of…

Jan 4, 2026basilica.ro

Prophet Malachi; Martyr Gordius at Caesarea, in Cappadocia

Orthodox Calendar January 3 Prophet Malachi The Holy Prophet Malachi lived 400 years before the Birth of Christ, at the time of the return of the Jews from the Babylonian Captivity. Malachi was the last of the Old Testament prophets, therefore the holy Fathers call him “the seal of the prophets.” Manifesting himself an image…

Jan 3, 2026basilica.ro

Forefeast of the Theophany of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ; St. Sylvester the Pope of Rome; Venerable Seraphim the Wonderworker of Sarov (Fast free)

Orthodox Calendar, January 2 Saint Sylvester, Bishop of Rome (314-335) He was born at Rome of Christian parents named Rufinus and Justa. His father soon died, and the saint remained in the care of his mother. Sylvester’s teacher, the presbyter Quirinus, gave him a fine education and raised him as a true Christian. When he…

Jan 2, 2026basilica.ro

(†) The Circumcision of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ; †) St. Basil the Great, Archbishop of Cæsarea in Cappadocia; St. Emilia, the Mother of St. Basil the Great (New Year. Thanksgiving Service)

Orthodox Calendar, January 1 The Circumcision of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ On the eighth day after His Nativity, our Lord Jesus Christ was circumcised in accordance with the Old Testament Law. All male infants underwent circumcision as a sign of God’s Covenant with the holy Forefather Abraham and his descendants [Genesis 17:10-14, Leviticus…

Jan 1, 2026basilica.ro

Martyr Hermes; Venerable Melania the Younger of Rome; Leavetaking of the Nativity of our Lord (Fast free. Service of Thanksgiving for the new year)

Orthodox Calendar – December 31 Martyr Hermes St. Monk Hermes served with humility and deep devotion to Christ in the church of the city of Bononia. Here there was a holy place and many worshippers among the native Dacian-Romans, living like him with great Christian piety and obeying and following the commandments of the true…

Dec 31, 2025basilica.ro

Virginmartyr Anysia at Thessalonica

Orthodox Calendar – December 30 Virginmartyr Anysia at Thessalonica The Holy Virgin Martyr Anysia lived in the city of Thessalonica during the reign of the the co-Emperor Maximian (286-305). Upon the death of her parents, who had raised her in Christian piety, Saint Anysia sold everything she owned, distributing her riches to the poor, and…

Dec 30, 2025basilica.ro

14,000 Infants (the Holy Innocents) slain by Herod at Bethlehem; Venerable Marcellus and Mark

Orthodox Calendar December 29 14,000 Holy Infants They were killed by King Herod in Bethlehem. When the time came for the Incarnation of the Son of God and His Birth of the Most Holy Virgin Mary, Magi in the East beheld a new star in the heavens, foretelling the Nativity of the King of the…

Dec 29, 2025basilica.ro

20,000 Martyrs of Nicomedia; Sunday after the Nativity of the Lord

Orthodox Calendar, December 28 The Holy 20,000 Martyrs of Nicomedia At the beginning of the fourth century the emperor Maximian (284-305) gave orders to destroy Christian churches, to burn service books, and to deprive all Christians of rights and privileges of citizenship. At this time the bishop of the city of Nicomedia was Saint Cyril,…

Dec 28, 2025basilica.ro

† Apostle and Protomartyr Stephen the Archdeacon; Ven. Theodore the Confessor

Orthodox Calendar, December 27 Saint Stephen, Protomartyr and Archdeacon He was the eldest of the seven deacons, appointed by the Apostles themselves, and therefore he is called “archdeacon.” He was the first Christian martyr, and he suffered for Christ when he was about thirty. In the words of Asterias, he was “the starting point of…

Dec 27, 2025basilica.ro