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New Martyr19th century

New Martyr Raiko of Bulgaria

1784–1802

Also known as Raiko-John · John of Bulgaria

A Bulgarian new martyr who suffered under Ottoman rule; few details of his life are preserved.

May 14New Calendar
Feast Day
May 27Old Calendar
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Commemorated as

The Holy New Martyr Raiko of Shumen

Life

Raiko of Bulgaria, also called John, was a young goldsmith of Shumen (Shumla) in northeastern Bulgaria who was put to death in 1802 during the Ottoman period and is venerated as a New Martyr. He is commemorated on May 14, the day of his execution. The Orthodox Church in America's synaxarion preserves his name, his alternate name John, and his feast day but carries no detailed narrative; the surviving account of his sufferings derives from the wider hagiographic tradition of the New Martyrs of the Ottoman Balkans.

By tradition he was eighteen years old at his death, having been born about 1784. His martyrdom is associated with the record-keeping of Saint Nikephoros of Chios, who chronicled many of the New Martyrs of his era, and his memory was kept locally in Shumen long before any formal act of glorification.

Kontakion & Troparion2 hymnsReadHide
KontakionTone 2

(Podoben: “You sought the heights...”) You appeared as a bright star announcing Christ with your radiance,
which is repulsive to this world, O Martyr Raiko;
extinguishing the allure of false gods,
you enlighten the faithful,
always interceding for us all.

Text used with permission of the Orthodox Church in America (oca.org).

TroparionTone 3

Your holy martyr Raiko, O Lord,
through his sufferings has received an incorruptible crown from You, our God.
For having Your strength, he laid low his adversaries,
and shattered the powerless boldness of demons.
Through his intercessions, save our souls!

Text used with permission of the Orthodox Church in America (oca.org).

Timeline3 momentsReadHide
  1. c. 1784Birth in ShumenRaiko is born in Shumen (Shumla), a town in northeastern Bulgaria then under Ottoman rule. He takes up the trade of goldsmith.
  2. 1802Accusation and trialBy tradition, at about eighteen years of age, Raiko is brought before the local Islamic judge after a false accusation arising from a household to which he was contracted for work. Offered conversion to Islam in exchange for his life, he refuses to renounce Christ.
  3. May 14, 1802MartyrdomAfter enduring prolonged torture, Raiko is beheaded. He is venerated thereafter as a New Martyr, his feast kept on the day of his death.

Contributions & Legacy

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Martyrdom

According to the tradition recorded of him, Raiko was contracted for work by a wealthy Muslim household across from his shop, and a false accusation brought him before the local Islamic judge. He was offered the choice of converting to Islam, which would have spared his life, or facing punishment, and he refused to abandon his Christian faith.

The accounts describe severe and repeated torture before his death, said to include beating, the driving of spikes beneath his nails, hanging, being broken on a wheel, and burning with torches, all of which he is said to have endured without renouncing Christ. He was beheaded on May 14, 1802, the date on which he is commemorated.

Veneration and Legacy

Raiko's martyrdom belongs to the body of New Martyr accounts gathered in the Ottoman period and is associated with the hagiographic work of Saint Nikephoros of Chios. An icon of the saint was placed in the Church of the Ascension in Shumen, and his memory was preserved locally over the generations.

By tradition his veneration was given formal recognition by the Bulgarian Orthodox Church in 2017, though the detailed source material for his life remains limited, and major synaxaria such as that of the Orthodox Church in America record little beyond his name and feast.

Related Saints1 saintShowHide

Saints connected to his life, mission, and place in Orthodox tradition.

Chronicler — the hagiographer of the Ottoman-era New Martyrs in whose tradition the account of Raiko's martyrdom was preserved.
Venerable Nikephorosof Chios

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Sources: OCA Synaxarion (oca.org), Lives of the Saints