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88-536: Sfântu Gheorghe is one of the oldest urban settlements in Transylvania, the town first having been documented in 1332. The town takes its name from Saint George , the patron of the local church. Historically, it was also known in German as Sankt Georgen . The "sepsi" prefix ( sebesi → sepsi , meaning "of Sebes") refers to the area which the ancestors of the local Székely population had inhabited before settling to

176-557: A basilica in Lydda dedicated to George existed. A new church was erected in 1872 and is still standing, where the feast of the translation of the relics of Saint George to that location is celebrated on 3 November each year. In England, he was mentioned among the martyrs by the 8th-century monk Bede . The Georgslied is an adaptation of his legend in Old High German , composed in the late 9th century. The earliest dedication to

264-455: A festum duplex at a church council in 1415, on the date that had become associated with his martyrdom, 23 April. There was wide latitude from community to community in celebration of the day across late medieval and early modern England, and no uniform "national" celebration elsewhere, a token of the popular and vernacular nature of George's cultus and its local horizons, supported by a local guild or confraternity under George's protection, or

352-587: A military saint since the Crusades . He is respected by Christians, Druze , as well as some Muslims as a martyr of monotheistic faith. In hagiography , as one of the Fourteen Holy Helpers and one of the most prominent military saints, he is immortalized in the legend of Saint George and the Dragon . His feast day, Saint George's Day , is traditionally celebrated on 23 April. Historically,

440-640: A saint in Christianity . According to tradition, he was a soldier in the Roman army . Of Cappadocian Greek origin, he became a member of the Praetorian Guard for Roman emperor Diocletian , but was sentenced to death for refusing to recant his Christian faith. He became one of the most venerated saints, heroes, and megalomartyrs in Christianity, and he has been especially venerated as

528-518: A Christian church or Druze maqam is dedicated to either one of them. According to scholar Ray Jabre Mouawad the Druzes appreciated the two saints for their bravery: Saint George because he confronted the dragon and Saint Elijah because he competed with the pagan priests of Baal and won over them. In both cases the explanations provided by Christians is that Druzes were attracted to warrior saints that resemble their own militarized society. George

616-550: A church dedicated to him in Kyiv , c.  1054 . In Bulgaria , George's day ( Bulgarian : Гергьовден ) is celebrated on 6 May, when it is customary to slaughter and roast a lamb. George's day is also a public holiday . In Serbia and Bosnia and Herzegovina , the Serbian Orthodox Church refers to George as Sveti Djordje ( Свети Ђорђе ) or Sveti Georgije ( Свети Георгије ). George's day ( Đurđevdan )

704-731: A double to bring Sepsi a 2–1 win over Voluntari at the Stadionul Rapid-Giulești in Bucharest . The club went on to win the 2022 Supercupa României with the same score against league champions CFR Cluj . On 24 May 2023, Sepsi claimed its second consecutive national cup after a 5–4 penalty shoot-out defeat of Universitatea Cluj at the Stadionul Municipal in Sibiu , with goalkeeper Roland Niczuly saving three penalty shots. The club also repeated its performance in

792-538: A dragon-slaying legend does not relegate him to the region of the myth". Saint George in all likelihood was martyred before the year 290. There is little information on the early life of George. Herbert Thurston in The Catholic Encyclopedia states that, based upon an ancient cultus , narratives of the early pilgrims, and the early dedications of churches to George, going back to the fourth century, "there seems, therefore, no ground for doubting

880-600: A junior team. In their debut season, they won the Liga V competition of Covasna County and were promoted to Liga IV . They finished second in their first Liga IV season, eight points behind local Viitorul Sfântu Gheorghe. Valentin Suciu —who would eventually guide them to Liga I—was appointed manager in 2013. At the end of the 2013–14 campaign, Sepsi OSK effortlessly won the Liga IV competition of Covasna County and qualified for

968-463: A notable performance for the team at the time. In the summer of 2016, Attila Hadnagy joined the team and became its captain. As he scored 28 goals in 31 games, the unexpected happened in the season which followed. They finished second in the 2016–17 Liga II and were promoted to Liga I , the top tier of the Romanian football league system . As a last step in becoming fully professional in 2017,

