May 20 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)

An Eastern Orthodox cross

May 19 - Eastern Orthodox Church calendar - May 21

All fixed commemorations below celebrated on June 2 by Orthodox Churches on the Old Calendar. ^{[note 1]}

For May 20th, Orthodox Churches on the Old Calendar commemorate the Saints listed on May 7 .

Saints

• Saint Lydia of Thyatira (Lydia of Philippi), mentioned in Acts 16:14-15 (1st century) ^{[1] [2] [3] [note 2]}
• Martyrs Thalelaeus the Unmercenary, and his companions Alexander and Asterius, at Aegae in Cilicia (284) ^{[4] [5] [6] [7] [8] [note 3]}
• Martyr Asclas of the Thebaid, Egypt (287) ^{[4] [9] [10]}
• Saints Zabulon and Susanna, of Cappadocia and Jerusalem, parents of St. Nina (Nino), enlightener of Georgia (4th century) ^{[4] [11] [12]}
• Saint Mark the Hermit (Marcus Eremita) (5th century) ^{[13] [14]}
• Holy Martyrs of Mamilla, Jerusalem (614) ^[15]
• Saint Thalassius the Myrrh-gusher, of Libya (648) ^{[4] [16] [note 4]}
• Saints Nicetas, John and Joseph, founders of the Monastery of Nea Moni on Chios (c. 1050) ^{[4] [17] [18]}

Pre-Schism Western saints

• Saint Plautilla the Roman, martyr, (67) ^{[7] [19] [note 5]}
• Hieromartyr Baudelius, missionary in France and northern Spain, martyred in Nîmes (2nd or 3rd century) ^{[7] [20]}
• Virgin-martyr Basilla (304) ^{[7] [21] [22]}
• Saint Hilary (Hilarius, Hilaire), Bishop of Toulouse in France (360) ^{[21] [23]}
• Saint Anastasius, Bishop of Brescia in Lombardy, in Italy (610) ^{[7] [21] [24] [note 6]}
• Saint Austregisilus (Aoustrille, Outrille), Bishop of Bourges and Confessor (624) ^{[4] [7] [21] [25]}
• Saint Theodore of Pavia, Bishop of Pavia (778) ^{[7] [21] [26]}
• Martyr Ethelbert (Albert, Albright), King of East Anglia in England (794) ^{[4] [21] [27]} (see also May 29 )
• Saint Alcuin of York, monk (804) ^{[28] [note 7]}

Post-Schism Orthodox saints

• St. Daumantas of Pskov (Dovmont-Timothy), Prince of Pskov (1299) ^{[4] [30] [31]}
• Saint Stephen, Abbot of Piperi Monastery in Serbia (1697) ^{[4] [32] [33]}

New martyrs and confessors

• New Hieromartyr Pavel Lazarev, martyred on the feast of Pentecost (1919) ^{[34] [35] [36] [note 8]}
• New Martyr Olympiada Verbetskaya, Abbess of Kozelshchinsk Convent (uk), Poltava (1938) ^{[4] [37] [note 9]}

Other commemorations

• Translation of the holy relics (1087) of Saint Nicholas the Wonderworker (343) ^{[39] [note 10]} (see also: May 9 )
• Uncovering of the relics (1431) of St. Alexis, Metropolitan of Kiev and all Rus', Wonderworker (1378) ^{[4] [40] [41]}
• Repose of Schema-monk Cyriacus of Valaam (1798) ^[4]

Icon gallery

• 
  St. Lydia of Thyatira.
• 
  St. Marcus Eremita.
• 
  Hieromartyr Baudelius.
• 
  Statue of St. Theodore of Pavia.
• 
  The martyred Anglo-Saxon king Æthelberht II of East Anglia (depiction of a brass plate from Hereford Cathedral).
• 
  St. Daumantas of Pskov.
• 
  St. Stephen of Piperi.
• 
  Translation of the Relics of Saint Nicholas from Myra to Bari.
• 
  St. Alexius, Metropolitan of Moscow.

