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St Modestos's Day
The Greek Orthodox feast of the protector of farm animals, when priests bless the cattle and flocks of the village.
Cattle at St Modestos's Day
St Modestos, a patriarch of Jerusalem in the seventh century, is honoured in the Greek Orthodox Church as the protector of livestock, and his feast falls on 18 December. In many villages of Greece and Cyprus the priest blesses the animals, either in the church square or in the stalls, and farmers bring bread, wheat or other offerings to the church. In some places a sweet bread or a dish of boiled grain is shared, and part is given to the animals. Herding families pray to the saint when an animal is sick, and his icon often shows him with cattle, sheep and goats at his feet.
Also part of it, and being written: Greek Shorthorn (The small native cattle of the Greek mountains.).
Written by the EveryCow desk with AI assistance. Background: "Modestus of Jerusalem" on Wikipedia. Customs differ from place to place and family to family. If this is your tradition and we have it wrong, tell us.