September 27 Orthodox Feast: St. Callistratus and Other Apostles — What Saint Day Is Today

If you are asking what saint day is today on September 27, 2026, the Orthodox calendar centers on the Martyr Callistratus and his fellow martyrs, together with several Apostles of the Seventy and other saints remembered on this date. September 27, 2026 falls on a Sunday, so there is no ordinary Wednesday-or-Friday fast simply because of the weekday. The day is best understood as a group commemoration: Callistratus and his companions are prominent, but the calendar also remembers Apostles Mark, Aristarchus, and Zenas, the Martyr Epicharis of Rome, and Saint Ignatius associated with the Christ the Savior Monastery.

What saint day is today: What is today's church holiday, September 27, 2026 on the Orthodox calendar

September 27 is a fixed-date Orthodox commemoration with several names attached to it. The best-known entry is the Martyr Callistratus with his company of fellow martyrs. Orthodox calendars also list Apostles Mark, Aristarchus, and Zenas of the Seventy. In addition, the Martyr Epicharis of Rome and Saint Ignatius of the Christ the Savior Monastery are commemorated.

This means there is no need to reduce the day to a single saint. Orthodox calendars often preserve several commemorations on one date because saints from different centuries and regions are remembered together. In parish life, one name may receive more attention depending on local tradition, the church's patron saint, or the readings appointed for the day.

September 27, 2026 is a Sunday. Sunday is itself the weekly celebration of Christ's Resurrection in Orthodox worship, so the normal focus remains the Divine Liturgy. The fixed commemorations of the saints are added to that Sunday framework rather than replacing it.

Who is the Martyr Callistratus

Callistratus is remembered as an early Christian martyr and soldier. Church tradition places him in the period of Roman persecution. He was raised in a Christian family and became known among his fellow soldiers for his faith and disciplined life. According to the traditional account, his Christianity became known after another soldier heard him praying.

He was then pressured to renounce his faith. The hagiographical tradition emphasizes his refusal to do so and the effect his endurance had on those around him. A group of soldiers came to believe in Christ after witnessing what happened to him, and they were imprisoned with him. The group is commonly remembered as Callistratus and forty-nine companions.

The spiritual point of the commemoration is not the violence of the persecution itself. In Orthodox preaching, Callistratus represents steadfastness, public confession of faith, and the way one person's conviction can influence an entire community. His feast is therefore read as a witness to courage and loyalty rather than as a celebration of suffering.

Who are the companions of Callistratus

The calendar remembers Callistratus together with forty-nine companions who shared his confession of faith. Some retellings preserve individual names, while many liturgical calendars simply refer to them collectively as his company or fellow martyrs. That collective form matters because the feast is not only about one heroic individual; it is also about a group whose beliefs changed through what they witnessed.

The traditional story says that other soldiers were moved by Callistratus's faith and chose to stand with him. Later Christian memory treated the entire group as martyrs. When a church calendar says "Callistratus and his company," it is referring to this group commemoration.

Readers may encounter slightly different spellings of names in English because the original names pass through Greek, Church Slavonic, Ukrainian, or Russian forms before appearing in English. That does not indicate different saints. The central calendar entry remains the same group of martyrs commemorated on September 27.

Who is the Apostle Mark of the Seventy

The Mark commemorated on September 27 is listed among the Seventy Apostles in Orthodox tradition. He is also called John Mark in some church sources. The New Testament mentions a John Mark in connection with Paul and Barnabas, including episodes in Acts and references in several epistles.

Orthodox tradition identifies this apostolic figure as a missionary who preached with Paul and Barnabas and later served the church. He should not automatically be confused with every person named Mark in the New Testament or with later saints who share the same name. Church calendars often add "of the Seventy" precisely to make the identification clearer.

The Seventy are a wider group of early disciples associated with Christ's mission beyond the Twelve Apostles. Their commemorations emphasize the spread of the Christian message through many local communities in the first century.

Who is the Apostle Aristarchus

Aristarchus is another apostolic figure named in the New Testament and remembered among the Seventy in Orthodox tradition. He appears as a companion of the Apostle Paul. Acts connects him with Paul's travels, while the Pauline letters mention him among Paul's co-workers and, in one place, as a fellow prisoner.

