What church holiday is celebrated on February 20 according to the new and old styles, the prohibitions of the day and who has a name day.

On February 20, according to the new church calendar, Orthodox Christians remember the blessed prince of Kyiv Yaroslav the Wise, Leo of Katansky, and Venerable Agathon of the Kiev-Pechersk. Among the people – the holiday of Leo the Roller. About the prohibitions and signs of the day that are celebrated in the Orthodox Church on February 20 according to the old style – in the material.

February 20, 2024 – what church holiday is today according to the new and old calendar

February 20, new style (March 5, old style) is the day of remembrance of Prince Yaroslav the Wise of Kyiv.

Prince Yaroslav was born in 983/985 (according to various sources). He was the second son of the holy Equal-to-the-Apostles Prince Vladimir the Great. In 988, when Vladimir baptized Rus’, Yaroslav and his brothers were also baptized. Yaroslav received the name George (Yuri) in baptism – in honor of the holy Great Martyr Yuri the Victorious.

During his reign, Yaroslav the Wise continued the development of the Kyiv state begun by his father, and it truly flourished under Yaroslav. Here are some of the achievements of the Grand Duke:

• Yaroslav the Wise was the first to compile a collection of laws in Rus’, which consisted of 18 articles. These laws showed respect for human life; the previously accepted corporal punishment and execution were replaced with monetary fines and other light punishments.
• Prince Yaroslav founded schools at churches and also took care of the education of the clergy. Book workshops were opened in Kyiv and other cities, where sacred and liturgical books, treatises on history, philosophy, law, and natural sciences were copied. The prince also founded the first library in the state on the territory of the St. Sophia Cathedral – it contained more than 950 volumes and had its own book-writing workshop.
• Yaroslav the Wise completed the construction of the unique Church of St. Sophia, the city itself developed very rapidly during the reign of the prince and became one of the largest cities in Europe at that time, for example, in Kyiv alone there were about 400 churches.
• The noble prince insisted on recognizing Princess Olga, Fyodor and Ivan as saints, and revered his father Vladimir and the brothers of the passion-bearing princes Boris and Gleb as saints.
• Prince Yaroslav had great authority and can safely be called the father-in-law of Europe – his children and grandchildren married into many respected royal families of Europe. The prince himself was married to the Swedish princess Ingigerda (Irina in baptism). The Kievan state became related through dynastic marriages with Byzantium, Poland, Sweden, Norway, France, Hungary, and Germany.

To avoid a fratricidal war for the throne after his death, Yaroslav made a will to his children: “Here I am leaving this world. And you, my sons, have love among yourself, for you are brothers from one father and one mother. And if you are in love among themselves, then God will be in you, and He will subdue your opponents under you, and you will live peacefully. But if you live in hatred, quarreling in discord, then you yourself will perish, and you will destroy the land of your fathers and grandfathers, which they acquired it with great labor…”

The noble prince died in Vyshgorod in 1054. Yaroslav was buried in a sarcophagus in Sofia of Kyiv. In the 1930s, the prince’s relics were removed and described; their fate has still not been decided.

In 2008, Prince Yaroslav was canonized, and in 2016, the altar of the Little Sophia Church, the former refectory church of the St. Sophia Church, was consecrated in his honor.

***

On February 20, the Orthodox Church also venerates Leo of Katansky and St. Agathon of Kiev-Pechersk.

Holiday February 20th according to the old style – day of remembrance of St. Luke of Greece.

What do the signs for February 20 say?

In the folk calendar, February 20 is the holiday of Leo the Roller. Signs of the day talk about the weather:

• crows bathe in puddles – expect warmth;
• spring has arrived early – it may get sharply colder in the coming weeks;
• snow fell and never melted – there may be a crop failure;
• It’s snowing and raining – there will be a flood.

In the old days, on this day they said goodbye to winter and sledded down the mountains for the last time – hence the name of the holiday. There was a sign that the further the sled takes you, the happier and healthier you will be.

What not to do on February 20

Among the prohibitions, what you cannot do today is to swear, argue, especially with relatives, and be envious.

According to popular wisdom, on this day you need to try not to get sick – it will take a long time to recover, you should not plan new things and make promises – it will be difficult to fulfill.

What can you do on February 20

People turn to the blessed Prince Yaroslav with requests to pray to God for us and our state, asking him to add intelligence in troubled times, strengthen faith, and heal body and spirit.

Among the people, the main custom of the day is the preparation of round buns. These pastries are prepared with a special idea – so that everything “rolls towards happiness.”

February 20 – name day today

Name days today according to the church calendar are celebrated by Anton, Vasily, David, Ivan, Lev, Luka, Nikolai, Sergei, Fedor, Philip, Yaroslav.

Previously, we published a church calendar for February 2024 with holidays for every day in a new style.