Orthodox congratulations on Christmas. Christmas letters
Why do we need church etiquette
Congratulations of Orthodox people to each other on Christian holidays, including written congratulations, is a long tradition.
But the years of atheism that reigned in our country for so many years interrupted many traditions, erased from the memory of people what every person had known since childhood, which was natural and self-evident.
The rules of conduct that have evolved in the church environment over the centuries have been lost and are now being restored with difficulty.
Ignorance of seemingly the simplest things - how to properly address a priest, how to say hello and how to say goodbye, how believers - brothers and sisters in Christ - should greet each other - all this sometimes becomes a serious problem for beginners.
Each of us who have come to faith today knows from our own experience how it fetters, hinders, and often even deprives spiritual joy of ignorance of the rules of church etiquette. Here is just one example from the bitter experience of newcomers. Many, having started going to the temple, deprived themselves of the priestly blessing only because they did not know how to do it correctly, what to say, what time is better to approach the priest, how to behave after the blessing.
How to congratulate on this or that Christian holiday? How to properly format a letter or written congratulation, especially if it is addressed to a clergyman?
In the sea of Orthodox literature that is being published now, there is practically nothing on this subject.
Appeal to the clergy
In Orthodoxy, there are three degrees of priesthood: deacon, priest, bishop. A deacon is a priest's assistant. He does not have that grace-filled power that is given in the Sacrament of ordination to the priesthood, but you can turn to him for advice and prayer.
To the deacon you need to handle the words "Father deacon." For example, “Father deacon, can you tell me where to find the rector’s father?” You can call by name, but always in combination with the word "father". For example: “Father Alexander, will there be a confession tomorrow evening?” If they talk about the deacon in the third person, they use the following forms: “Father the deacon spoke today ...” Or: “Father Alexander is now in the refectory.”
Forms of address to the priest
There are several forms of appeal. In the Russian Orthodox environment, there is a long-standing custom to affectionately call a priest a father. Often they turn to him like this: “Father, can I talk to you?” or, if about him, then they say: “Father is now making rites”, “Father has returned from a trip.”
In addition to this, colloquial, form, there is another - more strict and official, for example: "Father Michael, may I ask you?" In the third person, referring to a priest, they usually say: “The rector blessed the father…”, “Father Bogdan advised…” It is not very good to combine the rank and name of the priest, for example: “Priest Peter”, “Archpriest Vasily”. Although permissible, the combination "father" and the surname of the priest is rarely used, for example: "father Solovyov."
In what form - "you" or "you" - you need to address in a church environment, it is decided unambiguously: "you". Even if the relationship is already close, with strangers, the manifestation of this excessive familiarity in the church looks unethical.
How to say hello to a priest
According to church ethics, it is not customary for a priest to say "Hello" or "Good afternoon." They say to the priest: "Batiushka, bless" or "Father Michael, bless!" and ask for blessings.
During the period from Easter to the end of the holiday, that is, for forty days, they greet with the words “Christ is Risen!”, The priest blesses, answering: “Truly Risen!” If you accidentally met a priest on the street, in a transport or some public place, even if he is not even in priestly vestments, you can still approach and take his blessing.
Rules for the communication of the laity
Laity, communicating with each other, they must also adhere to the rules and norms of behavior adopted in the church environment. Because we are one in Christ, believers refer to each other as "Brother" or "Sister." In the church environment, even older people are not usually called by their patronymics, they are called only by their first names. The name of an Orthodox Christian is associated with our heavenly patron, and therefore it should be used in the family as far as possible in full form and in any case without distortion, for example, Sergey, Seryozha, and not Earring, Gray, Nikolai, Kolya, but in no case Kolcha, Kolyan and so on. Affectionate forms of the name are quite acceptable, but within reasonable limits. Orthodox people love to go on pilgrimages to monasteries.
Conversion in monasteries
The conversion in the monasteries is as follows. In the male monastery viceroy, who may be an archimandrite, abbot or hieromonk, you can address him with an indication of his position, for example: “Father, governor, bless” or using the name: “Father Nikon, bless.” A more formal appeal is “Your Reverend” if the vicar is an archimandrite or hegumen, and “Your Reverend” if it is a hieromonk. In the third person they say "father vicegerent", or by the name "father Innokenty".
TO dean, the first assistant and deputy governor, are addressed with an indication of the position: “father dean” or with the addition of the name “Father John”.