Notes

1. The notation Old Style or (OS) is sometimes used to indicate a date in the Julian Calendar (which is used by churches on the "Old Calendar").
   The notation New Style or (NS), indicates a date in the Revised Julian calendar (which is used by churches on the "New Calendar").
2. The Church honours Saint Lydia as "Equal-to-the-Apostles." ^[1]
   Name days celebrated today include:
   • Lydia (Λυδία).
3. Certain monasteries honoured Saint Thalelaeus' feast day on September 3, and others on August 23, the day on which he was brought to trial. ^[5]
4. Not to be confused with Thalassius of Syria (February 22).
5. Saint Plautilla is regarded as the mother of Saint Domitilla (May 12).
6. Saint Anastasius greatly contributed to the conversion of the Lombards from Arianism.
7. Alcuin is venerated by Eastern Orthodox Christians in the British Isles and Ireland. The Orthodox Fellowship of John the Baptist ^[29] publishes a liturgical calendar that is widely used in that region, and this calendar includes a feast for St Alcuin.
8. Red partisans took Fr. Pavel and interrogated him in the local elementary school. As a condition of his release, Fr. Pavel was asked to declare that he had deceived people with a made-up God and to publicly remove his cross and cassock. He firmly declared that he would never renounce God and that he was ready to accept death for his faith in Christ. Fr. Pavel was martyred on the feast of Pentecost, June 2, in 1919. Seriously wounded after being shot, he was left to die in the forest near Nikitovka.) ^[34]
9. She suffered martyrdom under communism on June 2, 1938. ^[38]
   "On April 18, 2008, at the meeting of St. Synod of the UOC, the former abbess of the Kozelshchyna Monastery Olympiada II was canonized as a locally venerated saint. On June 2, 2008, a solemn glorification of her as a venerable martyr was held in the Kozelshchyna monastery (uk)." ^[37]
10. According to the Great Synaxaristes, the holy relics were taken from Myra in Lycia on April 1 1087, and arrived in Bari on May 20.

