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When the church service is on for Christmas. About the Slavic and Russian languages in worship. What do they do in church on Christmas Day: how to fast, celebrate

Where did the expression “not eat until the first star” come from, and to whom does this rule not apply? How many hours before Communion can you eat? If all the days before Christmas are fasting, then when should you devote time to preparing dishes for the festive table?

Read the material for answers to these and many other questions.

Part I.

Why do people pray for so long? or Where did the tradition of night services come from?

And the first question in connectionWithSo why do we need such long services?

The history of long services dates back to apostolic times. The Apostle Paul wrote: “Rejoice always, incessantly pray, give thanks in everything.” The book of Acts of the Apostles says that all the believers were together, day after day they gathered in the temple and praised God ( Acts 2.44). From here, in particular, we learn that long services were commonplace in the lives of the first Christians.

The Christian community of apostolic times lived in readiness for martyrdom for Christ, in anticipation of His imminent second coming. The apostles lived in accordance with this expectation and behaved accordingly - burning with faith. And this fiery faith, love for Christ was expressed in very long prayers.

In fact, they prayed all night long. After all, we know that the early Christian communities were persecuted by the then pagan authorities and were forced to pray at night in order to go about their normal affairs during the day without attracting attention to themselves.

In memory of this, the Church has always maintained the tradition of long, including night services. By the way, once upon a time services in monastery and parish churches were performed according to the same rite - there was virtually no difference between the parish and monastic typikon (except that special additional teachings were inserted into the monastery service, which are now omitted almost everywhere in monasteries).

For the atheistic 20th century tradition long service in countries in the post-Soviet space were practically lost. And seeing the example of Athos, we are perplexed: why serve for so long a service that can be completed three times faster?

Regarding the Svyatogorsk tradition, I would like to note that, firstly, such long services are not performed constantly, but on special holidays. And secondly, this is one of the wonderful opportunities for us to bring our “fruit of the lips” to God. After all, which of us can say that he has such virtues that he is ready to lay them before the Throne of God right now? He who is critical of himself and confesses consciously knows that his deeds, strictly speaking, are deplorable, and he cannot bring anything to the feet of Christ. And at least each of us is fully capable of bringing “the fruit of the lips” glorifying the name of the Lord. At least somehow we can praise the Lord.

And these long services, especially on holidays, are precisely dedicated to serving our Lord in some way.

If we talk about the Christmas service, then this, if you like, is one of those gifts that we can bring to the manger of the born Savior. Yes, the most important gift to God is the fulfillment of His commandments of love for Him and love for one’s neighbor. But still, various gifts are prepared for the birthday, and one of these can be a long prayer at the service.

The question, probably, is also how to make this gift correctly, so that it would be pleasing to God and useful to us...

Do you feel tired during long night services?

What you have to struggle with at such services is sleep.

Not long ago I prayed on Mount Athos in the Dokhiar monastery during a service on the Feast of the Archangels. The service with short breaks lasts 21 hours, or 18 hours of pure time: it begins at 16.00 the day before, in the evening there is a 1-hour break, and then continues all night until 5 am. Then 2 hours for rest, and by 7 am the Liturgy begins, which ends at 1 pm.

Last year, on the patronal feast day in Dochiara, Vespers and Matins were more or less completed for me, and during the Liturgy, sleep overcame me with terrible force. As soon as I closed my eyes, I immediately fell asleep standing up, and so soundly that I even began to dream. I think many people are familiar with this state of extreme need for rest... But after the Cherubim, the Lord gave strength, and then the service went normally.

This year, thank God, it was easier.

What was especially impressive this time was that I didn’t feel any physical fatigue at all, by the grace of God. If I didn’t want to sleep, I could have been at this service for 24 hours. Why? Because all those praying were inspired by a common impulse towards the Lord - both monks and lay pilgrims.

And this is the main feeling that you experience at such services: we have come to glorify God and His Archangels, we are determined to pray and praise the Lord for a long time. We are not in a hurry and therefore we will not rush.

This general state of those present in the church was very clearly visible during the entire service. Everything was very leisurely, everything was very carefully, very thoroughly, very solemnly and, most importantly, very prayerfully. That is, people knew what they came for.

Why is such unanimity in prayer not felt during parish services? Because of those present in the church, there are very few who really understand why he is, in fact, in the church. Such people who would ponder the words of liturgical texts and seriously understand the course of the service are, unfortunately, a minority. And the bulk are those who came either because of tradition, or because it is so supposed, or they want to celebrate the holiday in church, but do not yet know the words of the psalm: sing to God wisely. And these people, as soon as the service began, are already shifting from foot to foot, thinking that it would be over soon, why they are singing something incomprehensible, and what will happen next, and so on. That is, the person is completely unaware of the course of the service and does not understand the meaning of the actions being performed.

And those who come to Athos have an idea of what awaits them there. And at such long services, they actually pray very enthusiastically. So, according to tradition, during the holiday, the brethren of the monastery sing on the left choir, and guests sing on the right. Usually these are monks from other monasteries and laymen who know Byzantine chants. And you should have seen how enthusiastically they sang! So sublime and solemn that... if you see it once, then all questions about the need or unnecessaryness of long services will disappear. It is such a joy to glorify God!

In ordinary worldly life, if people love each other, then they want to be close to each other for as long as possible: they cannot stop talking or communicate. And just like that, when a person is inspired by the love of God, even 21 hours of prayer is not enough for him. He wants and craves communication with God all 24 hours...

Part II.

- So, How to prepare yourself for long service and spend time in the temple with dignity?

1. If possible, attend all statutory holiday services.

I want to emphasize that you definitely need to be at the festive all-night vigil. During this service, in fact, Christ, who was born in Bethlehem, is glorified. Liturgy is a worship service that remains virtually unchanged due to holidays. The main liturgical texts, the main chants, which explain the event remembered on this day and set us up on how to properly celebrate the holiday, are sung and read in the church during Vespers and Matins.

It should also be said that the Christmas service begins a day earlier - on Christmas Eve. On the morning of January 6, Christmas Vespers are celebrated in churches. It sounds strange: vespers in the morning, but this is a necessary deviation from the rules of the Church. Previously, Vespers began in the afternoon and continued with the Liturgy of Basil the Great, at which people received communion. The whole day of January 6 before this service there was a particularly strict fast; people did not eat food at all, preparing to take communion. After lunch, Vespers began, and communion was received at dusk. And soon after this came the solemn Christmas Matins, which began to be served on the night of January 7th.

But now, since we have become more frail and weak, solemn vespers are celebrated on the 6th in the morning and end with the Liturgy of Basil the Great.

Therefore, those who want to celebrate the Nativity of Christ correctly, according to the charter, following the example of our ancestors - ancient Christians, saints, should be, if work allows, on the eve of Christmas, January 6, at the morning service. On Christmas itself, you should come to Great Compline and Matins and, naturally, to the Divine Liturgy.

2. When preparing to go to the night Liturgy, worry in advance about not wanting to sleep so much.

In the Athonite monasteries, in particular in Dokhiar, the abbot of the Dokhiar monastery, Archimandrite Gregory, always says that it is better to close your eyes for a while in the temple, if you are completely sleepy, than to retire to your cell to rest, thus leaving the divine service.

Do you know that in the temples on the Holy Mountain there are special wooden chairs with armrests - stasidia, on which you can sit or stand, reclining the seat and leaning on special handles. It must also be said that on Mount Athos, in all monasteries, the full brethren are necessarily present at all daily services. Absence from service is a fairly serious deviation from the rules. Therefore, you can leave the temple during the service only as a last resort.

In our realities, you can’t sleep in a temple, but there’s no need for that. On Mount Athos, all services begin at night - at 2, 3 or 4 o'clock. And in our churches services are not daily, liturgies at night are generally rare. Therefore, in order to go out for night prayer, you can prepare in completely ordinary everyday ways.

For example, be sure to sleep the night before the service. While the Eucharistic fast allows, drink coffee. Since the Lord has given us fruits that invigorate us, we need to use them.

But if sleep begins to overcome you during the night service, I think it would be better to go out and make several circles around the temple with the Jesus Prayer. This short walk will definitely refresh you and give you strength to continue to pay attention.

3. Fast correctly. “Until the first star” means not to go hungry, but to attend the service.

Where did the custom of not eating food on Christmas Eve, January 6, “until the first star” come from? As I already said, before Christmas Vespers began in the afternoon, it went into the Liturgy of St. Basil the Great, which ended when stars actually appeared in the sky. After the Liturgy, the rules permitted eating a meal. That is, “until the first star” meant, in fact, until the end of the Liturgy.

But over time, when the liturgical circle was isolated from the life of Christians, when people began to treat divine services rather superficially, this developed into some kind of custom completely divorced from practice and reality. People don’t go to the service or take communion on January 6, but at the same time they go hungry.

When people ask me how to fast on Christmas Eve, I usually say this: if you attended Christmas Vespers and the Liturgy of St. Basil the Great in the morning, then you are blessed to eat food, as required by the rules, after the end of the Liturgy. That is, during the day.

But if you decide to devote this day to cleaning the premises, preparing 12 dishes, and so on, then, please, eat after the “first star”. Since you didn’t carry out the feat of prayer, at least carry out the feat of fasting.

Regarding how to fast before Communion, if it is at a night service, then according to existing practice, liturgical fasting (that is, complete abstinence from food and water) in this case is 6 hours. But this is not directly formulated anywhere, and there are no clear instructions in the charter how many hours before communion one cannot eat.

