How Christmas is celebrated: traditions, rituals, attributes and signs. Church service on Christmas Eve. On January 7, the Orthodox celebrate the great church holiday - the Nativity of Christ. The Christian holiday marks the birth on Earth of the infant "divine child", Jesus Christ in Bethlehem. According to Christian convictions, Jesus was sent to earth by God to save mankind and atone for sins. The Nativity of Christ has a rich history with traditions, symbols and customs. This is a quiet family holiday when family and relatives gather at the table. For many years, everyone has been honoring the traditions of the Birth of the Son of God: people decorate houses, light candles, attend church services.
Christmas traditions
Traditionally, before Christmas, a forty-day fast lasts from November 28 to January 7. It was established so that people would be cleansed by prayers and abstinence from food, offenses, passions, vices, evil and other sins by Christmas.
Holy Evening
On Holy Eve, January 6 before Christmas, with the appearance of the first star, all family members, incl. and children sit down at a generous table. Everyone prays, lights Christmas candles, and the owner of the house blesses the dinner. During the meal, you should not swear and argue. There should be 12 festive Lenten dishes on the table in honor of the 12 apostles. The main ritual Christmas treat, which is placed in the center, is kutia made from wheat porridge with raisins, poppy seeds, honey and nuts. The second ritual dish is uzvar (compote) or jelly. It is not accepted to have breakfast and lunch on this day, only children are allowed a light snack.
Christmas table
Table decoration is an important Christmas rite. Traditionally, the table is covered with fresh straw, grain is poured on top, garlic cloves are placed around the edges and all this is covered with a tablecloth. In wealthy houses, the table is decorated with figured marmalade, and in some families figurines of animals are baked.
By Christmas, January 7, a wild boar was stabbed, from which jelly, sausage, roast, bacon, saltison - everything that could not be consumed in fasting was prepared. They roasted a goose or duck, baked pancakes, served honey shuliks with poppy seeds and opened pickles.
Didukh
In every house, Didukh should stand in a place of honor. This is an oat, rye or wheat sheaf, symbolizing harvest, wealth, prosperity, the spirit of deceased ancestors and the guardian of the family clan. Didukh brings comfort, good mood and festive atmosphere to the house.
Nativity scene
The Nativity Scene is a mobile miniature puppet stage with various theatrical figures. The theater is housed in a box where whole Christmas performances are shown. The main decoration of the den is a manger with the baby Jesus, and the characters are Joseph with a beard, the Virgin Mary and King Herod. The nativity scene may be attended by angels, shepherds, magicians, with sheep and animals (ox, donkey) that warmed Jesus at birth.
Fortune telling
Starting from the Holy Evening and ending with the Baptism of the Lord, everyone who wished wondered in order to find out the future and fate, and the girls were betrothed. For this they used wax, hair, snow, milk, jewelry and other attributes.
Carols
Christmas carols began on Holy Evening or the first day of Christmas. Carollers walked the streets and houses, carried with them a gilded star on a stick, symbolizing the one of Bethlehem and commemorating the birth of Christ. Entering the courtyard, they asked permission to sing carols, and having received consent, they sang carols and played funny scenes. In the songs they sang the praises of the owners, wishing them health, prosperity and happiness, for which they rewarded the carolers with sweets or money.
Traditional attributes of the Nativity of Christ
The Christmas tradition has survived to this day to decorate the Christmas tree, set a star on the top, hang angels on the tree branches, and sweets for children. A Christmas wreath was hung on the door, window, or fireplace. Decorative candles were lit on the table, windowsill or fireplace. During the songs, bells were rang, welcoming the coming of Christ. Each other was presented with Christmas cards and gifts with a spiritual meaning.
Church service on Christmas Eve
The Christmas Vigil (evening) church service lasts three hours. Then the liturgy is served. At the end of the service, the celebration of Christmas begins. People greet each other with the words "Merry Christmas". If Christmas Eve falls on a Saturday or Sunday, then Vigil is served on Friday. And directly on Christmas Eve itself, the liturgy of John Chrysostom is served, and on Christmas Day the liturgy of Basil the Great is celebrated.
Signs for Christmas
- If the sky is starry and the weather is clear, then there will be a fruitful year.
- In the house, you need to light a candle in honor of the deceased ancestors, then they will help next year, and they will attract good luck and prosperity to the house.
- If the weather is blizzard, then winter will end soon, and early leaves will appear on the trees.
- Christmas is a time for shopping. Having bought something good, the purchase will serve faithfully for a long time.
- On this day, it is forbidden to sew, embroider, knit and sew on buttons, otherwise someone will lose their sight.
- It is necessary to communicate only with bright and positive people, and communication with unpleasant ones should be avoided.
- You cannot do anything about the housework: clean up, wash, wash, sweep, otherwise there will be misfortune.
- You should watch out for things, nothing to lose on Christmas, it will lead to a loss.
- The mirror requires careful handling so as not to break it, this bodes well.
