St. Anthimus of Nicomedia, September 3: What Saint Day Is Today and Other Saints

If you are asking what saint day is today for September 3, 2026, the Orthodox Church of Ukraine commemorates Hieromartyr Anthimus, Bishop of Nicomedia, together with Christians who suffered during the persecutions there. The calendar also includes St. Theoctistus of Palestine, Phoebe of Corinth, the martyr Basilissa, Hieromartyr Aristion, St. Joanikije of Serbia, and the Pisidian icon of the Mother of God.

September 3, 2026 is a Thursday, so it is not a normal weekly fast day. The day also does not create a general church ban on ordinary work.

What saint day is today: What is today's church holiday, September 3, 2026 on the Orthodox calendar (Julian date)

The principal commemorations for September 3 include:

• Hieromartyr Anthimus of Nicomedia;

• clergy and martyrs associated with the Nicomedian persecution;

• St. Theoctistus of Palestine;

• St. Phoebe of Corinth;

• the young martyr Basilissa of Nicomedia;

• Hieromartyr Aristion;

• St. Joanikije, Patriarch of Serbia;

• the Pisidian icon of the Mother of God.

The Orthodox Church of Ukraine follows the New Julian calendar for fixed feasts. Older resources that use the Julian calendar may place the same commemorations on a different civil date, so it is important to check which calendar a source follows.

Who is the hieromartyr Anthim of Nicomedia

St. Anthimus was Bishop of Nicomedia during the intense anti-Christian persecutions of the early fourth century. Nicomedia was an important imperial city, and its Christian community experienced severe pressure during the reign of Emperor Diocletian and his co-rulers.

Anthimus is remembered as a hieromartyr, meaning a member of the clergy who died because of his Christian faith. Church tradition emphasizes that he continued supporting the community even under persecution.

His place in the calendar makes him the central saint of September 3. The details of early martyr narratives can vary between sources, but the consistent theme is his pastoral leadership and refusal to abandon the faith.

Who suffered together with Anfim

The September 3 calendar also remembers several clergy and lay Christians connected with the Nicomedian persecutions. Names commonly listed include Theophilus and Mygdonius, together with Dorotheus, Mardonius, Peter, Indes, Gorgonius, Zeno, Euthymius, and Domna.

These saints are usually commemorated as a group because their stories are tied to the same period of persecution. They represent a Christian community rather than a single isolated biography.

For a modern reader, the point of the commemoration is steadfastness in faith under coercion, not the violent details of how each person died.

Who is Theoktist of Palestine

St. Theoctistus of Palestine was a fifth-century monk associated with the early development of Palestinian monasticism. He is especially known as a companion of St. Euthymius the Great.

The two ascetics lived in the desert and helped form a monastic community. Theoctistus later became an abbot and spiritual guide, making his life very different from the martyr stories that dominate other parts of the September 3 calendar.

His commemoration shows how one Orthodox feast day can bring together saints from different centuries and different forms of Christian life.

Who is Thebes of Corinth

The outline name "Thebes" refers to Phoebe of Corinth, a first-century Christian mentioned in the New Testament. In the Epistle to the Romans, the Apostle Paul commends Phoebe to the Christian community in Rome and describes her service to the church at Cenchreae.

In Orthodox tradition she is remembered as a deaconess and an important woman of the apostolic-era church. Her presence on September 3 connects the date directly with the earliest Christian communities.

English spellings can vary, but Phoebe is the standard form most readers will recognize.

Who is the martyr Vasilisa Nicomidia

St. Basilissa of Nicomedia is remembered as a young Christian martyr from the early fourth century. Her story belongs to the same wider period of persecution that shaped the memory of Anthimus and many other Nicomedian saints.

Church tradition emphasizes her courage and refusal to renounce Christianity despite her young age. Because the historical record for many early martyrs is brief, modern summaries usually focus on the meaning of the commemoration rather than attempting to reconstruct every detail.

She is one of the lesser-known names of the day but remains part of the Orthodox calendar.

Who is the holy martyr Aristion

St. Aristion is remembered as a bishop and hieromartyr from the early Christian period. The title places him among clergy who died for their faith.

His commemoration is separate from Anthimus even though both are remembered as bishops and martyrs. Orthodox calendars often group several saints on one civil date because their feast days were established independently in different local traditions.

For September 3, Aristion adds another early episcopal figure to the day's commemorations.

Who is Saint John of Serbia

This heading refers to St. Joanikije II of Serbia, a fourteenth-century church leader who became the first Serbian patriarch after the Serbian archbishopric was elevated to a patriarchate.

He served during a formative period of medieval Serbian church history. His commemoration is therefore not connected with the Roman persecutions or early martyrdoms that define the stories of Anthimus and Basilissa.

Joanikije's presence broadens the historical scope of the day from the apostolic and late-antique periods into medieval Orthodox history.

What is the Pisidian Myrrh-flowing icon of the Mother of God

September 3 also includes the commemoration of the Pisidian icon of the Mother of God, traditionally associated with Pisidia in Asia Minor.

The icon became known in church tradition through accounts of special veneration and myrrh-flowing. References to it appear in older Christian sources, making the observance part of the long Byzantine tradition of honoring icons of the Mother of God.

For believers, the commemoration is about prayer and the theological meaning of the icon rather than treating it as a magical object.

September 3 therefore brings together several layers of Christian memory rather than one isolated biography. Anthimus is remembered as a bishop, Theoktist as a monastic saint, and the other names represent martyrs and local traditions from different regions and centuries. This is common in Orthodox calendars, where a single date can preserve biblical, monastic, episcopal, and martyr commemorations at the same time.

If another calendar gives these commemorations on a later civil date, check the calendar system before treating it as an error. The Orthodox Church of Ukraine follows the New Julian calendar for fixed feasts, while older Julian-calendar materials are 13 days behind for these dates in the twenty-first century.

Is there a fast on September 3, 2026

September 3, 2026 falls on a Thursday. It is therefore not a normal Wednesday or Friday fast day.

There is no separate universal fast established simply because Anthimus and the other saints are commemorated. Individual fasting practices can still vary by parish, monastic rule, or personal spiritual guidance.

People with health conditions should follow appropriate medical advice rather than adopting restrictive fasting practices from an online calendar alone.

What is important to know about the church holiday of September 3, 2026

The central name of the day is St. Anthimus of Nicomedia, but the calendar spans a much wider period of Christian history. It includes martyrs of Nicomedia, a Palestinian monk, an apostolic-era Christian woman, a Serbian patriarch, and an icon of the Mother of God.

There is no general Orthodox rule that forbids work, school, travel, or household chores on September 3. If someone wants to mark the feast, the traditional emphasis is prayer, worship where possible, and learning about the saints.

Popular folk prohibitions should not be presented as formal church rules unless a church source actually supports them.