On an ordinary Sunday, when a person is preparing for Communion, it is customary not to eat food after midnight. But if you are going to receive communion at the night Christmas service, then it would be correct not to eat food somewhere after 21.00.

In any case, it is better to discuss this issue with your confessor.

4. Find out and agree on the date and time of confession in advance. So as not to spend the entire festive service in line.

The issue of confession at the Christmas service is purely individual, because each church has its own customs and traditions. It is easy to talk about confession in monasteries or those churches where there are a large number of serving priests. But if there is only one priest serving in the church, and there are a majority of them, then it is best, of course, to agree with the priest in advance, when it will be convenient for him to confess you. It is better to confess on the eve of the Christmas service, so that during the service you think not about whether you will or will not have time to confess, but about how to truly worthily meet the coming of Christ the Savior into the world.

5. Do not exchange worship and prayer for 12 Lenten dishes. This tradition is neither evangelical nor liturgical.

I am often asked how to reconcile attendance at services on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day with the tradition of the Christmas Eve feast, when 12 Lenten dishes are specially prepared. I’ll say right away that the “12 Strava” tradition is somewhat mysterious to me. Christmas Eve, like Epiphany Eve, is a fast day, and a day of strict fasting. According to the regulations, boiled food without oil and wine are allowed on this day. How you can cook 12 different lenten dishes without using oil is a mystery to me.

In my opinion, “12 Strava” is folk custom, which has nothing in common either with the Gospel, or with the liturgical charter, or with the liturgical tradition of the Orthodox Church. Unfortunately, on the eve of Christmas, a large number of materials appear in the media in which attention is concentrated on some dubious pre-Christmas and post-Christmas traditions, eating certain dishes, fortune telling, festivities, caroling, and so on - all that husk that is often very distant from the true meaning of the great holiday of the coming of our Redeemer into the world.

I am always very hurt by the profanation of holidays, when their meaning and significance are reduced to certain rituals that have developed in one area or another. One hears that such things as traditions are needed for people who are not yet particularly churchgoers, in order to somehow interest them. But you know, in Christianity still better for people give immediately good quality food, not fast food. Still, it is better for a person to recognize Christianity immediately from the Gospel, from the traditional patristic Orthodox position, than from some “comics”, even if sanctified by folk customs.

In my opinion, many folk rituals associated with this or that holiday are comics on the theme of Orthodoxy. They have practically nothing to do with the meaning of the holiday or the gospel event.

6. Don't turn Christmas into a food holiday. This day is, first of all, spiritual joy. And it is not good for your health to break your fast with a large feast.

Again, it's all about priorities. If it is a priority for someone to sit at a rich table, then the entire day before the holiday, including when the festive vespers are already being celebrated, the person is busy preparing various meats, Olivier salads and other sumptuous dishes.

If it is more priority for a person to meet the born Christ, then he, first of all, goes to the divine service, and then free time prepares what he has time for.

In general, it is strange that it is considered obligatory on the day of the holiday to sit and consume a variety of abundant dishes. This is neither medically nor spiritually beneficial. It turns out that we fasted throughout Lent, missed Christmas Vespers and the Liturgy of St. Basil the Great - and all this in order to simply sit down and eat. This can be done at any other time...

I’ll tell you how the festive meal is prepared in our monastery. Usually, at the end of night services (Easter and Christmas), the brethren are offered a short break of fast. As a rule, this is cheese, cottage cheese, hot milk. That is, something that does not require much effort when preparing. And already in the afternoon a more festive meal is prepared.

7. Sing to God intelligently. Prepare for the service - read about it, find translations, texts of the psalms.

There is an expression: knowledge is power. And, indeed, knowledge gives strength not only morally, but also literally - physically. If a person has at one time taken the trouble to study Orthodox worship, to delve into its essence, if he knows that in at the moment happens in a temple, then for him there is no question of standing for a long time, fatigue. He lives in the spirit of worship, knows what follows what. For him, the service is not divided into two parts, as it happens: “What is in the service now?” - “Well, they’re singing.” - “And now?” - “Well, they’re reading.” For most people, unfortunately, the service is divided into two parts: when they sing and when they read.

Knowledge of the service makes it clear that at a certain moment in the service you can sit down and listen to what is being sung and read. The liturgical charter in some cases allows, and in some even requires, sitting. This is, in particular, the time of reading psalms, hours, kathismas, stichera on “Lord, I have cried.” That is, there are many moments during the service when you can sit. And, as one saint put it, it is better to think about God while sitting than to think about your feet while standing.

Many believers act very practically by taking lightweight folding benches with them. Indeed, in order not to rush to the benches at the right time to take seats, or not to “occupy” the seats by standing next to them throughout the service, it would be better to take a special bench with you and sit down on it at the right moment.

There is no need to be embarrassed about sitting during the service. The Sabbath is for man, not man for the Sabbath. Still, at some moments it is better to sit down, especially if your legs hurt, and sit and listen attentively to the service, rather than suffer, suffer and look at the clock to see when all this will end.

In addition to taking care of your feet, take care of food for your mind in advance. You can buy special books or find and print materials about the holiday service on the Internet - interpretation and texts with translations.

I definitely recommend also finding the Psalter translated into yours native language. The reading of the psalms is an integral part of any Orthodox service, and the psalms are very beautiful both melodically and stylistically. In church they are read in Church Slavonic, but even for a church-going person it is difficult to perceive all their beauty by ear. Therefore, in order to understand what is being sung at the moment, you can find out in advance, before the service, which psalms will be read during this service. This really needs to be done in order to “sing to God intelligently” in order to feel all the beauty of psalmody.

Many people believe that you cannot follow the Liturgy in church from a book - you need to pray together with everyone. But one does not exclude the other: following a book and praying, in my opinion, are one and the same thing. Therefore, do not be embarrassed to take literature with you to the service. You can take a blessing from the priest for this in advance in order to cut off unnecessary questions and comments.

8. On holidays, churches are crowded. Have pity on your neighbor - light candles or venerate the icon another time.

Many people, when they come to church, believe that lighting a candle is the duty of every Christian, a sacrifice to God that must be made. But since the Christmas service is much more crowded than a regular service, some difficulty arises with the placement of candles, including because the candlesticks are overcrowded.

The tradition of bringing candles to the temple has ancient roots. Previously, as we know, Christians took everything they needed for the Liturgy from home with them: bread, wine, candles for lighting the church. And this, indeed, was their feasible sacrifice.

Now the situation has changed and setting candles has lost its original meaning. For us, this is more a reminder of the first centuries of Christianity.

A candle is our visible sacrifice to God. She has symbolic meaning: before God, we must, like this candle, burn with an even, bright, smokeless flame.

This is also our sacrifice for the temple, because we know from the Old Testament that people in ancient times were required to tithe for the maintenance of the Temple and the priests serving at it. And in the New Testament Church this tradition was continued. We know the words of the apostle that those who serve the altar are fed from the altar. And the money that we leave when purchasing a candle is our sacrifice.

But in such cases, when churches are overcrowded, when whole torches of candles are burning on candlesticks, and they are being passed around and passed on, perhaps it would be more correct to put the amount that you wanted to spend on candles in a donation box than to embarrass your brothers by manipulating candles and sisters praying nearby.

9. When bringing children to the night service, be sure to ask them if they want to be in church now.

If you have small children or elderly relatives, then go with them to the Liturgy in the morning.

This practice has developed in our monastery. At night at 23:00 Great Compline begins, followed by Matins, which turns into the Liturgy. The liturgy ends around half past five in the morning - thus, the service lasts about five and a half hours. This is not so much - the usual all-night vigil every Saturday lasts 4 hours - from 16.00 to 20.00.

And our parishioners who have small children or elderly relatives pray at night at Compline and Matins, after Matins they go home, rest, sleep, and in the morning they come to Liturgy at 9.00 with small children or with those people who, for health reasons, could not attend the night service.

If you decide to bring your children to church at night, then, it seems to me, the main criterion for attending such long services should be the desire of the children themselves to come to this service. No violence or coercion is acceptable!

You know, there are things of status for a child, which are criteria for adulthood for him. Such, for example, as the first confession, the first visit to the night service. If he really asks that adults take him with them, then in this case this needs to be done.

It is clear that a child will not be able to stand attentively for the entire service. To do this, take some kind of soft bedding for him, so that when he gets tired, you can put him in a corner to sleep and wake him up before communion. But so that the child is not deprived of this joy of the night service.

It is very touching to see when children come to the service with their parents, they stand joyful, with sparkling eyes, because the night service for them is very significant and unusual. Then gradually they subside and turn sour. And now, as you pass through the side aisle, you see children lying side by side, immersed in the so-called “liturgical” sleep.

As long as the child can bear it, he can endure it. But you shouldn’t deprive him of such joy. However, I repeat once again, getting into this service should be the desire of the child himself. So that Christmas would be associated for him only with love, only with the joy of the born baby Christ.

10. Be sure to take communion!

When we come to church, we often worry that we didn’t have time to light the candles or didn’t venerate some icon. But that's not what you need to think about. We need to worry about whether we often unite with Christ.

Our duty during worship is to pray attentively and, as often as possible, to partake of the Holy Mysteries of Christ. The temple, first of all, is the place where we partake of the Body and Blood of Christ. This is what we must do.

