Why are Catholic and Orthodox Christmas at different times? Orthodox and Catholic Christmas: similarities and differences
The word “Christ” does not mean “Anointed One”, but...
BDG-online:
A small educational program for those who do not yet know why Orthodox and Catholic Christmas are celebrated two weeks apart.
The fact is that the Catholic Church switched to a new style of chronology, that is, it adopted the Gregorian calendar, while the Russian Orthodox Church continues to live according to the Julian calendar with a lag of 13 days. Why is Christmas celebrated on December 25 according to the new style (or January 7 according to the old style)? It’s simple: it is then that exactly nine months have passed since the day of the Annunciation, that is, from the day when Mary received news from the angel that the Savior of mankind would be born to her.
On December 25, Christmas, in addition to Belarusian Catholics - who make up 14 percent of all believers, is also celebrated by Protestants and some Uniates.
Atheists are used to celebrating this holiday in both ways...
Can an Orthodox Christian celebrate Catholic Christmas?
How should an Orthodox person feel about Catholic Christmas? Is it possible to celebrate it?
Christmas is the same for everyone. But Catholics celebrate it according to the Gregorian calendar, and we Orthodox Christians celebrate it according to the Julian calendar. On December 25, the Orthodox still celebrate the Nativity Fast.
You should not celebrate Christmas on December 25th on purpose, when there is no special reason for it. But, for example, if there are Catholics in your family, why not rejoice with them on the Savior’s Birthday. Or if you find yourself in a Catholic country: there is no need to shy away from general rejoicing, because people glorify Christ. But there is no need to abandon our tradition in favor of the Catholic one - we have January 7 to celebrate the Nativity of Christ together with almost the entire Orthodox world.
It is important to determine: what exactly is Christmas for us? It's not just about sliding down the slides and gifts under the tree. This is, first of all, worship and Communion as it is...
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___die Geburten der Tag…morgen der anfang der Tage___
…Machiavelli dei Nicolaus di Bernardo…
Catholic Christmas is celebrated on December 25th. In more than 145 countries around the world, it is an official public holiday and one of the main religious holidays of the year. In essence, Orthodox and Catholic Christmas have the same roots, which go back to ancient pre-Christian cultures. Therefore, many Christmas customs among Catholics are also no different from the traditions of Orthodox Christians. Although Catholic Christmas still has its own characteristics.
Features of the Catholic Nativity of Christ
For Catholics, Christmas is much more important than New Year. A month before Christmas, Aventa begins, a time of strict fasting and repentance. Direct preparations for the holiday begin on December 20. Until the moment when the first star appears in the sky on the evening of December 24, announcing the birth of Jesus, this is the period of pre-celebration. From December 24 to January 1 is the actual holiday of the Nativity of Christ, the so-called “octave”, consisting of 8...
The first mention of Christmas is in the chronicles of the 4th century. It is not known for certain what date Jesus Christ was born, but based on the fact that the Incarnation of God (the day of the conception of Christ, the Annunciation) is celebrated nine months before Christmas, the accepted date of his birth is December 25.
The first Christians were Jews and did not celebrate Christmas (according to Jewish belief, the birth of a person is “the beginning of sorrows and pains”). For Christians, the holiday of the Resurrection of Christ (Easter) was and is more important from a doctrinal point of view. After the Greeks (and other Hellenistic peoples) entered the Christian communities, under the influence of Hellenistic customs, the celebration of the Nativity of Christ began.
The ancient Christian holiday of Epiphany on January 6 ideologically combined both Christmas and Epiphany, which later became different holidays.
In fact, in ancient times there was no single date for this holiday, but later the Universal Church decided to celebrate Christmas...
The Nativity of Christ is one of the main spiritual Orthodox holidays, which is celebrated on December 25 by Catholics and January 7 by Orthodox.
Both religions celebrate Christmas Eve - the evening before Christmas night (Jesus was born at night - hence another legend about the Star of Bethlehem.) The name in Russian comes from the word sochivo - wheat grains soaked in berry juice or honey. The holiday of Christmas itself is the date of breaking the fast - liberation from fasting and indulgence in gluttony.
What is the difference between Catholic and Orthodox Christmas?
date
The discrepancy between the celebration of the Nativity of Christ by Western and Eastern churches is explained by the different chronology systems they adopted. After the new Gregorian calendar was compiled in the West, Catholics and Protestants began to celebrate Christmas two weeks earlier than the Orthodox. We draw the attention of readers to the fact that the date is actually the same, and the difference is in the calendar.
