In the circle of believers or people who only come to God, there is an opinion that there are some kind of "magic icons" with which you can light a candle, and the request of the supplicant will immediately or after a while be fulfilled.
Reality or Superstition?
Unfortunately, the calculation for the fulfillment of a wish by an icon is based on a misunderstanding of the essence of the Christian faith, fragmentary knowledge that someone once and somewhere was heard, and even just superstition.
Superstitions also exist in the church fence. For example, many perceive the sacrament of unction as an anointing of the death before death, and for this reason many refuse it.
In Orthodoxy, there really is a tradition to pray to saints in different needs, but it is worth making an important reservation: they pray first of all to God, and the saints rather act as helpers and intercessors. That is why in the texts of prayers there is so often the repeated phrase "… holy saint of God, pray to God for me."
In addition, no candle placed in front of an icon can be neither a guarantor, much less a condition for God: "I light a candle, and for this I will fulfill my desires."
It is clear that under various difficult circumstances one wants to leave a place for miracles - and they do happen in life. But even more often a "miracle" turns out to be completely man-made and requires, first of all, serious inner work of a person.
Which saints to turn to in different everyday circumstances
Nevertheless, a prayer appeal in difficult times to God and the saints is a living and very explicable manifestation of faith.
You can turn to any saint in prayer, and there are no restrictions: some treat the saints whose name they bear with special trepidation, others venerate the righteous people known among the people.
There are also saints glorified by the Church, to whom it is customary to turn in specific life circumstances.
For example, in case of illness, they most often resort to the Great Martyr Panteleimon, Saint Luke of Crimea (Voino-Yasenetsky) or the Martyr Antipas - they are known for their miraculous healings, which they performed during their lifetime. When looking for work, believers pray to the martyr Tryphon, and the girls prayerfully trust their hopes for future marriage to the Great Martyr Catherine and the noble princes Peter and Fevronia.
Some Orthodox Christians treat miraculous icons, relics of the righteous and other shrines with special trepidation. The history of these Christian relics, as a rule, has more than one hundred years and is associated with miracles - amazing and sometimes impossible healings, the birth of long-awaited heirs and the resolution of difficult life circumstances. That is why the appearance of famous shrines causes such a resonance in society, and people spend many hours in line to see them.
142 thousand people came to bow to the Gifts of the Magi brought to Moscow from Athos, and the average time spent in line was about 6-8 hours.
The main thing to remember is that the saints are not wizards who, on demand, should help in buying an apartment, arranging a personal life or changing jobs. First of all, they are friends and “paths” that can help lead a person to the most important thing, that is, to God.