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1056-607: A result, Sepsi OSK was able to play its first ever Liga I game in Sfântu Gheorghe on 19 March 2018. Ownership of the stadium was transferred from the Romanian Ministry of Youth and Sport to the City Council of Sfântu Gheorghe in 2019. The construction of a new UEFA Category 4 stadium with a capacity of 8,450 seats was started on a lot near Sepsi Arena in the summer of 2018. The new Sepsi OSK Stadium

1144-465: A soldier saint from early times had its centre in Palestine at Diospolis, now Lydda . St George was apparently martyred there, at the end of the third or the beginning of the fourth century; that is all that can be reasonably surmised about him. The saint's veneration dates to the 5th century with some certainty, and possibly even to the 4th, while the collection of his miracles gradually began during

1232-652: A very common confusion between n and l , from Dagon , whose name two neighbouring villages bear to this day, while one of the gates of Lydda used to be called the Gate of Dagon." Due to the Christian influence on the Druze faith , two Christian saints have become amongst the Druze 's most venerated figures: Saint George and Saint Elijah . Thus, in all the villages inhabited by Druze and Christians in central Mount Lebanon

1320-797: A youth center and the new stadium. Sepsi OSK holds its home games at the Municipal Stadium in Sfântu Gheorghe . Located in the Simeria neighbourhood, it has a capacity of 5,200 seats. After the Liga I promotion of Sepsi OSK the Municipal Stadium did not meet the Liga I licensing requirements. As a result, Sepsi OSK was forced to hold all of its autumn 2017 home games at the Silviu Ploeșteanu Stadium in Brașov and

1408-486: Is De Situ Terrae Sanctae by the archdeacon Theodosius, written between 518 and 530. By the end of the 6th century, the center of his veneration appears to have shifted to Cappadocia . The Life of Saint Theodore of Sykeon , written in the 7th century, mentions the veneration of the relics of the saint in Cappadocia. By the time of the early Muslim conquests of the mostly Christian and Zoroastrian Middle East,

1496-532: Is remembered in the Church of England with a Festival on 23 April. Catholic Church feast days: Sepsi OSK Sf%C3%A2ntu Gheorghe Asociația Club Sportiv Sepsi OSK Sfântu Gheorghe , commonly known as Sepsi OSK ( Hungarian: [ˈʃɛpʃi ˈoɛʃkaː] ), Sepsi Sfântu Gheorghe ( Romanian: [ˈsepsi ˈsfɨntu ˈɡe̯orɡe] ), or simply Sepsi , is a Romanian professional football club based in Sfântu Gheorghe , Covasna County , that competes in

1584-616: Is also secondary, and inconsistent with the earliest cults of the saint being located in Diospolis . George was executed by decapitation on 23 April 303. A witness of his suffering convinced Empress Alexandra of Rome to become a Christian as well, so she joined George in martyrdom. His body was buried in Lydda , where Christians soon came to honour him as a martyr. The Latin Passio Sancti Georgii (6th century) follows

1672-526: Is based on George of Cappadocia , a notorious 4th-century Arian bishop who was Athanasius of Alexandria 's most bitter rival, and that it was he who in time became George of England. This identification is seen as highly improbable. Bishop George was slain by Gentile Greeks for exacting onerous taxes, especially inheritance taxes. J. B. Bury , who edited the 1906 edition of Gibbon's The Decline and Fall , wrote "this theory of Gibbon's has nothing to be said for it". He adds that "the connection of St. George with

1760-451: Is celebrated on Easter Monday , instead. The Russian Orthodox Church also celebrates two additional feasts in honour of George. One is on 3 November, commemorating the consecration of a cathedral dedicated to him in Lydda during the reign of Constantine the Great (305–37). When the church was consecrated, the relics of George were transferred there. The other feast is on 26 November for

1848-547: Is celebrated on 6 May, and is a common slava (patron saint day) among ethnic Serbs . In Egypt , the Coptic Orthodox Church of Alexandria refers to George ( Coptic : Ⲡⲓⲇⲅⲓⲟⲥ Ⲅⲉⲟⲣⲅⲓⲟⲥ or ⲅⲉⲱⲣⲅⲓⲟⲥ ) as the "Prince of Martyrs" and celebrates his martyrdom on the 23rd of Paremhat of the Coptic calendar , equivalent to 1 May. The Copts also celebrate the consecration of the first church dedicated to him on