Catholics...
Orthodox and Catholic Christmas - what is the difference?
Christmas is a shortened name for the holiday - the Nativity of Christ. According to biblical legends, the birth of the infant Christ to the Virgin Mary took place in the Jewish city of Bethlehem on the night of December 24-25.
In what year exactly the Messiah appeared to the world is still debated by learned historians and theologians. Called the period between 12 BC. and the 7th year of the new era. (Where the modern chronology came from, which is carried out “from the birth of Christ,” is not entirely clear). The date December 25 was first mentioned in chronicles in 221 AD. The first Christians were Jews and did not celebrate this holiday at all. Quite widely, believers began to honor the date of Christ’s birth around the fifth century.
However, these details are not very interesting to us, because the Christmas holiday has long lost its exclusively religious connotation and has simply turned into a pleasant family holiday, in which it is customary to meet with relatives and...
The first information about the celebration of Christmas can be dated back to the 4th century. The question of the true date of birth of Jesus continues to be controversial and not clearly resolved among church authors.
Probably, the choice of the date of December 25 is related to the solar pagan holiday “Birth of the Invincible Sun,” which fell on this day. It is quite possible that after the adoption of Christianity in Rome, it acquired new content.
The Nativity of Christ involves five days before the celebration and six days after the celebration. On the eve of the holiday, a strict fast is observed, which is called Christmas Eve, since on this day they eat raw barley or wheat grains boiled with honey.
In the 13th century, the custom arose of displaying mangers in churches in which a figurine of the Baby Jesus was placed. Over time, mangers began to be installed not only in shrines, but also in homes before Christmas. Church and pagan customs - rituals are extremely organically intertwined, complementing each other...
0iStalker
> Why do Orthodox Christians celebrate the pagan New Year?
> Why do atheists and Orthodox Christians celebrate Catholic Halloween and Saint's Day?
> Valentina?
> Why do believers celebrate March 8, a day with a very dubious history and
> contrasting with the Christian religious worldview?
> Why do Christian believers trudge along pagan horoscopes, despite
> instructions of spiritual mentors?
1. New Year is by no means a pagan holiday. The history of this holiday in Russia has agricultural significance and it was originally celebrated in September, when the harvest was being harvested. Later, Emperor Peter I moved the holiday to January 1, and, if I’m not confusing anything, he came up with an attribute of the holiday, which became so integral, as Santa Claus.
2. Orthodox Christians do not celebrate Halloween; for Russians, this is just another reason to relax a little and another reason not to go to work. Valentine's Day is also not celebrated by the Orthodox, but this is unnecessary...
Christmas is our favorite holiday, covered in light and joy. It contains so much warmth, kindness and love that you want to give these feelings away along with gifts to friends and family. But sometimes it turns out that they celebrate this event on a completely different day. How is this possible? When should Christmas be celebrated, and what are the reasons for the discrepancies? Let's try to figure it out.
history of the holiday
The Gospel says: Jesus was born in Bethlehem, where His mother Mary and Joseph the Betrothed went to take part in the announced population census. Due to the influx of visitors, all the hotels were occupied, so they had to settle in a cave, which served as a stable for livestock. It was there that the Son of God was born. The angel brought the news of His birth to the shepherds, who hurried to bow to Him. Another sign of the appearance of the Messiah was the delightful Star of Bethlehem, which lit up in the sky and showed the way to the Magi. They brought gifts to the Baby - incense, myrrh and...
1. Why doesn’t Easter coincide for Orthodox and Catholics?…
You can often hear definitions such as “Orthodox” and “Catholic” Christmas. What is the difference between them? First of all, the date: Catholics celebrate the holiday on December 25, Russian Orthodox – on January 7.
It all started with the fact that in 1582 a new one, the Gregorian calendar, was introduced in Europe. The Julian system that was in force before had a significant drawback: every 128 years an error occurred in comparison with the year of the equinox - an “extra” day accumulated. In the Julian calendar, all years divisible by 4 are leap years. In Gregorian, a year is a leap year if it is divisible by 4 and not divisible by 100, or divisible by 400, which is why “errors” occur less frequently.
Russia switched to the new style in 1918, by which time the difference between the calendars was 13 days, and they were simply “crossed out,” but the church did not approve of such a decision. Because of this, “our” Christmas lags behind the Catholic one. This is how a holiday with the most paradoxical name appeared - Old New Year.
