A saint's day
St John the Warrior
Also called St John the Soldier
St John served as a soldier under Julian the Apostate and was sent to hunt down Christians, but he released those who had been arrested, warned others of danger and helped them escape. He was imprisoned, and after Julian's death he gave the rest of his long life to his neighbors, visiting the sick and comforting the grieving. Long after his repose he appeared to a devout woman and revealed his forgotten tomb, and his relics healed many.
The dates
- Kept on
- 30 July (12 August on the Old Calendar)
- Next, New Calendar
- Next, Old Calendar
The New Calendar (the Greek, Antiochian, Romanian and Bulgarian churches, the OCA and most converts) keeps fixed feasts on the church date; the Old Calendar (the Russian, Serbian and Georgian churches, Jerusalem and Mount Athos) keeps them 13 days later. Pascha and the feasts that follow it are kept on the same day by both.
How the day is kept
Russian and Ukrainian Orthodox Christians call on him when something has been stolen or lost, and a household that has been robbed asks for a moleben to him.
He is a protector of soldiers and a defender of the wronged, and he is asked for comfort in every sorrow.
Greek usage keeps his memory a day earlier than Slavic usage.
Name days
These names keep their name day on this feast:
The saint
Icons for the feast
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