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1936-552: Is described as a prophetic figure in Islamic sources. George is venerated by some Christians and Muslims because of his composite personality combining several biblical, Quranic and other ancient mythical heroes. In some sources he is identified with Elijah or Mar Elis, George or Mar Jirjus and in others as al-Khidr . The last epithet meaning the "green prophet", is common to Christian, Muslim, and Druze folk piety. Samuel Curtiss who visited an artificial cave dedicated to him where he

2024-525: Is equivalent to saying he has been sent to a madhouse. It is singular that the Moslem Arabs adopted this veneration for St George, and send their mad people to be cured by him, as well as the Christians, but they commonly call him El Khudder – The Green – according to their favourite manner of using epithets instead of names. Why he should be called green, however, I cannot tell – unless it is from

2112-461: Is granted. Al-Thaʿlabi states that George was from Palestine and lived in the times of some disciples of Jesus . He was killed many times by the king of Mosul, and resurrected each time. When the king tried to starve him, he touched a piece of dry wood brought by a woman and turned it green, with varieties of fruits and vegetables growing from it. After his fourth death, the city was burnt along with him. Ibn al-Athir 's account of one of his deaths

2200-406: Is identified with Elijah, reports that childless Muslim women used to visit the shrine to pray for children. Per tradition, he was brought to his place of martyrdom in chains, thus priests of Church of St. George chain the sick especially the mentally ill to a chain for overnight or longer for healing. This is sought after by both Muslims and Christians. According to Elizabeth Anne Finn 's Home in

2288-403: Is known about George's life. It is thought that he was a Roman military officer of Cappadocian Greek descent, who was martyred under Roman emperor Diocletian in one of the pre-Constantinian persecutions of the 3rd or early 4th century. Beyond this, early sources give conflicting information. Edward Gibbon argued that George, or at least the legend from which the above is distilled,

2376-594: Is on 23 April. In the Tridentine calendar of 1568, it was given the rank of "Semidouble". In Pope Pius XII 's 1955 calendar this rank was reduced to "Simple", and in Pope John XXIII 's 1960 calendar to a "Commemoration" . Since Pope Paul VI 's 1969 revision , it appears as an "optional memorial ". In some countries such as England, the rank is higher – it is a Solemnity (Roman Catholic) or Feast ( Church of England ): if it falls between Palm Sunday and

2464-830: Is one of the centres for the Székely people in the region, known to them as Székelyföld in Hungarian – which means "Székely Land", and is home to the Székely National Museum. The town hosts two market fairs each year. At the 2021 census , the city had a population of 50,080; of those, 69.25% were Hungarians and 18.93% Romanians . At the 2011 census , 41,233 (74%) of the city's 56,006 inhabitants declared themselves as ethnic Hungarians , 11,807 (21%) as Romanians, 398 (0.7%) as Roma , and 2,562 as other ethnicities or no information; 74% had Hungarian as first language, and 21% Romanian . The predominant industry in

2552-415: Is parallel to the crucifixion of Jesus , stating, "When he died, God sent stormy winds and thunder and lightning and dark clouds, so that darkness fell between heaven and earth, and people were in great wonderment." The account adds that the darkness was lifted after his resurrection. A titular church built in Lydda during the reign of Constantine the Great (reigned 306–337) was consecrated to "a man of

2640-479: Is seen as a guardian of the Druze community and a symbol of their enduring faith and resilience. Additionally, Saint George is regarded as a protector and healer in Druze tradition. The story of Saint George slaying the dragon is interpreted allegorically, representing the triumph of good over evil and the protection of the faithful from harm. In the General Roman Calendar , the feast of George

2728-403: The 2022 and the 2023 Supercupa României , winning both. Sepsi's club colours are red and white in honour of the local football tradition. After playing during its first years at the Municipal Stadium in Sfântu Gheorghe, the squad was moved to the namesake Sepsi Arena Stadium in 2021. László Diószegi and Dávid Kertész decided to start a new football club in the summer of 2011. They picked

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2816-717: The Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem or the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem ." He asked the priest at the shrine "Do you get many Muslims coming here?" The priest replied, "We get hundreds! Almost as many as the Christian pilgrims. Often, when I come in here, I find Muslims all over the floor, in the aisles, up and down." The Encyclopædia Britannica quotes G. A. Smith in his Historic Geography of

