Martyr Martyr Rayko-John the Bulgarian, of Shumen

Rayko (baptized John) was born around 1784 and lived in Shumen, then part of the Silistra eyalet of the Ottoman Empire (present-day northeastern Bulgaria). By age 18 he had become a goldsmith, known for his beauty and devout Christian faith; his workshop stood in the city center, opposite the house of a local Turkish official.

That official's unmarried daughter fell in love with the young Christian and, unable to win him otherwise, lured him to her home under the pretext of having a ring resized, then attempted to seduce him. When Rayko refused and pushed her away, she fell, cried out, and falsely accused him of attempted assault. Ottoman authorities arrested him and brought him before a judge, who offered him a choice: convert to Islam and marry the girl — becoming, they promised, "a great agha" — or be tortured to death.

Rayko refused categorically, declaring: "I believe in Christ. I am a Christian, and a Christian I shall die." Enraged, his tormentors subjected him to escalating torture: they cut strips of skin from his stomach and back, packed the wounds with salt, and burned them with candles, repeatedly renewing offers of wealth and rank if he would apostatize. When their cruelty failed to break his faith, the local mufti ordered the torture stopped and Rayko beheaded. He was martyred on May 14, 1802. His death was witnessed and recorded by a hieromonk, whose account was later preserved and transmitted by Venerable Nikephoros of Chios, a compiler of the New Martyrs' lives.