Holidays occupy an important place in Christian worship. In church calendars there is not a single day of the year on which one or another event is not celebrated, connected with the name of Jesus Christ, the Mother of God, saints, miraculous icons, and the cross. “Every day of every month, every day of the year is dedicated either to the memory of special events or to the memory of special persons,” says one of the Orthodox publications. - In honor of this event or person, special chants, prayers and rituals are established, which introduce new features into the constant course of the daily service - features that change every day. From this a circle of annual worship is formed.”

At the head of the "festive circle" of the Russian Orthodox Church- Easter, the most revered common Christian holiday. Then come the so-called twelve holidays - twelve main festivals. Of these, three are transferable, falling every year on different dates depending on when Easter is celebrated, which does not have a fixed date. This is the Ascension, Trinity, the Entry of the Lord into Jerusalem, or Palm Sunday. Nine holidays are permanent, each of them has a special day assigned to them in the church calendar. This is the baptism of the Lord, the meeting, the annunciation, the transfiguration, the Nativity of the Virgin Mary, the introduction of the Virgin Mary into the temple, the Dormition of the Virgin Mary, the erection of the cross and the Nativity of Christ.

The twelve feasts are followed by their significance by five feasts, called great - the circumcision of the Lord, the Nativity of John the Baptist, the feast of Saints Peter and Paul, the beheading of John the Baptist, the veil of the Most Holy Theotokos. They also enjoy great veneration in the Orthodox Church.
Patronal feasts are celebrated everywhere. This is the name of the holidays dedicated to Christ, the Mother of God, saints, miraculous icons, events of sacred history, in honor of which this temple or its altar was built. These are local holidays, although they can also be celebrated as general Christian holidays. Patronal festivities for certain churches can be the Nativity of Christ, the Annunciation, the Dormition of the Virgin Mary, in a word, any of the general church holidays.

The degree of significance of a particular festival is not directly dependent on its place in the church table of ranks. There are holidays that are neither twelfth nor great, but nevertheless are celebrated quite widely by believers. And on the contrary, some of them, which occupy a place of honor in the church calendar, do not enjoy special veneration. Such Orthodox holidays, like Nikolin and Ilyin's Day, Spas, the holidays of the Vladimir Icon of the Mother of God, the Kazan Icon of the Mother of God, are revered by believers much more widely than, for example, the circumcision of the Lord.

According to the church version, all holidays are established in memory of actual events, of real persons who showed zeal in the faith, and who have special merits before God. In fact, most of them are not connected with certain historical events; a significant part of them are dedicated to mystical characters borrowed from pre-Christian cults. The “holiday circle” in Christianity developed mainly during the period of formation and establishment of church organization and cult. The church needed its own holidays to enhance the ideological and emotional-psychological impact on believers, and it was not particularly picky, sometimes directly borrowing pre-Christian festivals that received in Christianity, new content, and sometimes simply giving scope to imagination, inventing events that never took place in reality. This is how a festive canon was formed in the bowels of the church, which served it for centuries, helping to keep the consciousness and thoughts of believers in its power.

Easter

“The holiday of the holiday and the triumph of celebrations” is what clergymen call Christian Easter. According to the teachings of the church, this holiday was established in memory of the resurrection of the son of God Jesus Christ crucified on the cross. Historical data indicate that this “truly Christian holiday”, like many others , borrowed by Christians from ancient cults.
When the religion of the single god Yahweh arose in Ancient Judea, the old agricultural festival of the propitiation of the gods, which received a new content, was included in its holidays. The Jewish priests associated it with the mythical “exodus of the Jews from Egypt.” But the old rituals associated with the propitiation of spirits and gods were preserved in the new holiday, only in the Easter ritual the place of the former all-powerful patrons was taken by the formidable Jewish god Yahweh.

In the Christian holiday of Easter one can find traces of the influence of other ancient cults, in particular the cults of dying and resurrecting gods that once existed in many pre-Christian religions.
The cult of dying and resurrecting gods grew out of the naive beliefs of our distant ancestors, who, watching how grain thrown into the ground sprouted, how it was reborn in the spring
vegetation that withered in the fall, by analogy it was believed that gods die and are resurrected in the same way. The ancient Egyptians and Phoenicians, the Greeks and the Phrygians had myths about dying and resurrecting gods. Priests in ancient Egyptian temples told the myth of the tragic death and resurrection of the god Osiris. And people believed that this god, the son of the earth god Geb and the sky goddess Nut, was killed by his treacherous brother Set. The killer cut Osiris's body into 40 pieces and scattered them throughout the country. But Osiris’ wife Isis found them, collected them, and then revived them. With his miraculous resurrection, the Egyptian god provided everyone who believed in him with eternal life beyond the grave and immortality.

IN Ancient Egypt The festival of the resurrection of Osiris was celebrated very solemnly. People gathered in temples to mourn the death of the good god, and then there was general rejoicing over his resurrection. The Egyptians greeted each other with the words: “Osiris has risen!”
Initially, the Christian religion celebrated not the resurrection, but the death and suffering of Jesus Christ. During Easter, people fasted, mourned the death of Christ, and the celebration was accompanied by mournful services. Only in the 4th century. Christian Easter took on the form it has now. In 325, at the first ecumenical council, in Nicaea, the date of Easter was established. According to the resolution of the council, Easter should be celebrated on the first Sunday after spring equinox and the full moon, after a full week has passed since the Passover. Thus, Christian Easter is a transitional holiday and falls from March 22 to April 25 according to the old style.

After the introduction of Christianity in Rus', along with the rituals and holidays of this religion, Easter came to Russian soil. Here it merged with the spring festival of the ancient Slavs, the main content of which was the propitiation of pagan gods, who supposedly could help ensure a bountiful harvest, a good offspring of livestock, and help with household matters and everyday needs. Many remnants of the ancient Slavic festival are preserved to this day in the rituals of Christian Easter.
From ancient beliefs, the tradition of painting eggs became part of Easter customs. Its origins should be sought in ancient superstitions. In the distant past, an egg, from which a chick is born after breaking its shell, was associated with something incomprehensible and mysterious. Our distant ancestors could not comprehend how the life of a living creature was hidden behind the shell. This is where the superstitious attitude towards eggs arose, which is reflected in mythology different nations.

During Slavic holiday To propitiate the spirits, along with other gifts, they were brought eggs painted with blood, since blood, according to ancient beliefs, was considered a tasty food for spirits. Subsequently, eggs began to be painted in various colors. bright colors so that the spirits pay attention to the gifts brought to them by people.
Solemnly celebrating the holiday of the resurrection of Christ, clergy attach special significance to it, for, according to the teachings of the church, Christ, by voluntarily accepting suffering and martyrdom, atoned for the sins of people and provided believers with eternal life beyond the grave. It is no coincidence that the clergy repeats the New Testament saying: “If Christ has not been raised, then our preaching is in vain, and so is your faith.”

Long before Easter, the church begins to prepare believers for the holiday. In churches, excerpts from the gospels are read, which, according to the clergy, should evoke in people a feeling of humility and repentance for their voluntary or involuntary sins before God. At the same time, believers are reminded of the terrible punishments that await sinners after the Last Judgment. On the last Sunday before Lent, the idea of ​​forgiveness is preached. It is instilled in believers. that a merciful God forgives any sins to those who repent of their sins. This Sunday is called “Forgiveness Sunday.”
The Great Lent preceding Easter, which lasts seven weeks, has a particularly great psychological impact on religious people; During this time, believers must limit themselves to food and refuse any entertainment. They must repent of their sins, as if to be spiritually renewed. By leading the faithful along the path to the holiday through the days of fasting, the church thereby enhances the significance of Easter for those who look forward to it in the last week of fasting, which is called " holy week".

The entire atmosphere in churches, services, and sad chants are aimed at creating a special mood among believers.
This is how the church leads believers to holiday, which is celebrated with a particularly solemn service.
And believers, blinded by the rosy prospect of eternal life, do not think about the meaning of the ideas that underlie the Easter holiday. These are, first of all, ideas of humility, unquestioning submission to fate, ideas of forgiveness, dooming people to lack of will, passivity in the face of the difficulties of life.

Nativity

A common Christian holiday, which believers celebrate the birth of the “son of God” Jesus Christ, the Orthodox Church celebrates on January 7 (December 25, old style), the Catholic Church celebrates December 25, new style.

The holiday is based on the gospel myths about the birth of Jesus Christ. As the evangelists narrate, Christ was born in the city of Bethlehem, not far from Jerusalem, into the family of the carpenter Joseph and his wife, the virgin Mary, who miraculously conceived from the holy spirit. In honor of this event, the church established the holiday of Christmas, which clergy call “the mother of all holidays.”
However, upon careful reading of the Gospel texts, it turns out that there is no mention of the date of Christ’s birth anywhere in them. There are such great contradictions in these same texts that they raise serious doubts about the reliability of the gospel stories.

