They don't eat until the first star. “You can’t do it until the first star”: on Christmas Eve it is customary to abstain from food until the evening. What is the church service like on this day?

MOSCOW, January 6 - RIA Novosti, Sergey Stefanov. Orthodox believers on January 6 (December 24, old style) celebrate Christmas Eve, or the eve of the Nativity of Christ - the eve of one of the main Christian holidays and the last day of the long 40-day Nativity Fast. Moreover, Christmas Eve is considered the strictest day of fasting. The custom of celebrating Christmas Eve in churches has been known since ancient times - already in the 4th century there were separate regulations regulating this day. Read about how Orthodox Christians should spend Christmas Eve, what its meaning is and what the traditions of the holiday are, in the RIA Novosti material.

Christmas Eve symbol

The main Lenten dish of Christmas Eve (modified “nomad”) is sochivo, from which this day takes its name. “Sochivo” or “kolivo” are boiled grains of rice or wheat. It is possible to prepare kutia instead of sochiv. This food is prepared from boiled or steamed cereal grains (wheat, barley) with the addition of honey, nuts and fruits. No oil.

According to the interpretation of the clergy, the grain symbolizes resurrection, and honey - the sweetness of the future blissful life.

Sochivo - a traditional dish made from wheat or barley with the addition of honey and nuts, which Orthodox Christians prepare on Christmas Eve, the evening before Christmas. Watch the video instructions for preparing it.

Sochivo or kutya is eaten during joint meals at home and in parishes. Traditionally, this is done at the end of the morning service.

According to the rector of the Epiphany Cathedral in Yelokhov, Archpriest Alexander Ageikin, this food is “the most modest and simple,” and it is prepared in order “not to be distracted from the main thing—the concentrated anticipation of the upcoming holiday.” “Believers have always traditionally spent this day in worship and prayer, everything else fades into the background,” recalls Ageikin.

For a long time in Rus', on Christmas Eve, in addition to Sochik, they prepared a brew of apples, pears, plums, raisins, cherries and other fruits boiled in water. The table on which the meal was located was covered with hay or straw - as a reminder of the manger in which Christ was laid.

Unusual service

The morning service on Christmas Eve is especially long and can last in churches for five to six hours, until the middle of the day. It is already completely dedicated to the upcoming holiday of Christmas - instead of a concentrated, “fasting” mood, the entire church service seems to be permeated with joy from the upcoming great holiday.

The hymns performed and all the Gospel readings are dedicated to the approaching Nativity of Christ. First of all, I remember the Gospel story about the worship of the Divine Infant Christ by the eastern wise men (magi) from the east, who brought him gifts: gold, incense and myrrh. Gold was brought to Christ as a king, incense - as to God, and myrrh - as a man for burial.

Usually on this day, the Royal (or Great) Hours are celebrated first, and then Great Vespers with the Divine Liturgy of St. Basil the Great. Royal hours (special prayers and psalms) are called because in the Church of Constantinople they were attended by emperors and their entire court. If Christmas Eve falls on a Saturday or Sunday, which in the Church are always distinguished from others (and by their nature are not fasting, but festive), then the service of the Royal Hours is transferred to another, weekday.

Also on the eve of Christmas, the so-called proverbs are read - excerpts from books, mainly the Old Testament, which contain the ancient prophecies of the saints about the coming of the Savior to the world.

At the end of the liturgy and Great Vespers, a candle is brought to the center of the church, and the priests, dressed in festive attire, all together sing the troparion to the Nativity of Christ in front of it. In addition, on this day, priests always advise believers to confess and receive communion during the liturgy, as they do directly on the holiday itself, January 7th.

Star in the East

"Christmas Eve, as well as Epiphany Eve, are days of preparation for the Christian to meet the coming great holidays. This preparation is enhanced primarily by special services performed on this day, and by a more strict measure of fasting, which tells the believer that " take a break from all your entertainment and relaxation and try to “remember” that so much awaits you tomorrow great holiday", says Archpriest Maxim Kozlov, professor at the Moscow Theological Academy.

