December 13, 2007

Russian Orthodox Christmas


Russian Orthodox Christmas

Since the fall of the Soviet Union, January 7th has become an official national holiday. This is the date of the Russian Orthodox Christmas; Nativity of Christ; celebration. Many Orthodox Christian traditions have adopted December 25th for their Nativity or Christmas celebration which culminates with the observance of Theophany (Feast of the Manifestation), the Baptism of Our Lord, on January 6th; January 20th on the old calendar.

In the Roman Catholic and Anglican Churches, January 6th, is acknowledged as the Epiphany; the time when the Christ Child was visited by the Magi from the East, or Three Wise Men. The Baptism of Our Lord is celebrated the following Sunday.

During the ages of the early Church, there was one celebration for Christ's birth (nativity), acknowledgment as the Divine (visit of the Magi) and the onset of His ministry (Baptism). This was the Theophany celebrated on January 6/7th. Later, the West divided this celebration; Nativity (Dec. 25), Epiphany (Jan. 6 or the proceeding Sunday) and Baptism (Sunday following Epiphany). Today, many Eastern Churches celebrate the Nativity on December 25th and the Theophany or Baptism on January 6th. They do have a feast for the appearance of the Magi. The differences between East and West evolved after the Great Schism of 1054.

The Russian Orthodox Church follows the Julian or Old Calendar. Thus, the Orthodox Church Feasts and Holidays of January are:
Nativity of Our Lord (Christmas) ~ January 7th
New Year's Day ~ January 14th
Theophany (Christ's Baptism) ~ January 20th.

The celebration of the Nativity begins the day prior with the readings of the Hours. These nine sets of Scripture lessons include passages from the Old Testament prophets followed by readings from the Epistles and Gospels. Vespers, in this case Vigil, features the Divine Liturgy of St. Basil. The liturgy for the Feast of the Nativity itself is that of St. John Chrysostom.

Readings for the Hours and Vespers:

Old Testament readings include: Micah 5:2-4; Baruch 3:36-4:4; Isaiah 7:10-8:4 and 9-10. Additionally, Genesis 1:1-13 and Numbers 24:2-3, 5-9 and 17-18 are read in the ninth hour, just prior to Vespers. Vespers includes Isaiah 11:1-10; Daniel 2:31-36 and 44-45.

New Testament readings include: Matthew 1:18-25, 2:1-23; Luke 2:1-20; Hebrews 1:1-12, 1:10-2:3, 2:11-18 and Galatians 2:23-29. At Vespers, Hebrews 1:1-12 and Luke 2:1-20 are read.

On the day of the Nativity, Galatians 4:4-7 and Matthew 2:1-12 are incorporated into the Divine Liturgy.

The Scripture readings for the Hours and Vespers proceeding the Theophany are as follows:

Old Testament readings: Isaiah 35:1-10, 16-20, 23:3-6 and 49:8-15. Additionally, Genesis 1:1-13, Exodus 14:15-18, 21-23, 27-29 and 15:22 - 16:1; Joshua 3:7-8, 15-17, II Kings 5:9-14 and Isaiah 1:16-20 are read at Vespers. A second series of readings include Genesis 32:1-10; Exodus 2:5-10; Judges 6:36-40, I Kings 18:30-39, II Kings 2:19-22 and Isaiah 49:8-15.

New Testament readings: Acts 13:25-33, 19:1-8; Mark 3:1-6, 1:1-11; Romans 6:3-11; Titus 2:11-14, 3:4-7; Matthew 3:13-17 or Luke 3:1-18. Vespers includes I Corinthians 9:19-27 and Luke 3:1-18.

The Divine Liturgy of St. Basil is celebrated at Vespers. The feast of the Theophany features the Divine Liturgy of St. John Chrysostom. The readings include Titus 2:11-14, 3:4-7 and Matthew 3:13-17.

The Divine Liturgy of the Synaxis (Sobor) of John the Baptist is celebrated the day following the Theophany. The Gospel passage is John 1:29-34 and the Epistle is Acts 19:1-8.

Terminology . . . .

Vespers: from the Latin, vesper, meaning the evening. Refers to evening prayer, usually at sunset. Vespers is one of the two primary periods of daily prayer. The other being morning prayer or Matins.

Vigil: From the Latin vigilia; meaning a night of watchfulness. Prayer service which combines Vespers and Matins. Vigil is observed on the eve of Sundays and Feast Days. In its purest form, Vigil lasts all night, usually 12 to 14 hours.

Hours: From the Greek, hora meaning a time or season. Refers to the various observances of daily prayer; aka the Liturgy of the Hours.

Synaxis: Greek word meaning assembly. This is any gathering of the faithful for non-eucharistic worship. The Synaxis usually includes psalms, Scripture lessons and prayers.

Mother and Child Russian Lacquer egg is part of the Artshop of St. Petersburg collection.

Like this post? Get a weekly email digest + member-only deals

Some of Our Books

Dostoyevsky Bilingual

Dostoyevsky Bilingual

Bilingual series of short, lesser known, but highly significant works that show the traditional view of Dostoyevsky as a dour, intense, philosophical writer to be unnecessarily one-sided. 
93 Untranslatable Russian Words

93 Untranslatable Russian Words

Every language has concepts, ideas, words and idioms that are nearly impossible to translate into another language. This book looks at nearly 100 such Russian words and offers paths to their understanding and translation by way of examples from literature and everyday life. Difficult to translate words and concepts are introduced with dictionary definitions, then elucidated with citations from literature, speech and prose, helping the student of Russian comprehend the word/concept in context.
Tolstoy Bilingual

Tolstoy Bilingual

This compact, yet surprisingly broad look at the life and work of Tolstoy spans from one of his earliest stories to one of his last, looking at works that made him famous and others that made him notorious. 
White Magic

White Magic

The thirteen tales in this volume – all written by Russian émigrés, writers who fled their native country in the early twentieth century – contain a fair dose of magic and mysticism, of terror and the supernatural. There are Petersburg revenants, grief-stricken avengers, Lithuanian vampires, flying skeletons, murders and duels, and even a ghostly Edgar Allen Poe.
Steppe / Степь (bilingual)

Steppe / Степь (bilingual)

This is the work that made Chekhov, launching his career as a writer and playwright of national and international renown. Retranslated and updated, this new bilingual edition is a super way to improve your Russian.
The Latchkey Murders

The Latchkey Murders

Senior Lieutenant Pavel Matyushkin is back on the case in this prequel to the popular mystery Murder at the Dacha, in which a serial killer is on the loose in Khrushchev’s Moscow...
The Little Humpbacked Horse (bilingual)

The Little Humpbacked Horse (bilingual)

A beloved Russian classic about a resourceful Russian peasant, Vanya, and his miracle-working horse, who together undergo various trials, exploits and adventures at the whim of a laughable tsar, told in rich, narrative poetry.
The Samovar Murders

The Samovar Murders

The murder of a poet is always more than a murder. When a famous writer is brutally stabbed on the campus of Moscow’s Lumumba University, the son of a recently deposed African president confesses, and the case assumes political implications that no one wants any part of.
Maria's War: A Soldier's Autobiography

Maria's War: A Soldier's Autobiography

This astonishingly gripping autobiography by the founder of the Russian Women’s Death Battallion in World War I is an eye-opening documentary of life before, during and after the Bolshevik Revolution.

About Us

Russian Life is a publication of a 30-year-young, award-winning publishing house that creates a bimonthly magazine, books, maps, and other products for Russophiles the world over.

Latest Posts

Our Contacts

Russian Life
73 Main Street, Suite 402
Montpelier VT 05602

802-223-4955