Saint Nedelya
Slavic personification of Sunday, punishing those who work on that day.
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Within Slavic folk Orthodoxy, Saint Nedelya embodies Sunday as a day of the week.[1]
Life and work
Old Russian sermons against paganism warned against venerating the image of the Week as a "goon" rather than "Christ's resurrection"[2] The translated apocrypha "Epistle of Jesus on the Week" influenced the popular cult of Holy Week.[3] This apocrypha prescribes righteous living and observance of Sunday because significant events like the Annunciation and Resurrection occurred on that day.[3] The cult of Saint Anastasia also influenced popular veneration of the Week.[3]
Belarusians of Grodno Province said the day of rest was given after a man hid Holy Week from pursuing dogs.[3] Ukrainians of Volhynian Province said God gave the Week a whole day but told her to ensure people did not work.[3] The Week appears as a woman in white, gold, or silver clothing with a wounded body, complaining of being poked with spindles.[4] She severely punishes violators of Sunday prohibitions with illness, death, or by tearing skin off weavers.[3]
Ukrainian and Belarusian folklore, together with Russian spiritual verses, incorporate the apocryphal narrative.[3]
What the cited sources add
The evidence from Wikipedia's cited sources provides details on the apocrypha's content and regional variations.[3] Serbs believe Paraskeva Friday is the mother or sister of Saint Week.[3] In Federowski's collected folk beliefs, the Week laments that Jews observe their Sabbath while people labor on Sunday.[4]
References
- Wikipedia, "Saint Nedelya" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: "Golubkova O. В. Female mythological images in the beliefs of the Eastern Slavs of Siberia."; Неделя (персонаж) / О. В. Белова // Славянские древности: Этнолингвистический словарь : в 5 т. / под общ. ред. Н. И. Толстого; Институт славяноведения РАН. — <a; Folk Kultura na Balkanjiite. Scientific and ethnographic conference / Compiler and editor: Senior researcher Dr. Angel Goev. - Gabrovo: Architectural and Ethnog (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "Saint Nedelya" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: "Н.М. Гальковский -- БОРЬБА ХРИСТИАНСТВА С ОСТАТКАМИ ЯЗЫЧЕСТВА В ДРЕВНЕЙ РУСИ", www.vernost.ru (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "Saint Nedelya" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Неделя (персонаж) / О. В. Белова // Славянские древности: Этнолингвистический словарь : в 5 т. / под общ. ред. Н. И. Толстого; Институт славяноведения РАН. — <a (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "Saint Nedelya" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Federowski M. Lud Białoruski na Rusi Lietewskij. Materiały do etnografii słowiańskiej zgromadzone w latach 1877–1905. T. 1–8 . - Kraków, 1897. - Vol. 1. Wiara, (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
Each numbered sentence above was checked against the source it cites before publication. Sentences citing Wikipedia adapt text from the English Wikipedia article Saint Nedelya (contributors), used under CC BY-SA 4.0; this entry is available under the same licence. Other sources were used for facts only; no text or images are copied from them.
More in Supernatural beings identified with Christian saints
Sources
Compiled from Wikipedia and the sources listed below. Text from Wikipedia is available under CC BY-SA 4.0; this entry is adapted from it.
- Wikipedia: Saint Nedelya (CC BY-SA 4.0).
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