According to church regulations, on Christmas Eve you are allowed to eat only once, after the evening service. However, in modern parish practice, the service of Vespers is combined with the liturgy and served in the morning, so at the end of this service the believers can already eat food. At the same time, eating fish is not blessed, but vegetable oil and a little wine is allowed.

The tradition of complete abstinence from food on Christmas Eve applies primarily to monasteries, however, some lay people, who feel strong and have received the blessing of their confessor, completely refuse food before Christmas.

Such a strict fast occurs only on a few days a year - these are the first days of Lent, Good Friday, Exaltation of the Holy Cross, Christmas and Epiphany Eves.

“In ancient times, on Christmas Eve, Christians did not eat food until the evening. Precisely because Vespers itself, the liturgy, was then served in the evening.<…> Ancient tradition says that on Christmas Eve until Christmas, until the so-called star, people should not eat or drink anything. Now, of course, this is unlikely to be the case, but in ancient times people tried to work hard during fasting,” Archpriest Alexei Uminsky, rector of the Church of the Life-Giving Trinity in Khokhly and host of the TV program “Orthodox Encyclopedia,” told RIA Novosti.

The custom on Christmas Eve “not to eat food until the first evening star” is associated with the memory of the appearance of a star in the east, which announced to the Magi about the birth of Jesus Christ, but this tradition is not prescribed by the liturgical rules.

The Mystery of the Incarnation

According to Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Rus', on Christmas Eve the Church “remembers all those who preceded Jesus Christ in the flesh - His relatives, starting from Abraham,” and testifies that “the Savior is part of our history.”

“And this great mystery of the incarnation helps us understand the meaning of human history. It is not about becoming richer, in order to gain more power, in order to conquer other peoples, as it seemed and as it still seems to many, but the meaning of history lies in knowledge of the will of God, in discovering for oneself God’s plan for the world and man,” the patriarch said in one of his sermons during the Nativity Fast.

Believers have always tried to mark Christmas Eve with various deeds of Christian charity and mercy, trying to embody high moral ideals in their daily lives.

From the evening of Christmas Eve in Rus' they also began caroling: they went to the houses of relatives and friends and sang folk ritual songs, and the owners in return offered the guests treats. However, this folk tradition became more widespread directly in holy days- the period from the Nativity of Christ to Epiphany Eve, when mandatory fasting was abolished.

Hearing the words: “So it’s fasting, mother. You can't reach the first star. We’re waiting, sir,” many will still remember the continuation today advertising slogan of a defunct bank. For religious people, this phrase is filled with a completely different meaning - the expectation of the appearance in the sky of the Star of Bethlehem, which, according to legend, announced the birth of Christ to the Magi.

Astronomers have their own explanation for this celestial phenomenon and consider the appearance of a “star in the east” to be a consequence of the coincidence of rare astronomical and astrological events. The prophetic star also left its mark on material culture: interiors were decorated with images of stars, the tops of New Year trees are still decorated with stars, women knit and embroider eight-pointed stars in the ornaments of their handicrafts. It is believed that the star brings prosperity and happiness and establishes a connection between the spiritual and material world.

Lenten traditions

Today is Christmas Eve, the day before the Nativity of Christ. On this day, the four-week Christmas fast ends, and religious traditions prohibit believers from eating before dark and the appearance of the first star. Many traditions and special rituals have long been associated with this day.

The name “Christmas Eve” was given to the day before Christmas by a special food - sochivo - rice or wheat porridge with honey, nuts and raisins. It was the first obligatory dish of dinner on the eve of the holiday. Sochivo is a grain of bread soaked in water, honey, broth or gravy; it symbolizes germination, the beginning of life. For the Eastern Slavs, this grain was rye until the end of the 19th century, later - wheat, and for wealthy people - rice.

Sochivo from wheat. How to cook?

Ingredients: you will need 1 cup of wheat grains, 100 g of poppy seeds, 2-3 tablespoons of poppy seeds, 140 g of walnut kernels.

