10 Most Revered Saints in the Orthodox Christian Calendar
In the course of our research for the Lives, Miracles, and Wisdom of the Saints & Fasting Calendar, we often run across stories that constantly amaze us. We hope you enjoy them as much as we do.
Introduction
The Orthodox Christian calendar is one of the most spiritually rich liturgical systems in the world, commemorating hundreds of saints across every day of the year. Yet among the vast communion of the holy, certain saints have captured the hearts of the faithful for centuries — venerated not only in Greece, Russia, Serbia, and Romania, but by Orthodox Christians on every continent.
Whether you are deepening your faith, researching Eastern Christianity, or simply exploring the lives of remarkable men and women who shaped Christian history, this guide to the 10 most revered saints in the Orthodox Christian calendar offers an authoritative, comprehensive starting point.
Each entry covers the saint's feast day (both New and Old Calendar dates where applicable), their place in Orthodox theology, and why their veneration has endured for generations.
Table of Contents
- St. Nicholas of Myra
- St. John the Baptist
- St. George the Great Martyr
- St. Basil the Great
- St. John Chrysostom
- St. Mary Magdalene
- St. Seraphim of Sarov
- St. Dimitri of Thessaloniki
- St. Anthony the Great
- St. Mary of Egypt
1. St. Nicholas of Myra — The Wonderworker of the World
Feast Day: December 6 (New Calendar) / December 19 (Old Calendar)Also commemorated: May 9 (Translation of his relics)Title: Archbishop of Myra, Wonderworker
Of all the saints in the Orthodox Christian calendar, St. Nicholas of Myra stands in a category of his own. Born in the 3rd century in Patara, Lycia (modern-day Turkey), Nicholas became Bishop of Myra and is remembered as the embodiment of pastoral charity, theological courage, and miraculous power.
Why He Is Revered
St. Nicholas is venerated across virtually every Orthodox Church on earth — Greek, Russian, Serbian, Romanian, Antiochian, and beyond. He is the patron saint of sailors, travelers, children, merchants, and the poor. His legend of secretly providing dowries for three impoverished sisters is the historical root of the gift-giving tradition now associated with Christmas.
At the First Ecumenical Council of Nicaea (325 AD), St. Nicholas famously defended the Orthodox faith against the Arian heresy, cementing his theological legacy alongside his reputation for miracles.
His Place in the Orthodox Calendar
Few saints outside of the Theotokos (Virgin Mary) receive the liturgical attention given to St. Nicholas. His feast day on December 6 is celebrated with a full festal liturgy, and in many Orthodox countries it is observed as a public holiday. Thousands of Orthodox churches worldwide bear his name.
Key phrase for the faithful: "Holy Father Nicholas, intercede for us!"
Read more about St. Nicholas of Myra
2. St. John the Baptist — The Forerunner of Christ
Primary Feast Days:
- January 7 (New Cal.) / January 20 (Old Cal.) — The Synaxis of St. John the Baptist (day after Theophany)
- June 24 (New Cal.) / July 7 (Old Cal.) — Nativity of St. John the Baptist
- August 29 (New Cal.) / September 11 (Old Cal.) — Beheading of St. John the Baptist
Title: Prophet, Forerunner and Baptist of the Lord
The Orthodox Church venerates St. John the Baptist more highly than any other saint except the Theotokos. Described by Christ Himself as the greatest man "born of women" (Matthew 11:11), John holds the unique honor of having prepared the way for the Incarnation.
Why He Is Revered
John the Baptist stands at the boundary between the Old and New Testaments. He baptized Christ in the Jordan River — the event commemorated at the feast of Theophany (Epiphany) on January 6 — and it is the morning after this feast that the Church gathers specifically to honor him, in what is known as his Synaxis.
In Orthodox iconography, John is depicted as ascetic and severe, holding a scroll bearing the words "Repent, for the Kingdom of Heaven is at hand." He is often shown with wings, symbolizing his role as the ultimate messenger-prophet.