That background explains why Aristarchus appears in a group of apostolic commemorations rather than as an isolated local saint. His importance lies in the network of people who supported the early Christian mission through travel, teaching, practical assistance, and shared hardship.

For modern readers, Aristarchus is a reminder that the first Christian communities were not built only by the most famous apostles. The New Testament preserves many lesser-known names whose work helped connect cities and churches across the eastern Mediterranean.

Who is the Apostle Zenas

Zenas, also spelled Zina in some transliterations, is remembered among the Seventy Apostles. The New Testament mentions a Zenas in the Letter to Titus, where he is described as a lawyer and is to be helped on his journey. Orthodox tradition identifies him as an early missionary and church leader.

The different English forms of his name are mostly a transliteration issue. Ukrainian or Church Slavonic sources may produce a spelling that looks unusual in modern English, while English Orthodox calendars commonly use Zenas. The saint being referred to is the same apostolic figure.

His commemoration on September 27 appears alongside Mark and Aristarchus, which gives the day a strong apostolic dimension in addition to the remembrance of the martyrs.

Who is the Martyr Epicharis of Rome

Epicharis, sometimes rendered Epicharia, is remembered as a Christian martyr associated with Rome. The surviving church tradition is much shorter than the biographies of more famous saints, which is common for martyrs from the early centuries. In many calendars, only the basic identity, place, and status as a martyr are preserved.

Her inclusion shows how Orthodox calendars combine large narrative commemorations with smaller historical memories. A saint does not need a long surviving biography to remain part of the liturgical calendar. The church's remembrance may rest on an old local tradition, a martyr list, or later synaxaria that preserve the name.

For readers checking different calendars, Epicharis may appear with a slightly different spelling. The safest way to identify the commemoration is by date and location: the Martyr Epicharis of Rome on September 27.

Who is Saint Ignatius remembered on September 27

Some source material loosely identifies the September 27 Ignatius in ways that can be confusing in English. The Orthodox Church in America calendar lists Saint Ignatius of the Christ the Savior Monastery, with a historical period in the tenth century. That is more precise than treating him simply as "Ignatius of Cappadocia."

This is a useful example of why translated church calendars sometimes need verification. Many saints share the name Ignatius, and a shortened geographic label can easily point readers toward the wrong person. The fixed date and the monastery designation provide a more reliable identification.

Compared with Callistratus or the Apostles of the Seventy, much less is commonly presented about this Ignatius in popular calendars. His commemoration nevertheless remains part of the September 27 list in Orthodox tradition.

Is there a fast on September 27, 2026

September 27, 2026 falls on a Sunday. Under the ordinary Orthodox weekly rule, the routine fast days are Wednesday and Friday, so Sunday is not automatically a fasting day. There is also no universal rule saying that the commemoration of Callistratus itself creates a strict fast.

Fasting rules can still vary by jurisdiction, monastery, parish, health situation, and overlapping liturgical observances. Anyone following a specific church calendar should use that calendar rather than a general web article as the final authority.

For a general reader, the practical answer is simple: September 27, 2026 is not an ordinary weekly fast day. The main religious observance is participation in Sunday worship and remembrance of the saints commemorated on the date.

What is important to know about the church holiday of September 27, 2026

The most important point is that September 27 is a multi-saint commemoration. Callistratus and his fellow martyrs are a major focus, but Apostles Mark, Aristarchus, and Zenas are also part of the day. The Martyr Epicharis and Saint Ignatius add further historical layers.

Because the date falls on Sunday in 2026, the weekly celebration of the Resurrection shapes the liturgical day. There is no general prohibition on work, study, travel, or household activity. Folk rules sometimes circulate online as if they were church law, but they should not be confused with the actual liturgical calendar.

The names on this date also illustrate how Orthodox memory works across centuries. Callistratus represents the early martyr tradition. Mark, Aristarchus, and Zenas connect the date to the apostolic age. Epicharis preserves another early martyr memory, while Ignatius belongs to a much later historical period.

If you are checking a calendar because of a name day, compare the person's baptismal or patron saint with the exact saint listed. Several saints can share the same first name, so date and title matter. A person named Mark, for example, may have a patron saint commemorated on a different date.

For personal observance, the most direct practices are prayer, participation in the Liturgy where possible, and reading about the saints. The calendar does not require invented household bans or superstitions. The purpose of the commemoration is to connect historical Christian witnesses with present-day worship.