What do we celebrate on July 24?
July 24, according to the new style, the memory of the holy Equal-to-the-Apostles Princess Olga . What exactly are we celebrating?
This is the day of her repose, that is, death. For some this may seem strange: how can you celebrate the day of death? This is not a birthday... However, for Christians this does not pose a particular problem. Because this is a joyful moment - the transition to eternal life with Christ. The moment when a segment of a person’s earthly journey, full of hardships and sorrows, has ended, when a new stage begins - in eternal life, in which a person becomes closer to God. It's like a second birthday.
Therefore, on July 24, all Olgas must celebrate their name day, and do it with joy. After all, we rejoice on this day that the holy Equal-to-the-Apostles Princess Olga , having completed all the earthly labors that the Lord sent her, was now finally able to rest and with the fruits of her labors appeared before God.
Olga or Elena?
At baptism, Olga received the name Helena - in honor of the holy Equal-to-the-Apostles Queen Helena, mother of Emperor Constantine. Why did they give her a different name and who is she now - Olga or Elena?
Her baptism took place in 957 in Constantinople. At that time she was already the ruler of Rus'. Olga was personally baptized by Patriarch Theophylact and Emperor Constantine Porphyrogenitus, that is, the highest officials of the Byzantine Empire.
Why was she given a different name? The fact is that in the Christian East it was customary to baptize in honor of some saint, and the name Olga was still pagan at that time. But since we, modern Christians, now already have Saint Olga, we may well name our children after her.
By the way, the situation was similar with the names Svetlana and Fotinia. Once upon a time the Slavic name Svetlana was pagan. We, modern people, can already read both Svetlana and Photinia. From this, by the way, a practical conclusion follows: Svetlana and Olga can write their names in the notes, it is not necessary to replace them with Photinia or Elena, because they are all equally revered by the Church.
So who celebrates their name day on this day? Only Olga? Or Elena can join too?
July 24 is a name day, first of all, for Christians with the name Olga . But Elena, if they want, of course, can also join. Cheerful people generally celebrate every time a saint with their name is mentioned in the calendar.
But it would be good to know in honor of which Elena, Olga or other saint you were baptized, with whom exactly you connected your life. There are many saints in Christianity with the same names - Alexander, John, Sergius... One of them is the one in whose honor you were baptized.
But there is such a thing as small name days - when they honor a saint with the same name as yours, but at the same time he is not your heavenly patron.
Yes, you can celebrate small name days too.
Origin of the name Olga
Name translation
The name Olga has Scandinavian roots and comes from the name Helga, which means “holy”, “sacred”, “bright”.
History of the name
The very first mention of the name Olga is found in the early Old Russian chronicle called “The Tale of Bygone Years” (that is, in 945 - 957). Since then, this name has become widespread in Rus'.
Forms (analogues) of the name
The most common forms of the name Olga: Olya, Olenka, Olyusya, Olyunya, Olyasha, Olechka, Olgunya, Olgusya, Lesya.
The legend about the name Olga
In 945, Grand Duchess Olga, remaining a widow, took over the responsibilities of governing Kievan Rus. In 954, she went on a pilgrimage, during which she visited many Christian shrines and temples (she was especially impressed by the shrines of Constantinople). It was in Constantinople that Olga was baptized with a cross from the life-giving tree of the Lord.
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After Princess Olga returned from her pilgrimage, she diligently set about converting the pagans to the Christian faith. In addition, by her decree, the first Christian churches began to be built over the graves of the holy people of Rus'. After Olga’s death in 969, she was buried Christianly in the tithe church in Kyiv, and her relics turned out to be incorrupt. Princess Olga was canonized and elevated to the rank of saint in the pre-Mongol period.
Legends or facts of the biography of Saint Princess Olga
What is generally known about the life of Princess Olga? We know that she was our first Christian ruler. But are there any other facts? Or just legends?
We know Olga's life story from chronicles and from her life. She was the wife of Prince Igor Rurikovich, there is a description of their romantic meeting... The name Olga is of Scandinavian origin (Helga). She was a simple, unfamous girl, not of noble birth, they met by chance. And then, when Igor was about to get married, he remembered this girl and made her his wife, a princess.
There is another very interesting legend about her - it is conveyed by the lives of the holy princess Olga. We are talking about the episode on the eve of her baptism. As you know, Olga was famous for her intelligence and beauty. At the time of her baptism she was a widow. And the Byzantine Emperor Constantine liked her so much that he wanted to take her as his wife. But Olga did not like this; she rejected the emperor’s claims, citing the fact that she was a pagan, and he was a Christian, and such a marriage was not appropriate. When Olga was baptized (and Konstantin, as we remember, became her godfather), the emperor asked her: “Well, now you are a Christian, now will you marry me?” To which she replied: “No, now I am your goddaughter, and you and I cannot get married.” Konstantin praised her for her intelligence, gave her rich gifts and sent her home.
Some historians today look skeptically at some episodes of her life. In particular, this concerns the matchmaking of Emperor Constantine Porphyrogenitus and Olga’s acquaintance with Prince Igor: was she a commoner, did they meet by chance, and so on. As for Konstantin, could he have become interested in our princess, who was already in her advanced years? So what is it - legends or facts?