First of all, the genealogy of Christ is presented contradictorily. For example, in the Gospel of Matthew, Jacob is named as the grandfather of Jesus, and in the Gospel of Luke, Elijah is named. The Evangelist Matthew counts 42 generations from Abraham to Jesus, and the Gospel of Luke - 56. The evangelists contradict each other when they talk about the flight of Joseph and Mary to Egypt from the persecution of King Herod, about the baptism of Jesus, and about many other events from the life of Christ.
There are many historical errors and chronological inaccuracies in the gospels. For example, the Evangelist Matthew says that Christ was born under King Herod. But science has established that Herod died in 4 BC. e., i.e. four years before the supposed birth of Christ. According to the Evangelist Luke, Christ was born under the Roman governor of Syria, Quirinius. But Quirinius became governor 10 years after the death of Herod. The Gospel of Luke indicates that Joseph and Mary, before the birth of the divine baby, went to Bethlehem for a population census. However, it is reliably known that the first census in Judea was in 7 AD. e.,. Moreover, it is a census of property, not population.

There are many such contradictions, errors, and inconsistencies in the gospels. Naturally, they lead to the conclusion that the Gospel stories cannot be considered a reliable historical source.
There are no other sources telling about the earthly life of Christ that could be considered reliable.
The holiday of the Nativity of Christ did not immediately enter the Christian cult. The early Christians did not know this holiday and did not celebrate it. This, in particular, suggests that in the first centuries of Christianity they did not know the date of the birth of Christ. Only in the 3rd century. Christians began to celebrate the triple holiday of the baptism, birth, and epiphany of Christ in January.

Historical science testifies that on this day the birth of gods was celebrated in many pre-Christian religions; on January 6 in Ancient Egypt they celebrated the birth of the god Osiris, in Greece - the god Dionysus, in Arabia - the god Dusar. Christians began to celebrate the birth of their god using ready-made models.
It was only in 354 that the Christian Church officially established the celebration of the Nativity of Christ on December 25 of each year. On January 6, believers continued to celebrate baptism and epiphany. The postponement of the Christmas celebration had its reasons. On December 25, the birth of the solar god Mithra was widely celebrated throughout the Roman Empire. Christianity had great difficulty in supplanting this
a holiday from the life and consciousness of people. This helped them by moving the celebration of the Nativity of Christ to the very day when the people celebrated the birth of Mithras.

The holiday of the Nativity of Christ in Rus' began to be celebrated after the introduction of Christianity in? V. It fell at a time when the ancient Slavs celebrated their multi-day winter holiday - Christmastide. They began in the last days of December and ended in early January. Many Yuletide rituals and the customs were preserved in the Christmas celebration. These include general holiday feasts, and all kinds of entertainment, fortune telling, mummers, caroling, etc.
For the church, the Nativity of Christ has always been special significant holiday. The example of the “son of God” Jesus Christ was and is the basis of Christian morality. Therefore, on Christmas days in Christian churches it is especially emphasized that the life of Jesus is the path that every person should follow. This is the path of humility, submission, the path of uncomplainingly enduring any hardships of life, bearing their cross, just as Jesus carried his cross to Calvary. Churches call on believers to “make the life of Christ their life,” and this means to renounce worldly goods, from everything that interferes with serving God. Only in Christ, they declare, can a person find true happiness, only in faith in Christ can he achieve eternal life, only on the path to Christ can he achieve heavenly bliss.

Christmas services and sermons are designed to have a psychological impact on believers. Long before Christmas, the church begins to prepare believers for the upcoming celebration. The Christmas holiday, like Easter, is preceded by a multi-day fast. At all services, believers are instilled with the idea of ​​their sinfulness. This is achieved different ways: and special sermons, and the special nature of the service, and the atmosphere in churches, and sad chants. During the Nativity Fast, the church celebrates several feasts of its saints, whose lives are held up as an example, a model of behavior. At the same time, from church pulpits, clergy convince their flock that any sin can be forgiven to those who repent of their sins. Having led believers through a whole range of different experiences, the church strives to ensure that the “great event” - the birth of Jesus Christ - becomes especially significant for each of them. The Feast of the Nativity of Christ helps the clergy spiritually stupefy people, lead them away from real world into a world of fruitless fantasies and dreams.

Trinity

Trinity, or Pentecost, is one of the most important Christian holidays, which is celebrated on the fiftieth day after Easter and usually falls in the last days of May or early June.
According to the church version, this holiday was established in memory of a real historical event, the descent of the holy spirit on the apostles, as described in the New Testament book of the Acts of the Apostles. The unknown author of this book tells how on the fiftieth day after the resurrection of Christ the apostles gathered together, according to the command of Jesus, which he gave before his ascension into heaven. And suddenly “there came a sound from heaven, as if from a rushing strong wind,” and the holy spirit descended on the apostles in the form of “divided tongues of fire.” “And they were all filled with the holy spirit and began to speak in other tongues, as the spirit gave them utterance” (Acts, chapter 2, v. 2-4).

Explaining to believers the meaning of this “great event,” the clergy emphasizes that God armed his faithful children with the knowledge of different languages ​​so that they could carry the gospel teaching throughout the world, spread Christianity, and sow the seeds of the only right faith everywhere.
However, the fantastic nature of the New Testament story about the descent of the holy spirit on the apostles is completely obvious. This “event” can only be explained by references to the miracles of God, with which ministers of worship cover up the irrepressible imagination of ancient writers.
History shows that this New Testament legend formed the basis of the holiday, borrowed by Christians from ancient Jewish cults.

The truly Christian holiday of Trinity has its origins in religions that existed long before Christianity. The origins of the Trinity are to be found in the Hebrew festival of Pentecost.
In ancient times, Pentecost was a multi-day festival of agricultural tribes that inhabited the fertile lands of Palestine. This festival marked the end of the harvest, which began in April and lasted about seven weeks. The days of hard, intense work and all the worries associated with worries about the future harvest were behind us. People rejoiced, not forgetting to make sacrifices to spirits and gods.
Subsequently, when the monotheistic Jewish religion emerged and the inhabitants of Palestine began to worship the one god Yahweh, Pentecost received a new content. The priests of the Jewish temples began to claim that Pentecost was established in memory of the most important event in the life of Jewish believers, the establishment of the “Sinaitic legislation,” when God on Mount Sinai gave Moses the law in all the languages ​​of the earthly peoples.
This “event” undoubtedly influenced the New Testament story about the descent of the holy spirit on the apostles. This is easy to verify by comparing the Hebrew legend about God giving laws on Mount Sinai with the story about the descent of the holy spirit in the Acts of the Apostles.

In the modern Trinity one can find traces of another holiday, borrowed from the ancient Slavs, Semik. He merged with the trinity when Christianity spread to Rus', absorbing many ancient Slavic holidays and customs.
Semik was a favorite in the distant past national holiday, celebrated by ancient farmers to mark the end of spring field work - plowing and sowing. These were joyful days for farmers. But at the same time, they were imbued with concern for the future harvest. Therefore, many rituals were associated with magical actions, with the help of which, according to the beliefs of our distant ancestors, it was possible to appease the spirits, ask them for help in economic affairs, and enlist their support in caring for the future harvest.

To this day, in many places the custom of decorating houses with greenery, decorating birch trees, etc. has been preserved. In this way, the ancient Slavs tried to influence forest and field spirits, on which, as they thought, a good harvest and the fertility of the land largely depended. A relic of ancient beliefs is the custom of remembering deceased relatives, which has survived to this day in the festive ritual of the Trinity. In Orthodoxy there are several such days of remembrance, including Trinity, “parental Saturday.” This custom originates in the ancient cult of ancestors, which was based on the belief that the spirits of deceased ancestors can influence the well-being of living people, help to them in earthly affairs, economic needs, etc. Therefore, sacrifices were made to the dead ancestors, they were remembered, and they tried to appease them.

In the Christian religion, the holiday of the Trinity, naturally, received a new content associated with one of the New Testament “events.” It also received a new name, according to the clergy, in memory of the fact that all three hypostases of the divine Trinity participated in the descent of the holy spirit on the apostles: God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit. However, many moments, many rituals, customs preserved in the celebration of the Trinity remind of the actual origin of this holiday, which occupies an important place in the Christian cult.

Characteristic of this holiday is the preaching of ideas about the special, exclusive role of the Christian church as the keeper of the covenants of Christ and the teacher of believers.
This is the main purpose and focus of the holiday.

Presentation of the Lord

The Feast of the Presentation of the Lord is celebrated on February 2, Old Style. It is dedicated by the church to the presentation of their divine baby to God by the parents of Jesus Christ, Joseph and Mary, described in the gospels. The Gospel of Luke tells that on the fortieth day after the birth of Jesus, his parents brought him to the Jerusalem temple to fulfill the Old Testament law and “present him before the Lord.” In the temple they were met by certain righteous Simeon and the prophetess Anna, who allegedly came there by inspired by the holy spirit to meet the child Christ. And Simeon blessed Jesus as God, calling him “the light of the revelation of tongues.” The Feast of the Presentation, therefore, has no historical basis. He, like many other Christian festivals, entered Christianity from ancient cults.

IN Ancient Rome, in particular at the beginning of February, a holiday of purification, repentance and fasting was celebrated. It was associated with preparations for spring agricultural work. According to ancient beliefs, before spring work one had to cleanse oneself of sins and take care to appease those gods and spirits on whom success in economic affairs and well-being supposedly depended. People scared away evil spirits, made sacrifices to good ones, hoping in this way to enlist their support.
In order to displace this pagan holiday, the Christian clergy gave it a new meaning, connecting it with the gospel legend. Many rituals of the ancient holiday were preserved in the Christian holiday of the Meeting. These are primarily cleansing rites aimed against evil spirits. The Christian clergy did not object to their preservation and themselves tried to give the meeting the meaning of “a holiday of cleansing from all defilement.”

