Memorial Day of the Martyrs Ermilus and Stratonik of Belgrade

Yermil and Stratonicus were friends; they lived in Singidon (Belgrade) in the 4th century, when Emperor Licinius ruled the people These were times when the Christian faith was persecuted Both friends became victims of this persecution, but never renounced the Name of Christ For their strength of spirit and the fact that until the last moment they did not renounce the holy faith, Yermil and Stratonik were recognized as holy martyrs according to Christian canons The day of the holy martyrs Ermil and Strato of Belgrade is celebrated every year on January 26, on this day a liturgy is held in the church in their honor Ermil served as a deacon in Singidon, for which he was thrown into prison He was subjected to terrible torture for a long time so that he would renounce his faith His friend Stratonicus was a secret Christian and served as a warden in the same prison Seeing the torment of his friend, he could not hold back his tears, thereby betraying himself Stratonikos was taken into custody and tortured for a long time, demanding that he betray the faith The cruel tormentors could not break their spirit, then Licinius ordered them both to be sewn up in a net and drowned in the Danube Three days later, their bodies were found and secretly buried according to Christian rites near the city The holy relics of Hermilus and Stratonikos were secretly transported to Constantinople, where they were kept for a long time in the Church of Hagia Sophia This was mentioned by one of the Russian pilgrims named Anthony, who visited this temple at the beginning of the 13th century The Day of the Holy Martyrs Ermil and Straton of Novgorod is well known among the people; it is simply called Ermil’s Day There are also traditions that the Slavs tried to adhere to This day should have been spent at home with the family, without doing hard work Usually on this day there was severe frost outside, so it was believed that those who did not go outside on Eremin’s Day would not get sick for a whole year On Eremin’s Day they organized home gatherings Particular attention was paid to cats on this day, because by their behavior one could predict what the weather would be like in the near future: • if they sharpen their claws, there will be strong snowstorms; • curled up, frosts are coming; • stretches, warming will come It is considered a very bad omen kill an animal on Ermilov's day, even if it happened by accident: the one who did it will have to pay for his action for the whole year