If the steward, sacristan, treasurer, cellar have a priestly rank, you can turn to them "father" and ask for a blessing. If they are without priesthood, but have tonsured, they say "father economy", "father treasurer". A monk who is tonsured is called "father", a novice - "brother".
In a convent, the abbess is addressed in this way: “mother abbess” or using the name “mother Barbara”, “mother Mary” or simply “mother”.
In an appeal to the nuns they say: "Mother John", "Mother Elizabeth".
Appeal to the Bishop
TO the bishop is addressed: "Vladyko": “Lord” is the vocative case of the Church Slavonic language: “Lord, bless”, “Lord, let me ...” In the nominative case - Vladyka. For example, “Vladyka Filaret has blessed you…” In official speech, including written speech, other forms are used. Bishops are addressed as "Your Eminence" or "Most Reverend Vladyko". If in the third person: "His Eminence."
Appeal to the Archbishop
Metropolitan, Patriarch
The archbishop and metropolitan are addressed: “Your Eminence” or “High Eminence Vladyko”, in the third person: “With the blessing of His Eminence, we inform you ...” The Patriarch is addressed as: “Your Holiness”, “His Holiness Vladyko”. In the third person: "His Holiness."
The letter can begin with the words: "Lord, bless." Or: "Your Eminence (High Eminence), bless." In the right corner of the sheet, the date and the indication of the saint, whose memory is honored on this laziness or another church holiday that fell on that day, are put. Eg:
Let us cite as an example excerpts from the letter of the Saint to Archbishop Onesimus (Festinov):
July 17, 1957
settlement Petushki, Vladimir region
St. Blessed Great
Prince Andrei Bogolyubsky
YOUR HIGH EMHNESS,
THE HIGHEST Vladyko
AND GRACIOUS ARCHPASTOR!
I greet you on the holiday of the founder of the cathedral church and the first collector of the Russian land. Greetings and with tomorrow's feast of St. Sergius, your heavenly patron.
Often I hear about your ailments. With all my heart I wish that the Lord, for the prayers of the miracle workers of Vladimir and St. Sergius, heal your ailments and that nothing prevent you from participating in the celebrations of our cathedral church ...
The Patriarch is addressed: “Your Holiness, His Holiness.” Here is a part of a letter written to His Holiness Patriarch Alexy (Simansky) by the Prelate.
His Holiness
His Holiness Patriarch
Moscow and All Rus'
Alexy
YOUR HOLINESS,
MY HOLY PATRIARCH,
GRACIOUS ARCHPASTOR AND FATHER!
I filially greet you on your eightieth birthday. I pray to God that he will allow you to reach old age even more venerable, and if you do not reach the years of Patriarch Jacob, then at least equal the years of life with his beloved son Joseph.
I pray to God, may it strengthen your strength, spiritual and bodily, and may it help you for many, many years, until the end of days
Wisely feed your Church ship, the right to correct the word of truth and perform the feat of a prayer book for the Orthodox and for the Russian land.
Happy Holidays
Letters and written congratulations are the oldest form of Orthodox communication. This tradition has been going on since apostolic times. The epistolary heritage of church writers is great and priceless. There are brilliant examples of the correspondence of ordinary believers.
“We, the Orthodox, have a holiday every day,” believers sometimes say, as if in jest. And indeed. The church calendar is a continuous holiday. Written congratulations of believers on Easter, Christmas, patronal feast or Angel Day is an important and joyful event for every Christian. You need to know that there are certain rules here, or, more precisely, established forms of writing written congratulations for a particular holiday. How to start such a message? If this is a congratulation of a clergyman, then you need to know how to address him correctly (as mentioned above).
How to say Happy Easter
In the series of the Lord's feasts, the feast of Easter occupies a central place, and in the series of all Christian holidays, it "exceeds all the celebrations, even those of Christ and in honor of Christ, as much as the sun surpasses the stars." All Divine services and church rites of this holiday are especially solemn and imbued with one feeling of joy about the Risen One.
At the end of Matins, after the singing “Let us embrace each other, brethren! And to those who hate us, we will forgive everything on the resurrection” - all believers begin to greet each other with the words “Christ is Risen” and to christen, kissing each other on the cheek three times.
The joyful Paschal greeting reminds us of the state of the apostles in which, when the news of the Resurrection of Christ suddenly spread, they said to each other with amazement and delight: “Christ is Risen!” and answered: “Truly Risen!” Mutual kissing is an expression of love and reconciliation with each other, in memory of our universal forgiveness and reconciliation with God through the death and Resurrection of Jesus Christ.