Cooking method: Sort the wheat, rinse thoroughly. Soak the grain for two to three hours in cold water. Then drain in a colander or cheesecloth, drain the water and transfer the wheat to a saucepan. Fill clean water in a ratio of 1:3, lightly salt, cook over low heat for two hours or put in the oven, where it simmers at 180`C until soft. While the wheat is cooking, pour boiling water over the poppy seeds. Drain the wheat from the water in which it was boiled. Save a little broth and dilute honey in it. Pour honey water over the wheat.

Drain the water from the poppy seeds, grind the swollen poppy seeds in a mortar or grind through a meat grinder with a fine grid several times. Chop the nuts and fry in a dry frying pan. Mix wheat, poppy seeds and nuts, let it brew for a while. Sochivo ready.

Also obligatory dishes at the Christmas Eve ritual feast are baked fish and a thick broth made from whole or halved fruits. The broth differs from compote in its richer concentration and symbolizes the full maturation of life and its end. Sochivo and vzvar or jelly are symbols of birth and death.

The menu can be supplemented with dishes made from vegetables and legumes. The number of dishes for the pre-Christmas dinner can be up to twelve. Together they serve as a reminder of the grains and fruits brought to Christ by the Magi on his birthday.

Believers begin dinner after the evening service and the appearance of the first star. Before this, neither food nor drink is consumed throughout the day. Meat dishes appear on the table of fasting people only after the solemn liturgy on the Day of the Nativity of Christ.

The table for the meal was prepared in a special way - it was lined with straw and covered with a bleached tablecloth. This referred believers to the legend that Christ was born in a sheep stable on straw. Christmas Eve dinner for believers is a quiet family meal, without long gatherings and empty table conversations.

Game rituals

Another Christmas tradition is carols. From a small box - a nativity scene - an impromptu puppet theater was set up, in which Christmas-themed actions were performed. We walked around the village with the nativity scene in the evening, congratulating our neighbors.

Young people “dressed up” - they put on sheepskin coats with the fur facing out, hid their faces under animal masks and sang Christmas carols.

Virgin Mary

Nativity of Christ - An angel has arrived.

He flew across the sky and sang songs to people:

- All people rejoice, rejoice on this day

- Today is Christmas!

I am flying from God, I brought you joy,

That Christ was born in a poor den.

Hurry up, hurry up

Meet the Newborn Baby.

The shepherds from the East came before everyone else,

The baby was found in a manger on straw.

They stood, wept, and glorified Christ

And His Holy Mother.

And the wise men, seeing a bright star,

They came to worship God and the King.

They bowed to God, they gave gifts to the Tsar:

Gold, myrrh and Lebanon.

And the rebellious Herod learned about Christ,

He sent warriors to kill all the babies.

Babies were killed, swords were dulled,

And Christ was in Egypt.

We have sinned a lot, O Savior before You.

We are all sinful people, You alone are Holy.

Forgive our sins, give us forgiveness.

Today is Christmas!

It was believed that on Christmas night the forces of good and evil meet. Good forces invited people to sing carols or treat the artists to sweets, and to glorify the birth of Christ at the Lenten evening table. Evil forces gathered a coven of witches, raging in their powerlessness, and drew people to fortune telling.

Fortune telling rituals with the rooting of Christianity lost their relevance, but in various ways Many people know how to look into the future. It happens that even today, fortune telling by a shoe, a mirror, ashes, a ring, an onion or a dog’s bark makes fortune tellers hold their breath. It is believed that wishes made on the night before Christmas have many chances of coming true.

Christmas fortune telling by candles are done as follows:

you need to take the remaining wax or paraffin from the candles white, multi-colored and holiday candles will not work. Place the wax in a metal bowl, melt over high heat and quickly pour into cold water. A figure that is formed from frozen wax and tells about the future.

Interpretation of figures:

if drops of wax harden in the shape of a house, this means that in the near future you will have a new household, and the girl will have a fiance;

if the figure is shapeless, then the future promises trouble;

if you see a tree, then pay attention to the direction of its branches: if they stretch upward - joy is close, if they lean towards the bottom - there will be boredom, melancholy and sadness;

a candle or ring predicts an imminent wedding;

If a pancake falls to the bottom, then the girl’s girlhood will be prolonged.