And, indeed, attending the Liturgy without communion is meaningless. Christ calls: “Take, eat,” and we turn away and leave. The Lord says: “Drink from the Cup of Life, all of you,” and we don’t want to. Does the word “everything” have a different meaning? The Lord does not say: drink 10% from me - those who were preparing. He says: drink from me, everyone! If we come to the Liturgy and do not receive communion, then this is a liturgical violation.

INSTEAD OF AN AFTERWORD. What basic condition is necessary to experience the joy of a long all-night service?

It is necessary to realize WHAT happened on this day many years ago. That “the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, full of grace and truth.” That “no one has ever seen God; The only begotten Son, who is in the bosom of the Father, He has revealed.” That an event of such cosmic proportions occurred that had never happened before and will not happen after.

God, Creator of the Universe, Creator endless space, the Creator of our earth, the Creator of man as a perfect creature, the Almighty, who commands the movement of the planets, the entire cosmic system, the existence of life on earth, Whom no one has ever seen, and only a few in the entire history of mankind have been privileged to behold only a part of the manifestation of His some kind of power... And so this God became a man, a baby, completely defenseless, small, susceptible to everything, including the possibility of murder. And this is all for us, for each of us.

There is a wonderful expression: God became man so that we could become gods. If we understand this - that each of us has received the opportunity to become God by grace - then the meaning of this holiday will be revealed to us. If we are aware of the scale of the event we are celebrating, what happened on this day, then all the culinary delights, caroling, round dances, dressing up and fortune-telling will seem to us trifle and husk, completely not worth our attention. We will be absorbed in the contemplation of God, the Creator of the universe, lying in a manger next to the animals in a simple stable. This will exceed everything.

The service of the Nativity of Christ: traditions, the sequence of the liturgy, as well as the history of the Christmas holiday. Read more on the Pravmir portal.

Traditions of Christmas: the service of the Nativity of Christ

Κοντάκιον. Ποίημα Ῥωμανοῦ τοῦ Μελῳδοῦ.

Ἡ Παρθένος σήμερον, τὸν ὑπερούσιον τίκτει, καὶ ἡ γῆ τὸ Σπήλαιον, τῷ ἀπροσίτω προσάγει. Ἄγγελοι μετὰ Ποιμένων δοξολογοῦσι. Μάγοι δὲ μετὰ ἀστέρος ὁδοιποροῦσι. Δι´ ἡμᾶς γὰρ ἐγεννήθη, Παιδίον νέον, ὁ πρὸ αἰώνων Θεός.

(E parfenos semeron ton uperousion tiktei, kai e ge to spelaion tw aprositw prosagei. Angeloi meta Poimenon doxologousi. Magoi de meta asteros oidoporousi. Di emas gar egennete Paidion neon, O pros aiwnwn Teos.)

Today the Virgin gives birth to the super-existent, and the earth brings a cave to the Unapproachable; The angels sing their praises together with the shepherds, while the wise men travel behind the star, because for our sake the young Child, the Eternal God, was born.”

Kontakion, creation of Roman the Sweet Singer

Christmas is a holiday that people all over the world enjoy. Why are they happy? Only because this day began new era“from the Nativity of Christ”, because the tree is decorated, because we receive gifts? But what does this event that happened 2000 years ago have to do with people living today? What are the traditions of celebrating Christmas?

Christ is the Savior, but do we really need to be saved from something, are we in any danger? And can we really meet God? How the liturgical tradition of the Church answers these questions, says Nikolai DERZHAVIN, who has been commentating on television broadcasts of holiday services for 20 years.

What is the meaning of Christmas

The great universal teacher calls the Nativity of Christ “the beginning of all holidays.” “Whoever calls this holiday the mother of all holidays will not sin... In this holiday, the Epiphany, the sacred, and the Epiphany have their beginning and foundation. If Christ had not been born according to the flesh, he would not have been baptized, and this is the feast of the Epiphany; and would not have suffered, and this is Easter; and would not have sent the Holy Spirit, and this is Pentecost. So, from the feast of the Nativity of Christ our holidays began, like various streams from a source.”

The birth of Christ - the Messiah - the Anointed One, who will save the world, was predicted by the Old Testament prophets and was expected for centuries. This joyful event took place more than 2000 years ago: Jesus Christ was born in Bethlehem of Judea. We Christians annually experience this joy again and again, announced by the Angels to the shepherds: “I proclaim to you great joy that will be to all people: for today a Savior has been born to you in the city of David, who is Christ the Lord,” says the Holy Gospel.

God becomes Man so that man becomes God by grace. But, at the same time, the Creator, accepting the image of His creation, is “humiliated.” What is happening is what is called “kenosis” in Greek, and “exhaustion” of the Son of God in Slavic. And it reaches its highest point on the Cross. And yet, at Christmas we rejoice, for we know what rich fruit this exhaustion has brought. We rejoice, for the day of the beginning of our salvation, salvation from sin and death, has dawned. And salvation from death and meeting God, the source of life, is the greatest reason for thanksgiving and joy.

Christmas and the Magi

According to the teaching of the Church, the fact that “for our sake a young Child, the eternal God, was born” is a cause of joy for those who love God. Because God wanted to be born in the form of a man, He gave deliverance from corruption and death, “healed the wounds of Eve,” “forgave sins,” “gave immortality,” “fulfilled prophecies,” “attracted the fallen primordial Adam,” “replaced lies with faith” in the truth, “led everyone to the life-giving light,” as it is said in the Christmas service.

So, what does this event have to do with each of the living people? The Church speaks about this through the mouths of its poets in church hymnography. The main and most frequently sung chants on the holiday are. Troparions - short chants glorifying the holiday, belong to the very ancient species church chants, with which Christian hymnography began its development in ancient times. The Troparion of the Nativity could have been created as early as the 4th century. In Russian, the text of this chant sounds like this: “ Your birth, Christ our God, shed light of knowledge on the world: for those who served the stars were taught by the star to bow to You, the Sun of Truth, and to know You, the East, from on high. Lord, glory to You".

The Kontakion “Virgin Today” was written by Saint Roman the Sweet Singer, and is considered one of the pinnacles of church poetry. In ancient times, kontakia were the name given to lengthy theological poems that were part of Christian worship. But, over time, they were replaced by another genre of church hymnography - the canon. Kontakia were preserved in worship in the form of the initial stanzas of previous poems (and also gave rise to – a hymn during which you are not supposed to sit, “non-seated singing”).

Let's get acquainted with the text of the kontakion : “Today the Virgin gives birth to the super-existent, and the earth brings a cave to the Unapproachable; The angels sing their praises together with the shepherds, while the wise men travel behind the star, because for our sake the young Child, the Eternal God, was born.” The Invisible God became incarnate and became Man - this is what the feast of the Nativity of Christ, the feast of the Incarnation, proclaims.

If we turn our attention to the texts of the chants, we will notice one characteristic feature: the frequent repetition of the words “today” and “now.” Today, now, “The Virgin of the Most Essential is giving birth.” The event took place more than 2000 years ago, but what happened then is directly related to us living today. Therefore, the Church, with its hymns and all its services, introduces us into a special reality. We become spiritual participants and witnesses of events taking place before our mind's eye.

Christ's Birthday

Christians have been celebrating the Nativity of Christ since ancient times. How did they do it before? Modern liturgists believe that the Nativity of Christ is one of the oldest Christian holidays, along with the Annunciation and Easter. It is celebrated exactly 9 months after the Annunciation, on December 25, old style. Initially, it was connected with the feast of the Epiphany, which appeared in the 3rd century, and this common holiday was otherwise called the Feast of Lights. Christmas became separated from the West. In the ancient Roman calendar, dating back to the year 354, under December 25 (or the 8th calendar of January) it is written: “ Birthday of Christ in Bethlehem».

The church charter calls Christmas the “second Easter” and gives it an exclusive place among the days of the liturgical year. It's a holiday twelfth, belonging to the category of the most important 12 Christian holidays. Usually there is one day of pre-celebration before these holidays, and five such days before Christmas. For the sake of the Nativity of Christ, fasting is canceled, even if the holiday falls on the weekly fast days - Wednesday and Friday. After the holiday comes “”, which will last until Epiphany Christmas Eve (January 18). From the point of view of the liturgical regulations, the period of Christmastide is like one day, joyful and jubilant. On Christmastide, however, as at any other time, and especially on these holidays, people are called to “sanctify”, to consecrate the holiday with good deeds.

Our history knows many examples of truly Christian celebration of the holy days of Christmas. In pre-Petrine Rus', pious sovereigns, on the very night of the Nativity of Christ, visited prisons and freed repentant criminals, distributed alms with their own hands, but did all this so that the royal mercy was not made public. The sovereign’s exits from the palace these days were called “secret.”

The holiday of the Nativity of Christ, perhaps like no other, brought to life many folk customs. Nativity, the glorification of the Infant God, the arrangement of nativity scenes - likenesses and images of the Bethlehem cave - all these are indispensable signs of the holiday, and it is wonderful that many of these customs are being revived today.

The reflection of the Star of Bethlehem also illuminated our secular culture. And today it is especially appropriate to recall the lines of our wonderful writer, who in his book “The Summer of the Lord,” through the eyes of a child, showed Christmas morning in old Moscow: “Christmas... One can imagine in this word strong frosty air, icy purity and snowiness. The word itself seems bluish to me. Even in a church song - Christ is born - praise! Christ from heaven - drop it!– a frosty crunch is heard. The bluish dawn turns white. The snowy lace of trees is as light as air. The roar of the church floats, and in this frosty roar the sun rises like a ball. It is fiery, thick, more than usual: the sun at Christmas. Floats out behind the garden like fire. The garden is covered in deep snow, brightening and turning blue. Look, it ran along the tops, the frost turned pink, the tick marks turned pink, they woke up; pinkish dust splashed, the birches turned golden, and fiery golden spots fell on the white snow. Here it is, the morning of the Holiday - Christmas."

