AxiosOrthodoxal news and traditionsHow to choose an icon for a specific date of birth?

How to choose an icon for a specific date of birth?

The icon is one of the main and most famous symbols of Orthodox Christianity in the modern world. Tradition of icon painting, which appeared in the Byzantine Empire, along with Christianity was transferred to our country, where it received its special expression. Both the interior of the church and the space inside the dwelling of an Orthodox Christian are now unthinkable without icons. Different images show us the faces of the Savior, His Most Pure Mother, holy saints, or are dedicated to various events of the liturgical calendar, which relies on a special individual icon. If every day in the year has its own image, then the question may arise: what icon should I choose to match the date of your birth? The answer to this difficult question, we will try to find.

Immediately it is worth mentioning that one should not become attached to the date of one's birth as to some symbolic day, which is supposed to have its own magic object - the icon. This approach is purely pagan and has nothing to do with Christianity, although, unfortunately, it is he who is accustomed to a society accustomed to all kinds of fetishism, Feng Shui, etc. Before an icon it is necessary to pray, it is not simply an object of an ornament of an interior or amulet.

First of all, you should learn the memory of what holy saints or icons of the Mother of God takes place on the day you were born. Usually in the Orthodox tradition, it is customary to have in the house the image of your heavenly patron, that is, that saint, in honor of whom you were named at the time of baptism. If you carry the name of that saint or a saint whose day of memory coincides with your birthday - then it is his icon that will exactly correspond to the date of your birth. If not, then it will not be superfluous to study the biographies of the saints of God honored on this day, and choose one of them, the life or feat of which you wish to assimilate. The image of this saint then should be purchased or ordered. Similarly, you can act if on the day of your birth the memory of a miraculous image of the Mother of God is committed. It will also be useful to carefully study the history of this icon and have in its dwelling its list (copy).

In the event that about the saints who are worshiped exactly on your date of birth there is not enough information, then one should not despair. After all, honoring someone from the host of holy saints does not depend on the binding to the calendar. Praying, for example, St. Nicholas the Wonderworker can be any day, not only on December 19 or May 22. In this matter, no one can strictly regulate your freedom of choice in prayer. Therefore, when choosing an image for a specific date of birth, you need to exercise a measure and judgment. The main thing to remember is that the most important for a Christian is a prayerful communion with the Lord and His saints. And the presence of the necessary image is already a secondary issue.

Do not forget that the icon is our window into the heavenly world, an image reminding us of the image of the original image. But the hot faith and purity of the heart are most important in prayer to God, and these qualities depend on ourselves and our zeal, and not on the dates of the calendar.




Назад к списку



Contact Information

 invite.viber.com AXIOS  community 

Phones

+38 063 623 00 68 (call center)

+38 095 058 2223 (Viber. WhatsApp, Telegram)

If you find an error, press Ctrl-Enter to inform us about it

Your purchases do good. Part of our income we list the fund in Tabletochky