On the same day as Russian...
What is the difference between old and new style? Why do Catholics and Orthodox Christians celebrate Christmas on different days? Many have asked these questions, but the answer is usually simple - different calendars, and that’s it. What if we agreed to bring the calendars into line?
Let's try to figure it out. Is this really important and why - in the material of the Moscow 24 portal.
Photo: Portal of the mayor and government of Moscow
At first glance, a single date for Christmas would immediately simplify a lot - Orthodox believers would again, as in pre-revolutionary years, begin to celebrate Christmas on December 25, they would not have to observe the Nativity Fast during the New Year, and foreign friends would not have to explain why every time we do not celebrate the main Christian holiday with the rest of the world. In fact, everything is not so simple, but first you will have to understand the differences between the calendars and everything that they ultimately led to.
Julian calendar was introduced into the Roman Empire by decree of Julius Caesar, after whom it was named, on January 1, 45 BC. Previously, the Roman year lasted 355 days, which is why they periodically introduced an additional month to keep up with the tropical year - the actual period of time during which the sun completes the cycle of changing seasons. The structure of the year of the Julian calendar looks the same as we are used to - 365 days, every fourth year is a leap year. Thus, the average length of the year is 365 ¼ days. This calendar year, unlike the previous one, has already become longer than the tropical one. Just 11 minutes and 15 seconds - it would seem quite a bit, but every 128 years one extra day accumulated. Because of this, Christmas gradually shifted from being close to the winter solstice towards spring, and the day of the vernal equinox also shifted - and Easter is counted from it. Ultimately, the discrepancy between calendar time and real time was difficult to ignore. Then the need for a new calendar arose.
Gregorian calendar was introduced by Pope Gregory XIII in Catholic countries on October 4, 1582 - there, after this day, October 15 came immediately. This system of calculating time was called the new style (and the Julian calendar, accordingly, became known as the old style). Russia did not switch to the Gregorian calendar and continued to live in the Julian calendar. So we had Christmas, like everyone else, on December 25th. Only for Catholics it was already January at that time. And then the revolution happened, and the Council of People's Commissars adopted a decree - to switch to the same number system with the whole world. This happened on January 31, 1918 - after it, February 14 came in the RSFSR, thus we “synchronized” with other countries.
What about the Church?
This is where the fun begins. In secular chronology, we began to live simultaneously with the West. But the Russian Orthodox Church (and with it the Serbian, Georgian, Jerusalem and Athos) refused to change the calendar. And the point here is not at all a stubborn reluctance to follow the Catholics - there are very important reasons for the church behind this decision.
First of all, according to Christian canons, the New Testament Easter must follow the Old Testament. This is dictated by chronological considerations - Jesus Christ was crucified on the eve of the Jewish Passover, and resurrected on its third day. For Christians living according to the Gregorian calendar, this rule is sometimes violated, which, in theory, distorts the logic of liturgical time calculation - and in the Orthodox church calendar, the events of the life of Jesus Christ strictly follow one after another. In addition, it is on the eve of Orthodox Easter that the Holy Fire traditionally descends on the Holy Sepulcher in Jerusalem, and on Epiphany night the water is blessed. These miracles are another argument of Orthodox Christians in favor of the truth of their calendar. Agree, the reasons are more than serious, so the position of the majority of Orthodox churches is clear - let the Catholics return to the correct calendar. And we'll wait.
On a note
It is interesting that 11 local Orthodox churches (among them Greek, Romanian, Bulgarian and others) celebrate Christmas, like Catholics, on the night of January 25. In 1923, they switched to the New Julian calendar - that is, in fact, a calendar with the Julian Easter and the Gregorian calendar at the same time. It turns out that they celebrate Easter with the Orthodox, and immutable holidays with the Catholics.
The difference between the dates of the Julian and Gregorian calendars is constantly increasing - every 400 years by three days. Thus, Orthodox churches using the Julian calendar will begin to celebrate Christmas on January 8th from 2101.
A very important time has come for Christians of all denominations - preparation for one of the two most important holidays - Christmas. However, followers of different branches of Christianity not only celebrate this holiday at different times, but also prepare for it in different ways.
Christian churches living in Gregorian calendar(so-called new style), note Nativity at night from 24 to 25 December. Lives according to the new style Catholic Church and that's all Protestant denominations. Ten out of 15 local Orthodox Churches celebrate holidays according to the so-called New Julian calendar, which currently coincides with the Gregorian calendar. All churches living according to the new style, as well as most residents of countries whose culture is based on Western values, will celebrate the birth of the son of God on the night of December 24-25, 2017.