2904-744: The English Reformation . Belief in an apparition of George heartened the Franks at the Battle of Antioch in 1098, and a similar appearance occurred the following year at Jerusalem. The chivalric military Order of Sant Jordi d'Alfama was established by king Peter the Catholic from the Crown of Aragon in 1201, Republic of Genoa , Kingdom of Hungary (1326), and by Frederick III, Holy Roman Emperor . Edward III of England put his Order of

2992-700: The Golden Legend , would go on to become very influential, as it remains the most familiar version in English owing to William Caxton 's 15th-century translation. In the medieval romances, the lance with which George slew the dragon was called Ascalon, after the Levantine city of Ashkelon , today in Israel. The name Ascalon was used by Winston Churchill for his personal aircraft during World War II, according to records at Bletchley Park . Iconography of

3080-477: The Liga I . Founded in 2011, it achieved promotion to the top tier in six years by quickly climbing through the Romanian league system . Sepsi thus became the first team from Covasna—a county with a majority of Székely ethnics —to play in the Liga I. Since its promotion, it qualified for three Cupa României finals, claiming the trophy in the 2021–22 and 2022–23 seasons . As cup holders, Sepsi also participated in

3168-475: The Liga III promotion play-off, where they faced the champion of Vrancea County , Selena Jariștea. Following a 1–1 draw after extra time, they won 6–5 on penalties, being subsequently promoted to the third division. After a satisfying third place in the 2014–15 Liga III , promotion to Liga II was set as the objective for the next season. They won the 2015–16 Liga III and were promoted, which represented

3256-615: The Paris Peace Treaties of 1947 reaffirmed the town and the entirety of Transylvania as a Romanian territory. Between 1952 and 1960, Sfântu Gheorghe was the southernmost town of the Magyar Autonomous Region , and between 1960 and 1968 it was part of the Brașov Region . In 1968, when Romania was reorganized based on counties rather than regions, the city became the seat of Covasna County. Sfântu Gheorghe

3344-609: The Supercupa României , winning the 2023 edition 1–0 against Farul Constanța . Co-founder and present owner László Diószegi is an entrepreneur who runs the Diószegi chain of bakeries. After starting with a bakery shop opened in Sfântu Gheorghe by his family and another associate in the 1990s, the business grew to sell bakery products through several shops in Romania and England. In comparison to other Liga I teams at

3432-712: The Treaty of Trianon of 1920, it became part of the Kingdom of Romania and the seat of Trei Scaune County . In 1940, the Second Vienna Award granted Northern Transylvania to the Kingdom of Hungary . Near the end of that period, the Sfântu Gheorghe ghetto briefly existed in the town. In September 1944, during World War II , Romanian and Soviet armies entered the town. The territory of Northern Transylvania remained under Soviet military administration until March 9, 1945, after which it became again part of Romania;

3520-432: The medieval times. The story of the defeat of the dragon is not part of Saint George's earliest hagiographies, and seems to have been a later addition. The earliest text which preserves fragments of George's narrative is in a Greek hagiography which is identified by Hippolyte Delehaye of the scholarly Bollandists to be a palimpsest of the 5th century. An earlier work by Eusebius , Church history , written in

3608-758: The 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2021, 2022, and 2023 seasons. The city also has a futsal team which plays in the Romanian First Division. The name of the team is Futsal Club Sfântu Gheorghe ( Sepsiszentgyörgyi Futsal Club ). The city has two theaters (the Andrei Mureșanu Theater and the Tamási Áron Theater), a county library (the Covasna County Library  [ ro ] ), and two museums (the National Museum of

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3696-571: The 4th century, contributed to the legend but did not name George or provide significant detail. The work of the Bollandists Daniel Papebroch , Jean Bolland , and Godfrey Henschen in the 17th century was one of the first pieces of scholarly research to establish the saint's historicity, via their publications in Bibliotheca Hagiographica Graeca . Pope Gelasius I stated in 494 that George

3784-459: The Cathedral. On September 28, 2024, a bust of Archpriest Aurel Nistor (1882-1974) was unveiled, by Moldovan sculptor Veaceslav Jiglițchi. Saint George This is an accepted version of this page Saint George ( ‹See Tfd› Greek : Γεώργιος , translit.   Geṓrgios ; died 23 April 303), also George of Lydda , was an early Christian martyr who is venerated as