The entire period from Easter to the holiday, that is, forty days, the first words of greeting among Christians are the words “Christ is Risen!”, And in response they say: “Truly Risen!” A written congratulation on Easter also begins with the words “Christ is Risen!”. You can highlight these words in red. If you are congratulating not a clergyman, but a lay person, it is best to address it like this: “Dear brother (or sister) in Christ!” or just by name:
CHRIST IS RISEN!
I cordially greet you, Verochka, my dear, on the bright holiday of the Resurrection of Christ.
I pray to God that the light of the Resurrection will always illuminate your path. So that the Sun of Truth - Christ always warms you ...
You can turn to a priest whom you know closely, “Dear father!” or “Dear father, Father Joseph…” Congratulations must be sincere and breathe love. The father's beautiful congratulations, full of spiritual joy, can serve as a high example.
DEAR FATHER IN CHRIST!
What wonderful words! How they change everything around us and in ourselves. In these words there is a victorious message, and a call to joy, and a greeting of love, and a wish for peace.
Saying these joyful words, I stretch out my hands to you in order to fraternally embrace you together with the threefold Paschal kiss and wish you bright joy, good health and a strong spirit for the service of the eternal Bishop Christ and His holy Church.
I rejoice with you, your family and friends in the Risen Christ.
Truly, Christ is Risen!
Easter
1982
Your unworthy brother and wretched pilgrimage.
A congratulatory message on Easter may be preceded by words from irmoses, troparia or songs from the Easter canon. For example, here are excerpts from some of the holiday messages of Father John:
Shine, shine, new Jerusalem...DEAR MY!
CHRIST IS RISEN! REJOICE!
Let us hear with our hearts the first words of the Risen Savior to the myrrh-bearing women: “Rejoice!
Your Resurrection, Christ the Savior,
Angels sing in heaven...
... Fathers bless, priests sing, people exalt the Risen Christ forever ...
And again the Easter Annunciation filled the world.
CHRIST IS RISEN!We celebrate the death of death...
Another life of eternal beginning ...
Easter greetings always end with the words “Truly Risen!”, Also highlighted in red. Solemn, significant and heartfelt are the concluding words of Father John's letters:
May the Risen Lord protect every worker in His field into eternal life, may He multiply their strength and boldness in service and make their work fruitful.
TRULY IS RISEN CHRIST!Easter
1992
With a brotherly Easter kiss. Your brother and worshiper...
My dear ones, we believe in the Light and let us be sons of the Light, and we will stand with Christ!
Truly! Truly!
Truly, Christ is Risen!
The grace of the Risen Lord will strengthen you on the path of salvation.
With love in your Christ[signature of Father John (Krestyankin)]
Congratulations
and congratulatory messages
Merry Christmas
The Feast of the Nativity of Christ, by the grandeur of the event to be remembered, is celebrated more solemnly than all holidays, with the exception of Easter. The saint calls the feast of the Nativity of Christ "the most honorable and most important of all holidays," the "matter of all holidays." The joy of this event is so great that the Church from ancient times decided to accompany the whole day of the holiday with church bells.
The solemn glorification of the Nativity of Christ after Divine services in churches is transferred to the dwellings of believers.
Many families set up Christmas trees for Christmas. This custom is based on the words of the prophet Isaiah about the Savior: “And a branch will come from the root of Jesse, and a branch will grow from its root” ( Is. 11 :1 ) , and in the words of a church hymn in honor of the event of the Nativity of Christ: “Christ is a branch from the root of Jesse and a flower from it, You have grown from the Virgin.”
Decorating cut branches of Christmas trees with candles, lights and sweets shows that our nature is a barren and lifeless branch, only in Jesus Christ - the source of life, light and joy - can bring spiritual fruits: love, joy, peace, long-suffering, goodness, mercy, faith , meekness, abstinence (see Gal. 5 :22-23 ) .
In congratulations on Christmas, unlike congratulations on Easter, there is no obligatory, time-honored formula with which it would begin. These may be the words of the irmos from the first Christmas song “Christ is born, praise!”:
CHRIST IS BORN, PRAISE!
Dear sister in Christ R.! My congratulations to you on the now-born Christ and prayerful wishes to grow all your life in Christ to the extent of His age. How to purify the heart in order to approach the great piety mystery: "God appeared in the flesh?" I wish you the help of the Divine Infant Christ in your charitable deeds.
Your pilgrim K.