His Place in the Orthodox Calendar
St. John has more feast days in the Orthodox calendar than any other saint. He is commemorated on at least six separate occasions throughout the liturgical year, and his fast — the Fast of the Beheading — is observed annually on August 29.
3. St. George the Great Martyr — The Trophy-Bearer
Feast Day: April 23 (New Cal.) / May 6 (Old Cal.)Title: Great Martyr and Trophy-Bearer
St. George is one of the most universally recognized saints in all of Christendom, but his veneration is especially fervent in the Orthodox world. Born in Cappadocia (modern Turkey) around 280 AD, George was a soldier in the Roman army who refused to renounce Christianity under Emperor Diocletian and was martyred around 303 AD.
Why He Is Revered
St. George is the patron saint of at least a dozen nations and countless cities — including Georgia (named after him), Serbia, England, Ethiopia, and Lebanon. In Orthodox tradition, he is called the "Trophy-Bearer" (Greek: Τροπαιοφόρος, Tropaiophorós) — one who carries the trophies of his victory over death.
The famous legend of St. George and the dragon, while not found in early hagiography, became a powerful symbol in the medieval period of the saint's intercession delivering Christian communities from evil. In Orthodox theology, this image represents the triumph of faith over the spiritual dragon — Satan himself.
His Place in the Orthodox Calendar
April 23 is one of the most joyful feasts in the Orthodox spring calendar. In Greece, the day is celebrated with outdoor festivals, processions, and traditional food. Churches and monasteries dedicated to St. George are among the most numerous in the Orthodox world.
4. St. Basil the Great — Pillar of the Church
Feast Day: January 1 (New Cal.) / January 14 (Old Cal.)Title: Archbishop of Caesarea in Cappadocia, Equal to the Apostles, One of the Three Holy Hierarchs
St. Basil the Great (c. 330–379 AD) is one of the most theologically significant figures in all of Christian history. Together with his close friend St. Gregory the Theologian and his brother St. Gregory of Nyssa, he forms the Cappadocian Fathers — the theological architects of the Nicene-Constantinopolitan Creed's language on the Holy Trinity.
Why He Is Revered
St. Basil is revered as the author of the Divine Liturgy of St. Basil the Great, one of the two primary Eucharistic liturgies still used in the Orthodox Church today. His liturgy is celebrated ten times per year, including all Sundays of Great Lent, Holy Thursday, Holy Saturday, Christmas Eve, Theophany Eve, and his own feast day on January 1.
Beyond theology, Basil was a tireless advocate for the poor. He founded the Basilias — a complex outside Caesarea that functioned as a hospital, hospice, and community center — arguably the first institution of its kind in Christian history. This humanitarian legacy is as foundational to his sainthood as his theological brilliance.
His Place in the Orthodox Calendar
In many Orthodox cultures — particularly Greek and Cypriot — St. Basil's Day on January 1 is the primary New Year celebration. Children receive gifts on January 1 in honor of St. Basil, not on December 25. The traditional Vasilopita (Basil's cake), baked with a hidden coin, is shared in homes and parishes across the world.
Read more about St. Basil the Great
5. St. John Chrysostom — The Golden-Mouthed Preacher
Feast Day: November 13 (New Cal.) / November 26 (Old Cal.)Also commemorated: January 27 (feast of the Three Holy Hierarchs, shared with Sts. Basil and Gregory)Title: Archbishop of Constantinople, Ecumenical Teacher
St. John Chrysostom (c. 349–407 AD) is arguably the greatest preacher in the history of the Christian Church. His surname, Chrysostom, is Greek for "Golden-Mouthed" — a tribute bestowed upon him after his death in recognition of his extraordinary gift for homiletics.