References

1. Great Synaxaristes: (in Greek) Ἡ Ἁγία Λυδία ἡ Φιλιππησία. 20 Μαΐου. ΜΕΓΑΣ ΣΥΝΑΞΑΡΙΣΤΗΣ.
2. Saint Lydia of Philippi. OCA - The Lives of the Saints.
3. (in Russian) ЛИДИЯ ФИЛИППИЙСКАЯ. Открытая православная энциклопедия "Древо" (Open Orthodox Encyclopedia "The Tree") Retrieved: March 20, 2026.
4. May 20/June 2. Orthodox Calendar (PRAVOSLAVIE.RU).
5. Great Synaxaristes: (in Greek) Ὁ Ἅγιος Θαλλέλαιος ὁ ἰατρός καὶ οἱ σὺν αὐτῷ μαρτυρήσαντες Ἀλέξανδρος καί Ἀστέριος. 20 Μαΐου. ΜΕΓΑΣ ΣΥΝΑΞΑΡΙΣΤΗΣ.
6. Unmercenary Physician Thallelaios at Aegae in Cilicia and his companions, Martyrs Alexander and Asterios. OCA - The Lives of the Saints.
7. May 20. The Roman Martyrology.
8. Rev. Sabine Baring-Gould (M.A.). "SS. THALLELÆUS AND COMP., MM. (A.D. 284.)." In: The Lives of the Saints. Volume the Fifth: May. London: John C. Nimmo, 1898. pp. 307-308.
9. Great Synaxaristes: (in Greek) Ὁ Ἅγιος Ἀσκλᾶς ὁ Μάρτυρας. 20 Μαΐου. ΜΕΓΑΣ ΣΥΝΑΞΑΡΙΣΤΗΣ.
10. Martyr Asclas of Egypt. OCA - The Lives of the Saints.
11. Great Synaxaristes: (in Greek) Οἱ Ἅγιοι Ζαβουλών καὶ Σωσσάνη. 20 Μαΐου. ΜΕΓΑΣ ΣΥΝΑΞΑΡΙΣΤΗΣ.
12. Glorification of Venerable Zabulon and Sosanna, parents of Saint Nino, Enlightener of Georgia. OCA - The Lives of the Saints.
13. Great Synaxaristes: (in Greek) Ὁ Ὅσιος Μάρκος ὁ Ἐρημίτης. 20 Μαΐου. ΜΕΓΑΣ ΣΥΝΑΞΑΡΙΣΤΗΣ.
14. (in Russian) МАРК ОТШЕЛЬНИК. Открытая православная энциклопедия "Древо" (Open Orthodox Encyclopedia "The Tree") Retrieved: March 20, 2026.
15. Great Synaxaristes: (in Greek) Οἱ Ἅγιοι ἐν Μεμέλᾳ Ἱερουσαλήμ οἱ Μάρτυρες. 20 Μαΐου. ΜΕΓΑΣ ΣΥΝΑΞΑΡΙΣΤΗΣ.
16. Great Synaxaristes: (in Greek) Ὁ Ὅσιος Θαλάσσιος ὁ Μυροβλύτης. 20 Μαΐου. ΜΕΓΑΣ ΣΥΝΑΞΑΡΙΣΤΗΣ.
17. Great Synaxaristes: (in Greek) Οἱ Ὅσιοι Ἰωάννης, Ἰωσὴφ καὶ Νικήτας. 20 Μαΐου. ΜΕΓΑΣ ΣΥΝΑΞΑΡΙΣΤΗΣ.
18. Hieromonk Makarios of Simonos Petra (Ed.). THE SYNAXARION: The Lives of the Saints of the Orthodox Church: VOLUME FIVE - May, June. Transl. from the French by Mother Maria (Rule) and Mother Joanna (Burton). Holy Convent of the Annunciation of Our Lady, Ormylia (Chalkidike), 2005. pp. 220-222.
19. Great Synaxaristes: (in Greek) Ἡ Ἁγία Πλατίλλα ἡ Ρωμαία. 20 Μαΐου. ΜΕΓΑΣ ΣΥΝΑΞΑΡΙΣΤΗΣ.
20. Great Synaxaristes: (in Greek) Ὁ Ἅγιος Βαυδέλιος ὁ Ἱερομάρτυρας. 20 Μαΐου. ΜΕΓΑΣ ΣΥΝΑΞΑΡΙΣΤΗΣ.
21. May 20. Latin Saints of the Orthodox Patriarchate of Rome.
22. Rev. Sabine Baring-Gould (M.A.). "S. BASILLA, V.M. (3RD CENT.)." In: The Lives of the Saints. Volume the Fifth: May. London: John C. Nimmo, 1898. pp. 306-307.
23. Great Synaxaristes: (in Greek) Ὁ Ἅγιος Ἱλάριος Ἐπίσκοπος Τουλούζης. 20 Μαΐου. ΜΕΓΑΣ ΣΥΝΑΞΑΡΙΣΤΗΣ.
24. Great Synaxaristes: (in Greek) Ὁ Ἅγιος Ἀναστάσιος Ἐπίσκοπος Βρεσκίας. 20 Μαΐου. ΜΕΓΑΣ ΣΥΝΑΞΑΡΙΣΤΗΣ.
25. Great Synaxaristes: (in Greek) Ὁ Ἅγιος Οὐλτρίλλος Ἐπίσκοπος Μπουργκές. 20 Μαΐου. ΜΕΓΑΣ ΣΥΝΑΞΑΡΙΣΤΗΣ.