Here is one of the congratulations on the Nativity of St. Athanasius (Sakharov):
GLORY TO GOD IN THE HIGHEST AND ON THE EARTH PEACE.
God's mercy be with you, my dear Olga Alexandrovna!
I cordially greet you on the great holiday and prayerfully wish you well. May the peace of God fill our hearts, may it reign not only in people of good will, in people of good will, but throughout the world.
I invoke God's blessing on you.
Save yourself in the Lord.
* * *
Most Honored Mother Abbess with all the sisters in Christ!
On the great feast of the Nativity of Christ, I congratulate you, mother, and all the sisters of the holy monastery entrusted by you.
Unfortunately, in our time, congratulations are often sent and arrive at the wrong time. This is a bad and unholy habit. Despite the fact that Easter or the Nativity of Christ is preceded by many days of heavy fasting, and the last days before the holidays are filled with chores and worries, this is still no excuse. It is necessary to make it a rule for yourself: to congratulate on the holy holidays on time.
Should we celebrate the new year?
Should we celebrate the New Year? Many Orthodox people, especially those of the novices, ardently reject this holiday, especially since it falls on the Nativity Fast. They believe that the Orthodox have a different time and that the true New Year can come according to the “old style” only on January 14th. In fact, the civil New Year, or New Year, is not rejected by the Church. On the eve of the civil New Year, a thanksgiving service is performed. Once the New Year in Russia was celebrated on September 1 and coincided with the church new year. Until now, it is on this day that the liturgical circle begins. Only under Peter I the civil New Year was postponed to January 1, as in Europe.
Answering the question whether it is necessary to celebrate the New Year, father Alexander (Shergunov) says: “In general, this number is completely conditional and, in the end, one could choose at random any day, starting the countdown of the new year from it.
Participation in the celebration of the New Year is our natural human communication, and we must participate in this, like everyone else. This is as normal as if we call the city exactly the name it is now called, and not the way we want.
New Year for all people is a particularly warm holiday. It's like a breath of spring, it's like spring in the middle of winter. Everyone feels solemnity, and the evil seems to go away. No matter how bad a person is, he, from nowhere, takes the hope that a miracle can happen, that good will win. On New Year's Eve, a person seems to flutter a little - it seems that he is no longer walking, but flying. But what does this poetry mean, where does this renewal come from, as if each of us does not grow old for a year, but becomes younger for a year - more than a year? Our lives have been shortened by another year, and perhaps the coming New Year will be the last year of our lives for some of us. Another year shortened our life, and another year we have come closer to eternity. Here is the clue to this holiday. Perhaps youth is still waiting for the dazzling novelty of earthly gifts, but maturity knows that everything will repeat itself. What has been is what will be, what has been done is what will be done, and “there is nothing new under the sun.” On earth it is a tiresome repetition, but every year we are approaching that eternally new, endless novelty, which is from God, from eternity. Therefore, even in a war under bombardment, in mortal danger, people cannot but celebrate the New Year. “I want to live at least until the New Year,” says the hopelessly ill. Not one more year to live on earth, but to feel this pre-New Year's lightness and joy. The immortal soul of every person is by nature a Christian and unconsciously feels the mystery, but only Christians understand what this means. New Year is a holiday for all people. It is like the Nativity of Christ for those who do not know God. And we, Christians, are given to see how Eternity enters into time, the significance of our stay on earth and the value of human life in Christ God are revealed.
There is so much grief and evil in our land, and we know that in the new year we will not be able to avoid new troubles. I would so much like to forget about it at least for the time of the holiday, but this is the world in which we are on the threshold of a new year. But whatever it is, in the New Year gifts are offered to everyone, everyone is given a new opportunity. In the New Year there is some kind of brilliance, each person, as one child said, feels a little like a Christmas tree toy, he is, as it were, illuminated by an invisible sun. Happy New Year with a new happiness!" Many church holidays fall during Advent, when fish and wine are allowed according to the charter. And on the New Year, there is nothing reprehensible for an Orthodox person to sit down at the festive table with their loved ones and drink a glass of wine with them.
Congratulations on the patronal holidays
Festive meal
IN patronal feast congratulate the whole parish: the rector, mother, and all the servants of the temple, parishioners. In a warm atmosphere of people who have known each other for a long time, you can congratulate the rector and parishioners in a simple syllable, starting like this: “Dear father!” (or dear father rector) and all parishioners we congratulate on the patronal feast - the Intercession of the Most Holy Lady of Our Mother of God and Ever-Virgin Mary.
