Fast or abstinence is a specific period of time during which the faithful, being advised so by the Church, double their prayers and abstain from eating foods containing animal fats. The Holy Fathers say fasting and prayer are two spiritual wings that serve to carry us to the Lord. The Christmas fast lasts from November 28 up to Christmas Day, January 7.

If you have questions regarding fasting, please contact Father Alexander. Fasting is a meaningful, holy tradition, and all Orthodox Christians should strive to honor this practice.

On the day before Christmas, Serbian tradition is to celebrate Badnje Vece, evening of the badnjak (yule log). The badnjak is a beautiful young oak branch with leaves.

In the old days, in the morning of the 6th of January, the father of the house went into the woods to search for the badnjak. When the right one was found, it was cut and brought to the door of the home and left there.

In villages, where one still can find homes with old-fashioned hearths, the custom was for the father and oldest son to pick up the badnjak and knock on the door. The mother opens the door for them, and upon entering, the house they say to her:  Welcome to you Badnje Vece! They take the badnjak to the fireplace and place it on the fire.

Straw was put all around the fireplace and floor to simulate the connection with the earth. Usually, Serbs put coins, walnuts, almonds, dry figs on the straw, all the gifts for the children.

The traditional January 6th supper is a "fasting" meal, usually fish. This meal is very rich in symbolism as the food is always related to the world of death – baked beans, fish, dryed figs, dryed plums, and apples.

At the end of the meal, the remaining food is left on the table and covered with a tablecloth, until Christmas morning. The belief is that during the night the spirits of the dead come to eat the food left for them. This way Christmas Eve has the character of All Souls’ Day.

In recent times in the US, particularly, Serbian Orthodox celebrate Badnje Vece together at the church, with a procession carrying the yule log into the church, then later outside to burn it. The yule log symbolizes the Tree of Life, which Christ was crucified on. It represents life that continues forward, forward to Christ. A lenten meal together follows.

In many Serbian-American households, a young pig is roasted to be eaten after Divine Liturgy. Cesnica, a Serbian Christmas bread, is baked with a silver coin in the middle. Tradition says whoever gets the piece of the bread with the coin is supposed to have good luck for the rest of the year. However, the important thing about the bread is that it symbolizes the Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, who said: I am the bread of life.

Orthodoxy continues to thrive in America because it is relevant, and it is the authentic church, holding the traditions of the early church until now. It hasn't changed much since the start of Christianity more than 2,000 years ago!  Faith and keeping the tradition are the mainstay of Orthodox Christianity. We keep the faith.

God's Peace! Christ is born!  Mir Boziji! Hristos se rodi!

light a candle in the Holy Monastery of Xenophon on Mount Athos

From Julian to Gregorian

The Julian calendar was in general use in Europe from the times of the Roman Empire until 1582, when Pope Gregory XIII promulgated the Gregorian Calendar, which was soon adopted by most Catholic countries. Protestant countries followed later, and the countries of Eastern Europe even later. In the British Empire (including the American colonies), Wednesday 2 September 1752 was followed by Thursday 14 September 1752. For 12 years from 1700 Sweden used a modified Julian Calendar, and adopted the new-style calendar in 1753, but Russia remained on the Julian calendar until 1917, after the Russian Revolution (which is thus called the 'October Revolution', but occurred in Gregorian November), while Greece continued to use it until 1923.

Although all Eastern European countries had adopted the Gregorian calendar by 1927, their national Eastern Orthodox churches had not. A revised Julian calendar was proposed during a synod in Constantinople in May 1923, consisting of a solar part which was and will be identical to the Gregorian calendar until the year 2800, and a lunar part which calculated Easter astronomically at Jerusalem. All Orthodox churches refused to accept the lunar part, so almost all Orthodox churches continue to celebrate Easter according to the Julian calendar (the Finnish Orthodox Church uses the Gregorian Easter).

The solar part of the revised Julian calendar was accepted by only some Orthodox churches. Those that did accept it, with hope for improved dialogue and negotiations with the Western denominations, were the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople, the Patriarchates of Alexandria, Antioch, the Orthodox Churches of Greece, Cyprus, Romania, Poland, Bulgaria (the last in 1963), and the Orthodox Church in America (although some OCA parishes are permitted to use the Julian calendar). Thus these churches celebrate the Nativity on the same day that Western Christians do, 25 December Gregorian until 2800. The Orthodox Churches of Jerusalem, Russia, Macedonia, Serbia, Georgia, Ukraine, and the Greek Old Calendarists continue to use the Julian calendar for their fixed dates, thus they celebrate the Nativity on 25 December Julian (which is 7 January Gregorian until 2100).

[from Wikipedia]