What should not be done during church holidays? Where did the signs and prohibitions come from in Russian Orthodoxy? This religion traces a close connection with the pagan faith that existed in the minds and hearts of people before the planting of Christianity. Miraculously, it is revealed in the dates of religious holidays, as well as in various signs and prohibitions, including those that are in force during their conduct. Consider what things can not be done on church holidays, why and where exactly these prohibitions came from.
Orthodoxy and paganism
Before Vladimir the Red Sun consecrated Russia, the principality was pagan. It was characterized by polytheism and not distinguishing itself from the natural world.
An ardent pagan before, Vladimir suddenly saw the true faith in Christianity. He began to spread Orthodoxy throughout Russia.
But is it possible for paganism to be completely eradicated from the Russian people? Of course not. It lives not only in signs transmitted from generation to generation, but also in the church itself.
Paganism gradually settled in a new culture. And to this day, grandmothers speak ailments, and the housewives coax the brownies at home so that he keeps their family hearth and protects from various dangers. What cannot be done during church holidays often coincides with pre-Christian customs in Russia, and traditional rituals such as christening, funerals, commemoration, though held in the church, contain many pagan rituals.
Signs in Orthodoxy and Paganism
It turns out that no matter what is planted from above, the people will still change it in such a way that the new fits into his life. Changes occur both in folk traditions and in church rules at the same time. So, the Orthodox faith and the pagan are intertwined and become one. Such a synthesis is called popular Christianity, and scientific, religious syncretism.
So, some pagan rites and customs flow into Orthodoxy, and the church resigns itself to this. An example is Shrovetide, celebrated on the vernal equinox, before Lent, and lasting a week.
The holiday of Ivan Kupala, which falls on the day of the summer equinox, on the other hand, the church does not recognize and is trying to eradicate it with its holiday - the day of remembrance of John the Baptist who baptized Jesus. However, among the people it continues to be celebrated along with the Orthodox. Both holidays are associated with water. Girls throw wreaths in the river, and their loved ones try to catch. In Orthodoxy on this day, John chose baptism by bathing and immersion in water.
The day of the autumnal equinox coincides with a big holiday - the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary. Both the Old Believers and the Orthodox celebrate this holiday equally. Women prayed on this day to the Mother of God in the hope of becoming pregnant, and the people celebrated the New Year. Then the burning torch in the village was extinguished and a new one was lit, believing that the extinguished one would take away all ailments and misfortunes, and the new one would give a healthy life.
Sunday
Not only Orthodoxy is intertwined with pagan faith. A vivid example of this is the command of the Roman emperor Constantine in the fourth century.
Rest Day for Christians - Sunday - is at the same time a religious holiday. People then rest. What should not be done during church holidays? There is no specific list of prohibited cases. Everything that can be better is postponed to another day.
Sunday rest is also associated with the pagan worship of the sun. For the first time in honor of the veneration of the sun, the Roman emperor Constantine introduced a day off in 321. There is evidence that the cult of the Sun existed long before that, and he legitimized it, establishing a day of rest. It is clear that such a law was issued to win the sympathy of Christians in the empire. Christians go to church on this day to serve.
Initially, after the baptism of Rus, Sunday was celebrated once on the first day of Easter. Only from the sixteenth century was the day of the week called “Sunday” in memory of Christ. Its early name - week - began to be used instead of the word "week". This confirms that on this day they did not work before, because “week” when dividing the word means “do not”.
Christ is the foundation of faith for the Orthodox. It was recognized that on this day the Holy Spirit was poured out on the church. Such an explanation was given to Christians in order to pray to Christ on this day and not work.
But was this not adopted from paganism when the sun was worshiped?
The main Orthodox holidays
In Christianity, there are more than ten major holidays in which exact or rolling dates are set.
- Christmas is celebrated on the seventh of January.
- Epiphany - January nineteenth.
- The Meeting of the Lord - on the fifteenth of February.
- The Annunciation of the Blessed Virgin Mary - April 7th.
- Transfiguration of the Lord - on the nineteenth of August.
- The Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary - August twenty-eighth.
- Christmas of the Blessed Virgin Mary - September 21.