If the situation is more formal, then the style should be strict, official. To a deacon, priest, hieromonk, one should address: “Your reverend”, to an archpriest, abbot, archimandrite: “Your Reverend”.
At the table in the parish refectory at the head of the table (that is, at the end, if there is one row of tables) or at a table set perpendicularly, sits the rector or the senior of the priests. On the right side of him is the priest next in seniority. On the left is a priest by rank. Next to the priesthood sits the chairman of the parish council, members of the council, clergy (psalmist, reader, altar server), choristers. The rector usually blesses the guests of honor to eat closer to the head of the table.
If you come at a time when the majority of those gathered at the table, then you sit in an empty seat, without forcing everyone to move, or where the rector indicates. If the meal has already begun, then, having asked for a petition, they wish everyone: “An angel at the meal” - and sit down in an empty seat.
At the festive meal, they observe the measure in everything: drinking, eating, talking, joking, the duration of the feast.
Happy Angel Day.
Festive table,
present
Name day is the day of memory of the saint, in whose honor the Christian is named. Other names for this day are Name Day, Angel Day.
Angel Day is a special day. We celebrate here, on earth, the memory of our saint, so that, as the righteous saint writes, our saints “remember and intercede for us before God ... Birthdays and name days should be predominantly before all other weekdays, turn hearts and eyes to heaven, with grateful feelings for the Creator, Provider and Savior, with the thought that our Fatherland and Father are there, that the earth is not a fatherland, but a place of coming and wandering, that it is reckless, sinful to cling to corruptible things ... ungodly, that one must cling to God with all one's heart " .
Orthodox people visit the temple on their name days, partake of the Holy Mysteries of Christ.
A meal is served at home with loved ones and guests. Confusion causes ignorance either by the guest or the host of the usual form of greeting for believers. The one entering the house says: “Through the prayers of our holy fathers, Lord Jesus Christ the Son of God, have mercy on us.” To which the owner replies, "Amen." Or the guest says: “Peace to your home,” and the host replies: “We accept in peace.”
When inviting guests to such a holiday, it is advisable to seriously consider the composition of the guests. Believers and those far from faith may not find a common language on such a holiday. A non-believer will be bored and incomprehensible with conversations on spiritual topics, and as a result, he will leave offended and with a spoiled mood. On the other hand, on the basis of different worldviews, heated and even offensive disputes may arise and the holiday will be forgotten.
But if the invitee on the path to faith craves the spiritual, then such meetings at the table can do him good.
At a festive meal, congratulating the birthday man, they usually sing a troparion to his saint, wishing the help of a heavenly intercessor. Among other things, of course, they desire spiritual fruits. And in order for this wish to really be imprinted in the heart of the birthday man, it is important to think carefully about congratulatory words and toasts in advance.
Fun at a friendly feast is natural, but it should not go over the line.
Good recordings of sacred music or a film about holy places can revive and make the evening more complete, more interesting, but, of course, in moderation.
It is important to choose the right gifts for such a special holiday. It is better if they are of a spiritual nature - icons, books, something from church utensils, sweets, flowers.
At the end of the feast, the birthday man thanks those gathered for the congratulations, and the guests sing “Many Years” to him.
It should be remembered that if the name day falls on a fast day, then the festive treat should be fast. On Great Lent, name days that happened on a weekday are transferred to the next Saturday, Sunday, or even to Bright Week.
When writing a congratulation on the day of the Angel, do not forget to wish the most important thing - the help of a heavenly intercessor.
I would like to cite the congratulations of St. Athanasius (M. Sakharov), addressed to the famous Moscow priest, "the shepherd of godless times", priest Nikolai Golubtsov:
God's mercy be with you, Father Nicholas, beloved in the Lord!
I cordially greet you on the feast of St. Nicholas. I sincerely wish that the prayers of St. Nicholas keep you on all the paths of your life, and help you in building the temple of your soul and your home church, in your service to Orthodox people who come to your temple.
Here are a few more samples of congratulations on Angel Day.
Dear, dear, venerable and never forgotten Father Vladimir!
I heartily congratulate you on the day of your Angel. With all my heart we wish you health from the Lord God, may the Lord God strengthen your spiritual and bodily strength in the feat of pastoral service in the field of Christ for many years, many years.
* * *
Dear mother and children, we congratulate you on your dear birthday.
With love in the Lord, a spiritual daughter who always prays for you.
