Orthodox Christians on Saturday celebrate Christmas - one of the two, along with Easter, the most important church holidays. Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Rus' traditionally performed a Christmas service that night in the main church of the country - the cathedral church of Christ the Savior, which was attended by several thousand believers, including government officials.
Also on this day, the primate of the Russian Orthodox Church will visit the Central Clinical Hospital of St. Alexis on Leninsky Prospekt, congratulate the children invited to the Patriarchal Christmas Tree in the Cathedral of Christ the Savior, and hold a Christmas teleconference from there with the cosmonauts of the International Space Station.
Christmas Message
According to the teachings of the Church, the Christmas holiday symbolizes the reconciliation of man with God. Christmas heralds the redemptive feat of Jesus Christ and the renewal of human nature, struck by the fall of the forefathers.
In his 2017 Christmas message, the Patriarch recalled that Christians should not only encourage others to follow high moral ideals, but also try to embody these ideals in their daily lives, and primarily through service to others. "Overcoming conflicts and divisions, we bring to the world the most convincing sermon about the born Savior and by deeds testify to the extraordinary beauty and spiritual strength of the Orthodox faith," the appeal says.
The Primate of the Russian Orthodox Church, in particular, drew attention to the fact that 2017 marks exactly one hundred years since the "events that radically changed the life of Russia" - "plunging it into the frenzy of a civil war, when children rebelled against their parents and brother turned against brother."
"Those subsequent losses and sorrows that our people went through were largely predetermined by the destruction of the thousand-year-old statehood and the struggle against the religious faith of people, which gave rise to a deep split in society. We remember with awe and reverence the feat of the new martyrs and confessors of the Russian Church, whose prayers, we believe , the Lord did not leave our people and gave them the strength to accomplish great labor and military feats that led to victory in the most terrible war of all wars, to the restoration of the country, to achievements that cause admiration," Kirill noted.
The First Hierarch of the Russian Church expressed gratitude to God "for the miracle manifested to the whole world - the resurrection of faith and piety in our people, for the restoration of destroyed shrines, for new churches and monasteries, the very construction of which is a visible sign of the profound changes that have taken place in people's hearts."
According to the patriarch, in the last decades in the life of compatriots "there were and still are many difficulties and trials", but "all of them are temporary, and therefore not terrible." "The experience of the past century has taught us a lot and should warn us against a lot," the patriarch's message says.
According to RIA Novosti, the press secretary of the patriarch, priest Alexander Volkov, on the day of the feast of the Nativity of Christ, the head of the Russian Orthodox Church will traditionally visit a social institution - a hospital belonging to the Moscow Patriarchate and bearing the name of St. Alexis, Metropolitan of Moscow.
"Here, the patriarch will inspect the newly renovated treatment units, meet with the hospital staff, and his visit to the newly opened palliative department will be a special event," Volkov said. He clarified that not only residents of Moscow, but also residents of other regions, patients with both oncological and other serious diseases, can be treated in this department.
"The patriarch pays special attention to social service and always emphasizes the exceptional importance of this component of church work, and he himself sets an example for the entire Church," the priest said.
The interlocutor of the agency, in particular, noted that, as on his 70th birthday at the end of last year, and on Christmas 2017, the patriarch "blessed all the money that the rectors of Moscow churches planned to purchase for him traditional congratulatory bouquets for Christmas, send to the social account of the hospital of St. Alexis for the purchase of the necessary equipment for it. According to the patriarchal press service, during the previous similar action in November last year, about 2.5 million rubles were collected for the purchase of medical equipment, and "in the future this practice will be continued."
“Also on this day, according to established practice, the patriarch congratulates the crew of the International Space Station. For several years now, he has been in contact with the ISS via a video signal, and it will be the same this time: in the Cathedral of Christ the Savior, before the start of Christmas vespers, the patriarch will communicate with Russian members of the ISS crew - will give a blessing, wish you a Merry Christmas," Volkov said.
The Christmas holiday on the night of January 7 (according to the new style), along with the Russian Orthodox Church, is celebrated by three more local churches - Jerusalem, Serbian and Georgian, as well as Athos monasteries, Catholics of the Eastern rite and some Protestants who adhere to the Julian calendar. According to the charter of the Russian Church, Christmas time is followed by Christmas time (holy days) - a time of special spiritual joy and continuation of the celebration. These days, from January 8 to 17, one-day fasts on Wednesdays and Fridays are cancelled. 