- Exaltation of the Holy Cross - September twenty-seventh.
- Introduction to the Church of the Blessed Virgin Mary - December 4.
The dates of the rest of the holidays vary depending on the celebration of Easter. These days are:
- Entrance of the Lord into Jerusalem, celebrated a week before Easter.
- Easter.
- Ascension of the Lord - on the 40th day after Easter.
- Holy Trinity Day or Pentecost, is celebrated on the 50th day after Easter.
Solemn services on all these days are held in a special festive atmosphere. What should not be done on major church holidays?
Nativity - bans
Both Sunday and Christmas, if you take a closer look, has its pagan roots stemming from sun worship. The ancients on this holiday sought nothing to defile their souls and not spoil their fate. But if that happened, then this very day was used for purification and repentance. And what can not be done by the Orthodox?
Christmas takes place during Lent, during which Christians are not recommended to consume dairy products and meat, and eat mainly vegetables and fruits. Through the physical, a person undergoes spiritual cleansing.
You can also not take water procedures on this day. After all, in this way you can wash away your sins, but you must cleanse yourself through prayers.
Sewing, knitting, hunting and fishing are also prohibited. These are everyday duties, not holiday ones. But in paganism there was also a similar ban, and spinning and any occupation with threads was dangerous because it was possible to confuse one's fate.
Baptism - Bans
Scissors are the number one enemy for the Orthodox on this day. You can not get a haircut, do manicures, pedicures and everything else associated with them. This also includes threads, classes with them and other similar matters.
On this day, unlike the previous holiday, it is customary to swim in a pond. In extreme cases, for impossibility, you need to take a shower before dawn.
It is strictly forbidden to lie, swear and scandal. Otherwise, you can incur oral diseases, as well as working and family problems.
From January 18 to January 19, you cannot enter into an intimate relationship, as this can cause problems in relations with your loved one.
It is amazing how these prohibitions resemble folk signs.
Easter and related holidays - bans
On Sunday, it is forbidden to go to the cemetery and funeral services, but there is no categorical prohibition in this. It's just a day of fun and celebration, not sadness and sadness.
What can not be done on church holidays in April? What should I refrain from?
What work cannot be done during church holidays in other months, the same is prohibited in this. It is about washing, cleaning and similar chores.
People visit temples and pray, and on Easter, painted eggs with Easter cake and other goodies are sanctified. It is interesting what Easter cakes and eggs mean in paganism. No matter how shocked some readers are, this is a symbol of the male organ, which the ancient Slavs praised, marking a special holiday - Easter.
Other dates are celebrated this month. Among them is April 18, 2015, a church holiday. What can not be done for the week of April 13 to 19 and the 18th, on the day of St. Job, Patriarch of Moscow?
All sorts of excesses in food, fist fights like Shrovetide are not welcome. It is customary to visit the cemetery and remember the dead there, but after the cemetery they should be forgotten. After all, the resurrection is celebrated, life! Therefore, memories of death these days are not needed.
Holy Mother of God, Exaltation of the Holy Cross - prohibitions
These days it is forbidden what cannot be done on church holidays in general. The differences only relate to folk signs. Here again, as always, the integration of paganism into the church can be traced.
At the Annunciation, you can not braid braids and do different hairstyles.
You can’t go to the Assumption barefoot, otherwise all the diseases will gather.
New deeds cannot be started at the Exaltation of the Cross, since there is a risk that they will fail; it’s bad to go to the forest, because the goblin considers animals on this day, and it is forbidden to see this person; Be sure to close the doors so that snakes do not climb into the house.
One can only guess what such pagan omens are connected with and why they should be adhered to precisely these days.
Bottom line: what should not be done during church holidays and why
In Orthodoxy, there are no strict prohibitions on these special days. The ministers themselves say that if labor is necessary and at another time it is impossible to do it, then, of course, it can be realized on a holiday. It is advisable, however, to rest these days. But do not just do nothing and watch TV, but go to God's house and pray.
That is what the church prescribes.
Folk traditions enrich scarce religious prohibitions, filling them with wisdom and power of pagan ancestors.