* * *
Dear Father George!
Please accept my heartfelt congratulations on your Angel's Day. May the Lord send you, through the prayers of your great patron, bodily health and spiritual strength for the zealous passage of your pastoral service.
* * *
Father! I congratulate you on the Angel - the representative of your salvation. Sincerely wishing you to rejoice in the Lord, I ask for your holy prayers and blessings. The Lord will reward you for your love and your gracious greetings with His great mercy!
Wedding greetings and gifts
The sacrament of marriage is celebrated solemnly and joyfully. From the multitude of people: relatives, relatives, acquaintances, from the brilliance of candles, from church singing somehow involuntarily becomes festive in the soul.
After the wedding, the newlyweds are met at the entrance to the house with an icon and bread and salt planted by the father and mother or parents. And then the guests continue the holiday at the table.
The main manager at the wedding is the best man. Together with a close friend of the bride, he goes around the guests to collect money, which he then donates to charitable causes.
Congratulations, toasts and wishes that are pronounced at a wedding in the families of believers, of course, should be primarily of spiritual content: about the purpose of Christian marriage, what love is in the understanding of the Church, about the duties of a husband and wife according to the Gospel. About how important it is to build a real Christian family - a home church.
The wedding of church people should take place in a pious atmosphere with respect for decency and measure.
Written congratulations on marriage contain those spiritual wishes that were written about above.
Congratulations might look like this:
Dear Konstantin and Anna!
Please accept my sincere congratulations on entering into a legal marriage, we sincerely wish you all the blessings and mercy from the Lord, the Queen of Heaven.
Congratulate each other, brothers and sisters, on our Orthodox holidays, share the unspeakable joy they give us, and let our brochure help you do it with dignity and piety.
Peace and God's favor be with you.
I ask for your blessing on this great bright holiday and I congratulate you, father, on the Merry Christmas. And let nothing, no one ever be able to interfere with the true service of God, good preaching and resistance to everything dashing. I wish you a life as blessed as this holiday, I wish you good health, like your faith.
Accept, father, congratulations from the heart
Merry Christmas!
Let no sorrows and doubts disturb you,
May your heart be filled with love and warmth.
May the Lord with his great power
Protects you from any trouble
So that the years bring only joy,
Around to be more kindness.
Bless, Father. I want to wish you a Merry Christmas and sincerely wish peace, prosperity in our land, kindness in the hearts of our people, strong faith and bright hope for all of us. May a miracle happen in every home today, may God always be with you. Good health to you, Father, strong strength and joyful days of a happy life.
Holy Father, congratulations
With all my heart, Merry Christmas
May the Lord strengthen you
In your holy ministry.
I wish you peace, health,
For faith open hearts,
Always hope and love
Let your eyes shine.
Let there be harmony in the soul
Let the flock listen to you sensitively
I wish you a beautiful fuse
In the huge soul did not go out.
I congratulate you on a bright Christmas,
May the Lord always help you
May your soul be filled with warmth
May God send you health!
I wish you on this holy holiday,
So that all troubles go away,
Let the whole world shine with kindness
So that we all live happily in it!
I congratulate you on Christmas! May the Lord keep from troubles, the heart will be filled with joy and good will reign on earth! May faith be strengthened, prayers will be heard and your sleep will always be calm!
I ask for your blessing, Father. I congratulate you on Christmas and sincerely wish you peace, health and well-being. May God help us to get away from sin, may there be more kind and bright people on Earth, may everyone learn to sincerely love and forgive, as Jesus knew how to do it. I wish you spiritual wealth and grace in life.
We know - Christmas
Always talks about a lot.
We sincerely congratulate you!
May the Lord bless you.
And may he send you patience,
So that you can easily carry out the service
And so that his blessing
You have found in every deed.
So that you serve him faithfully.
And saved from sins
We wish the saint
And the whole life was righteous.
Holy Father, Merry Christmas to you
Congratulations to Christ
Let the light of the Christmas star
Faith illuminates the path.
Humbly ask for us
God has forgiveness
To give sinners souls
Lord blessing.
May the bright holiday of Christmas
Gives goodness and joy
May in our souls and hearts
He strengthens faith.
Bless, Father. I wish you Merry Christmas. I wish you peace, health, the most sincere and pure love, such love as Jesus loved people and this world, which for everyone can open the way to a good dream, joy and harmony. May the Lord keep you and your loved ones.
