A special holiday on September 24 is Fedorina's evenings: history, traditions, omens

Every year on September 24, Orthodox Christians honor the memory of St. Theodora of Alexandria, an ascetic who lived in the fifth century. In the national calendar, the day is known as Fedorina's evenings — the moment of saying goodbye to Indian summer and meeting ripe autumn. In 2025, the holiday falls on a Wednesday. Read about its history, traditions, prohibitions and omens in the Izvestia article.

What is the church holiday on September 24th?

The history of the feast of Feodorina Vecherka goes back to the biography of St. Theodora of Alexandria, a saint whose spiritual transformation and life path became symbols of the deepest repentance, patience and courage.

She lived in Alexandria in the 5th century and was a faithful wife and a virtuous Christian. Her family life was filled with love and harmony, but it was disrupted by temptation — a rich man, blinded by the beauty of Theodora, tried to persuade her to sin. Having been refused, he bribed a pimp, who, resorting to insidious deception, convinced a gullible woman that God does not punish a sin committed at night.

Succumbing to the influence, Theodora cheated on her husband, but soon realized what she had done and plunged into deep remorse. She publicly confessed to the crime and asked for advice from a friend of the abbess. She recalled the gospel parable of the harlot forgiven by Christ, strengthening her faith in Divine mercy.

Theodora decided to leave the mundane life, cut off her hair, dressed in men's clothes and went to a monastery, hiding her feminine nature. Calling herself Monk Theodore, she obtained the abbot's blessing to join the brotherhood, where for eight years she led a life of extreme abstinence, diligence and prayer. Even experienced monks were surprised by the saint's asceticism, her fasts were strict, her prayers were continuous, and her behavior was impeccable.

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But the trials didn't end there. Once, Theodora was falsely accused of adultery by a girl who became pregnant by another man. The abbot and the brethren believed the slander, and the saint was expelled from the monastery, giving her a baby. The monk accepted this as God's will — she built a hut near the monastery, ate herbs, and raised her child in poverty and prayer for seven years.

Then Theodora was allowed to return to the monastery, where she taught her adopted son virtue and the fear of God. After her death, the abbot of the monastery received a revelation about her true feat and holy nature. Upon discovering the female body of the monk, the monks realized their mistake, contritely asked for forgiveness and began to revere her as a great saint of God.

Later, her husband also came to the monastery, who did not stop looking for a wife. After learning about Fedora's feat, he took monastic vows in the same monastery and lived the rest of his life in fasting and prayer. The adopted son of the monk became abbot, continuing her work.

Traditions of the national holiday of Fedorina Vecherki on September 24

In Russia, September 24 was called "Fedorin's evenings", "Fedora Kapustnitsa", "Fedora autumn", "The End of Indian Summer", "Obder". These names reflected the economic and seasonal meaning of the holiday. The day marked the beginning of active preparations for winter. The peasants said, "Fedora, wet your tail," "Every summer ends, autumn begins," because after September 24, the weather worsened and heavy rains fell.

In the old days, it was customary to finish work in the fields and gardens on Fedora, the peasants checked the winter crops — thick shoots of winter promised a good harvest. On this day, men were engaged in household chores, women were cleaning houses, yards, barns. Everything related to preparing for the cold weather —winter supplies, roofs, outbuildings —was checked and put in order.

The main tradition of the day was women's gatherings — they gathered in the same house, spun together, patched clothes, knitted and harvested cabbage. Hence the expression "cabbage evenings". The work was accompanied by songs, jokes, tea drinking and leisurely conversations. Such meetings helped to cope with the autumn blues and created an atmosphere of unity.

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Cabbage was given a special place on this day. It was used to make traditional dishes (cabbage soup, pies, cabbage rolls) and various preparations. This vegetable in Russia was considered a symbol of health and prosperity, it was used not only in nutrition, but also in folk medicine.

An important ceremony was the "autumn service" — helping the priest's family. The women collectively came to clean the yard, house, barn, and brought treats, supplies, and vegetables.

What not to do on the feast of Fedorina vecherka on September 24

In popular culture, there are many prohibitions and warnings associated with this day. Our ancestors believed that violating these rules could lead to troubles in the family and home. So, on the holiday of Fedorina's party, it was necessary to handle the dishes carefully, breaking it meant that the family would have a lot of minor troubles.

What else you can't do on September 24th:

• Picking up found objects, especially at intersections or doorsteps, leads to illness and loss.;
• Starting important business or signing contracts is inevitable.;
• to purchase large or expensive items — they will quickly fail.;
• Washing your hair can cause you to lose your memory or sanity.;
• frying potatoes for newlyweds will lead to quarrels in the family;
• For married women, preening themselves promised her husband's jealousy and family discord.;
• talking nonsense and gossiping — the day required silence, concentration and inner peace.

Folk signs for September 24

Our ancestors associated the day of Fedorin's evenings with the end of autumn warmth and the arrival of cold weather. The peasants observed nature and animal behavior, making predictions about the end of autumn and the coming winter.

• If there are a lot of mushrooms in the forest on Fedora, the winter will be cold and snowy.;
• Moles actively carry supplies to their burrows in case of severe frosts.;
• anthills are high — for a prolonged winter;
• rain on this day — the sun will not appear soon;
• Seagulls are circling high — for windy weather.

Earlier, Izvestia reported on the traditions and prohibitions of the Akim and Anna national holiday.