What Saint Day Is Today? September 22 Feast: The Prophet Jonah and St. Phocas

If you are asking what saint day is today for September 22, 2026, the Orthodox calendar prominently commemorates the Prophet Jonah and Hieromartyr Phocas, Bishop of Sinope. The date also remembers St. Jonah the Presbyter, Martyr Phocas the Gardener, and Righteous Peter, traditionally known as the former tax collector. September 22, 2026 is a Tuesday, so the ordinary Wednesday-and-Friday fasting rule does not make it a fast day. Readers using different Orthodox calendars may see the same fixed commemorations on a later civil date.

What saint day is today: What is today's church holiday, September 22, 2026 on the Orthodox calendar

The two best-known names on September 22 are the Prophet Jonah and Hieromartyr Phocas of Sinope. The day also contains several other commemorations, including a second Saint Phocas, known as the Gardener, St. Jonah the Presbyter, and Righteous Peter the former publican. This makes the date a useful example of why feast-day titles matter: the same personal name can belong to more than one saint on the same calendar day.

The calendar is not built around one single historical period. Jonah belongs to the world of the Old Testament, Phocas to the early Christian centuries, and other saints to later generations. What connects them is liturgical memory rather than chronology. In parishes using the New Julian calendar for fixed feasts, the commemoration is observed on September 22 civil date; old-calendar communities keep the same fixed date according to the Julian calendar.

Who is the Prophet Jonah?

Jonah is an Old Testament prophet best known from the biblical Book of Jonah. The book tells how he was called to preach repentance to Nineveh, initially resisted that mission, and eventually delivered the warning. The story of Jonah and the great fish is one of the most familiar biblical narratives, but the book's main themes are broader: repentance, mercy, obedience, and God's concern even for people outside Israel.

In Christian interpretation, Jonah's three days in the sea creature became a traditional image of Christ's burial and Resurrection. The New Testament itself refers to the "sign of Jonah," which helped make the prophet especially significant in Christian preaching. Orthodox commemoration therefore treats Jonah not simply as a character in an ancient story but as a prophet whose book remains part of the church's Scripture and liturgical interpretation.

Who is the Hieromartyr Phocas of Sinope

Phocas of Sinope is remembered as a bishop and martyr. The title hieromartyr means that he was a member of the clergy—in this case a bishop—who died as a martyr. Sinope was an important port on the Black Sea coast of Asia Minor, and ancient Christian tradition associates Phocas with the local church there.

Hagiographic accounts describe him as a shepherd of his community who remained faithful during persecution. Details vary between sources, so a careful summary should distinguish the stable core of the tradition from later devotional additions. His identity as Bishop of Sinope is also what separates him from another Saint Phocas commemorated on the same date, Phocas the Gardener.

Who is Saint Jonah the Presbyter

Jonah the Presbyter is remembered in Orthodox tradition as the father of two well-known ninth-century confessors and hymnographers, Theodore Graptus and Theophanes the Branded. The family lived during the period of Byzantine iconoclasm, when disputes over the veneration of icons led to severe pressure on defenders of traditional icon practice.

The title presbyter means priest. Jonah's commemoration is quieter than that of the Prophet Jonah, but it places the September 22 calendar within the history of Christian family life and clerical service. Because both men are named Jonah, readers should use the title to distinguish them: "the Prophet" refers to the biblical figure, while "the Presbyter" refers to the Christian priest associated with Theodore and Theophanes.

Who is the Martyr Phocas the Gardener

Phocas the Gardener, sometimes called Phocas the Horticulturist, is a different saint from Bishop Phocas of Sinope. Tradition portrays him as a Christian layman who cultivated a garden and was known for hospitality. When he learned that officials had been sent to arrest him, the hagiographic account says he received them generously before revealing his own identity.

The story is preserved as an example of hospitality, courage, and non-retaliation. Modern readers do not need to treat every narrative detail as a courtroom record to understand why the saint was remembered. His title is the practical key: Phocas the Gardener identifies the lay martyr, while Hieromartyr Phocas of Sinope identifies the bishop. Both are commemorated on September 22.

Who is Righteous Peter, the former publican

Righteous Peter is remembered in monastic tradition as a man whose life changed through repentance and generosity. The title "former publican" means he had been associated with tax collection, an occupation that appears frequently in Christian moral teaching because tax collectors in the ancient world could be linked with exploitation or social distrust.

His story is used to emphasize that a person's past does not prevent a radical change of life. Orthodox hagiography often preserves saints whose conversion is as important as their later ascetic practice. Peter's commemoration therefore gives September 22 a different spiritual theme from martyrdom: repentance expressed through concrete care for others, especially the poor.

Is there a fast on September 22, 2026

September 22, 2026 falls on a Tuesday. Under the ordinary Orthodox weekly rhythm, Wednesday and Friday are the regular fast days, so Tuesday is not automatically a fasting day. The Exaltation of the Cross and its afterfeast have already concluded by this point, so there is no separate general fast created by that feast on September 22.

Local church calendars can still differ in detail, and individual fasting practice should be shaped by parish guidance and health needs. Fasting is not intended as a test of endurance. Children, teenagers, people with medical conditions, and anyone taking medication should not apply general food restrictions without appropriate adult and medical guidance.

What is important to know about the church holiday of September 22, 2026

September 22 has an unusually varied set of commemorations. The Prophet Jonah represents the biblical prophetic tradition. Bishop Phocas and Phocas the Gardener show two different forms of early Christian witness. Jonah the Presbyter connects the day with Byzantine church history, while Righteous Peter highlights repentance and mercy.

There is no universal church rule forbidding work, study, household chores, or travel on this date. Such claims often come from folk custom rather than formal church teaching. The most practical way to observe the day is through prayer, worship where possible, and attention to the themes carried by the saints themselves: repentance, mercy, courage, and faithfulness.

Several names on September 22 can look repetitive until their titles are noticed. The Hieromartyr Phocas of Sinope and the Martyr Phocas the Gardener are distinct saints. "Hieromartyr" identifies a member of the clergy who suffered martyrdom, while "martyr" alone does not imply ordination. Their shared name and feast date are the reason good English calendars include a place or descriptive title.

The Prophet Jonah belongs to the biblical period and is known from the Book of Jonah, while Righteous Peter the former publican comes from later Christian tradition. Saint Jonah the Presbyter is another separate figure. The result is a date that crosses biblical, early Christian, and monastic memory. Readers should not merge these biographies simply because the names appear in one daily list. September 22, 2026 is a Tuesday, so the ordinary Wednesday-and-Friday fast does not apply unless a local rule adds another observance.

Jonah also gives the day a strong scriptural anchor. His story is read not only as an account of prophetic mission but as a lesson about repentance, mercy, and the limits of human judgment. That helps explain why a biblical prophet can stand beside later martyrs and monastics in the same daily calendar: the commemorations differ historically but converge around themes of conversion, witness, and faithfulness.