Synaxis of Saint John the Baptist
20 January 2026 — May the candle glow, the table be generous and the home be full of good guests!
On 20 January (Gregorian calendar) the Serbian Orthodox Church, which follows the Julian calendar, marks the Synaxis of Saint John the Baptist, known as Jovandan. It comes the day after Epiphany and honours John, who baptised Jesus in the River Jordan. In Serbia it is one of the most widely kept family slavas. The slava is a tradition honouring the patron saint of a family, passed down from father to son, and it is inscribed on UNESCO's list of intangible cultural heritage. Usually a priest visits the home, or the bread is blessed in church: a slava bread (ceremonial loaf) and wheat are blessed, a candle is lit, the bread is cut crosswise and wine is poured over it. Guests are then welcomed to a generous table, which is meat-free if the feast falls on a Wednesday or Friday. The feast has a fixed date – 7 January in the Julian calendar, which currently corresponds to 20 January in the Gregorian calendar (until 2100). In the winter sky at this time, Orion and Canis Major shine, and the nights are long.
Flying across the sky: An ethereal, bluish-silver figure made of luminous dots and fine lines, like a constellation drifting across the sky: a round ceremonial bread, a single tall candle with a small flame, and a water jug, softly connected by thin star-lines
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