The Christian clergy, speaking about the meaning of the meeting, calls it the holiday of “the meeting of man and God.” Churchmen note the “greatest” example of the Mother of God, who not only devoted her entire life to God, but also brought her baby for dedication to the Almighty.
The clergy call on believers to ensure that “they do not remain indifferent and idle spectators of it (the holiday), but become its reverent participants.” For this purpose, the church performs the ritual of the so-called churching of infants. Believing women who have given birth to a child must, after 40 days after the birth of a boy or 80 days after the birth of a girl, visit church and “take prayer” from the priest. The latter carries the child to the altar, thereby symbolizing the baby’s dedication to God.

The feast of the Presentation is used by the clergy in order to further strengthen the power of the church over a person, literally from the very first days of life to connect him with religion. Recalling the “great example” of the Mother of God, the churchmen inspire believers that all those who are devoted to the Christian doctrine, the Christian church should do the same. Following these instructions, believers bind themselves even more tightly with invisible chains to the religious faith that dominates their minds, preached clergy.

Baptism

Epiphany is celebrated by the Christian Church on January 6th according to the old style. This holiday is considered one of the most significant.

In his writings, dedicated to the holiday baptism, Christian clergy note that it was installed in memory of a historical event - the baptism of Jesus Christ in the Jordan River. The description of this event is given in the gospels, and, as in other cases, it is quite contradictory.

Thus, the Gospels of Matthew and Mark say that Christ was baptized by John the Baptist at the age of 30. The Gospel of Luke indicates that at the time of Jesus' baptism, John was in prison and, therefore, could not baptize Christ in any way. The Gospels of Matthew, Mark and Luke tell us that immediately after baptism, Christ retired to the desert, where he stayed for 40 days. But the Gospel of John tells about something else, that Christ after baptism went to Cana of Galilee. Naturally, such contradictory information cannot be relied upon as reliable historical sources.
Another point is also characteristic. At the early stage of its development, Christianity did not know the rite of baptism at all. This is evidenced by the fact that in early Christian literature there is no mention that this ritual existed among the first adherents of the new religion. “Baptism is an institution of the second period of Christianity,” wrote F. Engels.

This ritual came to Christianity from ancient cults. Water ablution existed in many pre-Christian religions. By spiritualizing natural phenomena, our distant ancestors also spiritualized water, the most important source of human life. It quenched thirst and ensured the fertility of fields and pastures. On the other hand, raging water elements sometimes caused enormous damage to people, often threatening their lives. Seeing this greatness in mercy and evil, primitive people began to worship water.
In pre-Christian cults, among other rituals, an important role was played by the rite of “cleansing” a person from all “filth”, “evil spirits” with the help of water. According to ancient beliefs, water had a cleansing power. It, in particular, cleansed people from evil spirits, evil spirits that could harm them. Therefore, ancient peoples had a custom of washing newborns with water. This ritual was performed by the ancient Egyptians, Romans and Greeks, by the Aztecs, the people who once inhabited the territory of Mexico, by the Indians who lived on the American Yucatan Peninsula, by Polynesian tribes and many other peoples.

The performance of baptism by Christians was first mentioned in Christian literature dating back to the end of the 1st - beginning of the 2nd century. But baptism took a strong place in the Christian cult only in the second half of the 2nd century. At the same time, the holiday of baptism arises, which is associated with a mythical event - the baptism of Jesus Christ in the Jordan.
The holiday of baptism has always been celebrated by Christians very solemnly. On the holiday, the main rite was the blessing of water. The water was blessed in the church and in the ice hole, which was called the consecration of water “on the Jordan.” A religious procession was directed to the ice hole, in which the clergy, local nobility and all believers took part. “On the Jordan” a solemn prayer service was served, after which the believers plunged into the icy water.
The blessing of water in churches continues to this day. The clergy, blessing the water collected in barrels, lower a cross into it, and believers take this water, sincerely believing that, consecrated in the temple of God, it has miraculous powers, can heal from ailments, etc.

The holiday of baptism also has another name - Epiphany. It was established, according to the churchmen, because at the moment of the baptism of Jesus Christ in the Jordan, “God the Father testified from heaven and God the Holy Spirit descended in the form of a dove.”

The holiday of baptism is used by the church to glorify Jesus Christ as the son of God, who founded a new, only “true” religion. The clergy emphasizes the exclusivity of Christianity. The whole point of the holiday is to strengthen people’s religious faith, which supposedly shows the right path to salvation.

Transfiguration

The Christian Church celebrates the Feast of Transfiguration on August 6th according to the old style. It is based on the Gospel story about the “transfiguration” of Jesus Christ in the presence of his faithful disciples. The Gospel of Matthew speaks about it this way. One day, Jesus Christ, accompanied by his disciples Peter, James and John, climbed the mountain. And suddenly, unexpectedly for them, he was “transformed.” “: “And his face shone like the sun, and his clothes became white as light” (Matthew 17:2) And then “a voice came from the cloud saying: This is my beloved son, in whom I am well pleased; listen" (Matt. 17:5).

The Gospel story is surprisingly reminiscent of the biblical story of the transfiguration of Moses on Mount Sinai, which is contained in the book of Exodus. This similarity is not accidental. It was important for the authors of the gospels to show that Christ was no lower than Moses, who was honored with the “transfiguration.” Borrowing the “miracle of transfiguration” from the Old Testament legend, the evangelists, through the mouth of God, declared Christ the “beloved son,” thereby exalting him in the eyes of believers. This is what the true meaning of the Gospel myth of transfiguration, which formed the basis of the holiday.

The Feast of the Transfiguration was established by the Christian Church in the 4th century. However, it took many years for it to become firmly established in the everyday life of believers.
Only in the Middle Ages did it finally take hold.
Transfiguration entered Rus' after the introduction of Christianity. It was celebrated at the end of summer, when the harvesting of many garden and vegetable crops began. In its desire to subordinate all aspects of the life of believers to its influence, the church tried to connect this holiday with the life of people. This explains, for example, the strict ban on eating apples before transformation.

On the day of the holiday, a solemn blessing of the fruits brought by believers took place in churches. Only after the consecration and blessing of vegetables and fruits were they allowed to be eaten. This is why the people called the holiday of transfiguration the apple holiday, or apple savior.

Palm Sunday, or the Entry of the Lord into Jerusalem

In the gospel stories about the earthly life of Jesus Christ, there is an episode that tells how Jesus and his disciples visited Jerusalem. After Christ performed one of his greatest miracles: with just his word he raised a certain Lazarus a few days after his death, he headed towards Jerusalem. Having decided to enter the city, the evangelists say, Christ stopped not far from it at the Mount of Olives and ordered his disciples to bring a donkey and a donkey. When they fulfilled the command of the “teacher,” he mounted a donkey and an ass and headed into the city. The people greeted him, calling him a prophet. Jesus entered “the temple of God and drove out all those selling and buying in the temple, and overturned the tables of the money changers and the benches of those selling doves.” , and said to them: It is written, “My house will be called a house of prayer; but you made it a den of thieves, and the blind and the lame came to him in the temple, and he healed them” (Matthew 21:12-14). This is how the gospels tell us about the “entry of the Lord into Jerusalem,” in memory of which the church established a holiday, which is one of the main Christian holidays.

The evangelical myth about the “entry of God into Jerusalem” reflected the beliefs of early Christians that the savior of the world, the messiah, would appear to people for the first time as a peaceful king, on a peaceful animal - a donkey. By telling about the appearance of Christ in Jerusalem on a donkey, the evangelists thereby They tried to show that Jesus Christ is the Messiah predicted by the Old Testament prophets. That is why a special holiday was included in the Christian church calendar in memory of the “entry of the Lord into Jerusalem.” It is celebrated on the last Sunday before Easter, on the eve of Holy Week. But since Easter is a transitional, “wandering” holiday, the holiday of the “entry of the Lord into Jerusalem,” also called Palm Sunday, wanders along with it.

In the ritual side of the holiday one can find many borrowings from pre-Christian cults. In particular, on a holiday, according to tradition, the ceremony of blessing the willow is performed in churches. This custom has been preserved since ancient times. In the old days, many European peoples, in particular the ancient Slavs, believed that the willow has magical properties. It supposedly protects people from the machinations of evil spirits, protects livestock and crops from all sorts of disasters, etc. This belief arose due to the fact that the willow is the first among other plants to come to life after nature’s hibernation.
That is why the consecrated willow was kept in houses for a whole year. The willow was used to drive cattle into the field, and its branches spoke in barnyards. This ancient superstition has been preserved in Christianity.
The holiday of the “entry of the Lord into Jerusalem” is used by the church to once again remind believers of the Savior of mankind, of his “great mission”, to once again convince Christians of the divinity of Christ.

Ascension

The holiday is established in memory of the mythical ascension of Jesus Christ to heaven. It is celebrated on the 404th day after Easter, between May 1 and June 4, old style.