By Julian calendar(so-called old style) Christmas will come 14 days later. Believers who adhere to the old style will celebrate this amazing holiday on the night from 6 to 7 January.
The five Orthodox churches of the world live according to the Julian calendar. These are the Russian Orthodox Church, Jerusalem, Georgian, Serbian and Polish Orthodox churches, as well as Athos monasteries. Together with them, some Catholics of the so-called Eastern Rite and a small number of Protestants will celebrate Christmas on the night of January 6-7.
This question is quite complicated, especially considering that the celebration Easter Orthodox and Catholics sometimes have the same thing.
The Gregorian calendar was first introduced by the Pope Gregory XIII in Catholic countries in 1582 instead of the previous Julian. This was done due to the backlog that arose due to the fact that the Julian calendar did not take leap years into account.
In Soviet Russia, the Gregorian calendar was introduced by decree of January 26, 1918, but the Russian Orthodox Church never recognized this, although such attempts were made.
In 1923, most local Orthodox churches adopted the New Julian calendar, similar to the Gregorian, and began to celebrate holidays at the same time as Catholics and Protestants. However, the Russian, Jerusalem, Georgian and Serbian Orthodox churches, as well as the monasteries of Athos, refused to comply with this decision. Thus, the Russian Orthodox Church still adheres to the old style, and the majority of Russians, even those far from religion, celebrate Christian holidays according to the Julian calendar.
That's why Catholic Christmas will come December 25, A Orthodox - Jan. 7.
Why Christmas doesn’t coincide for Catholics and Orthodox Christians, but with Easter everything is more complicated
As you know, in Christianity there are holidays intransient, that is, fixed in the calendar and always celebrated on the same day, and moving (that is, having a floating date).
So, in 1948, at the Moscow meeting of Orthodox churches, a resolution was adopted that Easter and all moving holidays should be calculated according to the Julian calendar, and non-moving ones - according to the calendar according to which the local church lives.
But in fact, all this just needs to be accepted and remembered, and as for moving holidays, for example, Easter, you just need to check their date annually according to the church calendar.
How Orthodox and Catholics prepare for Christmas
Orthodox Christians begin preparing for Christmas more than a month in advance - for this there is Christmas post which begins November 28 and lasts 40 days - until the evening of January 6. Read more about how it is customary to observe the Nativity Fast in Orthodoxy.
Catholics and Lutherans call preparations for Christmas Advent, this time is also accompanied by fasting and traditional rituals, which have not only a religious, but also a cultural meaning.
What is Advent
Advent(from the Latin word adventus - arrival) is the name of the pre-Christmas period, in its spiritual meaning similar to the Nativity Fast among the Orthodox.
Advent is especially important for Catholics - after all, it is a time of spiritual and physical preparation for the holiday of the Nativity of Christ. It should be noted here that if the Orthodox consider the main Christian holiday Easter, then in the Western tradition it comes first Christmas, therefore, everything connected with it is extremely important for Catholics and Protestants.
Advent lasts four weeks - until Catholic Christmas, that is, it is about a third shorter than the 40-day Orthodox Nativity Fast. During Advent, it is also customary for Western Christians to fast, although not as strict as in Orthodoxy, and to perform various good deeds.
First Sunday of Advent
One of the most important days before Catholic Christmas is first Sunday of Advent, which in 2017 falls on December 3.
On this day the first candle in the traditional Advent wreath is lit - Candle of prophecy, which symbolizes the connection between the Old and New Testaments.
Second Sunday of Advent
In second Sunday of Advent, which falls on December 10, the second candle is lit along with the first one. The second candle is called Bethlehem- it is lit in memory of the maiden’s journey Maria and saint Joseph to Bethlehem and the birth there Jesus.
Third Sunday of Advent
Third Sunday of Advent will come December 17. This day is symbolized by the third candle, which is called Shepherds Candle. It is lit along with the first two. The third candle is dedicated to the shepherds who were the first to come to worship the baby Jesus.
Christmas Eve for Catholics
IN Christmas Eve- Christmas Eve (December 24) - light up fourth Advent candle, which is called Angels Candle. This candle symbolizes the divine essence of Christ.
On Christmas night, all four candles in the Advent wreath are lit.