, Rector of the Church of All Saints in Krasnoye Selo, Moscow:How quickly passed, you see, the days of Christmas Lent. They brought us much spiritual joy in the midst of external sorrows, for Russia and its provinces are still restless. However, today both the young and the wise in life, and the shepherds, and their verbal sheep - I, you, he, she - together the whole country - we can all quietly and reverently with the shepherds of Bethlehem, the Persian sorcerers enter under the mysterious vaults of that cave where God rests in the flesh in the trough. The Infant of God, swaddled in clean swaddling clothes, With His pure and beautiful innocent eyes looks into this bright night holiday, at each of us. Let us direct, friends, our reverent gaze upon Him, as children upon the Father, as a creature upon the Creator, as disciples upon the Teacher. And may the name of Christ in 2014 always mysteriously flicker like a lamp in the depths of our souls.
Let us bind our minds and turn our hearts to the Savior in prayer: “Lord, Jesus Christ, Son of God, God-child, save and save me, my family, my city, my people, my country from all troubles and misfortunes. Save and have mercy on the younger generation from corruption, so that Marya and Ivana do not part with pectoral crosses and sundresses and put aside bad habits, pop music and slang in the Museum of the Revolution.
Let us, friends, celebrate and revive Russian culture, which, having overshadowed us with its fertile wings, will make our life beautiful and worthy of the Christian title, amen.
“At every worship service we pray for you”
Archpriest Viktor Potapov , rector of St. John the Baptist Cathedral, Washington, USA:
I am extremely pleased to have the opportunity to greet the readers of the wonderful portal, to which I very often turn to from distant America, I read its wonderful, interesting materials, articles, interviews.
I am extremely happy to welcome you on this great holiday and wish you all the best from our Lord Jesus Christ in the new year 2014. We here in Washington, at every divine service, we pray for you, dear brothers and sisters, with the words: “And preserve, Lord, the God-protected country of Russia, its Orthodox people in the Fatherland and the dispersion of beings.” On this day, we will unite spiritually to glorify the born Christ. I ask you not to forget, my dears, that our churches, both in Russia and here in America, are becoming a spiritual Bethlehem, not figuratively, but in the truest sense of the word. Therefore, I hope that on this day we will all unite at the Chalice of Christ, partake of the Holy Mysteries of Christ, come to the Chalice and to our temples - spiritual Bethlehem - with the fear of God, faith and love. Help you in the New Year Born two thousand years ago in Bethlehem, our Lord Jesus Christ!
“We must bring at least some gift to the Lord”
Archpriest Vladimir Vigilyansky , Rector of the Church of the Holy Martyr Tatiana at Moscow State University, Moscow:
Dear brothers and sisters, I congratulate you from the bottom of my heart. This is one of the most joyful holidays of our Church: "The Lord is born - praise!" The Magi came to wish Merry Christmas with their gifts - the kings of other states. But we must bring at least some gift to the Lord with our whole lives! And if we didn’t have time to do something, let’s do something that will be pleasing to the Lord. What pleases the Lord? - This is to sacrifice oneself to a neighbor: to feed, warm, say a kind word, caress the attention of people who live in terrible loneliness around us. I believe that Christmas gives us such an opportunity: to bring many people closer to us and not to be left alone. Happy Holidays to you all, dear ones!
"Our life path must become a path from earth to Heaven"
Archpriest Alexander Lebedev , rector of the Church of the Intercession of the Most Holy Theotokos (at the Market), Vologda:
Congratulations to all Orthodox Christians on this holiday. Every person throughout his life carries memories of a feeling that is most often experienced in childhood: a feeling when you feel that you are immensely dear to someone, that someone loves you and will accept you, despite all your shortcomings. This is how relationships are built between parents and children. And this feeling is resurrected in us when we remember the event of the Nativity of Christ: we are dear to God, the Lord loves us. After all, for the sake of our salvation and us, for the sake of man, Christ is now incarnated. Accordingly, we must try to walk our life path for the sake of Christ, for the sake of God. So that it becomes a path from earth to Heaven. The path that has become open to us, thanks to the birth of Christ, now celebrated.
