What to do on Easter. Why can't you celebrate your birthday on Easter? What to do before Easter and Easter morning

Easter Sunday is the most anticipated day of the year for millions of Orthodox Christians. On Easter, it is extremely important to observe a few important rules so that the grace of the Risen Christ will not leave you for a long time.

In 2018, Easter falls on April 8th. This day carries a sacred meaning for any believer. Having conquered death, the Lord rises from the tomb, and Eternal life triumphs over the passions of the sinful world.

For several centuries of Christianity Easter traditions settled and gained strength. Knowing what is possible and what absolutely cannot be done on the day of the Resurrection of Christ, you can change your life and win the protection of the Lord.

What is customary to do on Easter day

Easter day symbolizes the victory of Eternal life over base passions and darkness. Orthodox all over the world recall the events of centuries ago, when Christ, crucified on the cross, rose from the tomb, revealing his immortal, eternal power.

It has long been customary to follow three main customs on Easter Day. It is believed that their observance will help change life and destiny, directing them in the right direction.

Church attendance. The meaning of Easter day is in the unity of believers all over the world and the triumph of truth over vices. By attending church, you join in the jubilation that reigns in it and fill your life with the grace of the Lord.

Festive table. Easter is preceded by the longest and strictest fast of the year, not just called Great. Restriction in food and work on your spiritual world requires a lot of strength, so on Easter night or the next morning it is customary for the whole family to gather in order to narrow circle the most dear people to celebrate the end of the dark time and the onset of the Bright Resurrection.

Exchange symbolic gifts. The common joy on Easter day unites completely strangers in their common joy. As a sign of memory of the beginning of a new life, it is customary to give each other symbols of the Bright Resurrection: painted eggs, rich cakes or red clothes.

What is forbidden to do on Easter day

According to the Church, some actions on the day of the Light Christ's Resurrection are strictly prohibited. Knowingly or accidentally breaking the prohibitions, you can incur the wrath of the Lord. The priests name three things that in no case should be done on the Easter holiday.

Quarrel with people around you. Swearing and anger on Easter day not only do not support festive mood, but can also lead to complete and final discord with loved ones. Remember the main Christian principle - forgiveness, and try not to offend people dear to you.

Consume hard liquor. Alcohol, which intoxicates the head, can easily turn a believer away from the grace of the Lord and plunge him into sinful vices. The clergy strictly forbid drinking on Easter day and advise to avoid this addiction in principle.

Keep fast. The days of Great Lent were created specifically to prepare for the feast of the Holy Resurrection of Christ. To observe austerity on the day of the holiday means not to attach great importance to it.

On Easter Day, a life-changing prayer has a special power: by reading it sincerely and turning to the Lord for help, you can change your fate and cleanse your soul from sins. We wish you a bright mood on this festive day.

Easter, or Bright Resurrection of Christ - the most ancient and most important Christian holiday, established in honor of the Resurrection of Jesus Christ.

history of the holiday

The feast in honor of the Resurrection of God and the arrival of spring was different peoples long before the rise of Christianity. In the spring, the Egyptians held festivities in honor of the resurrection of the god Osiris, in Ancient Greece glorified the goddess of fertility Demeter, and the ancient Celts worshiped the goddess of spring, Ostara, celebrating the awakening of nature with painted eggs and small wheat buns, very similar to our Easter traditions.

More than five thousand years ago, the Jewish tribes celebrated Easter as a holiday of cattle calving, then this day was associated with the beginning of the harvest, and even later, they celebrated the liberation of the Jewish people from Egyptian slavery. When Moses led the Jews out of Egypt, spring holiday called Easter, which means "deliverance."

And if in the Jewish tradition Easter means liberation from slavery and the acquisition of the promised land, then in Christianity the holiday was filled with other content - the joy of the resurrection of Jesus Christ, the acquisition of eternal life thanks to the faith of the Savior, the victory of light over darkness.

Believers prepare for Easter during the seven weeks of Great Lent. This is one of the strictest posts of the year. Jesus spent 40 days in the wilderness, which is why fasting lasts that long. During Great Lent, believers renounce what completely absorbs them and removes them from the Lord, purify their body and soul, repent, pray and become closer to God.

Easter celebration

The Easter Service of God lasts all night. Its solemn moment comes at midnight, when the priest announces “Christ is risen!”, And all those present answer “Truly risen!” After the service, the process of consecration of ritual Easter dishes begins: Easter cakes, eggs, meat, sausages, butter, fish and other dishes. The hostesses bring to the consecration beautiful baskets of food, decorated with embroidered towels and candles.After that, the believers go home and begin to "break the fast".

Behind festive table The whole family gathers for Easter. First of all, they break the fast with Easter eggs. Then everyone tries a piece of Easter cake and feasts on other dishes that are on the table.