The fact is that a person lives not only by accurate knowledge, but also by faith. And I would say this: there are two stories. One is the exact information that we know and which in Olga’s case can be reduced to zero. Because how can we know anything about that era if we were not witnesses? Even the events that are happening now through the eyes of five different people can be interpreted differently. What can we say about what happened many centuries ago. And there is another story - God's, in which the most important thing is meaning. And which story to believe? Personally, I am inclined to believe the one that is God’s, which is reflected in life. Because it gives a human, Christian understanding of the scale and role of Princess Olga.
And you can challenge anything. This is a conversation from the series “prove that God exists”, or “explain what God the Trinity is” - just pull it out of your pocket and show it! But these are not things that you can just take and prove. I would answer with the words of Bulgakov’s character: what do you have, no matter what you miss, there’s nothing!
Fate
The meaning of the name Vera for a child gives her a reasonable character and accuracy. From an early age, the baby loves to be in charge, even if her parents don’t ask for it. Verochka treats her pocket money with care, puts it in her piggy bank and doesn’t waste it on trifles. This is a calm and diligent child who will not play pranks, even if no one sees or scolds.
Vera worries when people shout at her and scold her. It is best to build a constructive dialogue with her, forgetting about punishments. What adds to her distress is the lack of friends among her peers who don’t like her correctness.
The girl studies well in order to gain the authority of her classmates, it is important for parents to provide support, otherwise she will become secretive and unsure of herself
The meaning of the name Vera for a teenage girl adds discipline and practicality to her. The girl strives for high goals, relying on her own strength; determination and perseverance help her bring things to completion. Young Vera always has everything under control, she practically does not show emotions, she is not too interested in guys, the girl is more passionate about her studies. Vera is sentimental and vulnerable, and carries these qualities throughout her life.
Adult Vera continues to keep everything under control and can cope with anything. Faith must find its calling, to which it can devote time and energy. She has extraordinary thinking, excellent memory, and musical talent. A strong will and the ability to complete what she starts will lead her to her desired goal.
Vera will give her heart to a serious, reliable, purposeful man. She is not one of those women who argue for leadership in the family, and will calmly allow her husband to be in charge. This is a loving wife, a caring mother, who prefers respect, mutual understanding, and fidelity to romance.
When choosing a husband, she is guided not only by emotions, but also by reason; she will not leave her job for the sake of her family, since she is used to earning money on her own
But it is important for her that her husband can provide for her and her children. In search of an ideal, she can remain alone for a long time
Her house is always clean, orderly and comfortable, and Vera also loves to cook, which may be why the woman manages to build a good relationship with her husband’s mother.
Shakespearean heroine
What is interesting about the figure of Princess Olga for us, modern people living in an atmosphere of the cult of political correctness and tolerance, is that she is a very “debateable” figure. Often, when the conversation turns to Christian saints, critics of the Church say that we have too many of them, and among them there are absolutely “handshakeless” people who cannot be canonized. Such disputes were held about holy warriors, rulers, about Emperor Nicholas... The essence of the accusations is that, they say, people who committed a number of certain actions cannot be saints. And how can Princess Olga be a saint when she dealt so cruelly with the Drevlyans? We are talking about well-known events when the Drevlyans killed her husband Igor, and Olga brutally avenged his death, more than once.
Oh yeah! The first time was when the Drevlyan ambassadors arrived to her, and she ordered to dig a deep hole and bury them there alive, along with the ship. When other Drevlyan ambassadors arrived, she ordered the bathhouse to be flooded for them, where they were burned alive...
Then she came to the lands of the Drevlyans to celebrate a funeral feast at her husband’s grave, during which the Drevlyans were given a good drink and, according to some chronicle information, five thousand people were killed. And then there was the well-known story with the birds, which the Drevlyans sent her as tribute, and she ordered burning rags to be tied to the birds’ paws and sent home. The birds naturally returned to their homes. So the city was burned.
And how should we approach all this?
There are two things to understand here. Firstly, while committing these actions, Olga was still a pagan, not a Christian. And we know how much baptism can change a person. Dramatic changes also happen - this is evidenced by the example of Prince Vladimir. When he was baptized, his life completely changed. We know this from ourselves, how life changes after we pass through the mysterious waters of baptism following Christ and are reborn to a new life. Indeed, if a person transgresses this sacrament with faith, then his life changes.
And secondly, the fact that Olga behaved this way was quite natural by pagan standards. Let us remember the books of the Old Testament: how people were forced to act there. Let us remember the standards with which God approached them and which the life around them presented to them. In other words, we can say about Olga that she is a Shakespearean figure - of such a large scale that we, modern people, do not understand much about her. We live in completely different conditions. Among other things, we were strongly influenced by considerations of political correctness. We are sometimes afraid to once again lift a finger or say a word on social networks, because for this we are already called monsters. And at that time life was completely different. And if people of Princess Olga’s level committed such actions, it was considered a virtue, in the understanding of it at that time. Therefore, it is incorrect for us to approach with our own standards and judge those events from our own bell tower. Moreover, judging someone is a violation of the commandment. Princess Olga did everything that she considered her duty.
