Dimitrievskaya parental Saturday (05/11)





Dimitrievskaya Parents' Saturday has a centuries-old history. This day of remembrance of the dead was established by the initiative of Grand Duke Dmitry Donskoy and with the blessing of St. Sergius of Radonezh.

More than six centuries ago, while going to battle on the Kulikovo Field, Dmitry Donskoy was blessed to fight foreigners by the abbot of the Trinity-Sergius Monastery, Sergius of Radonezh. With the blessing of Sergius, two monks of the monastery joined the Don army — Alexander Peresvet and Andrei Oslyabya — who fell in battle and were then buried near the walls of the Church of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary in the Old Simenov Monastery.

After the Battle of Kulikovo Field (8) on September 16, 1380, Dmitry Donskoy, having defeated Mamai and returned from the battlefield, again visited the Trinity-Sergius Monastery. The Grand Duke commemorated the Orthodox soldiers who died in the Battle of Kulikovo in the monastery, and invited the Church to make commemoration annually on the Saturday before October 26, the day of remembrance of St. Demetrius of Thessalonica.

The Grand Duke's proposal was accepted because the victory that went to the Russian army was colored with the blood of thousands of Orthodox soldiers — the loss of sons, husbands, fathers brought tears of grief and despair to Russian families.

Initially, commemoration was made for all Orthodox soldiers who died in this battle. Over the years, Dimitrievskaya Saturday has become a day of funeral remembrance not only for soldiers, but also for all deceased Orthodox Christians. Dimitrievskaya Saturday was always held solemnly in Rus': they visited the graves of relatives, served memorial services, organized triznas, women remembered and lamented.

On the day of Dimitrievskaya Saturday, as on other parental days (on Meat and Trinity Saturdays, on Saturdays of the 2nd, 3rd and 4th weeks of Lent), Orthodox Christians pray for the repose of the souls of deceased people — especially parents. But Dimitrievskaya Saturday also carries a special meaning — established after the Battle of Kulikovo, it reminds of all those killed and injured for Orthodoxy.

If Dimitrievskaya Saturday falls on November 4, the day of celebration of the Kazan Icon of the Mother of God, then the day of remembrance of the deceased is postponed a week earlier.



Article « How to correctly remember your late relatives on Dmitrievsky Day: ancient traditions» Story «Dmitrievskaya Saturday»

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