About the Slavic and Russian languages in worship

You and I will repeatedly turn to liturgical texts dedicated to the Nativity of Christ, both in Church Slavonic and in Russian versions. And in this regard, I would like to say a few words about ours. The whole world knows the beauty of Orthodox icon painting, this “theology in colors,” and our churches have become national symbols harmony and perfection.

These masterpieces are complemented by a huge poetic heritage - hymnography and Ancient Rus'. The works of Byzantine religious poetry are distinguished by their special theological depth and expressiveness of language: canons, stichera, troparia and kontakia. Indeed, their perception is often difficult due to the language barrier. And in connection with these difficulties, some people have a question: “Why doesn’t the Church abandon the Church Slavonic language, why doesn’t it switch to Russian?” But the simplest path is not always the most correct. The Slavic texts were themselves translated from Greek by the holy Equal-to-the-Apostles brothers Cyril and Methodius, but they were sanctified by the thousand-year-old tradition of Slavic books.

To solve the language problem, it is not necessary to sit down at a desk; it is enough to regularly visit church and participate in divine services. After all, many of the texts that we heard today are constantly present in our worship services. Gradually, these texts will become recognizable to us. Then you can turn to translations to clarify unclear words and expressions. The texts of holiday services are also quite accessible today. They are published in separate editions, with parallel text in Russian. It would be useful and correct if our preparation for the holiday (and most people go to churches on holidays) included a preliminary acquaintance with liturgical texts and their deep theological content. And you can start with those prayers that are read daily: with the morning and evening rules.

All-night vigil

How is the Patriarchal Christmas service performed?

Let's say a few words about the order and sequence of its celebration on the Christmas holiday using the example of the main Christmas service performed by Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Rus' in Moscow. Patriarchal worship is slightly different in form from the usual parish service, but in essence it is the same service, so our story is also applicable to parish worship. We will talk about these differences in those places where they appear.

The divine service of the Orthodox Church consists of daily services: Matins, Vespers, Compline, Midnight Office, Hours And Liturgies. Before the holidays, morning and evening services are combined into the so-called “”, that is, prayer that continues all night. In practice, such a prayer occurs only twice a year, on the greatest holidays - Christmas and Easter. The All-Night Vigil is a liturgical service that consists of Vespers and Matins. These are their names church services received according to the time of commission. But today the composition of the All-Night Vigil is changing: Vespers is replaced by Great Compline- a service that takes place after Vespers, hence its name.

According to the tradition that has developed over the past 20 years, before the start of the service, the Patriarch, located in the altar, addresses the television audience with Christmas greetings.

Now the curtain and the holy gates open, we see how the clergy, led by the Patriarch, emerges from the altar into the middle of the temple. The archdeacon comes out from the candles to the pulpit and proclaims “ Bless the lord" The Bishop blesses those gathered and shouts “ Blessed be our God always now and ever and unto ages of ages"The all-night vigil begins.

The primate, preceded by an archdeacon or protodeacon with a candle, censes the festive icon, which is located in the center of the temple on a lectern. The prayer “Heavenly King” sounds, addressed to. Many liturgical services of the Orthodox Church begin with this prayer. The Patriarch censes the throne and altar. This is an ancient form of worship that existed in the Old Testament, before the Savior came into the world. The spiritual meaning of incense is revealed to us by verses from the Psalter: “ May my prayer be corrected, like incense before you“-let my prayer, like incense smoke, ascend to heaven, and the prayerful lifting of hands be like the evening sacrifice.

After the exclamation there follows a litany and the famous hymn “ God is with us" This song is based on the prophecy of Isaiah. This prophet, who lived 700 years before the birth of Christ, announced the future birth of the Savior from the Virgin, prophesied about the events of His earthly life, as well as about the suffering that the Son of God would have to accept for the salvation of the human race. The Prophet, enlightened by the Holy Spirit, saw with spiritual vision the future events of the New Testament so clearly that he is often called the “Old Testament Evangelist.” At the end of Compline the troparion and kontakion of the Nativity are sung.

A chant sounds in the church, concluding the service of Compline. This is the song of the holy righteous Simeon the God-Receiver, sung by him in the presence of the Infant Jesus, brought by the Virgin Mary and righteous Joseph on the fortieth day after his birth to the Jerusalem Temple for dedication to God, as required by custom. The righteous Simeon and the prophetess Anna are an example of the last righteous people of the Old Testament era, who lived in hope of the coming of the Messiah, Christ, into the world and, at the end of their days, saw this hope come true. The text of the song is taken from the Gospel. In Russian translation it sounds like this: “Now do You let Your servant go, O Lord, according to Your word in peace, for mine eyes have seen Your salvation, which You have prepared before the face of all nations, a Light to enlighten the Gentiles and the glory of Your people Israel.” This episode from the Gospel narrative - the meeting of the Infant God in the Jerusalem Temple, due to its special significance, is celebrated by the Church as a great holiday. It is celebrated on February 15 according to the new style. And the event itself, according to the Gospel chronology, occurred after the shepherds worshiped the Born Child of God, but before the eastern sages came from a distant country to worship Him.

People of good will

Meanwhile, Matins begins in the church. It, of course, should take place in the morning, but since on Christmas the Church prays to God at night, it begins around midnight. At the beginning of the Six Psalms they sing famous words Angelic songs, which we will hear many times today in a variety of hymns, both in the gospel and in the sermon: Glory to God in the highest, peace on earth, good will toward men.

Blessed Theophylact of Bulgaria, the father of the Church, who lived in the 12th century, interprets this passage in the Gospel of Luke this way: “What does the song of the Angels mean? Without a doubt, the gratitude of the higher ranks and the joy that we, living on earth, have been blessed. For they say: thank God, there is now peace on earth. Previously, human nature was at enmity with God, but now it has been so reconciled that it has become in union with God and united with Him in the incarnation. So, do you see God's peace with man? It can be understood differently. The Son of God Himself is peace, as He says about Himself. So, the world itself, the Son of God, appeared on earth. And “good will toward men,” that is, God’s rest. For now God has rested and found God-pleasing in people, whereas before He was not pleased and did not find Himself pleasing in people.”

These words of an angelic song have the most interesting fate in the history of mankind. The fact is that in different Christian traditions of recording these Gospel verses, the word “favor” - good will - was used in two forms - in the nominative case, and then the words meant that God’s favor is in people, as we just read. But this word can be in the genitive case and then the meaning changes a little, it turns out “in people of good will,” or in another way, in people of good will, there is peace. This expression “among people of good will” has become popular. It is used by Christians and non-Christians, and even by people far from religion.

After the solemn proclamation and singing of “God is the Lord and appear unto us,” the polyeleos(translated as “many mercy”). This part of Matins received its name from the content of Psalms 134 and 135, glorifying the mercy of God. Verses from these psalms are sung by the choir during the polyeleos: Praise the name of the Lord, praise the servants of the Lord. Hallelujah. Blessed be the Lord of Zion, who dwelleth in Jerusalem. Hallelujah.

Under the arches of the temple, a magnification sounds - a short chant glorifying the celebrated event: “We magnify, magnify You, Life-Giving Christ, for our sake now born in the flesh of the Blessed and Most Pure Virgin Mary.”

Patriarch Kirill descends from the pulpit, a special elevation in the middle of the church, where he has been since the beginning of the service, to cense the icon of the holiday.

The image of the Nativity of Christ, now on the lectern, is special. In the anniversary year of the 2000th anniversary of the Nativity of Christ, it was brought by His Holiness Patriarch Alexy II from Bethlehem, the city in which Christ was born. This icon is an exact copy of the image located in the cave of the Nativity of Christ.

We see the deacon enter the altar and take the Gospel from the throne. The choir performs sedately And sedate antiphon. These chants are part of the festive matins. They are compiled in imitation of the so-called. “gravid psalms” (Ps. 119-133), which in the times of the Old Testament were sung by pilgrims on the steps of the Jerusalem Temple. Antiphons- chants performed alternately, in imitation of the incessant angelic choir that glorifies the Creator, a name indicating the way the chant is performed (from Greek - “sing alternately, alternating into two choirs”).

Christmas is a special holiday. Preparation lasts throughout Lent, including the last few days. It is especially important to be able to prepare for the service on the day of the holiday itself. Or rather, at night... After all, in many of our churches the Liturgy (and sometimes Great Compline and Matins) is served precisely at night.

How not to be afraid of the difficulties of a real “all-night vigil” and feel the joy of the holiday at a long Christmas service - we have already written about this: Night service for Christmas - how to “stand”?

How to prepare for the Christmas service, prepare yourself for a long service and spend time in the church with dignity, read the advice of the archpastor.

If possible, attend all statutory holiday services. I want to emphasize that you must be at the festive all-night vigil...

The service for the Feast of the Nativity of Christ begins late in the evening on January 6th. Usually at 11 o'clock after midnight in all Orthodox churches a special festive service is held, which lasts until approximately 3 - 4 o'clock in the morning.