The Republic of Moldova is far from unique in this respect. In addition to our country, officially double Christmas on December 25 and January 7 is celebrated in four other countries of the world.
So when was Jesus born?
The birthday of Jesus Christ - Christmas - is one of the main Christian holidays, which is celebrated by Catholics, Orthodox, and Protestants. This is a public holiday in more than 100 countries of the world: every year it is celebrated by most of the world's population.
It is generally accepted that the Savior was born on December 25, although there is no direct answer in the Bible to the question: “When was Jesus born?”. The date of December 25 was first indicated by Sextus Julius Africanus in his chronicle, written in 221, and in 337 the Roman Church officially decided to consider December 25 as the day of the Nativity of Jesus Christ. However, the question of the real date (as well as the real year) of the birth of the Savior is still controversial and unequivocally unresolved.
Attempts to establish the year of the birth of Jesus Christ from the dates of related events (the years of the reign of emperors, kings, consuls) did not lead to a specific date, but it is believed that, apparently, the historical Jesus was born between 7 and 5 years. BC. In any case, according to the Bible, Jesus was born "in the days of King Herod," who, as was well established, died in 4 BC. However, today we use the erroneous chronology introduced by the Roman Church in 533. It was based on the calculations of the archivist of the Pope, the Scythian monk Dionysius the Small, made in 525.
In 1278, from the founding of Rome, Pope John the First commissioned Dionysius to compile Easter tables. For the convenience of compiling them, Dionysius chose December 25, 753 from the founding of Rome as a hypothetical date for the birth of Christ, and then suggested that John the First introduce a new chronology - before and after the birth of Christ. However, in his calculations, Dionysius made a number of gross errors: according to some researchers, when calculating the terms of the reign of Roman emperors, he simply overlooked four years from the reign of Emperor Augustus (he did not take into account that this emperor at the beginning of his reign reigned for several years like Octavian, and then also like August). So the real Jesus was somewhat older than what the church officially considers.In the summer of 1996, in one of his messages, Pope John Paul II admitted that the historical date of the Nativity of Christ is unknown, and that in reality the Savior was born 5-7 years before the new era - the “official” Nativity of Christ. Nevertheless, now, naturally, no one will correct the mistakes of Dionysius the Small (and, moreover, he did not use “0” yet in his calculations, because this mathematical concept was not known in Europe at that time).
The same confusion arose with the date of birth of Jesus Christ. One of the main indications of the time of his birth is the story of the Star of Bethlehem in the Gospel of Matthew. Her symbol now adorns all Christmas trees.
Most likely, the Magi observed a real astronomical phenomenon. The most likely “candidate” for the Stars of Bethlehem, scientists call a flash of a new or supernova (other versions are Halley’s comet, planetary conjunction, heliactic sunrise).
In 1977, the English astronomers Clark, Parkinson and Stephenson analyzed Chinese and Korean astronomical records from 10 BC to 10 BC. to 13 AD and identified the Star of Bethlehem with a 70-day outburst of a bright new star observed in the spring of 5 BC. Moreover, they managed to quite accurately establish its celestial coordinates. Astronomical calculations confirmed that in the spring of that year, its bright radiance could be observed in Persia, where the Magi came from, and in general - from Syria to China and Korea, low above the horizon, before sunrise - all exactly according to the Gospel of Matthew. The journey from Persia to Jerusalem took at least 5-6 months, therefore, the Magi arrived in the kingdom of Herod the Great in the autumn of 5 BC. - most likely, at the end of September or in October, and by that time they had already observed the Holy Family with baby Jesus.
From the calculations of supporters of the version that the Star of Bethlehem is Halley's comet, it also turns out that Jesus was supposed to be born somewhere between the first of September and the 7th, but certainly not on December 25th. The fact that the Savior could have been born in late September - early October is also evidenced by some indirect indications in the Bible: for example, the time of conception and birth of John the Baptist, who, judging by the texts, was 5-6 months older than Jesus. Another indirect confirmation of this conclusion is the indication of the Evangelist Luke about the census by decree of the Roman Caesar Augustus, according to which everyone had to take a census in their hometown. Such an event could hardly have taken place in the winter, when travel was rather difficult and expensive, and December and January are rather cold months in the mountainous region of Judea, where Bethlehem was located. By the way, Jehovah's Witnesses believe that Christ was born in early October. However, the church celebration of the Nativity of Christ was fixed for December 25th.