According to the gospel accounts, after his martyrdom, Christ miraculously resurrected and ascended to heaven. This is mentioned in the Gospel of Luke, very briefly in the Gospel of Mark, and not a word in the Gospels of Matthew and John. The ascension is discussed in another New Testament book, in the Acts of the Apostles. It is there that it is said that this event took place on the 404th day after the resurrection of Christ.
Many peoples had myths about the ascension of the gods in the distant past. The ancient gods, dying, ascended to heaven, finding their place among other gods. Thus, among the Phoenicians, according to their legends, the god Adonis ascended to heaven; among the ancient Greeks, the mythical hero Hercules, who accomplished his famous exploits, was also awarded the honor of ascending to the gods. The ancient Romans believed that the mythical founder of Rome, Romulus, ascended to heaven alive. The imagination of our distant ancestors gave birth to many such gods who ascended to heaven. And Christian writers did not even need to give free rein to their imagination; they simply repeated what had already been said long before them.

The myth of the ascension of the son of God into heaven served and serves the Christian church to affirm the divinity of Christ. After all, only God could resurrect and ascend to heaven alive. Only God is destined to live in heaven. By narrating the ascension of Christ, the clergy thereby convince believers that Jesus is a god and should be worshiped as a god. And from here the conclusion is drawn about the need to follow the path that was commanded by Christ. The clergy teaches believers that they need to leave the “old city” of sin and look for things above, “where Christ sits at the right hand of God,” think about heavenly things, and not about earthly things.
Cults call the Feast of the Ascension the Feast of Completed Salvation, because, according to them, the entire work of salvation: Christmas, Passion, Death and Resurrection ends with the Ascension. This determines the significance of the Feast of the Ascension in church propaganda, which considers the main path of every Christian to be the path to salvation.

Exaltation

The Feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross, celebrated by the Orthodox Church on September 14 according to the old style, is the most important of the holidays dedicated to the cult of the cross, a symbol of the Christian faith. The church associates several significant events for it that supposedly took place in reality with the cross. Priests always remember one of them in their holiday sermons.

According to legend, the Roman Emperor Constantine, who allowed the free practice of Christianity while still a pagan, had a miraculous vision before one of his largest battles. Before him in the sky appeared a cross illuminated with radiance with the inscription: “By this victory!” That same night, according to church legend, the “son of God” Jesus Christ himself appeared to the emperor in a dream and advised him to take into battle a banner with the image of a cross. Constantine did everything as Christ commanded. In addition, he ordered his legionaries to inscribe the sign of the cross on their shields. Constantine won the battle and, according to church historians, has since believed in the miraculous power of the cross.

Historical facts tell a different story. To commemorate his victory, Constantine ordered the minting of coins depicting the pagan gods, which he believed had helped him in the battle against his enemies. It would be natural to assume that he, of course, would have depicted the sign of the cross if he really believed that the cross helped him achieve victory.
But the Christian clergy tenaciously clung to this legend. Moreover, the clergy spread the legend that Constantine’s mother Elena subsequently acquired a “sacred relic” - the cross on which Christ was allegedly crucified.

Christian writers told how Elena, at the age of 80, set out to find this cross and went to Palestine. She arrived at the place where, according to legend, Christ was executed, ordered the destruction of the pagan temple that stood on this place, and discovered as many as three crosses in its ruins. On one of them there was an inscription: “This is the King of the Jews.”

The rumor that a “sacred relic” had been found quickly spread throughout the country. Crowds of people flocked to Calvary to see this cross with their own eyes. To give this opportunity to people, the cross was raised on a dais, or, as the clergy say, erected in front of crowds of people gathered.
To commemorate this “event,” by order of Helena, a Christian temple was erected on Golgotha ​​and the feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross was established.

However, historical science questions the plausibility of the church version of Helen’s search for the cross in Palestine, and even more so of the “miraculous” find on Golgotha.
The clergy, having composed this legend, committed a deliberate deception, convincing believers that the whole story with the “life-giving” cross was not fiction, but a real event. They endowed the cross itself, supposedly found by Elena, with miraculous powers, spreading the rumor that This cross is miraculous. Church historians claim that Helen divided the cross she had found into three parts, leaving one of them in Jerusalem, giving the second to her son Constantine, and bringing the third as a gift to Rome.

Nevertheless, soon various parts of the cross began to be displayed in various churches and monasteries in Europe. Masses of pilgrims rushed to bow to them. Until now, the “sacred” particles of the cross attract masses of pilgrims. These particles are stored in more than 30 thousand different monasteries. As the French historian Plancy rightly noted, if we were to collect all the particles of the “life-giving” cross that the clergy demonstrates to believers, they could load a big ship. It is hardly possible to give more characteristic evidence of church deception.

On the day of the celebration of the erection of the cross of the Lord, Christian churchmen also recall another legend associated with the return of the “holy” cross to the Jerusalem temple. At the beginning of the 7th century, the Persians captured Palestine and plundered Jerusalem. Among other trophies, they captured the “life-giving” cross that was kept there. Only 14 years later, when the Byzantine Emperor Heraclius defeated the Persians and concluded a peace agreement beneficial to himself, the cross was returned to the Jerusalem Temple. And again, as church chroniclers say, the cross was “erected” above the crowds of believers so that everyone could see it.
The Feast of the Exaltation was established by the Christian Church in the 4th century. But it did not immediately take the place it currently occupies among other Christian holidays. Only two centuries later, the erection was attributed to the main twelve holidays.

The church celebrates the erection very solemnly. The holiday is accompanied by magnificent rituals that have a great emotional impact on believers. On the eve of the holiday, at the all-night vigil, a cross decorated with flowers is brought out and placed on a lectern in the middle of the temple. This ceremony is accompanied by the ringing of bells and melodious chants, which, according to the plans of the church ministers, should evoke a special mood among believers. The apotheosis of this church performance is the erection of the cross, which takes place in the largest churches.

By requiring believers to honor the cross as a symbol of Christianity, clergy inspire people that it is a symbol of redemption, suffering and salvation. Therefore, the cross should become the companion of every faithful Christian for life. And all adherents of the Christian religion must humbly bear their cross, just as Jesus carried it on his way to Calvary.

Thus, the feast of the exaltation, during which these ideas are propagated with particular force, serves as one of the means of spiritual enslavement of people in the bosom of the Christian church.

Nativity of the Virgin Mary

This is one of the most significant holidays of the cult of the Mother of God, celebrated in the Orthodox Church on September 8, old style.
The cult of the Virgin Mary occupies a prominent place in Christianity. Believers venerate the Mother of God as the woman who gave life to the son of God Jesus Christ, who raised him, as the greatest example for all women, for all mothers. Many churches were erected in honor of the Mother of God, her image is often found on icons, several Christian holidays are dedicated to her (in particular, of all the twelve holidays, four are dedicated to the Mother of God).

The cult of the Mother of God was adopted by Christianity from ancient religions, where women goddesses who gave birth to divine sons enjoyed special veneration. The mother goddess Isis was universally worshiped in Ancient Egypt, among the ancient Phoenicians - Astarte, among the Babylonians - the goddess Ishtar, among the Phrygians - Cybele, etc. Comparison of Christian myths about the Mother of God with ancient myths about female goddesses helps to discover many similarities in them moments that allow us to conclude that the pre-Christian cults of these goddesses undoubtedly left their mark on the cult of the Virgin Mary.

Christian churchmen tried to endow the Mother of God with such features that contributed to her wide popularity among the people. “The best and first in grace among the entire human race and the council of angels,” the clergy calls her. “Her image,” say the clergy, “shines through all centuries as the image of true, spiritualized humanity, teaching all kinds of virtue.” Such teachings, artificially inflating the cult of the Virgin Mary, led to the fact that in the lives of believers she took the place of the patroness of the poor, all suffering, disadvantaged people, and became their intercessor, a loving mother.
According to the gospel myth, she was born into a family of righteous parents Joachim and Anna, who were childless for many years and prayed to God to send them a child. The prayers reached God when the parents of the future Mother of God were already advanced in age. They had a daughter, named Maria. In memory of this “wonderful” day, the Christian Church established its feast of the Nativity of the Virgin Mary, or, as it is sometimes called among the people, the Little Blessed Virgin Mary.

This holiday was established by the church in the 4th century, when, as a result of long-term disputes, a single idea of ​​the Mother of God, her “biography,” began to take shape. But another seven centuries passed before the Nativity of the Mother of God took its place among the main holidays of the Christian church.
Currently, it is given special importance. Church ministers take into account that the vast majority of believers are women. That is why it is so important for the church to give solemnity to the holiday on which the Mother of God is glorified.

The Catholic Church is especially zealous in strengthening the cult of the Mother of God and in strengthening its influence on believers. Back in the middle of the last century, Pope Pius IX proclaimed the dogma of the immaculate conception of Mary, which was supposed to officially consolidate the belief in the divine origin of the Mother of God. In 1950, the Catholic Church, through the mouth of Pope Pius XII, proclaimed a new dogma about the bodily ascension of the Virgin Mary. Her name has become one of the important means of indoctrinating people.
Both the Orthodox and Catholic churches use the holidays of the cult of the Virgin Mary for the same purposes of strengthening their influence on people and strengthening religious faith.