3872-674: The Eastern Carpathians  [ ro ] and the Székely National Museum  [ ro ] ). The Hungarian artist Jenő Gyárfás was born there and was a lifelong resident. His former studio is now an art gallery and exhibition hall. The Orthodox Cathedral of “St. George the Great Martyr and St. Nicholas” was built from 1939 to 1983. In 1993 the Museum of Romanian Spirituality was established at

3960-690: The European play-offs, which meant they would take part for the first time in European competitions . Sepsi was drawn against Slovakian side Spartak Trnava in the second round of the UEFA Conference League , but were eliminated due to a 3–4 penalty shoot-out loss after two draws. The club secured a European spot again at the end of the 2021–22 campaign by winning the Cupa României final —left midfielder Marius Ștefănescu scored

4048-571: The Garter under the banner of George, probably in 1348. The chronicler Jean Froissart observed the English invoking George as a battle cry on several occasions during the Hundred Years' War . In his rise as a national saint, George was aided by the very fact that the saint had no legendary connection with England, and no specifically localised shrine, as that of Thomas Becket at Canterbury: "Consequently, numerous shrines were established during

4136-469: The Holy Land , p. 164, saying: "The Mahommedans who usually identify St. George with the prophet Elijah, at Lydda confound his legend with one about Christ himself. Their name for Antichrist is Dajjal , and they have a tradition that Jesus will slay Antichrist by the gate of Lydda. The notion sprang from an ancient bas-relief of George and the Dragon on the Lydda church. But Dajjal may be derived, by

4224-536: The Holy land (1866): St George killed the dragon in this country; and the place is shown close to Beyroot . Many churches and convents are named after him. The church at Lydda is dedicated to George; so is a convent near Bethlehem , and another small one just opposite the Jaffa gate , and others beside. The Arabs believe that George can restore mad people to their senses, and to say a person has been sent to St. George's

4312-410: The Saints ) also known as Legenda Aurea (the Golden Legend ). Its 177 chapters (182 in some editions) include the story of George, among many others. After the invention of the printing press, the book became a best seller. The establishment of George as a popular saint and protective giant in the West, that had captured the medieval imagination, was codified by the official elevation of his feast to

4400-418: The Second Sunday of Easter inclusive, it is transferred to the Monday after the Second Sunday of Easter. George is very much honoured by the Eastern Orthodox Church, wherein he is referred to as a "Great Martyr", and in Oriental Orthodoxy overall. His major feast day is on 23 April (Julian calendar 23 April currently corresponds to Gregorian calendar 6 May). If, however, the feast occurs before Easter , it

4488-469: The Seljuk Sultan Mesud II and Byzantine Emperor Andronicus II are also named in the inscriptions. A shrine attributed to prophet George can be found in Diyarbakır , Turkey. Evliya Çelebi states in his Seyahatname that he visited the tombs of prophet Jonah and prophet George in the city. The reverence for Saint George, who is often identified with Al-Khidr, is deeply integrated into various aspects of Druze culture and religious practices. He

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4576-407: The area of the town. The previous area of their settlement was around the town of "Sebes" (now Sebeș , in Alba County ) which later became populated mainly by Transylvanian Saxons ( German : Siebenbürger Sachsen ), being known as Mühlbach in German. While part of the Kingdom of Hungary , the town was the economic and administrative center of the Hungarian county of Háromszék , which spanned

4664-500: The church. Intercession to George of Edathua is believed to be efficacious in repelling snakes and in curing mental ailments. The sacred relics of George were brought to Antioch from Mardin in 900 and were taken to Kerala, India, from Antioch in 1912 by Mar Dionysius of Vattasseril and kept in the Orthodox seminary at Kundara, Kerala. H.H. Mathews II Catholicos had given the relics to St. George churches at Puthupally, Kottayam District, and Chandanappally, Pathanamthitta district. George

4752-416: The city is football. The city has a men's football team, called Sepsi OSK Sfântu Gheorghe (Sepsiszentgyörgyi OSK). In the 2016–2017 season the team was promoted from Liga II and currently plays in Liga I . Sfântu Gheorghe has also a women's basketball team, called ACS Sepsi SIC . The club competes in Liga Națională (the Romanian First League). Sepsi SIC has won the Romanian Championship 7 times: in