After Christmas Eve until the holiday of Epiphany, which is celebrated on January 19, the holy weeks continue. Greed and stinginess are absolutely not for this time - this is the time of preparing gifts and purchases.

Signs for Christmas

Our ancestors did not welcome fortune telling, but they watched for signs. It was believed that a snowstorm on Christmas Eve meant early foliage, and snow on Christmas Eve meant a grain harvest in the new year.

On Christmas Eve, peasant children climbed under the table and “chuckled” like chickens - so that the chickens would lay eggs well.

Starting on Christmas Eve, winter turns to frost, and sun turns to summer.

Weather this year folk signs follows. Regardless of whether you decide to join the folk traditions or not, we wish you happiness, health, prosperity and bright stars on your way!

What does it mean to fast until the first star? How should people who are sick fast on this day? Is it necessary to attend the night Liturgy on Christmas and be at the service on the evening of the Holiday? Should you celebrate Christmas with your family? Is it possible to maintain a prayerful mood during a festive feast?

January 6 - Forever Nativity of Christ, or Christmas Eve- last day Nativity Fast, eve Nativity of Christ.

On this day, Orthodox Christians especially prepare for the upcoming holiday; the whole day is filled with special festive mood. On the morning of Christmas Eve, at the end of the Liturgy and the following Vespers, a candle is brought into the center of the church and the priests sing a troparion before it. Christmas.

Services and Christmas Eve post have a number of features, so these days our website receives a lot of questions about how to properly conduct Christmas Eve.

Archpriest Alexander answers

– 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?

The Typicon prescribes fasting until the end of Vespers. However, the service of Vespers is connected to the Liturgy and is served in the morning, which is why we fast until the moment when a candle is brought into the center of the church and the troparion to the Nativity of Christ is sung before the candle.

It is obvious that the people in the church are fasting; many take communion on this day. It would be good if those who cannot attend church services and who work honor this day with a stricter fast. We remember that, according to the Russian proverb, “A full belly is deaf to prayer.” Therefore, a more strict fast prepares us for the coming joy of the holiday.

Those who receive communion at the night Liturgy, according to church tradition, eat food for the last time no less than six hours before the time of Communion, or from about 6 pm. And here the point is not in a specific number of hours, that you need to fast for 8 hours and not a minute less, but in the fact that a certain limit is established, a measure of abstinence that helps us keep the measure.

Father, many questions come from sick people who cannot fast, asking what they should do?

Sick people, of course, must fast to the extent that this is consistent with taking medications and with doctor’s orders.

The point is not about putting a weak person in a hospital, but about strengthening a person spiritually.

Illness is already a difficult fast and feat. And here a person should try to determine the measure of fasting according to his own strength. Any thing can be taken to the point of absurdity. For example, imagine that a priest who comes to give communion to a dying person will ask when the person last ate?!

As a rule, believers try to celebrate the Nativity of Christ at the night festive liturgy. But in many churches there is also an all-night vigil and Liturgy at the usual time - 5 pm and in the morning. In this regard, people often ask whether it is a sin young man, not infirm, without children, go to service not at night, but in the morning?

Attending a night service or a morning service is something you should be able to watch. Celebrating a holiday at night is, of course, a special joy: both spiritual and emotional. There are very few such services a year; in most parish churches, night liturgies are served only on Christmas And Easter– especially solemn services are traditionally performed at night. But for example, on Mount Athos Sunday all-night vigils are celebrated at night. And still there are not many such services, just over 60 per year. The Church establishes this, taking into account human capabilities: the number of night vigils per year is limited.

Solemn night services contribute to a deeper prayerful experience and perception of the Holiday.

- The festive Liturgy has ended, the festive feast begins. And here we are asked two questions. First, is it possible to celebrate Christmas first in the parish, and not immediately organize a family celebration?

Christian joy is fundamentally different from pagan joy: from unrestraint and fall, frenzy and revelry, from shamelessness and debauchery.

The Apostle Paul commanded us “Always rejoice. Continuouslypray. In everything give thanks to the Lord” (1 Thessalonians 5:16-18). If we celebrate the holiday with joy, prayer and gratitude to God, then we are fulfilling the apostolic covenant.