After the feast, according to tradition, the youth went under the church and arranged Easter fun- she sang freckles and haivki, arranged games, led round dances and rejoiced at the holiday in the spring. It is believed that at Easter everyone must have fun. And who will be bored on this day, an unsuccessful year awaits.

Also on Easter, it is customary to visit neighbors, friends and relatives, to christen and exchange Easter dishes: Easter cakes, eggs, pies and other dishes.

What not to do on this day

It is undesirable to work on Easter, but if your schedule is such that you can’t do without it, accept your activity as a kind of obedience.

Sex is forbidden on Easter.

If some of the Easter products are left, it cannot simply be thrown into the trash. Remains of food should be burned or buried, and care should be taken that animals do not get to them.

If your birthday fell on Easter, it is better to postpone the celebration to another day - so that it does not "block" the joy of the resurrection of Christ.

Cemeteries are not visited on Easter.

What to do on this day

A person who does not attend the Easter service can hardly be called a Christian. Participation in the service is not only mandatory - in fact, it is seen as a sign of belonging to the church.

De facto, fasting ends after the service and communion. If you were at the all-night vigil and took the sacrament, then you can have a "fast" dinner on the same day, if you were not in church in the evening, but attended the morning service, your fast ends after it. And yet, despite long restraint and a large number of different goodies, overeating is not recommended.

Easter is a Christian holiday celebrated in 2016 on May 1st. Easter is probably the most "rich" day in traditions, customs and rituals, and the Holy Week before Easter is special. There are so many customs and rules about what to do on Easter and what not to do, what believers do before Easter, and what they should do after it, that only a very competent historian, a minister of the church, can accurately describe what they do on Easter and after it or a person who devoted his whole life to the study of the rites and traditions of the Slavic people.

What to do before Easter and Easter morning

A few days before Easter. On Maundy Thursday, one year old baby cut the first hair. Girls can also cut their hair to make it grow better. Traditionally, it is on Maundy Thursday that the house is prepared for Easter - they clean everything around, wash, clean the dishes, go to the bathhouse. Coming from the bath, children and adults can paint Easter eggs, which they will later take to the church for consecration. The last three days before Easter are devoted to preparing for the Great Day, but on Good Friday it is best to avoid any business and holiday preparations. This day should be spent in sorrow, remembering the torment of Jesus crucified on the cross. Holy Saturday prepares believers for bright day. Believers put together Easter cakes prepared in advance, Easter cakes and colored eggs and go to temples to consecrate this food.

What do Christians do on Easter?

Sunday Easter breakfast begins with the adoption of food consecrated in the church. On Easter morning, you need to congratulate the household with the good news, saying to them the words: “Christ is risen!”, To which they will answer you: “Truly risen!”. After these words, it is customary to beat eggs and have breakfast, tasting delicious Easter cake and curd Easter. On Easter, joy and a happy mood reign in the house, so you can’t do cleaning, work, and even more so - you can’t arrange a commemoration for Easter. If the ninth or fortieth day after the death of a person close to you falls on Easter, the commemoration is postponed to another day. In this case, it is better for the relatives of the deceased to visit the cemetery and loved one. Traditionally, Easter is a day of joy, and on this holiday it is not supposed to go to the cemetery. However, the church treats people who came on Easter day to the graves of loved ones with great understanding.

However, for visits to the cemetery, a special holiday is provided - Radonitsa.

Traditions and customs for Easter

Despite the fact that Easter is a Christian holiday, many of the customs of this day, and, moreover, the signs of Easter, are clearly pagan in nature.

• For example, to attract wealth and good luck, Easter morning should be met very early, with the first sunbeams, and even dark;
• The shells from colored eggs are not thrown away after Easter, but given to animals and birds. In general, feeding birds and animals at Easter ensures your year is free from material problems;
• It is believed that the shell of the dye added to the water for washing gives the skin of the face freshness and beauty;
• According to legend, the shells left over from Easter eggs buried in the garden provide a generous harvest;
• Good deeds done on Easter return to us in a triple amount;
• For Easter, you only need to wear new clothes and all your troubles and problems will be left behind;
• Washing yourself with water on Easter morning, in which silver was placed in advance, you will protect yourself from the evil eye and "bad" energy;
• A baby born on Easter will grow up to be a great person;
• An object that crashed on Easter day is a messenger of trouble;
• Snow, frost or a thunderstorm on Easter day promises a great harvest;
• Easter "in the clouds" brings a gloomy summer, and the rain that began on this day brings spring with rain.

Of course, the church considers most of these signs to be superstitions related to paganism, but many traditions for Easter are closely related precisely to the paganism of the Slavs (colored eggs are a symbol of the sun and life, Easter cake is a symbol of male fertility, cottage cheese Easter, which marks prosperity and fertility).

What do the Orthodox do after Easter?

