Church commemorates Demetrius Memorial Saturday
Candles at the memorial table. Photo: open sources
On November 2, 2025, the Church commemorates Demetrius Saturday. This day is one of the special days of church-wide remembrance of the deceased.
Demetrius Parental Saturday is the Saturday preceding the feast day of the Great Martyr Demetrius of Thessaloniki, which is celebrated on October 26 according to the Julian calendar (November 8 in the new style). Demetrius Saturday always falls between November 2 and November 7. In 2025, this day falls on November 2.
The tradition of remembrance on this day dates back to the 14th century. Demetrius Saturday was established with the blessing of St. Sergius of Radonezh and at the initiative of the pious Prince Dmitry Donskoy after the Battle of Kulikovo in 1380 to commemorate the warriors who fell in the battle.
Over time, this day became a general commemoration of all deceased Orthodox Christians.
On Demetrius Saturday, memorial services – panikhidas and the Divine Liturgy with special remembrance of the deceased – are held in the temples of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church.
The clergy calls to pray on this day for all those who have previously departed, to perform acts of mercy and charity in memory of the deceased.
Earlier, the UOJ reported that the UGCC called to abandon the "Moscow" Demetrius Saturday.
Read also
Wounded Catholic priest in Poland calls to forgive Ukrainian attacker
A Catholic priest wounded in the attack on a Benedictine abbey in Jarosław asked the faithful to pray for the attacker and not blame the Ukrainian people as a whole.
UOC begins celebrations honoring St. Kuksha of Odesa
A service on the eve of the feast day of St. Kuksha of Odesa was held at the Dormition Monastery.
Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra Reserve raises concern over Sviatohirsk shrines
Exhibition organizers stressed the need to document the impact of the war on Sviatohirsk in order to preserve Ukrainian identity.
Favor Foundation donates food and diapers to Kharkiv hospital
The UOC charity provided hygiene supplies for patients at an emergency hospital in Kharkiv.
Dumenko presents awards to staff ahead of Soviet-era Reserve’s anniversary
The OCU claimed that the creation of the Soviet museum made it possible to preserve the Kyiv Caves Lavra during the years of atheist persecution.
UOJ-USA publishes scandalous Phanar document about chronicles of OCU creation
In the document prepared for Patriarch Bartholomew, a Phanar representative described the SBU's surveillance of the Constantinople delegation and Poroshenko's pressure on the course of the "Unification Council."