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Saint Dumitru or Saint Dimitrie, the Fountain of Myrrh, is celebrated on October 26 on both the Orthodox and Catholic calendar. In Romanian folk tradition, he is considered the patron saint of shepherds, the one who defoliates the forest and dries all the plants. For this reason, it is said, the shepherds find out on the birthday of Saint Dumitru what winter will be like.
The feast of the Holy Great Martyr Dumitru takes place on October 26 and is followed by that of Saint Demetrius the New, on October 27, patron saint of Bucharest, on which occasion the relics of the Saint are brought to the Patriarchate and a pilgrimage takes place.
In the Middle Ages, the Holy Great Martyr Dimitrie became one of the military saints, that is, those especially revered by soldiers during war. During the military campaigns, the voivode Stephen the Great carried a flag with the insignia of Saint Demetrius.
Who was the Holy Great Martyr Dumitru?
Holy great martyr Dimitrie he lived during the reigns of the emperors Diocletian (284-305) and Maximian (286-305), in the province of Illyricum, and was himself an official of the Roman Empire.
Saint Dumitru was born in Thessaloniki (Thessaloniki), of good parents and true believers. His father was governor of Thessalonica. Dimitrie was the son that the two husbands received from God, after many prayers.
Baptized in secret
When the boy reached the age when he could know and understand the truth, he was taken by his parents, secret Christians, to his house of prayer, a little room hidden in the palace, where he saw the holy icons. He was shown the icon of the true God, who made heaven and earth, and the icon of the Mother of God. Here, secretly calling a priest and some Christians, their friends, they baptized their son in the name of the Holy Trinity.
Governor of Thessaloniki
After the death of his father, Saint Dumitru was called by the Emperor Maximiano (286-305) and appointed governor in his place, entrusting Thessalonica with the order to cleanse it of Christians. Saint Demetrius not only broke this order, but once back in the city he began to preach the gospel.
Soon the emperor learned that Demetrius was a Christian and that he was drawing many to his faith. He was angry and wanted to go to the city of Thessaloniki to see with his own eyes. Here he summoned before him the governor of the city, Saint Demetrius, who, standing before the emperor, boldly confessed that he was a Christian.
execution
He was jailed, and on October 26, the soldiers entered the dungeon where they had thrown him. Finding him sitting in prayer, they stabbed him with their spears. The first spear with which he was struck was on the right side, where Christ was also impaled on the cross.
miracles
The Christians took the body of the Holy Martyr the next night and buried it, and over the tomb they built a small church where many miracles were performed. The prefect of Illyria, Leontie, entered this small church and, while praying, was cured of a disease that plagued him for a long time. For this, Leontie thanked God and the Holy Martyr Demetrius and built a larger and more beautiful church in place of the first.
Why is it called the spring of myrrh
When the foundations of this construction were excavated, the relics of Saint Demetrius were found, giving off a fragrant smell, so the whole city was filled with fragrance. That is why they are also called the Holy Martyr Dimitrie and the Fountain of Myrrh.
The original early Christian building still exists today and is part of the site of the Early Christian and Byzantine Monuments of Thessaloniki, and is on the UNESCO World Heritage list of monuments since 1988.
Where are the relics of Saint Dumitru?
The Church of Saint Demetrius in Thessaloniki houses the relics of the Holy Great Martyr Demetrius, who is also the patron saint of the city.
Traditions and customs. It’s about San Dumitru of what winter will be like
According to popular belief, the year is divided into two seasons: summer and winter. If Saint George “closes” the winter and leaves all nature, Saint Dumitru leaves the forest and dries all the plants. There is a belief that on Saint Dumitru’s day, heat enters the earth and frost begins to show its fangs.
The white sheep and the black sheep herald the signs of winter
Saint Dumitru is also considered the patron saint of shepherdsHis day being the one in which, according to tradition, the shepherds find out what winter will be like. They place their skins in the middle of the sheep and wait to see which sheep will sit on them. If a black sheep lies down, the winter will be good, and if a white sheep lies down, the cold season will be harsh.
Another way to know what winter will be like is to see the sheep walking on the morning of the feast of Saint Dumitru. Thus, if a white sheep wakes up in the morning and goes south, the winter will be hard. If a black sheep wakes up and goes north, the winter will be mild.
According to other traditions, if the weather is harsh in Saint Dumitru, the winter will be good, and if the weather is good, the autumn will be long and beautiful. If the moon is full and the sky is covered with clouds, winter will be heavy with heavy snowfall.
Traditions. Sumedru fires
Saint Dumitru’s Day it used to be sisters day. The agreements concluded between the owners of the sheep and the shepherds in Sân-George ended, hence the saying that “in Sân-George the dogs fight, and in Sâmedru the masters are destroyed”.
Also in Saint Dumitru, the servants were haggling over various things and the sheepfolds were being damaged. The peasants cut the ridges of the roads until they are three years old, to have beautiful hair.
In some areas, peasants honor Saint Demetrius as the one who gave the people the wine used for Holy Communion.
On the eve of the feast of Saint Dumitru, on the night of October 25-26, there is a tradition of fires (Sâmedru fires) are lit, over which children jump, to be healthy all year round. Fire is also intended to drive away beasts and warm the dead. Once the fire is extinguished, the peasants throw a coal into the garden, so that it receives the power to bear fruit.
The habit of fire, with the young people gathered around it, is still preserved, even around Bucharest, only in recent years, the wood with which such fires were made in the past has been replaced by tires, which that generates significant contamination. .
Who was Saint Demetrius the New?
Saint Demetrius the New or Basarabov was a hermit who lived south of the Danube in the 13th century, according to Romanian sources, or in the 17th century, according to the Bulgarian ones. It is celebrated on October 27.
Saint Demetrius the New was a shepherd from the town of Basarabovo, and then he embraced the monastic robe. The place of asceticism was near the bed of a river, in a small cave. He later became a saint, after the locals testified that many miracles and healings had occurred in that area.
General Peter Saltikov took the relics of Saint Demetrius the New during an 18th century campaign in war with the Ottoman Empire and sent them to Russia. The Romanian merchant Hagi Dimitrie and the Metropolitan Grigore of Bucharest, who had great respect for the saint, managed to negotiate with Saltikov and preserve the relics of Saint Dimitrie the New in Bucharest in 1775.
His relics were honored during the plague and cholera epidemics of 1815 and 1830 by the rulers Caragea and Ghica.
In 1955 the Church decided to generalize the cult.
Editor: Luana Pavaluca