If a person feels that behind the noisy celebration he is losing his gracious mood, then perhaps he should sit down at the table for a while and leave earlier, maintaining spiritual joy.

– Is it necessary to attend the evening service on the day of the holiday itself - the evening of the Christmas holiday?

- This is a must! But after the night service you need to restore your strength. Not everyone, due to age, health and spiritual level, is able to go to church and take part in the service. But we must remember that the Lord rewards for every effort that a person makes for His sake.

The evening service on this day is short, especially spiritual, solemn and joyful; the Great Prokeimenon is proclaimed at it, so, of course, it’s good if you manage to attend it.

Orthodox believers on January 6 (December 24, old style) celebrate Christmas Eve, or “the eve of the Nativity of Christ” - the eve of one of the main Christian holidays and the last day of the long 40-day Nativity Fast. Moreover, Christmas Eve is considered the strictest day of fasting. The custom of celebrating Christmas Eve in churches has been known since ancient times - already in the 4th century there were separate regulations regulating this day. Read about how Orthodox Christians should spend Christmas Eve, what its meaning is and what the traditions of the holiday are, in the RIA Novosti material.

"Symbol" of Christmas Eve

The main Lenten dish of Christmas Eve (modified “nomad”) is sochivo, from which this day takes its name. "Sochivo" or "kolivo" are boiled grains of rice or wheat. It is possible to prepare kutia instead of sochiv. This food is prepared from boiled or steamed cereal grains (wheat, barley) with the addition of honey, nuts and fruits. No oil.

According to the interpretation of the clergy, the grain symbolizes “resurrected life”, and honey - “the sweetness of the future blissful life.”

Sochivo or kutya is eaten during joint meals at home and in parishes. Traditionally, this is done at the end of the morning service.

According to the rector of the Epiphany Cathedral in Yelokhov, Archpriest Alexander Ageikin, this food is “the most modest and simple,” and it is prepared in order “not to be distracted from the main thing - the concentrated anticipation of the upcoming holiday.” “Believers have always traditionally spent this day in worship and prayer, everything else fades into the background,” recalls Ageikin.

Since ancient times in Rus', on Christmas Eve, in addition to Sochiv, they prepared a brew of apples, pears, plums, raisins, cherries and other fruits boiled in water. The table on which the meal was located was covered with hay or straw - as a reminder of the manger in which Christ was laid.

Unusual service

Usually on this day, the Royal (or Great) Hours are celebrated first, and then Great Vespers with the Divine Liturgy of St. Basil the Great. Royal hours (special prayers and psalms) are called because in the Church of Constantinople they were attended by emperors and their entire court. If Christmas Eve falls on a Saturday or Sunday, which in the Church are always distinguished from others and are not fast in nature, but festive, then the service of the Royal Hours is transferred to another, weekday.

At the end of the liturgy and Great Vespers, a candle is brought into the center of the church, and the priests, dressed in festive attire, all together sing the troparion to the Nativity of Christ in front of it. In addition, on this day, priests always advise believers to confess and receive communion during the liturgy, as they do directly on the holiday itself, January 7th.

Star in the East

“Christmas Eve, as well as Epiphany Eve, are the days of Christian preparation for the coming great holidays. This preparation is enhanced, first of all, by the special services performed on this day, and by a more strict measure of fasting, which tells the believer that that “take a break from all your entertainment and relaxation and try to ‘remember’ that such a great holiday awaits you tomorrow,” says Archpriest Maxim Kozlov, a professor at the Moscow Theological Academy.

Such a strict fast occurs only on a few days a year - these are the first days of Lent, Good Friday, the Exaltation of the Holy Cross, Christmas Eve and Epiphany Eve.

“In ancient times, on Christmas Eve, Christians did not eat food until the evening. Precisely because Vespers itself, the liturgy, was then served in the evening.<…>An ancient tradition says that on Christmas Eve until Christmas, until the so-called star, people should not eat or drink anything. Now, of course, this is unlikely to be the case, but in ancient times people tried to work hard during fasting,” Archpriest Alexey Uminsky, rector of the Church of the Life-Giving Trinity in Khokhly and host of the TV program “Orthodox Encyclopedia,” told RIA Novosti.