Why He Is Revered
Chrysostom's homilies on the Gospels, the Epistles of St. Paul, and the Book of Genesis remain some of the most widely read patristic texts in both Eastern and Western Christianity. His homily On the Resurrection of Christ, read aloud in every Orthodox church at Pascha (Easter) midnight, is perhaps the most celebrated piece of liturgical rhetoric in Orthodox Christianity.
He is also the primary author of the Divine Liturgy of St. John Chrysostom, which is celebrated on the vast majority of Sundays and weekdays throughout the Orthodox liturgical year.
His Place in the Orthodox Calendar
The feast of the Three Holy Hierarchs on January 30 (Old Cal.) / January 27 (New Cal.) — celebrating Sts. Basil, Gregory the Theologian, and John Chrysostom together — is observed as an academic feast in many Orthodox countries, particularly in Greece, where schools and universities hold celebrations in their honor.
Read more about St. John Chrysostom
6. St. Mary Magdalene — Equal to the Apostles {#st-mary-magdalene}
Feast Day: July 22 (New Cal.) / August 4 (Old Cal.)Title: Holy Myrrhbearer and Equal to the Apostles
St. Mary Magdalene holds a uniquely exalted position in the Orthodox calendar, bearing the title Isapostolos — Equal to the Apostles — a designation given to only a handful of saints in Orthodox Christianity.
Why She Is Revered
Mary Magdalene was among the most devoted followers of Christ and the first to witness the Resurrection. The Orthodox Church honors her as the Apostle to the Apostles — the one sent by the risen Christ to announce His resurrection to the other disciples (John 20:17–18). This commission elevates her to a position of extraordinary authority in the Orthodox understanding of the paschal event.
Tradition also holds that after Pentecost, St. Mary Magdalene traveled to Rome, where she stood before Emperor Tiberius, presenting him with a red egg as she declared: "Christ is Risen!" This legend is the origin of the Orthodox tradition of red Paschal eggs, one of the most beloved customs in all of Eastern Christianity.
Her Place in the Orthodox Calendar
St. Mary Magdalene is commemorated on the Second Sunday after Pascha (Holy Myrrhbearers Sunday), when her feast is shared with all the myrrh-bearing women. Her July 22 feast is her principal commemoration.
7. St. Seraphim of Sarov — The Luminous Elder
Feast Days:
- January 2 (New Cal.) / January 15 (Old Cal.) — Repose
- July 19 (New Cal.) / August 1 (Old Cal.) — Glorification (Canonization)Title: Venerable and Wonderworker of Sarov
St. Seraphim of Sarov (1754–1833) is among the most beloved saints of the modern era and the most venerated Russian saint after St. Nicholas and the Theotokos. His life is one of the most extraordinary spiritual biographies in all of Christian history.
Why He Is Revered
Seraphim spent decades in deep ascetic struggle — including a celebrated period of 1,000 days and nights praying on a rock in the forest near his monastery. He emerged from his solitude with a luminous love for all people, greeting every visitor with: "My joy, Christ is Risen!" — regardless of the season.
His famous conversation with Nicholas Motovilov — in which Seraphim's face shone with divine light and the surrounding snow glowed warm — became one of the most iconic accounts of the Theosis (deification) in the entire Orthodox patristic tradition. This account of the "Acquisition of the Holy Spirit" as the goal of Christian life remains a foundational text for Orthodox spirituality to this day.
His Place in the Orthodox Calendar
Canonized only in 1903 — after immense popular pressure and miraculous healings at his tomb — St. Seraphim was glorified in the presence of Tsar Nicholas II. His relics are kept at the Diveyevo Monastery in Russia, one of the most-visited pilgrimage sites in the Orthodox world.
Read more about St. Seraphim of Sarov
8. St. Dimitri of Thessaloniki — The Myrrh-Streaming Martyr
Feast Day: October 26 (New Cal.) / November 8 (Old Cal.)Title: Great Martyr and Myrrh-Streaming
St. Dimitri of Thessaloniki (died c. 306 AD) is the patron saint of Thessaloniki, Greece's second city, and one of the most widely venerated military saints in the Orthodox world. He is often paired with St. George in Orthodox iconography and hymnography.