Modern scientists believe that this was done on purpose, and is connected not so much with real research on the possible dates for the birth of the Savior, but with the political situation of that time. The fact is that even after the adoption of Christianity, paganism among the Romans did not lose its position. With especially great splendor on December 25, the holiday of sun worship was celebrated - Dies Natalis Solis Invicti (Christmas of the Invincible Sun), established in 274 by Emperor Aurelian. To eliminate pagan traditions in 337, the Roman Church officially decided to consider December 25 as the day of the Nativity of Jesus Christ.
"Catholic" and "Orthodox" Christmas
It is usually believed that December 25 is Catholic Christmas, and January 7 is Orthodox. Actually it is not.
On the night of December 24-25, Christmas is celebrated not only by Catholics, but also by Lutherans and other Protestant denominations, as well as 11 Local Orthodox Churches of the world (they do not use the “Catholic” Gregorian calendar, but the so-called “New Julian”, which so far coincides with Gregorian - the discrepancy between these calendars in one day will accumulate by the year 2800).
But on the night of January 6-7, the feast of the Nativity of Christ is celebrated by a number of Orthodox churches that have remained in the old style (Russian, Georgian, Jerusalem, Serbian), Athos monasteries living according to the Julian calendar, the Armenian Apostolic Church (celebrating Christmas and the Baptism of the Lord, as a single feast of the Epiphany), separate dioceses of the Romanian Orthodox Church (Metropolis of Bessarabia), Greek Old Calendarists who did not accept the transition to the New Julian calendar in the Greek Church, Orthodox Arabs in Jerusalem, as well as many Catholics of the Eastern rite (in particular, the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church) and part of Russian Protestants. In 2014, the Polish Orthodox Church returned to the Julian calendar after the cancellation of the conciliar decision of 1924 on the introduction of a new style.
In fact, it is not the date of the Nativity of Christ that differs, but the calendar used. Christians who celebrate Christmas on December 25 use the modern Gregorian calendar. The rest celebrate the birth of the Savior on December 25, too, but according to the Julian calendar, and this date in the Gregorian calendar in the 20th and 21st centuries falls on January 7th. But this will not always be the case. In a century, the difference between styles will be not 13, but 14 days. Consequently, in the XXII century, our descendants will celebrate Christmas on January 8 according to the old style, and in two centuries - on January 9th.The Julian calendar was introduced in 45 BC. Julius Caesar. According to him, the year begins on January 1, has 365 days, every fourth year is a leap year, when one more day is added in February - February 29. However, the Julian calendar did not take into account one more day, which accumulated every 128 years.
In 1582, Pope Gregory XIII recognized the Julian calendar as inaccurate (the clergy had problems calculating the date of Easter). An error was found in it: the backlog of calendar accounting from astronomical. As a result, on October 4, 1582, a new, “Gregorian” calendar was introduced in Catholic countries by Gregory XIII, which is used today in most countries of the world. At the time of the reform of 1582, there was a discrepancy of 10 days between the dates in the Julian and Gregorian calendars.
The Orthodox tradition, while maintaining the true calculation of the date of Easter, unlike the Catholic Church, did not switch to the Gregorian calendar, and all calculations of Orthodox events are carried out according to the old Julian calendar. True, in 1923, at the initiative of the Patriarch of Constantinople, a meeting of the Orthodox Churches was held, at which a decision was made to correct the Julian calendar. This is how the so-called church, which was not accepted by all Orthodox Churches and their separate divisions, appeared. "New Julian" calendar, currently coinciding with the Gregorian.
So Christian churches and denominations today use three calendars at once - Julian, New Julian and Gregorian. Hence the discrepancy in the celebration of the Nativity of Christ and other Christian holidays.
