Sfânta Mare Muceniță Varvara – ocrotitoare de boli prin prisma interconexiunilor patrimoniului cultural (aspecte onomastice, etnologice și eclesiastice)

Abstract

The Holy Great Martyr Varvara is a protector of diseases, especially of varicella or smallpox in children. The life of Saint Varvara was marked by the help of the sick and the suffering. The therapeutic powers of Saint Varvara / Barbara are invoked both in the prayers of Orthodox Christians and in those of Catholic parishioners. The first name Varvara originally meant a foreign or coming from outside. Over time, the first name Varvara was associated with the Saint who dedicated her life to the service of Christ. Saint Varvara is a guardian of sudden death, being the protector of miners. In the Romanian space, the parishioners built multiple places of worship, dedicated to Saint Varvara, the ecclesiastical patrimony being represented by numerous icons, painted with the gentle face of the righteous virgin.