Memorial Day of Righteous Michael the Warrior

Throughout the history of Christianity, Orthodox believers have repeatedly shown unprecedented courage and courage in the fight against Muslims Examples of military valor are the battles of the 7th-12th centuries with the Arabs in the vicinity of Constantinople, in the southern provinces of Byzantium and North Africa The Bulgarians took part in the battles with the Abbasid Empire along with the Greeks Their leader was Saint Michael, a representative of an ancient family of “original Christians”, born in the family of the iterator Simeon I the Great in the city of Potuca in Romagna With his courage and valor, the military leader set an example for the squad under his command When in the battle of 866 the Greeks, frightened by the pressure of the Turks, fled from the battlefield, righteous Michael showed courage and rushed into battle like a real warrior Before this, he fell to the ground in tears and began to pray to God for the salvation of Christians, after which he led a detachment against the enemy The heavens heard the request of the righteous man: suddenly heavy rain began, lightning and thunder struck and terrified the enemies of the Bulgarians, forcing the Turks to flee With God's help, Mikhail dispersed the Mohammedans, while he himself and his detachment remained safe and sound The second miracle happened on the saint’s way to his homeland in Potuka One of the settlements, located in the Raifa desert, was terrorized for years by a huge snake that came out of the lake and ate children Having prayed to God, Mikhail cut off three heads of the monster that emerged from the water, saving the residents of the city from many years of suffering, and continued his journey This feat of the righteous makes him similar to the Great Martyr George the Victorious, who killed the serpent at the foot of the Lebanese Mountains near Beirut Mikhail Voin, who returned home, quickly died The righteous man continued to perform miracles even after his death in 866: heavenly signs were often observed at his tomb in the city of Potuk, and weak and terminally ill believers were healed The Orthodox Church honors the services of the Bulgarian saint to Christianity Every year on December 5th the Day of Remembrance of the Righteous Michael the Warrior is celebrated In 1206, by order of Tsar Kaloyan, the relics of the saint were transferred to the city of Tarnov, the capital of Bulgaria Patriarch Vasily, together with representatives of the clergy and citizens of the country, came out to meet the procession with the remains of Righteous Michael, making a religious procession in his honor with candles and a chandelier The king and the head of the Bulgarian church took the reliquary with the relics of the saint and carried it on their shoulders to the main cathedral At the beginning of the 19th century The remains of Michael the Warrior were transported to Wallachia, a historical region located in the south of modern Romania, where they remain to this day