Political Christmas
In Moldova, the first attempt to celebrate Christmas “in European style” was made by Chisinau Mayor Dorin Chirtoaca. It was in 2007 and resulted in the famous “Christmas tree wars”.
In December 2007, the General Mayor of Chisinau ordered to dress up Christmas trees in the city, including the “central” green beauty, on December 10 or 15 - so that “Chisinau in this regard keeps pace with major European cities.” Vice Mayor Anna-Lucia Kulev reported at a meeting of the city hall that by December 25, in honor of Christmas, a festive cultural and artistic program would be prepared in the new style.
In general, the capital's leadership was going to celebrate the "European" Christmas in a big way. However, the central communist authorities ruling at that time forbade the mayor's office to install a Christmas tree on the central square of Chisinau before December 30th. Chirtoaca did not listen. The tree has been set up. Two activists of the Liberal Party were assigned to her - for protection. However, on the same night, the “Chirtoaca tree” suddenly “moved” from the central square of the city to a nearby park.
In 2008, the “Brad de craciun” operation was repeated. Only this time, the “Chirtoaca tree” was not allowed to reach the capital at first (on the way to Chisinau, it was intercepted by the police, who said that there were no documents for the tree, which means it was forbidden to transport it), and then the mayor’s office had problems with Christmas tree decorations. December 25 failed again.
Everything changed in 2009, when the Alliance for European Integration came to power. In November 2009, the government of Vladimir Filat, despite the indignation of the Orthodox clergy, unanimously voted to declare December 25 a public holiday. The Moldovan Metropolis immediately sent a letter to the government asking them to reconsider their decision on Christmas, since this is a religious, not a secular holiday, and religious holidays are determined according to the church calendar.
“If the authorities made this decision taking into account the fact that other religious denominations celebrate Christmas on December 25, then in this case there is no less bewilderment. The Orthodox Church in Moldova respects the representatives of all confessions officially registered on the territory of our country, however, the announcement of a day off at the national level for the holiday of a religious minority seems strange,” the Metropolitanate said in a statement (according to the 2004 census, 93.3% of citizens Moldovans identified themselves as Orthodox Christians, and according to the 2014 census, this figure was 96.8%.
The ambiguity of the situation, according to the Orthodox clergy, also consisted in the fact that the motive for this decision of the government was not clear, since both the Metropolis of Moldova and the Metropolis of Bessarabia, in accordance with their status, follow the Julian calendar, which excludes the possibility of celebrating Christmas on December 25th. “We live in a country where people honor holidays and traditions that characterize us as a people, as well as our culture. We have no right to lose what we have inherited and betray our identity,” the Metropolitanate emphasized in a statement.
However, the government, declaring that it wants to keep up with Europe, declared December 25 a day off and a public holiday in 2010, 2011, and subsequent years. And the Chisinau mayor's office generally refused any celebration of Christmas on January 7th. The city authorities then commented on the new approach to the Nativity of Christ: “The celebration of Christmas was organized on December 25 in the Great National Assembly Square with music and dance. There will be no events on January 7th.”
The final point on the issue of celebrating Christmas in the Republic of Moldova was put by the Parliament in 2013. new style, was declared an official holiday along with January 7 and 8 (Old Style Christmas). The communists who were in opposition then stated that now, logically, Catholic Easter, the Jewish New Year and Ramadan should also be declared official holidays in Moldova, since representatives of these religions and confessions are also represented in Moldova, constitute a religious minority and now have the right to demand the satisfaction of their right, once the precedent is set.Thus, the Republic of Moldova has been officially celebrating Christmas twice for ten years already - according to the Gregorian and Julian calendars, but this is not something unique. Christmas is celebrated twice in a number of other countries. For example, in Belarus, Lebanon, Eritrea and Ukraine. Moreover, the last to come to the Christmas double was in Ukraine - in 2017, and also for political reasons. As Speaker of the Verkhovna Rada Andriy Parubiy said in December 2017, the new law on Christmas “liberated Ukraine from Moscow’s mental occupation and returned it to the family of the free peoples of the world.”
But in Belarus, double Christmas is an established tradition for another reason: the country is at the intersection of spheres of influence of two confessions - Orthodoxy and Catholicism, and double Christmas is used here as a symbol of the unification of the people and mutual understanding between the Catholic and Orthodox churches.