4840-424: The city is the textile industry. The city holds underutilized production capabilities such as a downsized automobile transmission parts and gearboxes factory (IMASA SA) and a tobacco factory ( ȚIGARETE SA  [ ro ] ). Services sector contains growing areas such as IT services with ROMARG SRL the leading domain registrar and web hosting provider in Romania having its headquarters here. The main sport in

4928-651: The club is named Székely Légió which is Hungarian for "Szekler Legion". The group traces its origins to the supporters of the defunct Olt Sport Klub from the 1970s. Members of the group are known for showing their support for Sepsi OSK through singing before, during and after the game regardless of the result. Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules . Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality. Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules . Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality. Bold indicates players who play still at

5016-409: The club started a series of investments into infrastructure which included the creation of training grounds for its youth center and building a UEFA Category 4 stadium . In the years which followed the promotion, Sepsi OSK managed to stay in the Liga I, qualifying for the first time to the championship play-offs in the 2018–19 season . In the summer of 2020, Sepsi reached the Cupa României final for

5104-541: The colour of his horse. Gray horses are called green in Arabic. The mosque of Nabi Jurjis, which was restored by Timur in the 14th century, was located in Mosul and supposedly contained the tomb of George. It was however destroyed in July 2014 by the occupying Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant , who also destroyed the Mosque of the Prophet Sheeth ( Seth ) and the Mosque of the Prophet Younis ( Jonah ). The militants claimed that such mosques have become places for apostasy instead of prayer. George or Hazrat Jurjays

5192-448: The countries of England , Bosnia and Herzegovina , Bulgaria , Georgia , Ukraine , Malta , Ethiopia , the regions of Catalonia and Aragon , and the city of Moscow have claimed George as their patron saint, as have several other regions, cities, universities, professions, and organizations. The Church of Saint George in Lod (Lydda), Israel , has a sarcophagus traditionally believed to contain St. George's remains. Very little

5280-418: The dedication of a local church. When the English Reformation severely curtailed the saints' days in the calendar, Saint George's Day was among the holidays that continued to be observed. In April 2019, the parish church of São Jorge, in São Jorge , Madeira Island , Portugal, solemnly received the relics of George, patron saint of the parish. During the celebrations the 504th anniversary of its foundation,

5368-486: The end of 2019, Sepsi OSK stood out with by far the highest revenue obtained from corporate sponsorship deals and having the least debt. Some of the companies that have or had sponsorship deals with Sepsi OSK include Hungarian firms Gyermelyi, OTP Bank and MOL . Sepsi OSK was granted in total 2 billion Hungarian forints between 2017 and 2018 by the Hungarian government to be used for developing club infrastructure, thus contributing with approximately €6 million to build

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5456-497: The first time, but lost it 0–1 to FCSB at the Ilie Oană Stadium in Ploiești . On their route to the last game of the competition, Sepsi eliminated Ripensia Timișoara , Astra Giurgiu , Petrolul Ploiești and Politehnica Iași ; in all but one of the five matches "the Székelys" scored at least three goals. In the 2020–21 season , Sepsi entered the championship play-offs for the second time in their history. They finished fourth place and went on to defeat Viitorul Constanța 1–0 in

5544-407: The first two 2018 home games at the Ilie Oană Stadium in Ploiești . Meanwhile, the structure of the stand was fortified to support TV-radio cabins in 2017. Also the seating capacity was increased the same year with 1,500 seats donated to Sepsi OSK from the demolished Ferenc Puskás Stadium . The old floodlight system of DAC was also donated to Sepsi OSK and installed in the stadium in 2018. As

5632-430: The general course of the Greek legend, but Diocletian here becomes Dacian, Emperor of the Persians . His martyrdom was greatly extended to more than twenty separate tortures over the course of seven years. Over the course of his martyrdom, 40,900 pagans were converted to Christianity, including the Empress Alexandra. When George finally died, the wicked Dacian was carried away in a whirlwind of fire. In later Latin versions,

5720-424: The highest distinction", according to the church history of Eusebius ; the name of the titulus "patron" was not indicated. The Church of Saint George and Mosque of Al-Khadr located in the city is believed to have housed his remains. The veneration of George spread from Syria Palaestina through Lebanon to the rest of the Byzantine Empire – though the martyr is not mentioned in the Syriac Breviarium – and