Presentation of the Virgin Mary into the Temple

The presentation of the Blessed Virgin Mary into the temple is celebrated in Orthodoxy on November 21, old style. Describing the earthly life of the Virgin Mary, Christian writers say that Mary’s parents, in gratitude to God, who heard their prayers and gave them a daughter, decided to dedicate her to the Almighty. At the age of three, she was taken to be raised in the Jerusalem Temple, where she was in a special section for girls, mainly “practicing in prayer and work.”

Raised by the priests of the temple in love and selfless devotion to God, Mary, at the age of 12, announced that she was taking a vow of celibacy. The clergy could not resist her will and did not force her to marry.
The holiday of the introduction of the Mother of God into the temple, according to the clergy, was established in memory of that “significant” day when Joachim and Anna brought their daughter to the Jerusalem temple and the Girl embarked on the selfless path
th service to God. The churchmen set this act of Mary’s parents as an example to all believers, pointing out that true Christians should cultivate in their children the love of God from the very beginning. early age, as soon as the child begins to understand his surroundings. This, according to clergy, is the sacred duty of every believer.

In holiday sermons that are heard in churches, churchmen call on believing parents to bring their children to services, to tell them about the church, about various “events” of biblical history. In this way, drop by drop, they plan to poison the consciousness of children and adolescents, to instill in them religious ideas.

Annunciation

According to the Gospel legend, the Virgin Mary received through the Archangel Gabriel the “good news” that she would give birth to a divine baby. The Feast of the Annunciation of the Blessed Virgin Mary, which the Orthodox Church celebrates on March 25, Old Style, is dedicated to this “event.”

The “good news” received by the Virgin Mary is described in the Gospel of Luke. It indicates that the Archangel Gabriel warned Mary, who became the wife of the eighty-year-old elder Joseph, that she would conceive a child immaculately, by the Holy Spirit. Annunciation for the Christian Church became the most important “event”, because the “biography” of Jesus Christ begins with it.

In many pre-Christian cults one can find tales of the virgin birth, as a result of which pagan gods were born. The Gospel myth is very similar to the Buddhist myth, which tells about the birth of Buddha as a result of the immaculate conception of the virgin Maha-maya. In the same way, the ancient Egyptian goddess Isis conceived immaculately, giving birth to the god Horus. In the same way, other gods who were worshiped by our distant ancestors were born.
This similarity between Christian and pre-Christian myths suggests that the Christian writers who created the earthly “biography” of Jesus Christ relied on ancient legends, not disdaining to directly borrow from them.

The Feast of the Annunciation was first included in the church calendar in the 4th century, after the Christian Church, which celebrated the single holiday of Christmas - Baptism - Epiphany, began to celebrate them separately. December 25 is Christmas and January 6 is baptism - epiphany. Then the feast of the Annunciation was introduced, the date of which was “set” by counting nine months back from the date of the birth of Christ.

In Rus', the holiday of the Annunciation appeared after the introduction of Christianity. In order for it to gain a foothold in the life of believers, the church took advantage of a favorable circumstance for it. In time, the Annunciation fell during the period when spring sowing began on peasant farms. The clergy instilled in believers that in order to obtain abundant harvests it was necessary to pray to God, perform various rituals, and church regulations. And believing farmers, for whom the future harvest was vitally important, blindly followed church instructions.

The Annunciation is considered one of the “greatest” holidays of the Christian church. On the day of the holiday, believers were previously forbidden to do any work. People had to devote themselves entirely to the holiday, “be imbued with its spirit,” and understand its significance. The meaning of the holiday for the church is determined by the words of the troparion, which sounds in Orthodox churches: “Today is the beginning of our salvation...” Church regulations indicate that “the announcement by the Archangel Gabriel of the will of God to the Blessed Virgin Mary served as the beginning of our salvation.” Thus, the church connects the feast of the Annunciation with the idea of ​​salvation, which is constantly instilled in believers and is the basis of Christian doctrine.

Dormition

The Assumption closes the circle of the twelve feasts. The Dormition is celebrated on August 15 according to the old style. On this day, believers mourn the death of the Mother of God.

The gospels do not tell how the life of the Mother of God developed after the execution of Jesus Christ. There is no information about her death. Christian scriptures that deal with recent years the life of the Mother of God, first appear only in the 4th century. From this it is clear that Christians began to celebrate the day of the death of the Mother of God, the feast of the Dormition, even later. Only at the end of the 5th - beginning of the 6th century. Dormition takes its place among other Christian holidays.

Emphasizing the divinity of the Virgin Mary, Christian churchmen, describing her life, did not skimp on various miracles that allegedly accompanied the life of the Mother of God. The miracle took place, according to church tradition, even after her death. Christian writers tell how, sensing the approach of her death, the Mother of God turned with prayers to her son so that he would call the apostles to her. Christ heard the prayer. By God's command, the apostles gathered in Jerusalem (only Thomas was absent), and they witnessed the death of the Mother of God.

According to church scriptures, the body of the Mother of God was buried in Gethsemane, where Mary’s parents and her husband Joseph rested. On the third day after the burial of the Mother of God, the Apostle Thomas arrived in Jerusalem and went to the cave where the Mother of God was buried. Imagine his surprise when he did not find the body of the deceased in the cave. And then the apostles realized that Jesus Christ resurrected the body of his mother and took her to heaven.
Churchmen claim that such a miracle actually took place. The Catholic Church even accepted the dogma of the bodily ascension of the Virgin Mary. At the same time, the clergy, narrating the life and death of the Mother of God, establishes a significant difference between the mother of God and her son. If Christ resurrected himself and ascended to heaven by his divine power, then the Mother of God was taken to heaven by the will of God.
The Church very solemnly celebrates the Dormition. The removal of the shroud in the temple - the image of the Mother of God in the coffin - has a great emotional impact on believers. For 10 days, sermons are heard from church pulpits, praising the virtues of the Mother of God, her non-vicious life, and the believers are instilled with the idea that the life path of the Mother of God testifies to how all natural laws are overcome by the will of God.

The Church used the feast of the Dormition to influence the consciousness of believers and their feelings. Just like Easter, Dormition served and continues to serve the clergy to instill in believers the idea that God’s will can grant immortality to every righteous Christian who is unshakable in his faith and holyly fulfills the instructions of his spiritual shepherds.

Great holidays

Perhaps the most revered among the so-called great holidays in Orthodoxy is the Intercession, celebrated on October 14 (1). The meaning that the church puts into this holiday is revealed in the following lines of an article published in the “Journal of the Moscow Patriarchate”:
“The service of the Feast of the Intercession is dedicated to the disclosure and clarification of the veneration of the Mother of God as an intercessor and prayer book for the world, as the all-powerful patroness of this world and as a spiritual focus that unites the heavenly and earthly churches around itself.”

According to the teachings of the church, the veil was established in honor of an event that occurred in 910 in the Blachernae Church in Constantinople, where the Mother of God appeared to the holy fool Andrew and his disciple Epiphanius and, raising a white veil over those who were praying, offered up a prayer to God for the salvation of the world, for the deliverance of people from all troubles that befall them. As science has established, the Blachernae miracle was fabricated by the clergy.
Byzantium, under threat of attack by the Saracens, needed the help of the church to convince the people, among whom there was growing dissatisfaction with the policies of Emperor Leo VI, that the Mother of God herself was the patron of imperial power. So another “miracle” appeared with light hand Orthodox clergy, however, a festival in his honor was established only in Russia during the period of the spread of Christianity. This was caused by the need to introduce an autumn holiday into the church calendar,
which would help supplant the ancient Slavic festivals in honor of the end of spring field work.
In the past, many legends were created about the help of the Mother of God of Russia in difficult times for her.

The Mother of God became the patroness of agriculture in Rus', which was of great importance in the lives of our ancestors, and the holiday in honor of this heavenly patroness became one of the most revered today. The clergy, trying to preserve the role of this holiday in the spiritual life of believers, associates even peace on earth with the name of the Mother of God, instilling in their flock the need to rely on her intercession and protection.
Two holidays that are considered great are associated with the name of the gospel character John the Baptist, or the Baptist. This is the Nativity of John, which is celebrated on July 7 (June 24), and the beheading of John the Baptist, which falls on September 11 (August 29). According to the Gospels, John is the herald, the forerunner of the coming to earth of Jesus Christ. He allegedly baptized Jesus in the Jordan River, and then was thrown into prison for speaking out against King Herod and executed at the request of the king’s wife Herodias, who asked for John’s head. The question of whether John the Baptist once lived on earth has been controversial among scientists for many years. Most of them are now inclined to consider him a real historical figure. However, the gospel story of the birth, life and death of John is a myth that is very far from the truth. The appearance of this New Testament character is due to the desire of the ideologists of early Christianity to pass off Jesus as the messiah, whose appearance was predicted in the Old Testament. It also says that before the coming of the Messiah, his forerunner will appear, who will announce the coming of the “savior.” The role of the forerunner was assigned to John.