“Representatives of the Orthodox Church take part in the celebration of Christmas on December 25, we take part in the celebration of Christmas on January 7. People like it, they see that we are acting like brothers. I don't see any problem with this. This is how people want it, so it will continue like this,” the Catholic Archbishop, Metropolitan of Minsk and Mogilev Tadeusz Kondrusiewicz told the Belarusian press in 2017.
So somewhere double Christmas divides the society, and somewhere on the contrary - it unites.
In the Republic of Moldova, citizens try not to be divided on this issue - the majority do not condemn those who have a holiday on December 25 and enjoy this day, but celebrate Christmas according to the tradition inherited from their ancestors - January 7 and 8.
Vladislav Bordeianu
Catholics celebrate Christmas a little earlier than Orthodox believers. The great event is annually celebrated at the end of December.
For the Catholic Church, Christmas is the main religious holiday. Every year on December 25, Catholics remember the amazing story of this event, decorate their homes and give their loved ones Christmas gifts. Despite the fact that each church celebrates this day in accordance with its faith, nevertheless, some traditions are similar.
Catholic Christmas in 2017
Every year, Catholic Christmas falls on December 25, and Orthodox Christmas falls on January 7. Why is the same holiday celebrated on different days? Since 1582, many countries of the world began to calculate time following the Gregorian calendar, which is why most religious events among Catholics and Orthodox believers do not coincide. The Orthodox Church calculates events according to the Julian calendar, where Christmas falls on January 7th.
The difference in the dates of the celebration of Christmas did not affect the significance of the holiday. On this day, believers celebrate the birth of the Great Infant, who became the Savior of all mankind. His appearance in the world was a real miracle. The Lord chose the Virgin Mary as the Mother of Jesus Christ, and sent an angel to inform her of this news. Her husband Joseph at first did not believe in this and threatened to annul the marriage. However, the messenger of God explained to him that this child is the blessing of the King of Heaven, and Joseph needs to raise and love him as his own son. Even before the birth, the couple went to Bethlehem with the hope of settling in a hotel, but they did not succeed. Mary and Joseph were forced to camp in the barn. The first to see the Son of God were the shepherds. The star that shone in Bethlehem also led three wise men there, who brought gold, frankincense and myrrh as a gift to the child. Herod, having learned about the appearance of the Divine Infant, decided to kill all the children under two years old, but Jesus Christ was able to avoid death. An angel appeared to Joseph and warned him of the evil intentions of the king, and they, together with the child and Mary, went to Egypt, where they lived until the death of Herod.
How Catholics Celebrate Christmas
Christmas is one of the twelfth holidays and is one of the non-transitory. For both Catholics and Orthodox believers, the date of Christmas is unchanged. Despite the common history of the holiday, the traditions of this day are still different.
Advent is a kind of preparation for the Nativity of Christ. People purify their body and soul and prepare to meet the Great Infant with dignity. For Catholics, this period is called Advent, and it lasts four weeks.
Decorating the house with fir branches wreaths with candles is another Catholic Christmas tradition. The round shape of the wreath symbolizes eternal life, the green color is the embodiment of life, the fire is the light that illuminates the whole world on Christmas Day.
Figurines of the Virgin Mary and the Infant Christ are installed in houses and churches. It can also be Christmas decorations, installations and just paintings.
On Christmas Day, Catholic believers attend Mass, a Christmas church service. During it, the priest puts the figure in the form of the Child of God into the manger and consecrates it. At this moment, people can feel like participants in this Great event.
Christmas treats are different in every country. In England and America, it is customary to serve turkey, in Spain - pork, and in Latvia - fish. There must be plenty of dishes so that guests leave full and satisfied.
For Orthodox believers, Christmas will come only on January 7th. However, even before it comes, you can find out what awaits you in 2018. Christmas fortune-telling is much stronger and more truthful than usual, because it is on this day that we can achieve unity with the Higher powers.
Today, January 7, 2020, Eastern Christians celebrate a great holiday, which is one of the Twelfth. Believers celebrate Christmas. Believers believe that on this day Jesus Christ was born, and this is a great day for the entire Christian world. It is noteworthy that the holiday is celebrated in more than a hundred countries around the world.