"The Mystery of the Incarnation"

“And this great mystery of the incarnation helps us understand the meaning of human history. It is not about becoming richer, in order to gain more power, in order to conquer other peoples, as it seemed and as it still seems to many, but the meaning of history lies in knowledge of God’s will, in discovering for oneself God’s plan for the world and man,” the patriarch said in one of his sermons during the Nativity Fast.

Believers have always tried to mark Christmas Eve with various deeds of Christian charity and mercy, trying to embody high moral ideals in their daily lives.

From the evening of Christmas Eve in Rus' they also began to “carol”: they went to the houses of relatives and friends and sang folk and ritual songs, and the hosts in return offered the guests treats. However, this folk tradition became more widespread directly on the “holy days” - the period from the Nativity of Christ to Epiphany Eve, when compulsory fasting was abolished.

Today, January 6, Orthodox Christians celebrate the Eve of the Nativity of Christ, or Christmas Eve. This is the last day of the Nativity Fast and the eve of the Nativity of Christ.

The name Christmas Eve comes from the word “sochivo” (wheat grains soaked in the juice from the seeds). It was customary to treat yourself to Sochivo on Christmas Eve after the appearance of the first star. The tradition of fasting “until the first star” is associated with the legend about the appearance of the Star of Bethlehem, which announced the birth of Christ. On Christmas Eve, at the end of the liturgy and at the evening service, a candle is taken to the center of the church, and the priests sing a troparion to the Nativity of Christ in front of it.

What is the church service like on this day?

The Christmas all-night vigil (evening church service) lasts approximately three hours. Then the liturgy is served, and after the service the celebration of Christmas begins. People greet each other with "Merry Christmas" or "Happy Holidays."

If Christmas Eve falls on Saturday or Sunday, then the festive all-night vigil is served on Friday. On Christmas Eve itself, the Liturgy of St. John Chrysostom is served, and on Christmas Day, in this case, the Liturgy of Basil the Great is celebrated.

How do you fast on Christmas Eve?

According to the church charter, the Typikon, fasting is prescribed until the end of Vespers. Those who receive communion at the night liturgy, according to church tradition, must abstain from eating for at least six hours before communion.

On Christmas Eve, it is customary to abstain from food until the first star appears. The custom of fasting “until the first star” is associated with the legend about the appearance of the Star of Bethlehem, which announced the birth of Christ. According to the Gospel of Matthew, the star notified the wise men about the birth of the king of the Jews. The star marked the Nativity of Jesus; it is usually called the “star of the Nativity” and Bethlehem - after the place of His birth.

What traditions exist for celebrating Christmas Eve?

According to Russian traditions, on Christmas Eve the whole family fasted, and only with the first star did everyone sit down at the table, on which, among other Lenten dishes, there must be kutia, as well as compote (uzvar) or jelly; In wealthy families, the table was also decorated with figured marmalade.

In some regions, there is a tradition of baking animal figurines for the holiday. In the evening, closer to midnight, caroling began with songs and carols.

What is a nativity scene?

The Nativity scene (the original meaning is a cave, a hidden place) is a representation of the scene of the Nativity of Christ through the means of various arts (sculpture, theater, etc.).

In the Russian Empire, especially in Poland, Ukraine, and Belarus, the “vertep theater” was widespread - a folk puppet theater presenting Christmas scenes, sometimes also with the participation of human actors.

A nativity scene in such a theater was a special box in which a puppet show was shown. Inside the box there was usually a two-tiered scene: in the upper part they showed the worship of the newborn baby Jesus, in the lower part there were episodes with Herod, after whose death the everyday part of the performance followed.

The main decoration of any nativity scene (large or small, with sculptures or actors) is a manger with the baby Jesus, and the main characters are righteous Joseph with a long beard, the Holy Virgin Mary and King Herod. In addition, the nativity scene may contain wise men, angels, shepherds with sheep and various animals (for example, an ox and a donkey, which, according to legend, warmed Jesus with their breath).

Based on materials from the publication "Arguments and Facts". Photo from the site www.aif.ru.