Why He Is Revered
Dimitri was a Roman proconsul and secret Christian in Thessaloniki who was martyred under Emperor Maximian after confessing his faith and allegedly encouraging a young Christian, Nestor, to fight and kill the emperor's champion gladiator. His tomb in Thessaloniki began producing fragrant myrrh — hence his title "Myrrh-Streaming" — and became a major pilgrimage destination in the Byzantine period.
In Slavic Orthodox tradition, St. Dimitri is deeply connected to the memory of fallen soldiers. The Saturday before his feast (known as "Dimitrievskaya Subbota" or Dimitri Saturday) is a day of prayer for the departed, established by St. Sergius of Radonezh after the Battle of Kulikovo Field (1380).
His Place in the Orthodox Calendar
The feast of St. Dimitri on October 26 is a national holiday in Thessaloniki and one of the most celebrated feast days in the Greek Orthodox Church. His basilica in Thessaloniki — one of the oldest continuously operating Christian churches in the world — draws pilgrims from across the globe.
9. St. Anthony the Great — Father of All Monks
Feast Day: January 17 (New Cal.) / January 30 (Old Cal.)Title: Venerable Father and Desert Dweller, Father of Monasticism
St. Anthony the Great (c. 251–356 AD) is one of the most transformative figures in the history of Christian spirituality. Born in Egypt, Anthony heard the Gospel passage "Sell all you have, give to the poor, and follow Me" (Matthew 19:21) at the age of 18 and took it literally — withdrawing into the desert of Egypt to pursue an uncompromising life of prayer and asceticism.
Why He Is Revered
Anthony is universally recognized as the Father of Christian Monasticism. Though he did not found a monastery in the institutional sense, the model of desert withdrawal and spiritual warfare that he embodied became the template for all subsequent Orthodox monastic life. The Life of Anthony, written by St. Athanasius the Great, became one of the most widely read Christian books in antiquity and directly inspired figures like St. Augustine of Hippo.
The famous accounts of Anthony's spiritual battles with demons — depicted dramatically in centuries of Christian art — are not merely legendary embellishments, but represent a core Orthodox teaching: that the path to holiness passes through intense spiritual struggle (askesis).
His Place in the Orthodox Calendar
The feast of St. Anthony on January 17 marks the beginning of what Orthodox Christians sometimes call the "Week of the Saints" — a cluster of major monastic saints' feasts in mid-January that includes St. Athanasius, St. Cyril, and St. Euthymios. In monasteries worldwide, this is one of the great festal periods of the winter calendar.
10. St. Mary of Egypt — Patron of Repentance
Feast Days:
- April 1 (New Cal.) / April 14 (Old Cal.) — Her own feast
- Fifth Sunday of Great Lent — Sunday of St. Mary of EgyptTitle: Venerable Mary of Egypt
St. Mary of Egypt (c. 344–421 AD) is among the most dramatic and beloved saints in the Orthodox Church, and her life is a foundational story of repentance, transformation, and the limitless mercy of God.
Why She Is Revered
According to her hagiography, Mary spent seventeen years as a harlot in Alexandria before making a pilgrimage to Jerusalem, where she was miraculously barred from entering the Church of the Holy Sepulchre by an invisible force. Recognizing this as divine rebuke, she fell before an icon of the Theotokos and wept in repentance. A heavenly voice directed her to cross the Jordan into the desert, where she lived for 47 years in total solitude and extreme asceticism.
Discovered near death by the monk Zosimas, she reportedly walked on water, levitated during prayer, and knew events happening in distant places — all attributed to her deep union with God achieved through decades of repentance.