January 7 is the Nativity of Christ among Eastern Christians, how it differs from the holiday among others
There is a difference between Western and Eastern Christians in celebrating Christmas. The Western Church follows the Gregorian calendar and celebrates Christmas on December 25th, while the Eastern Church follows the Julian calendar and celebrates Christmas on January 7th. The Eastern Church celebrates Christmas 9 months after the Annunciation (April 7) when the archangel informed the Virgin Mary that she had been chosen for the great future of Christendom.
The Immaculate Virgin Mary on January 7 gave the world the baby Jesus. The Son of God arrived on earth in Bethlehem, in a cave where animals were kept. For lack of a cradle, the baby had to be placed in a manger, which served as a feeder for animals.
The local shepherds were the first to bow to the Savior. It is believed that an angel informed the shepherds about the birth of the Son of God. At the same time, the ancient sages were already leading the way from the East, who knew that soon God would send his son to Earth. Jesus was born at this very moment. After the fall of Eve, mankind had a second chance to earn the forgiveness of the Almighty and gain immortality.
The wise men did not come to Jesus empty-handed, they gave him gold, frankincense and myrrh. Gold was traditionally given to kings and rulers, it is the personification of the recognition of strength and power on Earth. Frankincense is a sign of accepting the Lord, and myrrh is given as a reminder of the infant's mortality, which is inherent in every person.
On the night of January 6-7, services are traditionally held in churches and temples, where they tell about the story of Jesus in hymns. Before Christmas, a strict fast takes place, it ends with the ascent of the first star in the sky. Christians look forward to this star, it is believed that this is the Star of Bethlehem. According to the legends, it was this star that showed the way to the wise men to the cave where Jesus Christ appeared.
Christmas is always prepared in advance. Near each temple they make an improvisational cave with a manger in which a child is. All believers who come to the service are baptized in front of the manger and offer prayers. Christmas is a family celebration. Adults at this time tell the kids about the holiday, and the children willingly take part in the process of preparing for it. When the cherished star appears in the sky, after the service, Christians sit down at the festive table and the night meal begins. Every family has its own traditions of celebrating Christmas.
Features and traditions of the holiday of Christmas, January 7, 2020
Every year before Christmas, Christians try to adhere to the strictest Advent fast, which begins on November 28 and ends on January 7. During fasting, believers try to cleanse themselves spiritually and repent of their sins.
Before Christmas, people celebrate the so-called "Christmas Eve", which takes its name from the word "Sochivo". Sochivo is boiled rice or wheat grains traditionally eaten with dried fruit compote. Christmas Eve is also called Holy Evening. The Orthodox prepare 12 Lenten dishes (in honor of the 12 disciples of Christ), and before Christmas they prepare the traditional Sochivo (Kutya) dish.
One of the most ancient traditions of Christmas and Christmas Eve is caroling. On the night before Christmas, children and teenagers wear Christmas kutya to their homes, sing Christmas songs and congratulate people on the holiday, the owners of the houses, in turn, thank the guests with cash or sweets. In ancient Russia, it was customary to go around Christmas and visit sick and lonely people, distribute food and money to the poor.
Main Customs and Traditions for Christmas
- from early morning on Christmas it is customary to go from house to house and carol;
- during caroling, it is customary to dress up in various costumes and congratulate passers-by on Christmas;
- when midnight comes from January 6 to 7, you need to open the windows and doors, so Christmas will get into the house;
- fasting ends on Christmas, at this time it is customary to cook 12 non-fasting dishes;
- in the evening on Christmas at dinner, the whole family once again gathers to celebrate the birth of Christ;
- on Christmas, three services are held in churches: at midnight, at dawn and in the afternoon, at this time you need to visit the church if you are a believer;
- on this day, parents tell their children bible stories about the birth of Christ and try to enlighten them spiritually.
Jan. 7(December 25, 2017 according to the "old style" - church Julian calendar). Week 31 after Pentecost (the thirty-first Sunday after the feast of the Holy Trinity, Pentecost). Bright feast of the Nativity of Christ. Completion of the Nativity (Philippov) Lent, the beginning of Christmas time. Next, we will briefly talk about this solemn day, the main among the great twelfth holidays, in significance and solemnity in the Orthodox tradition second only to Bright Resurrection of Christ - Easter of the Lord.