In fact, the introduction of the Nativity of John the Baptist into the church calendar was intended to displace ancient holiday summer solstice, which was widely celebrated at that time. And the feast of the beheading of John the Baptist, or, as it was popularly called, Ivan Lenten, since a one-day fast was established on this day, marked the beginning of autumn, the end of agricultural work. Hence the everyday content of the celebrations, which for believers played almost a greater role than their religious meaning.
The feast of the apostles Peter and Paul, which falls on July 12 (June 29), is also widely revered in Orthodoxy. Its long-standing popularity has been enhanced by its association with important milestones in the agricultural calendar. In Rus' it coincided with the beginning of haymaking. In addition, Peter was considered by different peoples to be the patron saint of fishermen, beekeepers, and a saint who protected livestock from predators. It was this, and not the fact that, according to the New Testament version, Peter and Paul were disciples of Christ, that created the authority of the holiday among believers. This explains that it is still celebrated to this day by a significant part of the followers of Orthodoxy.
But the great feast of the circumcision of the Lord on January 14 (1) has never been particularly popular. It was erected by the church to commemorate the stump when the parents of the baby Jesus performed the traditional Jewish rite of circumcision on him. This ritual was not accepted by Christians. And therefore the holiday remained alien to them. If it was celebrated widely, it was only because it coincided with the civil new year, which was always celebrated very cheerfully among the people.

Patronal holidays

These holidays occupy a large place in the life of believers. Patronal feasts, or simply thrones, are holidays established in honor of a particular saint, the Mother of God, a miraculous icon, various events of “sacred” history, in commemoration of which a given temple was built. Often, special extensions are erected in churches - chapels, in which there is a altar. These chapels have their own patronal feast day. It happens that in the same church believers celebrate several patronal feast days every year.

Like other holidays of the Christian religion, patronal holidays grow out of pagan festivals in honor of numerous gods. They arise during the formation of the cult of saints.
In Rus', patronal holidays entered people's lives soon after the adoption of Christianity. Apparently, for the first time on Russian soil they began to be celebrated around the end of the 12th - beginning of the 13th centuries. At that time, Rus' was fragmented into many separate, often sparsely populated principalities. With the adoption of Christianity, the princes sought to “acquire” their own saint, who would patronize this particular principality or fiefdom. These “heavenly patrons” could attract new inhabitants to the princes’ possessions, in which the Russian feudal lords were very interested. In addition to acquiring saints, the princes tried to acquire “miraculous” icons, which were declared shrines of a particular area.
Temples were erected in honor of saints and icons, and holidays were dedicated to them.
Servants of religion well understood the significance of patronal holidays as important means ideological influence on believers. Quite often local saints were revered no less than God himself.
Saints of the Orthodox Church are venerated in different ways. One of them is worshiped literally everywhere. Dozens of temples were erected in their honor in various parts of the country. But there are also saints who are revered only in certain areas. Among Orthodox believers, the cult of St. Nicholas of Myra, St. John the Baptist, Elijah the Prophet, the Apostles Peter and Paul, and the Great Martyr George is widespread. Therefore, for example, Nikolin's Day, Ilyin's Day, Peter's Day are patronal holidays in many regions of the country.

Patronal holidays bring especially great harm primarily because they revive and support religious ideology. During the holidays, clergy intensify their propaganda. As a rule, patronal holidays are associated with many days of drunken revelry.
It often happens that these holidays fall during the busiest time of agricultural work, when, according to an apt popular expression, “the day feeds the year.” And many believers quit work and walk for several days in a row, honoring “God’s saints.” Dozens of precious days are spent in drunken revelry, bringing huge losses to the state. All this is well known to clergy. However, they continue to support a harmful tradition, which helps in achieving their goals, and in addition, is one of the significant sources of church income.

Church holidays- these are important dates for Christians, for which it is customary to prepare prayerfully, observe fasting, and then come to the solemn liturgy with communion in church. Some Orthodox holidays, such as the Dormition, seem strange to people far from church life. Why do Christians celebrate death? We will try to tell you about the essence of church holidays in this article.

The calendar of non-movable church holidays is known:

Religious holiday	Church holiday date	The meaning of a church holiday
Nativity	Jan. 7
Epiphany	January 19	Twelfth church holiday
Presentation of the Lord	February, 15	Twelfth church holiday
Annunciation of the Blessed Virgin Mary	April 7	Twelfth church holiday
Nativity of John the Baptist	July 7	Great church holiday
Day of the Holy Chief Apostles Peter and Paul	July, 12	Great church holiday
Transfiguration	August 19	Twelfth church holiday
Dormition of the Blessed Virgin Mary	August 28	Twelfth church holiday
Beheading of John the Baptist	11 September	Great church holiday
	September 21	Twelfth church holiday
Exaltation of the Holy Cross	September 27	Twelfth church holiday
Protection of the Blessed Virgin Mary	October 14	Great church holiday
	December 4	Twelfth church holiday

Moving church holidays, in turn, are constantly celebrated in different days. We have compiled a table for the nearest dates:

Holidays	2020	2021	2022
Beginning of the triodion	February 9th	February 21	The 14th of February
Forgiveness Sunday	March 1	March 14th	March, 6
Entrance to Jerusalem	12th of April	25th of April	April 17
Easter	April 19	April 2	May 24
Ascension of the Lord	May 28	May 10	June 10th
Trinity	June 7	June 20	2 June
Petrov post	27 days	14 days	21 day

What is a church holiday?

Rejoice in the Lord always; and again I say: rejoice ( Phil.4:4–7.)

What is an Orthodox holiday? Secular people often ask this question when entering the path of church life. Many worldly holidays are accompanied by noisy feasts, dancing and songs. How do church holidays differ from them?

The Lord called us not for suffering, but for salvation and eternal life, which, in itself, is already a reason for joy. Therefore, even when we cry, repenting of our sins, this is great joy. After all, we have One who is ready to accept our repentance. Orthodox holidays are embodied in the quiet joy of unity with God. These important dates are designed to remind us of the Gospel events; they are associated with ancient Christian traditions and allow us to temporarily escape from the bustle of the world in order to devote another day of the year to communication with God. During a church holiday, a liturgy is served in the church, and we praise the history of our Salvation by Jesus Christ, recalling certain events of the Holy Scriptures or the lives of Orthodox saints.

Church holidays are divided into movable and non-movable. The date of immutable holidays never changes and is celebrated on the same day every year. Moving Orthodox holidays do not have a fixed date and depend on the date of Easter. It is because of the date of Easter that the Church calendar usually moves. The date of celebration of the Resurrection of Christ is calculated according to the solar-lunar calendar. It is usually celebrated on the Sunday following the first full moon following the vernal equinox (March 21). The fathers of the First Ecumenical Council established this order back in 325.

There are twelve most important church holidays. They are called "twelves" or sometimes "twelves". Easter is not included in this list, as the most important Orthodox holiday, standing separately, outside of any categories.

• Nativity
• Epiphany
• Candlemas
• Annunciation
• Palm Sunday
• Ascension
• Trinity
• Transfiguration
• Dormition of the Blessed Virgin Mary
• Exaltation of the Holy Cross
• Nativity of the Virgin Mary
• Introduction to the Temple of Our Lady

• Protection of the Blessed Virgin Mary
• Circumcision of the Lord and the memory of St. Basil the Great
• Nativity of John the Baptist
• Memory of the supreme apostles Peter and Paul
• Beheading of John the Baptist
• Holy memory Nicholas
• Transfer of the relics of the saint. Nicholas in the Italian city of Bari.

With the advent of new saints, the list of Orthodox holidays is also replenished.

Holidays in the Orthodox calendar

Twelfth Feasts of the Virgin Mary

Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary

Not far from Jerusalem is the city of Nazareth. It was in this city that the righteous and already middle-aged spouses Joachim and Anna lived. For a long time The Lord did not give them children. During their lifetime, this was considered a shame, because children were considered a blessing from God. One day, the High Priest did not even accept a sacrifice from Joachim, accusing him of having obviously done something wrong before God, since the Lord did not give him children. Joachim prayed to the Lord to grant him and his wife a child. Anna considered herself to blame for the childlessness of the marriage. She also turned to God with a request to give her and Joachim offspring and promised to bring the child as a gift to God and serve Him. Then a Heavenly Angel appeared before her and said: “Your prayer has been heard. You will give birth to a blessed daughter. For her sake all earthly generations will be blessed. Through her salvation will be given to the whole world and she will be called Mary.”

In those days, only the birth of a male child was considered a blessing from God. Even in the Holy Scriptures, people are numbered only in male units. But the girl that Anna gives birth to will be the Most Holy Theotokos, the mother of Christ.

Joachim, meanwhile, was hurrying to the Golden Gate of Jerusalem after fasting for forty days in the mountains. He had to see his wife Anna, because an angel appeared to him in the mountains. Hugging him at the gate, Anna said, “I know now that the Lord has blessed me.”

The Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary is the first twelfth Orthodox holiday in the church year, which begins on September 14 according to the new style. The Mother of God served the cause of Salvation by giving birth to the Son of Man, from whom a new era and a new chronology began. With the Savior, the Lord revealed to us that the main law in our lives should be the law of love, the ability to sacrifice in the name of love. The earthly path of the Mother of God was filled with sorrows; she stood at the Cross of the Lord and, together with the Savior, experienced the pangs of the cross.

But the world rejoiced at her birth; on the day of the Nativity of the Mother of God, our intercessor before the Gods was born, through whose prayers great miracles are accomplished.

Presentation of the Blessed Virgin Mary into the Temple

The Presentation of the Blessed Virgin Mary into the temple is one of the main church holidays dedicated to the earthly life of the Mother of God. In addition to the Introduction, the Nativity of the Virgin Mary and the Assumption of the Virgin Mary are also celebrated. These holidays are based on Holy Tradition. The feast of the Annunciation is based on Gospel events, when the Angel of the Lord appeared to announce the conception of Christ.