On the Feast of the Nativity of Christ, on the night of the event, an all-night vigil, hours and the Divine Liturgy of John Chrysostom are served. The All-Night Vigil begins not with the usual Vespers, but with Compline. Most of the liturgical texts of this service are proofread. However, at Christmas Compline there is a main solemn holiday chant. It involves singing in chorus verses from the prophetic book of Isaiah about how God himself is now present with people, who is great and mighty. The Lord is called in this hymn the Father of the future age. This chant begins with the words “God is with us, understand the pagans and repent, as God is with us.” The holiday chant itself is briefly named after the first words of Isaiah’s prophecy - “God is with us.”

On major holidays, the so-called twelve, every Orthodox Christian tries to visit the temple and take part in the solemn service.

Are services long in Orthodox churches?

On holidays, even the smallest churches and chapels open their doors to believers. Services, with short breaks, go one after another. They sometimes start very early, before seven in the morning, and end after midnight. There are a lot of people. It is very difficult for an unaccustomed person to spend the whole day in church. Even churchgoers do not always defend all services. But the Byzantine tradition assumed 24-hour service to God, without breaks. For a long time in Rus', liturgical rites were preserved, lasting 8-10 hours. Gradually, the readings of prayers, canons and Holy Scripture have been significantly reduced, and now even the longest service does not last longer than three to five hours. After it, there is a break, followed by another, as prescribed by the rule.

How is everything...

Christmas is a special holiday. And the service on this day is special. Or rather, at night... After all, in many of our churches the Liturgy (and sometimes Great Compline and Matins) is served precisely at night. How not to be afraid of the difficulties of a real “all-night vigil” and to feel the joy of the holiday at a long Christmas service - the abbot of the Kyiv Trinity St. John’s Monastery, Bishop of Obukhov IONA (CHEREPANOV), spoke about this for the magazine “Nachalo”.

Answers to these and many other questions...

Orthodox Christians traditionally celebrate the Feast of the Birth of Christ starting on January 6th. The Magi were among the first to learn about the birth of the Savior. Seeing a bright star in the sky, they went to bow to the newly-minted Messiah with symbolic gifts. They brought him tree resin, like to an ordinary person, incense, as for the messenger of the Lord, and gold, as for the king. Herod also learned about the birth of the Savior; he could not accept this news with dignity, was afraid of the messenger of God and ordered the death of all babies who were under 2 years old. His parents fled to Egypt with Christ and were thus able to save him.

Christmas is rightfully considered one of the greatest holidays in Orthodoxy. In the established hierarchy, it is in second place in importance, second only to Easter. In order to properly prepare for it, you need to find out when Christmas 2016 is celebrated. Its date is unchanged - all ritual celebrations begin with the rising of a star on January 6th. On this evening it is customary to gather in large numbers...

Christmas is a special holiday. And the service on this day is special. In many churches, but not everywhere, the festive service is performed at night. How to celebrate Christmas in order not only to feel the festive mood, but also to experience this event together with the Church - the abbot of the Kyiv Trinity St. John's Monastery, Bishop Jonah (Cherepanov) of Obukhov, spoke about this in an interview.

*** If possible, attend all statutory holiday services.

I want to emphasize that you definitely need to be at the festive all-night vigil. During this service, in fact, Christ, who was born in Bethlehem, is glorified. Liturgy is a divine service that practically does not change on one holiday or another. The main liturgical texts, the main chants, which explain the event remembered on this day and set us up on how to properly celebrate the holiday, are sung and read in the church during Vespers and Matins.

It should also be said that the Christmas service begins...

Orthodox Christmas service from January 6 to 7 takes place in churches and temples around the world. Christmas services begin on January 6th in the morning, end at 1-3 am on the 7th, but sometimes already at dawn - with a Liturgy with carol singing... On Christmas Eve, parishioners go to church for the evening service, confess, and receive communion. The ministers in the church know approximately their parish; the duration of the service depends on the number of people. Therefore, the start time is determined differently - the All-Night Vigil occurs on the eve of major church holidays, the beginning in different Temples is from 17:00 to 23:00. Great Vespers (Great Compline) begins with hymns, then sometimes they confess until almost midnight, and then at 00:00 the night Christmas liturgy, and sometimes vice versa, first the whole service, then confession and communion, here strict rules no - but the entire Christmas service in large churches can last 6-8 hours, in small parishes 1.5 -2 hours, on average count on 3-4...

Christmas

January 6 - The Eve of the Nativity of Christ, or Christmas Eve, is the last day of the Nativity Fast, the eve of the Nativity of Christ. On this day, Orthodox Christians especially prepare for the upcoming holiday; the whole day is filled with a special festive mood. On the morning of Christmas Eve, after the end of the Liturgy and the following vespers, a candle is brought into the center of the church and the priests sing the troparion to the Nativity of Christ before it. The services and fasting of Christmas Eve have a number of features, so it is on these days that many questions come to our website about how to spend Christmas Eve correctly. We asked Archpriest Alexander Ilyashenko to answer these questions.

– Father Alexander, the most frequently asked question by our readers is how to fast on Christmas Eve, until what time should you abstain from eating food? What does “fasting to the first star” mean? Is the measure of abstinence the same for those who work and those who do not work on this day? How long does the fast last before communion?

At 9, the traditional evening Christmas service begins in all Orthodox churches on the evening of Christmas Eve, January 6. At midnight there is an all-night vigil. And the Christmas liturgy itself has been celebrated since the morning of January 7th.

The evening Christmas service will begin in most churches at five o'clock in the evening today - on Christmas Eve, January 6. At midnight, with a joyful cry of “God is with us!” an all-night vigil will take place.

The Christmas liturgy itself will be celebrated on January 7 in some churches from nine in the morning, and in others from ten in the morning. One of the most beautiful canons in Orthodox worship, B, is sung in full on it - the canon “Christ is born.”

In Kyiv on Christmas, Metropolitan Vladimir of Kiev and All Ukraine will serve the Christmas liturgy at the Kiev Pechersk Lavra. His Holiness Patriarch Philaret will conduct the festive liturgy at the Vladimir Cathedral.

In all churches on Christmas Eve - January 6 - the lights are lit after dark. Traditionally, at 17:00 a service begins, during which mournful motives and calls for a worthy meeting of the born Savior are gradually replaced by joy and jubilation over the birth of Christ.

At midnight, the all-night vigil begins in churches with the joyful cry of the prophet Isaiah: “God is with us!” And the Christmas liturgy itself takes place on January 7, traditionally it begins at 9:00. On it, for the first time, the canon “Christ is born...” is sung in full - one of the most beautiful canons in Orthodox worship, during which believers venerate the icon of the Nativity of Christ.

So that you don't miss one of the most important Orthodox events of the year, we have compiled a list of churches that you can visit at Christmas and take part in festive services.

KIEV-PECHERSK LAVRA

WHERE: Pechersky district, st. Lavrskaya, 25.

WHEN: Evening worship will begin...

The Russian Orthodox Church celebrates the Nativity of Christ on January 7, the second most important holiday after Easter. On this night, the locum tenens of the patriarchal throne, Metropolitan Kirill of Smolensk and Kaliningrad, led a festive service in the Cathedral of Christ the Savior, where thousands of believers gathered.

Festive services are held in all operating churches in Moscow, of which there are more than 800 together with chapels. In total, there are over 29 thousand parishes of the Russian Orthodox Church in the world.

Together with the Russian Orthodox Church, Christmas is celebrated on the night of January 6-7 by the Jerusalem, Serbian and Georgian Orthodox churches, as well as Mount Athos monasteries, Eastern Rite Catholics (in particular, the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church) and some Protestants living according to the Julian calendar.

According to the charter of the Russian Orthodox Church, the holiday is preceded by a multi-day Nativity fast, which begins on November 28 and lasts 40 days until January 6...

Christmas post

The celebration of the Nativity of Christ on January 7 begins with a preparatory period. Forty days before the celebration of the birth of our Lord, we begin the Nativity Fast, cleansing our soul and body in order to properly enter the holiday and participate in the great spiritual reality of Christ's coming. The period of the Nativity Fast is reflected in church life by a number of liturgical features that indicate the coming holiday.

Christmas Eve

On the eve of January 6, Vespers takes place in all Orthodox churches, which usually follows the clock and directly begins the celebration, because, as we know, the liturgical day begins in the evening. The tone of the holiday is set by five stichera on “Lord I cried...” They are truly an explosion of joy about the gift of Christ’s incarnation, which has now taken place. Eight biblical readings show that Christ was the fulfillment of all prophecies, that His Kingdom is the Kingdom of “all ages”, that all...

Christmas 2019 is celebrated on January 7th. This is a public holiday, an official day off. It is customary to celebrate it in the family circle. In the Orthodox calendar, Christmas is one of the 12 main holidays of the annual liturgical circle.

History of the holiday

In the Christian Church in the 2nd-4th centuries, Christmas was celebrated on January 6th. The holiday was called Epiphany and was associated with the Baptism of the Lord. In the 4th century, the celebration of Christmas was moved to December 25. After the transition in 1918 from the Julian to the Gregorian calendar, the Orthodox Church began to celebrate it on January 7.

During the Soviet period, the celebration of Christmas was prohibited. The customs spread only among a narrow circle of people. Their guardians were the patriarchs and partly the inhabitants rural areas. Many adherents of religious practices were persecuted. The traditions of the Nativity of Christ began to be revived only in the 90s of the twentieth century.

Traditions and rituals for Christmas

The Christmas period begins with...