"God is with us! Understand, Gentiles, and submit, as God is with us!"- these words of the prophet Isaiah, which have become one of the main liturgical hymns of today's Christmas night, are known to many. But what is their main meaning, besides what is already so obvious: the reverently solemn awareness of our being together with God Himself? Who are these "tongues" who are strongly recommended to comprehend such a joyful fact for every Christian and to submit to the Lord?
Christmas address of His Holiness Patriarch Kirill
Let's start from afar. No, not from the eternal Nativity of the Son of God, which is a Mystery for all of us, but which is also very important to remember, not forgetting that in these winter days we celebrate the birth of Christ precisely “according to the flesh”, when from the Virgin Mary, our Most Holy Lady the Savior of the whole world became man.
Billions of people on our planet know very well: this happened a little more than two thousand years ago in a simple cave intended for livestock in the city of Bethlehem (now a small Arab town in the long-suffering State of Palestine, and in those distant times a village belonging to the Roman Empire of Judea) .
Like any large state, the Roman Empire during the reign of its founder Octavian Augustus (27 BC - 14 AD) regularly conducted a population census. So, during one of them, the young Virgin Mary and Her named husband, the righteous elder Joseph the Betrothed, ended up in Bethlehem (the place where their family originated - the family of King David).
Both of them, from the day of the Annunciation, knew who the Blessed Virgin was carrying in the Womb, but they hardly imagined that the Son of the Most High, the God-Man, would be born in a manger, among hay and straw. Of course, Jewish scholars of the Scriptures knew (even from the prophet Micah, who lived eight centuries earlier) that it was in Bethlehem that the King of kings would be born, but could they imagine that this would happen exactly like that?
"And you, Bethlehem-Ephratha, are you small among the thousands of Judah? From you will come to me the one who should be the ruler in Israel and whose origin is from the beginning, from the days of eternity" (Micah 5:2).
A rationally thinking person would never have extracted from such words the possibility of humble self-abasement of the Lord of the world. On the contrary, the Jews were waiting for someone who would reign in Israel in earthly glory and subjugate all the nations of the world to them. This expectation was especially aggravated in the years when the Romans conquered the proud descendants of Abraham. And only a few on that great night rejoiced at the Born and glorified him. The first were simple shepherds, to whom the Angel of the Lord appeared and said:
"Do not be afraid: behold, I am announcing great joy to you, even if it will be for all people, as if today a Savior will be born to you, Who is Christ the Lord, in the city of David."
Well, then, in the person of the eastern sages-sorcerers (in the Western Christian tradition they are even considered kings), just “all the heathens”, that is, all the peoples of the pagan world (it won’t be long, and Christ is already in will literally accept, having submitted to Him, many peoples of Eurasia and North Africa):
"You bow down to Him, and open your treasures, bringing gifts to Him: gold and Lebanon and myrrh" (Matt. 2:11).
The earthly ministry of the Savior is far ahead. The world is not yet enlightened by His preaching. Ahead is the betrayal of one of the disciples, and the Passion of the Lord, and His Crucifixion ... And, of course, the Resurrection of Christ, which has become the main Event of all earthly history. In the meantime, the King of Kings is small and defenseless. As it is sung in the kontakion of today's holiday, one of its main prayers:
"Today the Virgin gives birth to the Most Substantial, and the earth brings a den to the Unapproachable; Angels with shepherds glorify, wise men travel with a star, for the sake of us being born a young child, eternal God ..."
Sermon by His Holiness Patriarch Kirill on the Feast of the Nativity of Christ
But we, Orthodox Christians, should, like simple shepherds and wise astrologers, bow to the Divine Infant, submit to Him. And for this you just need to come to the temple for the Christmas service. This can be done both at night and in the morning. The main thing is not to forget the gifts. No, not gold, lebanon and myrrh, but their prayers, repentance, good thoughts and further deeds. Well, then you can enjoy the festive table.
Happy Holidays Orthodox Christians! Merry Christmas!
"Christ is born, praise: Christ from heaven, sing: Christ on earth, ascend. Sing to the Lord, all the earth, and sing with joy, people, as if you were glorified ..."