In addition to these main holidays, other Orthodox holidays are celebrated - the holidays of the miraculous icons of the Mother of God, the Intercession (this day is especially loved among the people) and many other days that reflect our love for the Most Holy Theotokos. The Presentation of the Virgin Mary into the Temple is special date, which has no analogues among other church holidays. Sacred Tradition tells that as soon as the Virgin Mary turned three years old, her parents, Joachim and Anna, took her to the temple in order, in accordance with the vow given to the Lord, to raise her in Divine grace. This vow was fulfilled in gratitude for the gift of the child. It did not mean that the child took a vow of monasticism or a special ascetic life, but it was no longer his parents who were involved in his upbringing, but the ministers of the temple. This is a sign of the highest trust in God.

In Jerusalem at that time there was one temple, in the altar of which the Ark of the Covenant was once kept. In the same temple there was a special theological school where boys and girls dedicated to God were educated. The Virgin Mary was met by the high priest Zechariah. He played an important role in the Old Testament Church and was an unquestioned moral authority for believers. Without outside help, the Virgin Mary ascended all fifteen steps leading to the sanctuary, barely crossing the threshold of the temple. Those who saw this perceived the ascent as a miracle. Despite the body of a baby, the Mother of God was already a perfect soul even then. She entered the temple joyful and triumphant, as if into her own home.

The high priest Zechariah led the girl into the holy of holies of the temple, which he himself could only enter once a year. He immediately saw that in front of him was not ordinary child. While in the temple, the Virgin Mary delighted everyone with the fullness of her virtue, while being humble and meek. This was another step on the path to the appearance of the Savior in the world, which is why believers honor this significant date and distinguish it from many Orthodox holidays.

Annunciation of the Blessed Virgin Mary (March 25/April 7)

The Annunciation of the Blessed Virgin Mary is the twelfth Orthodox holiday.

It was called differently by the first Christians: the Conception of Christ, the Annunciation of Christ, the Beginning of Redemption, the Annunciation of the Angel to Mary, but in the 7th century in the East and West it began to be called the same - the Annunciation of the Blessed Virgin Mary.

This day showed joy to the whole world and became the beginning of our Salvation, a blessing for all people. On this day, God united with humanity and in the person of the Virgin Mary all the prophecies of the Old Testament about the Son of Man were fulfilled. In all the world at that time there was no one more holy and more worthy than the Virgin Mary. She had been living in the temple for twelve years when the high priest said that, having reached adulthood, she should leave the temple, get married and move into her husband's house. The Virgin Mary humbly replied that she had made a vow to devote her life to the Lord and did not want to break her vow of chastity. The high priest cannot force the Virgin to break her vow to God, so he gathered the clergy of the temple to pray and ask God to reveal His will. An angel appeared to the High Priest Zerah with instructions to take unmarried husbands from the house of David and ask them to bring their rods; to which of them the Lord will show a sign, he will become a husband for the Virgin Mary.

When the High Priest collected the rods, he began to pray that the Lord would reveal his will. The rods were left in the temple overnight, and the next day Joseph's rod blossomed. Joseph was a relative of the Virgin Mary, led a righteous life, he was already over 80 years old, he lived as a widow and had adult children. The Virgin Mary moved from the temple to Nazareth, but remained to live in solitude and silence, maintaining her virginity. The Most Pure Virgin continued to live for God and do household chores. While God sent the Archangel Gabriel to the Virgin Mary.

The Virgin Mary knew the prophecies about the coming of the Messiah and about the Blessed Virgin, who would become His mother. She prayed to minister to this woman, but that woman turned out to be herself.

“Rejoice, full of grace, the Lord is with you; Blessed are You among women,” the Virgin Mary heard these words from the archangel who appeared to her. These words confused her, and she remained silent. But the Archangel Gabriel consoled her with the words that the Lord would give the Son the throne of David. The Virgin Mary did not know her husband, but the power of the Most High overshadowed her, and she conceived when the light of the Spirit of God overshadowed her. The mystery of the incarnation of the Son of God took place. Chosen from all generations, the Virgin Mary contained within herself the treasure of grace and gave man the opportunity to hope for salvation.

Presentation of the Lord (February 2/15)

The church holiday of the Presentation of the Lord is based on an amazing miraculous event that occurred in Jerusalem in the 1st century AD. According to tradition, on the fortieth day after birth, all Jews had to bring their first sons to the temple to be dedicated to God. In gratitude, it was customary to offer sacrifices to God - a ram, an ox, or doves. What the family could afford played an important role.

This law was established in memory of the liberation of the Jewish people from Egyptian slavery. Then the Lord saved the firstborn of Israel from death.

His parents brought Jesus Christ to the Temple in Jerusalem, as required by law, as soon as He was forty days old to present Him before God. Joseph and Mary could not afford to make an expensive sacrifice, since they did not live richly. They sacrificed only two pigeon chicks. At this time, a pious elder lived in Jerusalem - Simeon the God-Receiver. At the inspiration of the Spirit of God and the prophetess Anna, he came to the temple, since the Holy Spirit promised the Righteous Simeon that he would not die until he saw the Messiah. He was already 360 years old. According to Church Tradition, he was one of those who translated the Old Testament from Hebrew to Ancient Greek. He knew the Scriptures well and waited with faith for Christ the Savior. Although, at first he doubted the possibility of fulfilling the prophecy that the Savior would be born into the world from an earthly woman. He even wanted to blot out these prophecies in Scripture, but the Angel of the Lord appeared to him and restrained him, confirming the truth of these words - “Believe what is written!”

Seeing the baby Jesus at the door of the temple, he exclaimed in great joy: “This is God, co-essential with the Father, this is the Eternal Light and the Lord the Savior!” As promised by the Lord, the Divine Child appeared to him with the Most Pure Virgin and Righteous Joseph. Simeon's heart trembled, he praised the Lord in prayer. The elder saw the One who was promised by the Lord to people; the fullness of times came. He could leave this world because the prophecy was fulfilled.

Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary (August 15/28)

This holiday seems paradoxical to those who are not familiar with Orthodox church holidays. Why do we celebrate death? But we know the words “If we live, we live for the Lord; Whether we die, we die for the Lord.” The Apostle Paul also said: “For me to live is Christ and to die is gain.”

The last thing we know about the earthly journey of the Virgin Mary from the Gospel is the words that the Lord addresses to the Mother from the cross. Words about His beloved disciple, John the Theologian: “ Wife! behold, your son". These words, of course, concerned all of humanity.

The beloved disciple of Christ took the Virgin Mary to himself. Holy Scripture does not convey to us information about the Dormition of the Mother of God, but Church Tradition preserves for us information about the life of the Mother of God after the Resurrection of Christ.

So, the Mother of God lived in the house of John the Theologian. She often retired to prayer to her Divine Son. On one of these days, the Archangel Gabriel appeared to her again to announce that in three days the Blessed Virgin would depart to the Lord. The Mother of God received these words with great joy in anticipation of meeting God. The only thing she asked for was to give her the opportunity to say goodbye to the apostles, the disciples of Christ, who brought the message of Salvation to the world. Miraculously, the apostles, who were far from Jerusalem, were transported there to say goodbye to their Heavenly Mother. The Mother of God consoled the apostles in their sorrow and said goodbye to each of them.

But the Dormition of the Mother of God was not an ordinary separation of soul and body. At the hour of her death, the Heavens opened and those present saw Christ with the Angels and the deceased righteous. The Blessed Virgin seemed to be immersed in sleep, which is why her repose is called the Dormition, that is, sleep. And behind this dream, glory and awakening in the Kingdom of Heaven were expected. The soul of the Virgin Mary, accompanied by angelic singing, ascended to Heaven.

During the burial of the body of the Virgin Mary, one Jewish priest was filled with anger towards the Mother of Jesus Christ and decided to throw the body of the Virgin Mary to the ground. But as soon as he touched the bed of the Most Pure Virgin, an Angel of the Lord appeared with a sword and cut off his hands. The priest prayed to the apostles for help. The Apostle Peter replied that the Lord, through prayers to His Mother, could grant him healing. Priest Athos put his hands to the place of the beheading, offering prayers to the Mother of God. His prayer was heard, and he followed the bed of the Virgin Mary, glorifying the Lord and the Mother of God.

The Apostle Thomas did not have time to see the burial of the Mother of God and was very sad, wanting to say goodbye to her. When on the third day the apostles opened the tomb for him, the body of the Mother of God was not in it, but she herself appeared to them in Heavenly Glory, surrounded by many angels with the words: “Rejoice, for I am with you all the days.”

There are many calendar dates in the year dedicated to sacred events, which are important holidays for the church. On these days, special services are held with the reading of prayers, special sermons and chants, in accordance with the Church Charter. Naturally, not all religious Christian holidays are equal in importance. Easter and the twelve celebrations should be classified as Great Holidays. They are marked in calendars with special red marks in the form of a cross placed in a circle. In addition to them, there are several more especially revered dates, which are also great for Christians.