Holy Annunciation Cathedral

Blagoveshchenskaya Square, 1,

Kharkov, 61003, tel.: 712-47-37, tel. 777-00-83

16:00 Vespers

06:30 liturgy

08:30 liturgy

Holy Intercession Monastery

St. Universitetskaya, 8/10,

Kharkov, 61003, tel.: 731-50-30

17:00 Vespers

00:00 liturgy

07:00 liturgy

09:00 liturgy

Temple of the 2000th Anniversary of the Nativity of Christ

Ave. Scientific, 65,

Kharkov, tel.: 343-74-26

16:00 Vespers

08:00 liturgy

Holy Assumption Cathedral

St. Universitetskaya, 11,

Kharkov, 61003

St. Panteleimon's Church

St. Klochkovskaya, 94, Kharkov,

tel.: 705-15-07, 705-15-06

16:00 Vespers

Christmas Eve is a holiday that repeats itself year after year. It falls on Christmas Eve and is associated with church as well as folk traditions and customs.

When is it customary to celebrate Christmas Eve?

Christmas Eve is celebrated in many countries, because this day is considered significant by the entire Christian church. Since Christmas is an immutable holiday (that is, its date does not change annually), Christmas Eve is also always celebrated on the same day. But the dates of Catholic and Orthodox Christmas Eve differ, as do the dates on which it is customary to celebrate Christmas.

Orthodox Christians celebrate Christmas Eve on January 6 (and Christmas, respectively, on the 7th). Catholics celebrate it on December 24, on the eve of Catholic Christmas on the 25th. In 2019, Christmas Eve on January 6 falls on a Sunday.

Christmas Eve in 2019: how to celebrate it correctly

So, how can you prepare yourself for long-term service and spend your time in church worthily?

If possible, attend all statutory holiday services.

I want to emphasize that you definitely need to be at the festive all-night vigil.

During this service, in fact, Christ, who was born in Bethlehem, is glorified. Liturgy is a worship service that remains virtually unchanged due to holidays. The main liturgical texts, the main chants, which explain the event remembered on this day and set us up on how to properly celebrate the holiday, are sung and read in the church during Vespers and Matins.

Christmas January 7

On January 7, Orthodox Christians in Ukraine celebrate the Feast of the Nativity of Christ. In general, the holidays of the Christmas cycle begin in Ukraine on January 2, Ignat Day.

The girls clean the house carefully. By January 4, Anastasia's Day, the house should be festively decorated. It is on this day that everything is prepared for preparing the future festive dinner. Often they stabbed a pig on Anastasia, that is, they carried out a “fresh” test. And, in the end, the culmination of the holiday is Christmas Eve or, in other words, Rich Kutya (January 6).

According to tradition, every family member should be at home that evening, and one must not be late for festive table, since it is believed that you will wander all year. During dinner, you must not leave the table or talk loudly.

The festive table should amaze with its diversity, but we must not forget that Lent is still ongoing, so those who like a glass will have to wait a little.

The main dish on the table...

The day of intensive preparation for the holiday of the Nativity of Christ is considered to be Christmas Eve - the eve of the great holiday, which occurs on January 7 for Orthodox Christians. According to strict rules, believers are advised to refuse food until the first star. Only when the first star appears - the symbol of the Star of Bethlehem - can you taste sochivo (a Lenten dish, which is most often prepared from wheat or rice with honey and fruit). Hence the name of this day - Christmas Eve.

The 40-day Nativity Fast and intense prayer brought Orthodox people closer to the great celebration. However, the ancient Christians did not know it; for them, the Resurrection of Christ overshadowed Christmas. At the end of the 3rd - beginning of the 4th centuries, Christians began to celebrate Christmas and the Baptism of the Savior on the same day - January 6 according to the Julian calendar. By the way, this tradition is preserved by the Armenian Apostolic Church. And only in the middle of the 4th century the holiday of Christmas was separated from Epiphany and began to be celebrated by the Roman Church on December 25...

The Feast of the Nativity of Christ is one of the greatest Christian holidays, which the Church celebrates especially solemnly. The culmination of the festive preparations is the evening before Christmas - a day of vigil, prayer and fasting. Holy Evening not only has deep church services, but, above all, our people are rich in rituals and customs filled with symbolism, some of them go back to pre-Christian times, says Yulia KOTSAN.

“The time for our salvation has now come.
Get ready, nativity scene, because the Virgin is about to give birth."
(Stichera of Vespers of the Evening)

The history of celebrating the evening before the Nativity of Christ dates back to the first centuries of Christianity. The eve of the Christmas holiday has a separate service called the Great or Royal Hours, which was compiled by Patriarch Sophronius of Jerusalem, where the main prophecies regarding the promised Messiah are collected in the psalms and readings of the prophets from the Old Testament. They read from the Holy Gospel...

A holy holiday for all people - the Nativity of Christ - comes on the night of January 6-7. On this most important day for Christians, services are held in all Orthodox churches. Christmas is considered the quietest and most family holiday. Usually the whole family gathers at the table, relatives and guests are invited. Once upon a time, on Christmas Day, anyone could enter your house - the doors were open to everyone. Nowadays, traditions have changed a little; today it is no longer possible to just come to the house of a complete stranger. Although there is an old belief that Jesus Christ himself can enter a house under the guise of a beggar. GolosUA learned about the traditions, customs and signs of the Nativity of Christ from clergy and historians.

The door to blissful eternity

“The Christmas holiday is preceded by a long Nativity fast. Fasting is the most important preparation for the Christmas holidays. During Lent, a person can deepen his thoughts about what place...

On January 7, the first Monday of 2019, Orthodox Christians will celebrate one of the most important holidays - the Nativity of Christ. Unlike Easter, this day did not immediately become a holiday - all because in Jewish culture it is not customary to honor a birthday. But over time he took separate place in the Christian calendar and is considered almost as important a holiday as the Resurrection of Christ.

Modern culture perceives Christmas for the most part as an additional day off, which in Russia becomes part of the New Year holidays. This is a reason to please your loved ones with gifts, go on vacation or just be at home with your family. But every year everything more people turn to traditions and celebrate Christmas the way our ancestors did 50, 100, 200 years ago - and it’s not just about going to a festive service.

Quiet pre-Christmas evenings at a set table, with a lit candle and waiting for the first star - this also has its own charm. The warmth that...

On January 6, at 12 o’clock at night, solemn services begin in Orthodox churches, and on January 7, it is customary to congratulate friends and family on the bright holiday of the Nativity of Christ.
Christmas Eve was called “Christmas Eve”, and the word comes from the ritual food eaten on this day - sochiva, porridge made from red wheat or barley, rye, buckwheat, mixed with honey and almond and poppy juice. Food on Christmas Eve has long been prohibited take until the first star, in memory of the Star of Bethlehem, which announced to the Magi and the Nativity of the Savior. And with the onset of twilight, when the first star lit up, they sat down at the table and shared the wafers, wishing each other all the best and brightest. However, it was impossible to eat everything not only before the first star, but also afterwards - the fact is that the Christmas meal, although it announces the end of the 40-day Filippov fast, is in fact its finale. The rules of behavior on Christmas Eve are hundreds of years old , and for recent years no one came up with anything new...

Liturgical instructions for Sunday January 6, 2019. Forefeast of the Nativity of Christ. For the Supper of the Nativity of Christ (Christmas Eve). Prmts. Evgenia.

Prmc service Eugenia does not have a holiday sign, it is performed together with the pre-celebration service.

Calendar notes:

On this day, the 1st hour is not added to Matins, but the hours for Vespers and figurative are celebrated separately. Blessed are read.
Liturgy of St. Basil the Great begins with Great Vespers. Entrance with the Gospel. The Great Prokeimenon, tone 7: “Who is the great God, even as our God...” Reading parimations with singing choruses. Instead of “Worthy” - “He rejoices in You...”.
At the end of the liturgy, the clergy sing the troparion and kontakion of the Feast of the Nativity of Christ in front of the candlestick with a lit candle.

Order of readings, according to the calendar:

At Vespers, Kathisma 15th.

On “Lord, I cried” stichera on 6: forefeasts, tone 5 – 3, and the Holy Martyr, tone 8 – 3. “Glory, and now” – forefeasts, tone 2: “Behold the time...

Many Orthodox people are interested in when to celebrate Christmas. It is celebrated from December 4 to 25, and from January 6 to 7 - when to visit the temple and what traditions to observe?

Christmas service from January 6 to 7 - when to visit the temple

Many Orthodox people are interested in when to celebrate Christmas. In fact, Christmas is celebrated from December 4 to 25, and from January 6 to 7 - so when to visit the temple and how to do it, what traditions to observe?
We will talk about this in our article.

Why is Christmas celebrated on different days?

In the main Christian Churches, the church calendar is divided: the Orthodox Church celebrates holidays and days of remembrance of saints according to the old style (Julian calendar), the Catholic Church - according to the Gregorian calendar (this is due to astronomical phenomena).

Regarding the Nativity of Christ, the Gregorian calendar is more convenient: after all, the week of holidays begins on December 24-25 with Christmas and continues with the New Year, but the Orthodox should celebrate New Year modestly, calmly, to observe the fast. However, an Orthodox person can also have fun on New Year's Eve, trying not to eat meat or any particularly tasty things (if he is visiting). Likewise, children in Orthodox families should not be deprived of the New Year holiday and the joy of Santa Claus. It’s just that many Orthodox families try to emphasize the significance of Christmas with more expensive gifts, more active joint visits to events, etc.

Let us note that Christmas is celebrated on December 25 by a number of Orthodox Local Churches, but all Orthodox Christians celebrate Easter on the same day (this holiday shifts depending on the phases of the moon). The fact is that only on Orthodox Easter does the convergence take place Holy Fire in Jerusalem.