26. Great Synaxaristes: (in Greek) Ὁ Ἅγιος Θεόδωρος Ἐπίσκοπος Παβίας. 20 Μαΐου. ΜΕΓΑΣ ΣΥΝΑΞΑΡΙΣΤΗΣ.
27. Rev. Sabine Baring-Gould (M.A.). "S. ETHELBERT, K. (A.D. 792.)." In: The Lives of the Saints. Volume the Fifth: May. London: John C. Nimmo, 1898. pp. 308-309.
28. Schedrin, Vassili (2022). Православный молитвослов святителя Тихона, патриарха Всероссийского. Spasskoe delo. ISBN   978-5-6044665-4-4.
29. The Orthodox Fellowship of St John the Baptist (OFSJB). Retrieved: March 20, 2026.
30. Great Synaxaristes: (in Greek) Ὁ Ἅγιος Τιμόθεος τοῦ Πσκώφ. 20 Μαΐου. ΜΕΓΑΣ ΣΥΝΑΞΑΡΙΣΤΗΣ.
31. Blessed Dovmont (Timothy), Prince of Pskov. OCA - The Lives of the Saints.
32. Great Synaxaristes: (in Greek) Ὁ Ὅσιος Στέφανος. 20 Μαΐου. ΜΕΓΑΣ ΣΥΝΑΞΑΡΙΣΤΗΣ.
33. (in Russian) СТЕФАН ПИПЕРСКИЙ. Открытая православная энциклопедия "Древо" (Open Orthodox Encyclopedia "The Tree") Retrieved: March 20, 2026.
34. Russian Synod canonizes New Martyr Pavel Lazarev. Orthodox Christianity. Moscow, December 27, 2019.
35. (in Russian) ЛАЗАРЕВ ПАВЕЛ АНДРЕЕВИЧ. Открытая православная энциклопедия "Древо" (Open Orthodox Encyclopedia "The Tree") Retrieved: March 20, 2026.
36. (in Russian) Священника Павла Лазарева, убитого за отказ снять крест и рясу, прославили как новомученика. Журнал Фома. 27 декабря 2019.
37. (in Ukrainian) Олімпіада (Вербецька), ігуменя Козельщанського монастиря. Новини Полтавської Єпархії (News of the Poltava Eparchy). Retrieved: March 20, 2026.
38. Dr. Alexander Roman. More New Ukrainian Orthodox Saints. Ukrainian Saints (Ukrainian Orthodoxy - Українське Православ'я).
39. Great Synaxaristes: (in Greek) Μετακομιδὴ Τιμίων Λειψάνων Ἁγίου Νικολάου τοῦ Θαυματουργοῦ. 20 Μαΐου. ΜΕΓΑΣ ΣΥΝΑΞΑΡΙΣΤΗΣ.
40. Great Synaxaristes: (in Greek) Ἀνακομιδὴ Τιμίων Λειψάνων Ὁσίου Ἀλεξίου τοῦ θαυματουργοῦ. 20 ΜΑΪΟΥ. ΜΕΓΑΣ ΣΥΝΑΞΑΡΙΣΤΗΣ.
41. Uncovering of the relics of Saint Alexis, Metropolitan of Moscow and Wonderworker of All Russia. OCA - The Lives of the Saints.

Sources

• May 20/June 2. Orthodox Calendar (PRAVOSLAVIE.RU).
• June 2 / May 20. HOLY TRINITY RUSSIAN ORTHODOX CHURCH (A parish of the Patriarchate of Moscow).
• May 20. OCA - The Lives of the Saints.
• May 20. Latin Saints of the Orthodox Patriarchate of Rome.
• May 20. The Roman Martyrology.

Greek Sources

• Great Synaxaristes: (in Greek) 20 ΜΑΪΟΥ. ΜΕΓΑΣ ΣΥΝΑΞΑΡΙΣΤΗΣ.
• (in Greek) Συναξαριστής. 20 Μαΐου. ECCLESIA.GR. (H ΕΚΚΛΗΣΙΑ ΤΗΣ ΕΛΛΑΔΟΣ).

Russian Sources

• (in Russian) 2 июня (20 мая). Православная Энциклопедия под редакцией Патриарха Московского и всея Руси Кирилла (электронная версия). (Orthodox Encyclopedia - Pravenc.ru).
• (in Russian) 20 мая (ст.ст.) 2 июня 2013 (нов. ст.). Русская Православная Церковь Отдел внешних церковных связей. (DECR).