In other words, if we now undertake to judge the people of that time, we often forget that we are reasoning from the position of a culture in which Christian values have already taken root as the norm, and the Commandments of the Old and New Testaments are at least not a discovery for us.
Certainly. Be that as it may, we are still residents of a Christian civilization that is many centuries old. This has been absorbed into our flesh and blood, even though we sometimes protest against Christianity, try to find other paths in our lives, and so on. But nevertheless... Let's put it this way: we are different plants, but we have the same bed. Therefore, in order to approach pre-Christian life with your own standards, you need to show great caution and wisdom. Our approach is reminiscent of reconstructions of a BBC television studio, where heroes fight in colorful costumes, they show it to us in 3D, and it seems to us that this is how it all happened. In fact, we bring a lot of our own to it. And in order to understand the events of those centuries, it is better to read the chronicles and annals of that time, try to understand the world of that person.
Princess Olga and the Baptism of Rus'
Father Sergius, can we say that Olga had something to do with the subsequent Baptism of Rus', which took place in 988 with the participation of her grandson, Holy Equal-to-the-Apostles Prince Vladimir? After all, Olga was no longer alive then?
Perhaps she did not have a direct influence on Prince Vladimir, but her memory was revered - that is certain. In addition, being the ruler of Rus', Olga did a lot to preach Christianity. She had a pagan environment, her son Svyatoslav was also a pagan. And at the same time, Orthodox churches were built in Rus'. In Kyiv, even before the Baptism of Rus, there were many Orthodox churches. By the way, Princess Olga was the founder of stone construction, and she built not empty structures, but temples. There were priests in these churches, the Liturgy was celebrated there, prayer was said there - the first Christian prayer on Russian soil. Therefore, undoubtedly, Princess Olga, who is very often depicted on icons with a small temple in her hands, like all temple builders, already influenced the subsequent appearance of Orthodoxy in Rus'. She sincerely prayed that the Russian land would be enlightened by the light of Christ's faith, and this subsequently happened.
Why didn’t she manage to baptize her son, Svyatoslav?
I think this is exactly what we understand as human beings. Any mother who is trying to bring her children to Church will have no questions here: everyone knows how difficult it is. I can’t say whether Olga had such a goal at all - to baptize Svyatoslav. But, since she was a wise ruler, she perhaps understood that there was no point in putting pressure on him - there were a lot of political knots tied to this, and the squad was all unbaptized... The forcible introduction of Christianity is fraught with various shocks. Even at the Baptism of Rus', they were Prince Vladimir - because the pagan faith did not recede so easily. Perhaps Olga was not ready for such turns, so she did something else: she made it possible for Christianity to exist in Rus' before universal baptism.
The character and fate of Vera
Character
Vera is the name of a calm, balanced and very reserved woman. Efficiency and determination prevail in her over the emotional and sentimental beginning.
The owner of this name almost always finishes what she starts. He is not afraid to take responsibility for his words and actions, and defends what is right to the last.
Fate definitely doesn’t spoil this woman, she doesn’t give her anything for nothing. But in her life there is always a place for success, the path to which is paved with work and perseverance. Vera is one of those people who will definitely get what they set out to do if they need it.
Business and career
Vera is a responsible and reliable worker who does not have leadership qualities. If she strives to make a career, it is not out of ambition, but because work for her is a way to earn material wealth. She will give preference not to a prestigious profession, but to one that will allow her to earn more.
She may sacrifice her financial situation for the sake of an idea that truly captivates her. She is also capable of sacrificing a high salary and a good position for the sake of simple female happiness and the joy of motherhood.
If you need to earn money, Vera is capable of doing any job. Her children will never be in need, but there is also unlikely to be anything extra in the family.
Family
Paradise in a hut is not for Vera, so she will choose a solid man who stands firmly on his own two feet as her husband. She cannot be seduced by empty promises, because she is a deep realist.
In marriage, Vera becomes happy when she meets a young man who is close to her idea of an ideal husband. The husband becomes a man who is older in age, educated, reserved and taciturn, and also knows how to earn money.
Vera rarely has many children: one or two are enough for her to give all her maternal love. Raises both boys and girls strictly. Believes that excessive kindness spoils heirs.
Equal to the Apostles
Olga is called the Holy Equal-to-the-Apostles Princess. The same name is given to Queen Helena, the mother of Emperor Constantine, in whose honor Olga was baptized. What kind of rank is this? Why were they called that?
The answer lies in the word itself: equal to the apostles. What was the mission of the disciples of Christ? – to carry the message of Christianity to different countries and peoples, so that as many people as possible learn about Christ. And those who took part in this, like the holy princess Olga, are called equal to the apostles. She contributed to the faith of Christ coming to Rus', so that in the churches that were being created, the preaching of the Gospel could be heard, and all people could, coming to the church, hear this sermon and be baptized. Thanks to her, the Christian faith in Rus' ceased to be exotic.