Christmas - the twelfth holiday

Each church holiday has a special edifying, educational meaning. Church holidays preserve the true purpose of holidays - a renewal of life, a reminder of special events, and not just drunken fun, unbridled fun.

Many church holidays became truly popular, signs were associated with them, they began to bring certain seasonal fruits for consecration, that is, God’s blessing in the church, and to pray for certain things related to the holiday.

In the annual church circle there are twelve holidays, called “twelve” (in Church Slavonic duodecimal). These are days dedicated to the most important events in the earthly life of Christ and the Most Holy Theotokos, as well as the most important historical events of the Church.

The traditions of their celebration have developed over centuries, and today they are celebrated all over the world, and, due to their prevalence, even cover the lives of non-religious people. This is a church sermon, the glory of the name of Christ, which goes beyond the church fence.

In every Orthodox country, these holidays reflect traditions, national mentality and historical culture. Thus, in Russia and Greece, on various holidays, earthly fruits are brought for blessing. Elements of Slavic ritualism have been preserved, for example, in the traditions of caroling on Christmas Day in Ukraine, Russia and Belarus.

Thanks to the tolerance and love of the Orthodox Church, many good ancient traditions have survived to this day.

These days are like spiritual bright milestones of the year. Remembering this or that event, praising the Lord and the Mother of God, we rejoice in God’s love for people and again look at ourselves from the outside, trying to be worthy of this love. Believers try to confess and receive communion on the twelve feasts.

The twelfth holidays are divided by content:

Lord's (God's) - eight holidays,

Theotokos - four,

days of remembrance of sacred events.

It is interesting that Christmas refers to the Lord's holidays, and the priests' vestments on this day are the Theotokos, that is, blue and silver. This is a tribute to honoring the Mother of Christ, because this is also Her holiday.

What is celebrated on Christmas - history

On Christmas Day the birthday of the Lord Jesus Christ Himself is celebrated. The Gospel tells that because of the population census, Joseph the Obrochnik and Holy Mother of God were forced to come to Bethlehem, the homeland of Joseph. Due to a simple everyday detail - hotels for the poor were overcrowded and there was no money for expensive rooms - they were forced to take refuge in a cave along with their livestock and pets. Here the Virgin Mary gave birth to the Son of God and laid him in a manger, in straw. Simple shepherds, called by the Angels, came here to worship the Baby, and wise wise men, led by the Star of Bethlehem.

It is historically testified that at the time of the Birth of the Lord Jesus Christ there was a certain new star in the sky, a celestial phenomenon - perhaps a comet. However, it lit up in the sky as a sign of the coming into earthly life of the Messiah, Christ the Savior. The Star of Bethlehem, according to the Gospel, showed the way to the Magi, who, thanks to it, came to worship the Son of God and bring their gifts to Him.

On Christmas, they ask the Lord for the gift and upbringing of children, remember the simplicity of the Birth of the Infant God, and try to do good deeds during Christmastide - the week between the Nativity of Christ and Epiphany.

Christmas Eve before Christmas

The day before Christmas, January 6, is Christmas Eve. On this day, until the “evening star”, that is, until twilight, according to the Charter of the Church, they did not eat at all; they could only drink water or tea. Nowadays it is difficult to perform such a strict fast. Try, especially if you did not fast during the Nativity Fast, to make a small sacrifice to the Lord - abstain in the morning on this day from meat and dairy products, from fish (even from at least one thing, including sweets). Interestingly, there was a historical joke when Count Suvorov did not eat anything during dinner with Catherine the Second before Christmas. When she asked why, the courtiers explained that it was impossible to reach the first star. The Empress called the servants and bestowed an order - “a star to Count Suvorov.”

In fact, in the Charter and the saying “it is impossible until the first star” does not mean the appearance of heavenly stars, but the singing in the church of the words of the troparion, a prayer in honor of the feast of the Nativity of Christ, where the word star is mentioned.

“Your Nativity, our God of Christ, shone to the world as the light of reason: in it those who served the stars (magi) learned with the star to worship You, the Sun of Truth, and to know You, Coming from the heights of the East. Lord, glory to You."

That is why on Christmas Eve it is advised to fast until the evening Christmas service, visit the temple, and then break the fast at the festive table.

This is not as difficult as it seems: after all, this is exactly how many spend December 31, forcedly fasting: the wife, busy in the kitchen, does not have time to eat, and the family, looking into the refrigerator, hears from the mother: “Don’t touch it, this is for the New Year!” But fasting on Christmas Eve on the eve of Christmas has a deep meaning, a spiritual purpose that is different from simply “creating a festive mood.”

How to get ready for Christmas?

While waiting for Christmas, you should pay more attention to meaningful preparation for the holiday, and not to dinner. Prepare, for example, for Confession and Communion with prayer and remembrance of sins. Confess the day before, because on the night of January 6-7 and even in the morning of January 7, churches are crowded. It will be difficult to confess, but to receive communion is a double holiday, double grace.

If you do not plan to receive communion, read the Gospel aloud with the whole family or tell your children about the worship of the Magi, the singing of the Angels and the joy of the shepherds looking at the Infant Christ - the King of the World, humbly lying in a manger. The writer Ivan Shmelev wrote about the traditions of preparing for Christmas and festive pre-revolutionary customs in his amazing novel “The Summer of the Lord,” written from the perspective of a child. You can also read the Christmas chapters from it yourself on Christmas Eve.

How to enter the church

Many people who don’t yet know much about the Church get used to being “goers” - coming in when it’s convenient, lighting candles and not praying during services. However, the Lord Himself speaks about church prayer during general worship: “Where two or three are gathered in My name, there I am in the midst of them.”

The original meaning of the word “Church” is a meeting of Christ’s disciples, Christians; translated as “meeting”. It is interesting that the first Christians often gathered not only in buildings; it is important that they were together even under open air and could perform the Sacraments and pray.

Therefore, try not only to come to church on Christmas, but also to pray, and even better, to prepare and receive communion during the Liturgy. The main service in the church, the main sacrament, is the Liturgy. The most strong prayer- this is any commemoration of a person during the Liturgy and, of course, communion itself. The whole Church prays for a person during the Sacrament of the Eucharist. By receiving communion, people receive great strength and grace from God.

The Church blesses us to receive communion at least once a year: preferably about once a month.

Duration of church service

Please note that not every Orthodox church holds night services from January 6 to 7. There may be options, and you can go to the temple that is more convenient for you to visit, according to the schedule for which you are ready. Be sure to check at the temple stand

It must be said that temples and cathedrals open in different times, services are performed at different times depending on

Region, location;

Is it a church or a parish church at the monastery?

Seasons - in small, rural churches.

Before Christmas there will definitely be a solemn vespers service - the All-Night Vigil. The name is only a tradition; the service does not last all night, but for about 2-3 hours in different churches.

The all-night vigil begins either at 17:00 or 18:00. Sometimes - in rare cases, in a village, in a remote monastery - at 16:00. In monasteries, services for both the Liturgy and the All-Night Vigil last longer.

The next day in the morning, at approximately 9 or 10:00, the Divine Liturgy will be celebrated, during which you can partake of the Holy Mysteries of Christ. Accordingly, you can go to both services, or just one.

However, there is another option. On the evening of January 6, the service of the saint will begin at 23:30. Then, during the night, an all-night vigil, hours and Divine Liturgy will be celebrated.

The all-night vigil begins with Compline, at which prophecies and psalms are read, and in the middle the choir sings the solemn holiday chant “God is with us.” It includes singing verses from the prophetic book of Isaiah about how the great God himself, the Father of the next age, is now present with people. This chant begins with the words “God is with us, understand the Gentiles (that is, nations) and repent (submit to the power of God), as (because) God is with us.”

Immediately after Great Compline, the festive Christmas Vespers is celebrated. It begins with a litia, a part of the service in which bread, vegetable oil (oil), wheat and wine are blessed. Then the service of festive matins is performed, at which the choir performs many solemn chants. At Matins, a passage from the Gospel is read, telling about the event of the Nativity of Christ. Matins is joined by “hours” (short services consisting of the reading of three psalms and some prayers). Thus ends the festive All-Night Vigil. It will take about one and a half hours.

You will know that the All-Night Vigil has ended because afterward the priest will exclaim, “Blessed is the Kingdom of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit.” This is how the festive Liturgy will begin. It will last about another hour and a half to two hours. If you get tired, you can leave the Liturgy.

Star of Bethlehem

Initially, the eight-pointed star on the icons signifies the Nativity or Bethlehem. It is historically testified that at the time of the Birth of the Lord Jesus Christ there was a certain new star in the sky, a celestial phenomenon - perhaps a comet. However, it lit up in the sky as a sign of the coming into earthly life of the Messiah, Christ the Savior. The Star of Bethlehem, according to the Gospel, showed the way to the Magi, who, thanks to it, came to worship the Son of God and bring their gifts to Him.

The Star of Bethlehem is an elongated rhombus inscribed in a square, this is how its eight rays are formed. Such a sign was theologically meaningful on the icon “The Savior is in Power”, becoming a sign of the power of Christ - it is no coincidence that the star of Bethlehem became His star.