Main Christian holidays:

1. Easter holiday.

The most important and beloved Christian holiday Undoubtedly, Easter is for all Orthodox Christians. Be careful, the date of the celebration always changes every year, because the Easter cycle depends on the lunar as well as solar calendar. In terms of timing, this celebration usually falls in the period from 7.04 to 8.05 according to the new style. It is not difficult to calculate the exact date; you need to take a calendar and find out when the spring full moon and Jewish Passover occur. Next Sunday will be Orthodox Easter. By the way, many other Christian holidays depend on this important date. To avoid mistakes, it is best to use Easter eggs - specially folded tables compiled by the church.

2. Twelfth great Christian holidays.

We will give the dates here to make it easier for a simple layman to navigate, according to the new style, but for clarity, we will insert the date of the old style in brackets.

• September 21 (8.09) – Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary.
• December 4 (11/21) – Presentation of the Blessed Virgin Mary into the temple, which is a very large Christian holiday in December.
• April 7 (03/25) – . It was then that the angels announced to the Virgin Mary about a great miracle - a sinless conception.
• January 7 (December 25) – Nativity of Christ. The winter Christian holidays are a big fun series, so right after Christmas we will have several important dates.
• February 15 (2.02) – . Exactly this winter day Elder Simeon the God-Receiver met little Jesus, whom his parents took to the temple on the 40th day to make a sacrifice to the glory of God for the birth of such a long-awaited first-born. The Holy Spirit revealed the truth to the sage and he saw the future Messiah in the baby.
• January 19 (6.01) - Epiphany, which also has a beautiful second name: Holy Epiphany. Note that the eve of this significant Christian holiday (18.01) is the beginning of strict fasting.
• August 19 (6.08) – Transfiguration of the Lord.
• Palm Sunday, like some other major Christian holidays, can change the date on the calendar, but it is easy to calculate. The Lord's entry into Jerusalem should be celebrated on the Sunday that precedes Easter.
• The date on which the Orthodox celebrate the Ascension of the Lord also changes in the calendar. This celebration always occurs on the 40th day after Easter Sunday.
• Pentecost is a Christian holiday that has such a name for a reason. The Day of the Holy Trinity falls every year strictly on the 50th day from the Bright Resurrection of Christ.
• There's another one in September great holiday– The Exaltation of the Holy Cross, it should always be celebrated on the 27th (14.09)
• The last Christian twelve great holiday on our list is the Dormition of the Mother of God, which falls on August 28 (08/16)

In addition to the most important ones listed above church dates There are also other equally important great and small holidays, as well as other events that are important for the believing people. For example, a special Christian holiday in November is the honoring of the icon of the Kazan Mother of God, which is an ancient and most valuable relic. We simply cannot list all these events due to the small format of the article, so more detailed information We advise you to look in detailed liturgical calendars, where everything is systematized. This is especially important for people who get lost in the moving and non-moving dates of holidays or fasts that are directly dependent on the lunar and solar annual cycle.

Church Orthodox holidays are divided into great, medium and small. The great ones include Easter, the Twelves and the Non-Twelfths. On these days, services in churches are held with particular solemnity.

Easter

Easter (the full church name is the Holy Resurrection of Christ) is the most important and brightest event in the Christian church calendar. The date of the holiday is unique for each year, determined according to the solar-lunar calendar and falls between April 4 and May 8. Easter commemorates the resurrection of Jesus Christ after the crucifixion. On this day, it is customary to attend services, bless Easter cakes and colored eggs in churches, and cover festive table, organize celebrations. People greet each other with the words: “Christ is risen!”, to which they are supposed to respond: “Truly he is risen!”

Twelfth holidays

Twelfth Holidays - 12 Most Important Holidays Orthodox calendar, dedicated to the events of the earthly life of Jesus Christ and the Virgin Mary. They are divided into two categories: non-transient and transitory.

Twelfth Immovable Holidays

The twelfth immovable holidays have a fixed date, falling on the same date every year.

Christmas - January 7
The holiday was established in honor of the birth of Jesus Christ. On this day, it is customary to attend services, set the festive table, go from house to house and sing carols. People greet each other with the words: “Christ is born!”, to which they are supposed to respond: “We praise Him!” The holiday is preceded by a 40-day Nativity Fast.

Epiphany (Holy Epiphany) - January 19
The holiday was established in honor of the baptism of Jesus Christ in the Jordan River by John the Baptist. On this day, it is customary to bless water in churches and swim in an ice hole.

Presentation of the Lord - February 15
The holiday was established in memory of the meeting of Simeon the God-Receiver with little Jesus in the Jerusalem Temple during the rite of dedication to God. The meeting took place on the 40th day after the birth of Jesus. On this day it is customary to pray, go to church, and bless candles.

Annunciation of the Blessed Virgin Mary - April 7
The holiday is dedicated to the announcement by Archangel Gabriel to the Virgin Mary of the conception and future birth of the Son of God. On this day, it is customary to attend services, consecrate bread in churches, give alms, and do charity work.

Transfiguration of the Lord - August 19
The holiday is dedicated to the memories of the Divine Transfiguration of Jesus before his disciples during prayer on Mount Tabor. On this day, it is customary to bless apples, pears, and grapes in the church, and to honor the memory of deceased relatives.

Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary - August 28
The holiday is dedicated to the memory of the Dormition (death) of the Mother of God. On this day, believers go to church, pray to the Most Holy Theotokos, bless bread, and give alms. The holiday is preceded by the Assumption Fast.

Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary - September 21
The holiday was established in honor of the birth of the Virgin Mary - the mother of Jesus Christ. On this day it is customary to attend church, pray to the Blessed Virgin Mary, and do charity work.

Exaltation of the Holy Cross - September 27
The full name of the holiday is the Exaltation of the Honest and Life-Giving Cross of the Lord. It was erected in honor of the discovery of the Cross on which Jesus was crucified in Jerusalem near Mount Golgotha. On this day, it is customary to observe strict fasting and pray for your health and the health of loved ones.

Presentation of the Blessed Virgin Mary into the Temple - December 4
The holiday is dedicated to the introduction of little Mary - the mother of Jesus Christ - into the Jerusalem Temple for dedication to God. On this day, a solemn service is held in churches, parishioners pray to the Virgin Mary.

Twelfth Moving Holidays

The twelfth moving holidays have a unique date for each year, which depends on the date of Easter and moves with it.

Palm Sunday (Entry of the Lord into Jerusalem)
The holiday is celebrated a week before Easter. Dedicated to the solemn appearance of Jesus Christ in Jerusalem on the eve of His martyrdom and death. On this day, it is customary to bless the willow in the church, to whip family members with branches, saying: “I don’t hit, it’s the willow that hits!” or “Willow whip, beat me to tears!”

Ascension of the Lord
The full name of the holiday is the Ascension of the Lord God and our Savior Jesus Christ. Celebrated on the 40th day after Easter. The holiday commemorates the ascension of Jesus Christ into heaven. On this day, it is customary to attend services in churches, pray, and give alms.

Trinity Day (Pentecost)
Celebrated on the 50th day after Easter. The holiday was established in honor of the descent of the Holy Spirit on the apostles and the Virgin Mary. On Trinity, it is customary to attend a solemn service in the church, decorate churches and houses with tree branches, cover the floor with fresh grass, have a festive dinner, and organize festivities and fairs.

Non-Twelfth Holidays

Non-twelfth holidays - 5 great holidays of the Orthodox Church, dedicated to the birth and death of John the Baptist - the baptizer of Jesus Christ, the apostles Peter and Paul, the appearance of the Mother of God, the circumcision of the Lord.

Circumcision of the Lord - January 14
The holiday was established in remembrance of the Jewish rite of circumcision performed on the baby Jesus. On this day, festive services are held in churches, people go home, sing sowing songs and wish the owners well and prosperity.

Nativity of John the Baptist - July 7
The full name of the holiday is the Nativity of the honest, glorious Prophet, Forerunner and Baptist of the Lord John. Dedicated to the birth of John the Baptist - the baptizer of Jesus Christ. On this day, people attend services and bless water, herbs and flowers in the church.

Holy Apostles Peter and Paul - July 12
The holiday is dedicated to the memory of the transfer of the relics of the holy apostles Peter and Paul. On this day, fishermen pray for successful fishing, fairs and celebrations are held.

Beheading of John the Baptist - September 11
The holiday is dedicated to the memory of the martyrdom of John the Baptist - the baptizer of Jesus Christ. On this day, it is customary to attend services and observe strict fasting.

Intercession of the Blessed Virgin Mary - October 14
The holiday was established in honor of the appearance of the Virgin Mary to Saint Andrew the Fool. On this day, it is customary to visit churches and pray to the Most Holy Theotokos for health, intercession, and a happy family life.

Medium and small Orthodox holidays are distinguished by less solemnity of worship.

Everyday are not holidays in their essence. These are the days of remembrance of saints.

Orthodox fasts- periods of abstinence from food of animal origin.
By duration, posts are divided into multi-day and one-day ones. There are 4 multi-day and 3 one-day fasts per year. Also, every Wednesday and Friday are fast days (there is no fasting on these days during continuous weeks). Fasts vary in severity, up to complete abstinence from food.

Solid weeks- weeks in which there is no fasting on Wednesday and Friday. There are 5 such weeks in a year.

All Souls Days- days of general remembrance of dead Christians. There are 8 such days in a year.