Cappadocia is known as the birthplace of several saints, but the most famous among them is Saint George, born in the second half of the 3rd century. This Turkish region is incredibly fascinating if you enjoy exploring religious history, as Christians lived here from the very beginnings of the spread of the faith and built their churches in Cappadocia.
Where Saint George Was Born
Saint George was the son of wealthy Christian parents, and at the age of 20, he served in the Roman army under Emperor Diocletian.
During this time, the Roman Emperor initiated religious persecution against Christians and called upon his top officers. Young George boldly confessed his devotion to Christianity, which led to his imprisonment and constant torture. Despite this, he prayed relentlessly. When pressured to renounce his faith to save his life, George declared that he was willing to die for his religion, just as his father had done when George was a child.
The story goes that George was divinely protected, enduring no lasting physical harm despite the tortures, being miraculously healed time and time again. After performing various miracles, including the resurrection of a person from an ancient tomb, many were converted to Christianity, even the emperor’s wife, Alexandra. However, the emperor eventually ordered George’s beheading in 303 AD, and Alexandra passed away shortly before his execution.
Saint George became widely known for his miracles and heroic acts to help others. He is often depicted with a dragon, based on the legend where a dragon terrorized the town of Athaliah, demanding the sacrifice of a young girl each year. Saint George subdued the dragon and saved the village.
In my home country, there is a tradition where every Serbian Christian Orthodox family celebrates a patron saint, passed down from father to son, in a celebration called Slava. Though I’m not particularly religious, I respect this tradition, and was genuinely moved to visit the place where Saint George was born—the saint my family celebrates and dedicates its Slava to.
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12 responses
Love your stories. I definitively come back to read more if I travel to Cappadocia.
Oh, thank you, you’re very kind. Please do! 🙂
Fantastic tradition is the Slava we were recently in Belgrade and did a food tour with taste Serbia who took us to a slava
Than you know what it means to a Serbian. Glad you’ve been to Slava. 🙂
This is a lovely story. I always find it interesting to read and learn about the ancient cultures, their practices, their stories and their believes of justice, injustice and miracles. It is really a strong tradition that your family and your home country still follows!
Thank you! It’s the only way to see the world, to travel and learn, in my opinion – only if one respects other cultures and traditions. And I’m astonished by the diversity of it all!
An interesting story about a Saint I really didn’t know much about! It must have been an interesting place to visit, especially if you follow this faith.
It’s always interesting to visit places like this, combining legends with religion etc. Thanks!
Would love to visit Cappadocia one day – I keep seeing so many stunning photos. Interesting, I’ve never read much into the history, so you provided some great insights there.
When you decide to go, come back and read some more, this whole month is about Cappadocia on my blog. 😉 Thanks!
This is the kind of place I dream of visiting in the near future. Hope I can materialize this dream soon to see also in real the Cappadocia 🙂
Hope you do, and that this Cappadocia blog series here will be helpful. 🙂