5808-480: The historical existence of St. George", although no faith can be placed in either the details of his history or his alleged exploits. The Diocletianic Persecution of 303, associated with military saints because the persecution was aimed at Christians among the professional soldiers of the Roman army , is of undisputed historicity. According to Donald Attwater , No historical particulars of his life have survived, ... The widespread veneration for St George as

5896-443: The horseman with spear overcoming evil was widespread throughout the Christian period. George ( Arabic : جرجس , Jirjis or Girgus ) is included in some Muslim texts as a prophetic figure. The Islamic sources state that he lived among a group of believers who were in direct contact with the last apostles of Jesus . He is described as a rich merchant who opposed erection of Apollo 's statue by Mosul 's king Dadan. After confronting

5984-409: The king, George was tortured many times to no effect, was imprisoned and was aided by the angels. Eventually, he exposed that the idols were possessed by Satan, but was martyred when the city was destroyed by God in a rain of fire. Muslim scholars had tried to find a historical connection of the saint due to his popularity. According to Muslim legend, he was martyred under the rule of Diocletian and

6072-409: The late fifteenth century," Muriel C. McClendon has written, "and his did not become closely identified with a particular occupation or with the cure of a specific malady." In the wake of the Crusades, George became a model of chivalry in works of literature, including medieval romances . In the 13th century, Jacobus de Voragine , Archbishop of Genoa, compiled the Legenda Sanctorum , ( Readings of

6160-401: The literature in 1999, tells us that J. E. Hanauer in his 1907 book Folklore of the Holy Land: Muslim, Christian and Jewish "mentioned a shrine in the village of Beit Jala , beside Bethlehem , which at the time was frequented by Christians who regarded it as the birthplace of George and some Jews who regarded it as the burial place of the Prophet Elias . According to Hanauer, in his day

6248-520: The monastery was "a sort of madhouse. Deranged persons of all the three faiths are taken thither and chained in the court of the chapel, where they are kept for forty days on bread and water, the Eastern Orthodox priest at the head of the establishment now and then reading the Gospel over them, or administering a whipping as the case demands." In the 1920s, according to Tawfiq Canaan 's Mohammedan Saints and Sanctuaries in Palestine , nothing seemed to have changed, and all three communities were still visiting

6336-531: The persecutor is the Roman emperor Decius , or a Roman judge named Dacian serving under Diocletian. The earliest known record of the legend of Saint George and the Dragon occurs in the 11th century, in a Georgian source, reaching Catholic Europe in the 12th century. In the Golden Legend , by 13th-century Archbishop of Genoa Jacobus de Voragine , George's death was at the hands of Dacian , and about

6424-601: The present-day Covasna County and parts of Brașov County . In the second half of the 19th century, Sepsiszentgyörgy witnessed the development of light industry, a textile and a cigarette factory being built. In the aftermath of World War I , the Union of Transylvania with Romania was declared in December 1918. At the start of the Hungarian–Romanian War of 1918–1919, the town passed under Romanian administration. After

6512-534: The red and white colors to honor the football traditions of Sfântu Gheorghe and chose the name OSK as an acronym reminiscent of the defunct Olt Sport Klub . They wanted the name of the city to be also included in the club's name, so they chose the prefix Sepsi form Sepsiszentgyörgy , which is the Hungarian name of the city. In order to be able to enroll to Liga V they signed a collaboration agreement with Clubul Sportiv Școlar from Sfântu Gheorghe and formed

6600-583: The region east of the Black Sea . By the 5th century, the veneration of George had reached the Christian Western Roman Empire , as well: in 494, George was canonized as a saint by Pope Gelasius I , among those "which are known better to God than to human beings." The early cult of the saint was localized in Diospolis (Lydda) , in Palestine. The first description of Lydda as a pilgrimage site where George's relics were venerated

6688-503: The relics were brought by the new Bishop of Funchal, D. Nuno Brás . George is renowned throughout the Middle East, as both saint and prophet. His veneration by Christians and Muslims lies in his composite personality combining several biblical, Quranic and other ancient mythical heroes. Saint George is the patron saint of Lebanese Christians , Palestinian Christians and Syrian Christians . William Dalrymple , who reviewed