Her Place in the Orthodox Calendar
St. Mary of Egypt occupies a unique and central place in the Great Lenten journey. The Fifth Sunday of Lent is dedicated entirely to her memory, serving as an encouragement to all faithful that repentance is always possible, regardless of one's past. Her Life, read in its entirety at the Great Canon of St. Andrew of Crete on Holy Thursday of the Fifth Week of Lent, is one of the longest hagiographic readings in Orthodox liturgical practice.
The Orthodox Saints Calendar: What Makes It Unique?
The Orthodox Christian calendar commemorates a saint on virtually every day of the year — and often dozens of saints on a single day. What distinguishes the Orthodox approach to saints from other Christian traditions includes:
Theosis as the Goal: In Orthodox theology, saints are not merely moral exemplars. They are men and women who have achieved Theosis — divine deification, genuine participation in the divine energies of God. This gives their veneration a deeply ontological character.
Liturgical Integration: Every Divine Liturgy in the Orthodox Church commemorates the saints of that day. Their icons surround the congregation; their names fill the hymns; their intercessions are explicitly sought. Saints are understood to be alive in Christ, present with the worshipping community.
Regional and Universal Veneration: Some saints are revered across all Orthodox jurisdictions; others are especially beloved in particular national churches (e.g., St. Sava of Serbia, St. Spyridon of Corfu, St. Patrick of Ireland — yes, venerated in the Orthodox Church — or St. Herman of Alaska).
Explore the Full Orthodox Christian Calendar
The ten saints profiled in this article represent only a fraction of the extraordinary men and women commemorated in the Orthodox Christian calendar throughout the year. From ancient desert fathers to modern martyrs, from apostles to myrrh-bearers, the Orthodox calendar is a living map of the history of holiness.
At Lives of the Saints Calendar, we offer a complete, day-by-day guide to the Orthodox Christian calendar — including detailed lives of the saints, feast day readings, fasting guidelines, and liturgical resources for every day of the year.
Whether you are Orthodox, a student of Christian history, or simply curious about the rich tradition of Eastern Christianity, we invite you to explore the full calendar and discover the saints whose intercessions and examples continue to transform lives today.
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Frequently Asked Questions
Who is the most venerated saint in the Orthodox Church?
After the Theotokos (Virgin Mary), St. Nicholas of Myra is generally considered the most universally venerated saint in the Orthodox Christian calendar. He is followed closely by St. John the Baptist, who has more individual feast days than any other saint.
What is the difference between a saint's feast day on the New and Old Calendar?
The Orthodox Church is divided between those who follow the Revised Julian Calendar (New Calendar, used by the Greek, Romanian, and several other Orthodox churches, which currently aligns with the Gregorian calendar) and those who follow the Julian Calendar (Old Calendar, used by the Russian, Serbian, Georgian, and several other Orthodox churches). The Old Calendar is currently 13 days behind the New Calendar.
How does the Orthodox Church canonize a saint?
Orthodox glorification (canonization) requires evidence of a holy life, confirmation of miracles (especially miraculous healings), the incorruption of relics in many cases, and widespread veneration among the faithful. The process is overseen by the Holy Synod of the relevant autocephalous church. Unlike Roman Catholicism, there is no formal Devil's Advocate process — the voice of the people (sensus fidelium) carries great weight.
Are Old Testament figures venerated as saints in the Orthodox Church?
Yes. The Orthodox calendar includes the Holy Forefathers (Abraham, Isaac, Jacob), the Holy Prophets (Moses, Elijah, Isaiah, etc.), and the Holy Ancestors of Christ. These are commemorated especially during the preparatory Sundays before Christmas (Nativity).
What is the Orthodox Church's teaching on praying to saints?
The Orthodox Church teaches that saints are alive in Christ and that asking for their prayers (intercessions) is a natural expression of the communion of the Church, which spans both the living and the departed. This is often summarized in the phrase: "We do not pray to saints as to God; we ask the saints to pray for us, as we would ask any friend."
