On 18 August the Bulgarian Orthodox church marks the Assumption of St. John (Yoan) of Rila, the most revered Bulgarian saint, protector of Bulgaria, also called the miracle-worker of Rila. John of Rila is one of the most prominent figures of the Middle Ages having influenced the entire Christian Orthodox world.
Born in 876 in Skrino village in the foothills of Mount Osogovo, he lived in the time of Prince Boris, his sons Vladimir and Tsar Simeon the Great, and his son Tsar Peter. This period is known as the Golden Age, when Christianity became an official religion for Bulgarians, a period of flourishment of Bulgarian culture and literature.
While still a young man, John, who longed to devote his life to God, left the village where he was born and entered a monastery. Once he became a monk he left the monastery in search of solitude in Mount Rila. There, he founded Rila Monastery, and spend his life in prayer and solitude.
He died in 946 and is buried in the small monastery church of Rila Monastery.
Holy Spirit Monday is also celebrated in Bulgaria as Macedonia Day. The tradition dates back to the Ilinden-Preobrazhenie Uprising (1903), originally it was the Day of the Struggle for the Liberation of Macedonia and Adrianople, and after the First World..
Immediately after the great Christian feast of Pentecost, we celebrate the Day of the Holy Spirit - the third person of the Holy Trinity. It is also the Church's last feast before the Feast of All Saints, which concludes the Easter cycle. The Divine..
Every year on Saturday before the great Christian holiday of Pentecost, the Church marks the second All Souls' Day of the year, which the people call Cherry All Souls' Day because it always coincides with cherry harvest season...
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