6776-520: The saint in England is a church at Fordington, Dorset , that is mentioned in the will of Alfred the Great . George did not rise to the position of "patron saint" of England, however, until the 14th century, and he was still obscured by Edward the Confessor , the traditional patron saint of England, until in 1552 during the reign of Edward VI all saints' banners other than George's were abolished in

6864-808: The seventh of the month of Hatour of the Coptic calendar usually equivalent to 17 November. In India, the Syro-Malabar Catholic Church , one of the oriental catholic churches ( Eastern Catholic Churches ), and Malankara Orthodox Church venerate George. The main pilgrim centres of the saint in India are at Aruvithura and Puthuppally in Kottayam District, Edathua in Alappuzha district, and Edappally in Ernakulam district of

6952-603: The shrine and praying together." Dalrymple himself visited the place in 1995. "I asked around in the Christian Quarter in Jerusalem , and discovered that the place was very much alive. With all the greatest shrines in the Christian world to choose from, it seemed that when the local Arab Christians had a problem – an illness, or something more complicated – they preferred to seek the intercession of George in his grubby little shrine at Beit Jala rather than praying at

7040-422: The southern state of Kerala . The saint is commemorated each year from 27 April to 14 May at Edathua. On 27 April after the flag hoisting ceremony by the parish priest, the statue of the saint is taken from one of the altars and placed at the extension of the church to be venerated by devotees till 14 May. The main feast day is 7 May, when the statue of the saint along with other saints is taken in procession around

7128-436: The year 287. The tradition tells that a fierce dragon was causing panic at the city of Silene, Libya , at the time George arrived there. In order to prevent the dragon from devastating people from the city, they gave two sheep each day to the dragon, but when the sheep were not enough they were forced to sacrifice humans, elected by the city's own people. Eventually, the king's daughter was chosen to be sacrificed, and no one

7216-515: Was among those saints "whose names are justly reverenced among men, but whose actions are known only to God." The most complete version, based upon the fifth-century Greek text but in a later form, survives in a translation into Syriac from about 600. From text fragments preserved in the British Library , a translation into English was published in 1925. In the Greek tradition, George

7304-599: Was born to noble Christian parents, in Cappadocia . After his father died, his mother, who was originally from Lydda , in Syria Palaestina (a part of the Byzantine Empire), returned with George to her hometown. He went on to become a soldier for the Roman army ; but, because of his Christian faith, he was arrested and tortured, "at or near Lydda, also called Diospolis "; on the following day, he

7392-457: Was killed three times but resurrected every time. The legend is more developed in the Persian version of al-Tabari wherein he resurrects the dead, makes trees sprout and pillars bear flowers. After one of his deaths, the world is covered by darkness which is lifted only when he is resurrected. He is able to convert the queen but she is put to death. He then prays to God to allow him to die, which

7480-441: Was opened with a league match against FC Voluntari in 2021. Being the first team from Covasna County—a county with a majority of ethnic Szeklers/Hungarians—to achieve promotion to the top tier of Romanian football, Sepsi OSK is widely supported among Hungarians. In the 2018–19 season home game attendance fluctuated between 2,000 and 3,500, with an average of 2,682 spectators per game. The only known organised supporter group of

7568-524: Was paraded and then beheaded, and his body was buried in Lydda. According to other sources, after his mother's death, George travelled to the eastern imperial capital, Nicomedia , where he was persecuted by one Dadianus . In later versions of the Greek legend, this name is rationalised to Diocletian , and George's martyrdom is placed in the Diocletian persecution of AD 303. The setting in Nicomedia

7656-462: Was the patron saint of Mosul. Along with Theodosius , he was revered by both Christian and Muslim communities of Jazira and Anatolia . The wall paintings of Kırk Dam Altı Kilise at Belisırma dedicated to him are dated between 1282 and 1304. These paintings depict him as a mounted knight appearing between donors including a Georgian lady called Thamar and her husband, the Emir and Consul Basil, while

7744-424: Was willing to take her place. George saved the girl by slaying the dragon with a lance. The king was so grateful that he offered him treasures as a reward for saving his daughter's life, but George refused it and insisted he give them to the poor. The people of the city were so amazed at what they had witnessed that they all became Christians and were baptized. Saint George's encounter with a dragon , as narrated in

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