Read about how Western Christians celebrate Christmas in the materials Federal News Agency.
Although Advent is considered a period of prayer and fasting, in Western countries it is also a very fun time dedicated to waiting for a miracle, with which Christmas is invariably associated. In all settlements - from lush European capitals to small mountain villages - fairs and sales are held, and Christmas markets are opened, which tourists love to visit. Everyone is trying to stock up on gifts, which are usually given to both children and adults at Christmas.
Christmas is the brightest holiday for Christian believers. In the 11th century, it was divided into two parts: Orthodox and Catholic. Each of the churches celebrates Christmas Eve on different days: Orthodox - on the night of January 6-7, Catholics - on the night of December 24-25. What other differences exist between Orthodox and Catholic Christmas?
1. Catholic and Orthodox Christmas are celebrated differently: the first from December 24 to 25, the second from January 6 to 7. This shift in dates was due to the difference between the Julian and Gregorian calendars.
2. Catholics do not have fasting as such. There is the so-called Advent - the time of waiting for the holiday. During the month before Christmas, devout Catholics try to devote more time to prayer, going to church, and communicating with family. And some even limit themselves in food - they don’t eat meat.
For the Orthodox, the Nativity Fast is the last multi-day fast of the year, lasts forty days and therefore is called Lent in the Church Charter, just like Lent. Since the beginning of the fast falls on the day of remembrance of St. Apostle Philip (November 14, old style), then this post is called Philippov.
You cannot eat meat, eggs, or dairy products. On weekends you can fish.
3. Goose with apples is considered a traditional Orthodox Christmas dish. Catholics have a wide variety of dishes (although some also have goose on the menu), which they prepare for Christmas. Different for different countries. But in Portugal they are different even for different regions.
4. At Christmas, Catholics give gifts to everyone. We give them for the New Year, and even their tree is called “Christmas tree”, and not “New Year’s”, as we usually say.
The main character of Catholic Christmas is, as a rule, not the newborn Savior, but Santa Claus. It is from Santa that children, hanging beautiful socks over the fireplace, expect gifts. All Christmas miracles are associated with the actions of a funny fat man who laughs funny and loves to play pranks. By the way, not all Catholic priests support this almost pagan cult.
For Orthodox Christians, Christmas is the celebration of the birth of Jesus Christ. This is a purely spiritual, church holiday.
5. In the Orthodox church tradition there is one nightly Christmas service, in which Great Compline, Matins and Liturgy are combined. And in the Catholic Church there are three Christmas masses celebrated separately - at night, in the morning and during the day. This symbolizes the birth of the Savior in the womb of the Father, in the womb of the Virgin Mary and in the soul of every person.
6. Catholics have one important concept that surprisingly accurately characterizes the mood that covers people in the days before Christmas - Christmas Spirit (literally “the spirit of Christmas”). This is the time when everyone believes in miracles, when bad people suddenly become kind and affectionate, when you feel like you’re in a fairy tale. This is a time of peace, joy and love.
Christmas is one of the most important Christian holidays. Only they celebrate it on December 25, while the Orthodox celebrate it on January 7
What is the difference between Catholic and Orthodox Christmas? And why is Catholic Christmas celebrated earlier?
Let's start with the fact that the exact date of birth of Jesus Christ is unknown. Therefore, a day was simply appointed to celebrate the birth of Christ in the flesh. In the Roman Empire, from the 4th century, they began to celebrate the Nativity of Christ on December 25, the day of the old pagan festival of the Sun and the winter solstice.
How did it happen that now Catholic Christmas is celebrated earlier, and Orthodox Christmas “lags behind”?
The discrepancy between the astronomical calendar and the nominal calendar grew more and more, and finally, Pope Gregory XIII in 1582 announced a reform of the calendar. To restore the time difference, 10 days were skipped, and after October 4, by decree of the Pope, October 15 came immediately.
Pope Gregory XIII - calendar reformer
In the Gregorian calendar, however, extra time also accumulates, but not so quickly: only 1 extra day in 10 thousand years. This is because it allows for fewer leap years.
On the night of January 6-7, Christmas is also celebrated by the Georgian, Jerusalem and Serbian Orthodox Churches, Athos monasteries that adhere to the Julian calendar, and some local Catholic churches. Thus, the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church celebrates Christmas also on January 7th.
At the same time, all other Orthodox churches, the Roman Catholic Church and Protestants celebrate Christmas on the night of December 24-25.