The eight-pointed star of the Virgin Mary, the octogram is an equal-pointed star. She can be seen in most images Mother of God. On the one hand, this is an image of the Star of Bethlehem, on the other -

Most often, the icon of the Mother of God is painted on a golden background, symbolizing the Divine Light, or on a heavenly background - symbolizing Heaven, where She is located. The dark cherry outer robe of the Virgin Mary, maforium, has an image of gold embroidery of the three stars of the Virgin Mary: above the forehead and along the shoulders. They mean that the Mother of God, before, during and after the Birth of Her Son of God, remained and remained a Virgin, shining with the virtue of chastity and others.

On the icon of the Mother of God " Burning bush» Her image with her Son is inscribed in an eight-pointed star (but this is not the “star of the Virgin Mary”). This is a fairly late iconographic type; it carries the same symbolism as the icon of the Savior in Powers.

DIY Christmas or New Year's toy

Today, the eight-pointed star is one of the most beautiful and bright symbols of Orthodoxy. She illuminates and sanctifies many icon cases, church utensils, and jewelry of pious Christian women. There is no sin in using it in home decoration for Christmas; on the contrary, it is a very pious and beautiful custom. You can make it yourself by gluing, for example, a paper icon of the Nativity of Christ in the center.

The eight-pointed star reminds us of the power of God, and of the radiance of the Kingdom of God, and of our life path, along which we must follow the Bethlehem guiding star, like the Magi towards the Infant Christ. You need to be able to become a guiding star for people in this world with the help of good deeds.

May the Lord protect you with His grace, may the Infant Christ bless you!

Z Hello, dear visitors of the Orthodox island “Family and Faith”!

A joyful holiday is coming - the Nativity of Christ with its night and grace-filled service!

But, unfortunately, many believers will not go to churches for night services. Some have small children, some are sick, many have a church in a place inaccessible from home, but most people do not go to church for fear of “failing” at the service.

Christmas is a special holiday. And the service on Christmas night is special.

So how can you step over your fear and not be afraid of the difficulties of a real “all-night vigil” and feel the joy of the holiday at a long Christmas service?

N Deputy of the Kyiv Trinity Ionian Monastery, Bishop of Obukhov IONA (CHEREPANOV) gave 10 excellent tips on how to survive the night service.

Below we post an interview with Bishop Jonah, which he gave to the Ukrainian Orthodox magazine “Nachalo”.

Z Why is the Liturgy served at night? How to calculate your strength and properly prepare for standing at night? How to deal with sleep? Is it worth taking children? Is it possible to pray from books with translations and explanations of the service?

Read the material for answers to these and many other questions.

Part I.

Why do people pray for so long? or Where did the tradition of night services come from?

And the first question in this regard is - why are such long services needed?

During the atheistic twentieth century, the traditions of long services in countries in the post-Soviet space were practically lost. And seeing the example of Athos, we are perplexed: why serve for so long a service that can be completed three times faster?

And these long services, especially on holidays, are precisely dedicated to serving our Lord in some way.

The question, probably, is also how to make this gift correctly, so that it would be pleasing to God and useful to us...

Do you feel tired during long night services?

What you have to struggle with at such services is sleep.

This year, thank God, it was easier.

Part II.

Let's celebrate Christmas correctly: 10 tips from the archpastor

- So, How to prepare yourself for long service and spend time in the temple with dignity?

If possible, attend all statutory holiday services.

But now, since we have become more frail and weak, solemn vespers are celebrated on the 6th in the morning and end with the Liturgy of Basil the Great.

When preparing to go to the night Liturgy, take care in advance that you don’t want to sleep so much.

You know that in the churches on the Holy Mountain there are special wooden chairs with armrests - stasidia, on which you can sit or stand, reclining the seat and leaning on special arms. It must also be said that on Mount Athos, in all monasteries, the full brethren are necessarily present at all daily services. Absence from service is a fairly serious deviation from the rules. Therefore, you can leave the temple during the service only as a last resort.

For example, be sure to sleep the night before the service. While the Eucharistic fast allows, drink coffee. Since the Lord has given us fruits that invigorate us, we need to use them.

Fast correctly. “Until the first star” means not to go hungry, but to attend the service.

In any case, it is better to discuss this issue with your confessor.

Find out about the date and time of confession and agree in advance. So as not to spend the entire festive service in line.

Do not exchange worship and prayer for 12 Lenten dishes. This tradition is neither evangelical nor liturgical.

In my opinion, the “12 Stravas” is a folk custom that has nothing in common either with the Gospel, or with the liturgical charter, or with the liturgical tradition of the Orthodox Church. Unfortunately, on the eve of Christmas, a large number of materials appear in the media in which attention is concentrated on some dubious pre-Christmas and post-Christmas traditions, eating certain dishes, fortune telling, festivities, caroling, and so on - all that husk that is often very distant from the true meaning of the great holiday of the coming of our Redeemer into the world.

I am always very hurt by the profanation of holidays, when their meaning and significance are reduced to certain rituals that have developed in one area or another. One hears that such things as traditions are needed for people who are not yet particularly churchgoers, in order to somehow interest them. But you know, in Christianity it is still better to give people good quality food straight away, rather than fast food. Still, it is better for a person to recognize Christianity immediately from the Gospel, from the traditional patristic Orthodox position, than from some “comics”, even if sanctified by folk customs.

In my opinion, many folk rituals associated with this or that holiday are comics on the theme of Orthodoxy. They have practically nothing to do with the meaning of the holiday or the gospel event.

Don't turn Christmas into a food holiday. This day is, first of all, spiritual joy. And it is not good for your health to break your fast with a large feast.

If it is a priority for a person to meet the born Christ, then he, first of all, goes to worship, and in his free time prepares what he has time for.

Sing to God intelligently. Prepare for the service - read about it, find translations, texts of the psalms.

There is an expression: knowledge is power. And, indeed, knowledge gives strength not only morally, but also literally - physically. If a person has at one time taken the trouble to study Orthodox worship and understand its essence, if he knows what is currently happening in the church, then for him there is no question of standing for a long time or getting tired. He lives in the spirit of worship, knows what follows what. For him, the service is not divided into two parts, as it happens: “What is in the service now?” - “Well, they’re singing.” - “And now?” - “Well, they’re reading.” For most people, unfortunately, the service is divided into two parts: when they sing and when they read.

I definitely recommend also finding the Psalter translated into your native language. The reading of the psalms is an integral part of any Orthodox service, and the psalms are very beautiful both melodically and stylistically. In church they are read in Church Slavonic, but even for a church-going person it is difficult to perceive all their beauty by ear. Therefore, in order to understand what is being sung at the moment, you can find out in advance, before the service, which psalms will be read during this service. This really needs to be done in order to “sing to God intelligently” in order to feel all the beauty of psalmody.

On holidays, churches are crowded. Have pity on your neighbor - light candles or venerate the icon another time.

Now the situation has changed and setting candles has lost its original meaning. For us, this is more a reminder of the first centuries of Christianity.

A candle is our visible sacrifice to God. It has a symbolic meaning: before God, we must, like this candle, burn with an even, bright, smokeless flame.

When bringing children to the night service, be sure to ask them if they want to be in the temple now.

If you have small children or elderly relatives, then go with them to the Liturgy in the morning.

10. Be sure to take communion!

INSTEAD OF AN AFTERWORD. What basic condition is necessary to experience the joy of a long all-night service?

God, the Creator of the universe, the Creator of the infinite cosmos, the Creator of our earth, the Creator of man as a perfect creation, the Almighty, who commands the movement of the planets, the entire cosmic system, the existence of life on earth, Whom no one has ever seen, and only a few in the entire history of mankind have been privileged to behold part of the manifestation of His some kind of power... And this God became a man, a baby, completely defenseless, small, subject to everything, including the possibility of murder. And this is all for us, for each of us.

Answer

Tatyana, hello!
On Christmas Eve you can read the Psalter. As many kafimzas as you can handle.
You can also the Gospel. Again, as many chapters as you can.
This is the main reading on Christmas Eve, since the Royal Hours are read in the church on this day, mainly consisting of psalms.
Yes, of course, you can light a candle.
If you cannot get to the church for the service, you can watch on TV a live broadcast of the Patriarchal Christmas Service from the Cathedral of Christ the Savior. (It starts around 10 p.m.).
Happy upcoming bright holiday of the Nativity of Christ!

Answer

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When the church service is on for Christmas. About the Slavic and Russian languages ​​in worship. What do they do in church on Christmas Day: how to fast, celebrate

Part I.

Why do people pray for so long? or Where did the tradition of night services come from?

Part II.

Traditions of Christmas: the service of the Nativity of Christ

What is the meaning of Christmas

Christmas and the Magi

Christ's Birthday

About the Slavic and Russian languages ​​in worship

All-night vigil

How is the Patriarchal Christmas service performed?

People of good will

Are services long in Orthodox churches?

How is everything...

It should also be said that the Christmas service begins...

Christmas

Christmas post

Christmas Eve

History of the holiday

Traditions and rituals for Christmas

When is it customary to celebrate Christmas Eve?

Christmas Eve in 2019: how to celebrate it correctly

Christmas January 7

The main dish on the table...

Christmas service from January 6 to 7 - when to visit the temple

Why is Christmas celebrated on different days?

Christmas - the twelfth holiday

What is celebrated on Christmas - history

Christmas Eve before Christmas

How to get ready for Christmas?

How to enter the church

Duration of church service

Star of Bethlehem

DIY Christmas or New Year's toy

When the church service is on for Christmas. About the Slavic and Russian languages in worship. What do they do in church on Christmas Day: how to fast, celebrate

About the Slavic and Russian languages in worship