The Venerative Importance to Saint George's Day

Today is one of the most important feast days across the whole world: Saint George's Day.

Saint George was born an ethnic Greek in the Central-Eastern Anatolian region of Cappadocia (modern-day Turkey).

He was a member of the very elite Praetorian Guard for the Roman Empire under Emperor Diocletian, but would be executed for refusing to recant his Christianity. 

His death came on 23 April 303 as part of the pre-Constantine Christian executions that Diocletian accelerated.

This death made Saint George a martyr for Christianity, but also the wider monothesistic world in the future.

The way in which he died in his mother's home city of Lyddia in the Roman Province Syria Palaestina (modern-day: Lod, Israel) through being tortured, paraded through the town, and then beheaded inspired over 40,000 Pagans to convert during this era including Empress Alexandra of the Roman Empire who too would become a matyr in 314. Undoubtedly, many more have been inspired to convert to Christianity because of Saint George's story since.

There are many competing historiographies of Saint George as well as legends, but most importantly has to be the legend of Saint George and the Dragon.

Due to Saint George's death at the time all of the main apostolic Nicene churches were one, as well as his background in the military, Saint George became a military saint and megalomartyr across the East and West.

With this came these later attributions and stories to show Saint George's strength.

The legend goes that a dragon had been ravaging a village by seeking a tribute of livestock. Once livestock ran out, the dragon demanded a person a year. When a princess was later chosen, the people rebelled and Saint George saved the princess and slayed the dragon. This legend is believed to have originated from Cappadocia in the 11th Century, with the earliest text found in Georgian dated the same century. But, it was 13th Century Archbishop of Genoa, Jacobus de Voragine, who compiled the Golden Legend that became most popular in the Western World, especially in the Anglosphere. In this edition, most is the same, but Saint George is given a monetary reward by the king and father of the saved princess, which Saint George refuses and gives to the poor. This legend would later be translated into English.

During the Crusades, Crusaders were said to credit Saint George in their victories by claiming he fought with them along with a few other military saints.

But, Muslims also were venerators of Saint George and they had their own legends, often crediting him for dying for monotheism against paganism. Their accounts tend to place him in contention with the king in Mosul (present-day: Iraq).

Druze and a few other religions also venerate Saint George. Nevertheless, he was so important for Christians that his iconography became widespread, especially of Saint George with the spear killing the dragon on horseback.

Most notable has became the Saint George's Cross flag featuring a red cross on a white background believed to have first been adopted by the Republic of Genoa in the 12th or 13th Century as a national flag and in the 10th or 11th Century as an ensign flag. England would later adopt the flag, although some claim their flag came sooner. Nevertheless, we know it would be adoped by King Edward III of England for his Order of the Garter in 1348 and there are records from the Crusades of English and French crusaders carrying this flag. 

After the Crusades, Saint George became romanticized for chivalry and by 1415, his feast day was elevated to the status of festum duplex (double major feast day), a very high feast day across the Catholic world. With the invention of the printing press, the story of Saint George became even more popular.

Today, his feast day is still existing just at different levels. Various diocese and nations still hold Saint George's Day as a major day after those like a holy day of obligation such as in England where Catholics hold it as a Solemnity. 

Eastern Orthodox also give him much veneration with his feast day falling on 6 May in the Julian Calendar. The Russian Orthodox Church and Georgian Orthodox Church perhaps revere him most highly as he serves as the patron saint of Moscow and Russia and appears on many city and national symbols from the coat of arms of both to the flag of Moscow, while the Georgian Orthodox Church exists in a nation exteriorly named after his popularity there in many languages like Spanish, Italian, and English (Georgia), with a national flag featuring the Saint George's Cross surrounded by four Jerusalem Crosses. Russia even has four feast days for Saint George while Georgia has 365 parishes named after him, one for each day.

Saint George is regarded highly in the Church of the East and Oriental Orthodox traditions as well, especially by the Coptic Orthodox in Egypt, the Malankara Orthodox Church in India, and the Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church.

In addition, Eastern Catholics have high regard for Saint George like India's Syro-Malabar Catholic Church.

Both the Malankara Orthodox Church and Syro-Malabar Catholic Church based out of the southwestern state of Kerala hosts a commemoration period from 27 April to 14 May with 7 May being the major feast day.

Yet, Saint George's most remarkable feat might be his persevearance in the Protestant world. During the English Reformation, Saint George retained many symbols, feast days, and so forth while most other saints lost their status as the Church of England looked to fight what they saw as an abuse of veneration. And he retained a notable place across the Lutheran world too.

These feats lead Saint George to be one of the most universally venerated saints in history.

His power is even seen as a member of the Fourteen Holy Helpers to help with the Bubonic Plague of the 14th Century and all diseases and sicknesses today for intercession and healing. Other religions have similar traditions of venerating Saint George for intercession of healing, strength, and protection.

The Cappadocian Greek Roman Soldier's legacy lives on in the many places he patrons.

For example, he retains the title of the patron saint of England, Moscow, Russia Genoa, and Georgia as mentioned before, but he also is the patron saint of the Maltese Island of Gozo, Lebanon's capital Beirut, the Brazilian State of Rio de Janeiro through the Portuguese whose military holds him in high regard, and in the Spanish regions of Aragon, Catalonia, Valencia, and the Belaric Islands, plus the city of Barcelona. Overall, he is the patron saint of Lebanon, Syria, Palestine, Albania, Montenegro, Greece, Serbia, Bulgaria, Bosnia and Herzegovina (historically), Brazil, Portugal, Georgia, England, Russia, and surely plenty of more. Saint George is also a patron of agricultural workers, archers, equistrians, sheeps, shepherds, cavalry, chivalry, peacekeeping missions, and more.

His connection to the Crusades and the military means the Saint George's flag's adoption was widespread across northern Italian city-states like Bologna, alliances like the Swabian League of Holy Roman Empire states and knights, plus all around the world such as Habsburg-held lands.

After England (with Wales) united with Scotland to form the United Kingdom of Great Britain, the initial Union Jack was created with England's Saint George's Cross forming a basis as the red cross and Scotland's white Saint Andrew's Cross. The expanision of the British Empire (with a later new Union Jack with the Ireland red Saint Patrick's Cross as the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland) made the Union Jack a part of the national flag of many countries, territories, provinces, states, and other places such as Australia, New Zealand, Bermuda, British Columbia, and Hawaii.

The flag also retains high regard in culture such as in sports where highly regarded clubs and national teams feature the emblem such as FC Barcelona and many England national teams.

Saint George's legacy is truly second to very few and his many emblems from slaying the dragon to his cross and flag continue to be symbols for strength to this day.