Radonitsa - Parent's Day, coming on the ninth day after Easter. This day is included in Fomin's week - the first week after Easter, completely dedicated to the commemoration of the dead. It is in these days, and not in Easter week you need to visit the graves of the dead, clean them up, plant plants and flowers in the cemetery. Every day of the week after Easter (Fomina) has its own meaning. The main of these days is Radonitsa - parental day. Monday - "Seeing". The dead souls come to houses where they need to prepare a treat in advance. The souls of the dead and suicides can come to the house on Thursday. In order not to offend the "guest", the windows of the houses are opened these days, and treats are left on the table. It has long been customary to cast out death on the Sabbath. One of the Sabbath rites of St. Thomas' week is that. That people armed with pitchforks and knives run around the cemetery, driving away evil spirits. Sunday - Krasnaya Gorka - is a day of festivities and a holiday: death and evil spirits were driven away, the souls of the dead were treated and calmed down, and life goes on!

Knowing in advance about what is done on Easter, before and after the holiday, you can always meet this Great Day prepared and spend holidays in a good mood.

Easter beliefs, what you can and cannot do on Easter.

During the long existence of the holiday, he managed to gather around him a huge number of traditions and rituals, thereby becoming an important component of the culture of many peoples.

Easter is an incredibly important and large-scale religious holiday, whose history goes into the deep past. For such a long existence of the holiday, he managed to gather around him a huge number of traditions and rituals, thereby becoming an important component of the culture of many peoples.

Main Traditions

TO Orthodox Easter are prepared for seven weeks, which are also called Weeks and they are accompanied by Great Lent. That is how much time, according to the Bible, Jesus Christ spent in the wilderness.

The last week before Easter is the most solemn and is marked by many ancient traditions. It is called Holy Week or Great Week. Each of the days of this week is somewhat different, but the most important are Maundy Thursday and Good Friday.

This Thursday is called clean, first of all, because all Orthodox Christians strive to cleanse themselves spiritually and be ready to accept the sacrament established by Christ. Symbolic and spiritual purity is manifested through physical purity. It is also related to the old Slavic traditions bathing, which existed in pagan times. On Maundy Thursday was distributed folk custom cleansing with water in an ice-hole, lake, river or bathhouse from head to toe. Bathing must have been in nature and lasted all night until sunrise. Nowadays, most Orthodox are limited to a more comfortable washing of the house and mandatory cleaning inside and out.

IN Good Friday traditionally they carry out the shroud (the symbolic fabric in which the body of Christ was wrapped after being taken down from the cross). On this mournful day, you can not eat and have fun.

On the night of the Resurrection of Christ, at divine services, believers sanctify paska, eggs and other food, thereby obtaining permission from the church to consume non-lenten dishes.

What can and cannot be done on the day of the Resurrection of Christ?

Sunday of the Great Week is a holiday, so most of the restrictions of the previous days of Holy Week no longer have their force. For those who fasted, you can break the fast (the first meal after the end of the fast) immediately after the Liturgy and Communion. If the Liturgy was at night, then immediately after it you can start a festive meal.

There is no strict ban on cleaning the house or work. Of course, it is desirable to devote the whole day to joy and rest on the occasion of the great holiday, but if work is necessary, you can do it.

On this day, you can not be sad, angry, walk gloomy and swear with loved ones. On the contrary, it is necessary to congratulate people from the bottom of our hearts, invite them to visit - in a word, bring joy to our neighbor.

Easter beliefs

. At Easter, “The sun plays” and “on this day everything is having fun in heaven and on earth”;
. On Easter Sunday it is unsuitable to sleep, because "he who sleeps will oversleep his happiness";
. On Easter, everyone should have fun, because whoever is sad on this day will be sad all year;
. If someone dies on Easter, it is considered that his happy soul will go straight to the sky;
. On Easter night, all earthly treasures are opened, they glow on the ground with lights, but only an innocent and pure child can see them;
. To baby nobody whole year I couldn’t jinx it, it’s necessary to cross it with an Easter egg on Easter and say: “Just as no one ever turns this egg, so (child’s name) no one ever turns it.” It is necessary to give this testicle to kiss the child.

Signs for Easter

. If on Easter the sky is clear and the sun is playing - to good harvest and red summer; if rain - good rye;
. Like rain or bad weather on the first day of Easter, so will the spring be rainy;
. If you bruise your elbow during Easter week, dear remembered;
. If a fly fell into the soup - wait for a date;
. If the lips itch - do not miss the kiss;
. If your eyebrows begin to itch, you will see your loved one.

