Home » News » Honoring St. Constantine and St. Helena: The Nestinar Holiday and Name Day Celebrations

Honoring St. Constantine and St. Helena: The Nestinar Holiday and Name Day Celebrations

The Church honors St. St. St. Constantine and St. Helena today. May 21 is the holiday of the Nestinars, our people also celebrate it as a transition from spring to summer.

Constantine, Kostadin, Konstantina, Elena, Eleonora and Elitsa celebrate their name day. The name Elena has an ancient Greek origin and means “bright as the sun, radiant”. Constantine means “constant”, comes from Latin.

Saint Constantine was emperor of Byzantium in the 4th century. He introduced the Christian religion as official in Byzantium. His mother Elena built several monasteries in the lands where Christ lived, she also discovered the cross on which Jesus was crucified. This event is considered the most important in the history of the Christian Church, and therefore Emperor Constantine and his mother Helena were canonized as saints.

Divine Holy Liturgy is celebrated in all churches of the Bulgarian Orthodox Church.

Today is also the day of chimney making. In Strandzha, bonfires are burning and people gather around the embers, carrying the icon of St. St. Constantine and Elena. The ritual dance lasts several minutes.

The city of Elena celebrates its holiday today, Pazardzhik also celebrates.

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2023-05-21 02:01:10


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