EDITORIAL

Farewell,…Summer!

There it is said in our tradition that on October 26, on Saint Dumitru (Samedru), the summer of the pastors ends, started on April 23, on Saint George (Sangeoz). What do they mean, from this perspective, these two Christian holidays? As Cosmin Manolache was writing in the tome Romanian Holidays, the year is similar to a house with two doors: one is unlocked, for half a year and it is guarded by Saint George, and the other one is opened on Saint Dumitru, when the day comes.
Why have been these saints chosen? Because their destinies are similar. The great general in the Roman army and especially a very special Christian spirit. Dimitrie looked quite courageous and faced out the death of the martyrs as, Saint George did in Rome.
Careful at the cycles of the nature and of their lives, the peasants have shared the year of the shepherds after the feast of the two saints. Now, on fall, the shepherds lower from the mountains in order to let the sheep in the households of their owners. Everyone is getting ready for wintertime.
As Saint George agreed with Saint Dumitru, the last one should make the forest leafless and to gather everyone at the harvest holiday, at the fire of Samedru, when there are lighted big fires and wheels of fire are released in the valley. The call of "Join the Samedru Fire! resounds in the villages, because the winter is already unlocked and, from now on, the weather gets worse. The shepherds throw an axe between the sheep to find out how will be the weather: bad, if a black sheep sits next to the axe, good, if the sheep is white. On October 26, especially in the villages from Oltenia and Muntenia, there are lighted ritual fires, and the women give to the children pretzels, apples, walnuts or dried fruits. In the evening, the men pull out embers from the hearth and throw them in the orchards so the next year will bring a rich harvest of fruits.
Therefore, Saint Dumitru or Samedru is a Christian Saint that has become in the folklore an agrarian divinity.
Who was in fact Saint Dumitru?
Dumitru (or Dimitrie) lived during the time of the emperors Dioclitian and Maximilian Galeriu. He was born in the fortress of Thessalonica and he was the son of the prince of the fortress: his parents have secretly baptized him, being afraid of those that were persecuting the Christians. At the death of his father, the emperor Maximilian assigned Dimitrie as his successor at the leadership of Thessalonica. Back then, the emperor did not know that Dimitrie was a Christian.
After the victory against the Scythians, Maximilian has ordered to organize in every fortress, including Thessalonica, holidays in the honor of the Gods. On this occasion he found out from Dimitrie himself his real religious belief. Dimitrie confessed that he was a Christian, and the emperor ordered to be thrown in jail. In Thessalonica there were in full development stage the games in the honor of Maximilian, where there were quite enjoyed the ones for killing the Christians. They should face out Lie in the arena, one of the most powerful fighters, who seemed invincible. Many Christians have died in his hands, thrown in the spears. The young Christian Nestor, seeing how Lie merciless kills so many people, proposed to fight him. He went to Dimitrie in the prison, in order to ask for his blessing. Making the cross sign on his forehead, Dimitrie told him: "Go and defeat Lie and you will assert Jesus!". Entering in the battle, Nestor shouted: "Dimitrie's God, help me!". And he killed Lie. Maximilian got sad of his death and, finding out that Dimitrie is the one that encouraged Nestor to fight with Lie and get him the blessing, sent solders, ordering them to pierce Dimitrie with spears. The martyr gave his soul to God. Still back then, out of the order of the emperor, Nestor was decapitated.
The relics of Dimitrie have been gifted with the healing features. After more than one hundred years ago, the prefect Leontiu of Illiric has raised two churches in his honor, one in Thessalonica (on October 26, 413) and another one in Sirmium (later on Mitrovita). The date of the feast of Saint Dimitrie Arising of Myrrh was due to the fact that his relics have been brought to the church from Thessalonica on a day of October 26.

Oana Branzan