Easter customs

. The most famous custom, which is familiar to everyone since childhood: to the greeting “Christ is risen!”, You need to answer “Truly risen!”.
. Old people combed their hair on Easter and considered: how many hairs were left, so many grandchildren they would have. Also common were bathing with gold and silver, which were supposed to bring wealth and prosperity.
. The youth climbed onto the roofs of the houses to meet the sun, believing in "the playing luminary on the day of the Bright Resurrection of Christ." The phrase "watching the sun" referred precisely to this custom.
. Girls in the Easter week washed themselves with water from a red egg to be ruddy, stood on an ax to become strong.
. So that the hands do not sweat, on the days of Holy Pascha they did not take salt in their hands.
. It was believed that with easter egg get relief from all diseases and misfortunes. The shell from it could not be thrown away until the very end of the holidays.

There were many more Easter signs and superstitions, but many of them have not survived to this day. And even if the celebration of Easter is not so magnificent now, it is surprising that after so many centuries, many traditions are still observed by a large number of people.

Easter today is not only a religious holiday, it is the cultural heritage of the people, bright and original!

The most frequently asked questions about what can and cannot be done on Easter: how to fast before Easter? When can I break the fast at Easter? How to spend Easter day? Are there things that cannot be done? What can you eat on Easter and can you drink alcohol on Easter? Can I work on Easter? Is it possible to do homework on Easter? Cleaning, knitting, sewing? How should we greet each other at Easter? What to give for Easter?

So, first things first. Let's start with the first question.

How to fast before Easter?

Good Friday is the strictest fast. According to the Charter, nothing is supposed to be eaten on this day. If you can bear it for your health, try it. On all other days of Holy Week, fasting is also strict, we eat only plant foods, and without oil.

When can I break the fast at Easter?

Breaking the fast (the first fast meal after the end of the fast) on Easter is usually performed after the Liturgy and Communion. If you were at the Liturgy at night, then after the night service you can start the festive meal. If you came to the Liturgy in the morning, then in the same way - after Communion - you can break the fast. The main thing is to approach everything with a sense of proportion. Don't overeat.

How to spend Easter day? Are there things that cannot be done?

On this day, you can not be sad, walk gloomy and swear with your neighbors. But just remember that Easter is not 24 hours, but at least a whole week - bright week. In the liturgical plan, the Resurrection of Christ is celebrated for seven days. Let this week be an example of how we should always behave in society, among people. How should you spend Easter? Rejoice, treat others, invite them to visit you, visit the suffering. In a word, everything that brings joy to your neighbor, and therefore to you.

What can you eat on Easter and can you drink alcohol on Easter?

On Easter you can eat and drink everything, the main thing is to do it in moderation. If you know how to stop in time, you can treat yourself to all the dishes, drink wine or some strong drinks - not to the point of being very intoxicated, of course. But if you find it difficult to limit yourself, it is better not to touch alcohol. Rejoice in spiritual joy.

Can I work on Easter?

Most often, the question of whether to work or not does not depend on us. If Easter Sunday You have a day off, which is, of course, very good. You can visit the temple, and meet with loved ones, and congratulate everyone.

But it often happens that we turn out to be forced people and, according to the work schedule, are forced to work on Easter. There is nothing wrong if you work hard. Maybe you can be sad about this, but no more than five minutes! Obedience is obedience. Do your work on this day in good faith. If you fulfill your duties in simplicity and truth, the Lord will surely touch your heart.

Is it possible to do homework on Easter? Cleaning, knitting, sewing?

When we read somewhere that on a holiday there is a ban on homework, we should understand that it is not just a ban, but a blessing that we spend this time in attention to the Lord, the holiday and our neighbors. So that we do not get hung up on worldly fuss. The ban on working on Easter is not canonical, but rather a pious tradition.

Household chores are an integral part of our lives. You can do them on a holiday, but only by approaching this wisely. In order not to spend Easter doing general cleaning until the very night. Sometimes it is better, for example, to leave unwashed dishes in the sink than to be annoyed at household members who have not washed their dishes.

How should we greet each other at Easter?

Easter greeting - angelic. When the Myrrh-Bearing Women came to the Holy Sepulcher to anoint the body of the crucified Christ with spices, they saw an Angel there. He announced to them: “Why are you looking for the living among the dead?” That is, he told that the Savior had risen.

We greet our brothers and sisters in faith at Easter with the words "Christ is Risen!" and we answer the greeting: “Truly He is risen!”. Thus, we tell the whole world that for us the Resurrection of Christ is the basis of life.

What to give for Easter?

On Easter, you can give your neighbor any pleasant and the right gifts. And it will be good if any gift has an Easter egg, decorated or red. The testicle as a symbol of evidence of new life - the Resurrection of Christ.

The red color of the Easter egg is a memory of the tradition according to which Mary Magdalene gave the emperor Tiberius an egg for Easter. The emperor told her that he did not believe that a person could be resurrected, that it was as incredible as if this white egg suddenly turned red. And, according to legend, a miracle happened - in front of everyone, the egg turned red, like the blood of Christ. Now the painted egg is a symbol of Easter, the Resurrection of the Savior.

Fomin Igor, priest