"Don't Forget About the Meaning of Christmas"
Archpriest Dimitry Smirnov , Rector of the Church of St. Mitrofan of Voronezh, Moscow:
One of the most important holidays of the church year. In this sense, it is probably no less important than Pascha, although our piety still tends to the advantage of Pascha. But in fact, its meaning is equal: Christ came to earth to free us from sin. Unfortunately, most people, behind all sorts of cheerful preparations, gifts, fuss, forget about their own purpose of this holiday. And each holiday is aimed at ensuring that we have the opportunity to contemplate through it the spiritual essence, which lies in the fact that God took on human flesh and united with this flesh forever - inseparably, inseparably, inseparably and unchangingly. And each of us, through Christ, received the opportunity to ascend with Him to Heaven - with this I congratulate you!
"The God of the Word has the eyes of the Virgin"
Priest John Istrati , cleric of the Church of St. Friday, Iasi, Romania
Beloved brothers in Christ!
On earth, this is an eternal embrace between God and man, the giving of Himself by the Heavenly Father to us, His presence in us until the end of time. Man through incarnation becomes an immortal heavenly altar.
The Most Holy Theotokos, the Great Virgin of our race, gave the Body and Blood to the One Who gives us His Body and Blood for our immortality. In soul, She was so much like God in Her purity and prayer that God desired to become like Her Body. Every child has the eyes of his parents. The God of the Word has the eyes of the Mother of God. Every child is like their parents. Christ is like the Mother of God. Every child has the DNA of their parents. God Incarnate has the DNA of the Mother of God.
The Most Pure Infant Christ, with a great desire, desires to be born in us, to make us the most pure temples of His presence on earth. Let us not abort Him from our lives, let us not kill Him, as Herod, Caiaphas or Pilate did. This is our chance to become immortal by becoming better. If we begin to kill Him, drive Him away here on earth with our sins, He will pass us by in tears, and we will never see Him again.
Merry Christmas and many summers!
"Leave that which hinders salvation"
Priest Nikolai Bulgakov , Rector of the Church of the Sovereign Icon of the Mother of God in the village of Kratovo, Moscow Region:
Dear brothers and sisters, we are all preparing to celebrate the great feast: the last days of the Nativity Fast are coming to an end. This is a holiday that inspires great hope in all of us - that we will be renewed, changed, that something will change in ourselves. We Orthodox know, of course, that this is the most difficult thing to do - to change one's soul. That you and I have accumulated so many habits - other, bad ones, that they can be overcome only with God's help. And so, as one young man, who then suffered from smoking, once said to me: “I called out on Christmas Day:“ Lord! Let me be born with You!” - and the Lord accepted his fervent prayer. And he never took cigarettes again, and now he is a famous father, thank God. Here are some examples. And we all need to leave something in this life: to leave what hinders our main cause - the salvation of our souls and ask God these days for His help in this most important matter for us.
"The weapons of the cherubim you see from the back and enter Paradise"
Priest Thomas Dietz , cleric of the Church of the All-Merciful Savior of the former Sorrowful Monastery, Moscow:
Dear brothers and sisters, I would like to congratulate you on the holiday! This holiday fills us with joy, because on this day the promise that was made to our fathers was fulfilled that God would become a man, that He would take on our flesh, and that He would bring us the light of the Sun - the light of the never-setting Sun - our Father. God is Light and warmth, unspeakable warmth, which we humans cannot endure. And we need God in life. We cannot live without God, without His warmth. Christ, by His nature, healed our nature, made us capable of drawing closer to God, so that we could live in His light.
With His Nativity, the Lord destroyed that wall that separated us from God, and you can already see the weapons of the cherubim from the back and enter Paradise, we eat incorruptible food, food from the tree of life - we console ourselves with the Eucharist. And we live together with God, we live forever. Christmas directs our thoughts to the fact that we hope that God will give us again in the future this tree of life, which we lost in paradise when our forefathers sinned.
This tree of life is symbolized by the Christmas tree - a beautiful custom that is a symbol of Christianity, and not the New Year, as the Russian people believed for a long time. The Christmas tree is a symbol of the tree of life, a symbol that humanity is restored in Christ, that we can live without sin, that we can live as sons of God.
Dear brothers and sisters, let us spend these days of the Holy Feast together with God, praying, celebrating, rejoicing together with our loved ones, relatives and friends. Let us put aside all sorrow, believing that Christ, by His Incarnation, became our Friend, God, Whom we can touch, with Whom we can unite, so that His warmth, His fire enter our hearts. This is what I wish you, and also that we spend these days as saints, as His beloved chosen people!
"We are eternal!"
Archpriest Sergiy Pravdolyubov , Rector of the Church of the Life-Giving Trinity in Troitskoye-Golenishchevo, Moscow:
I would like to say a very important thing about the holiday: the Lord came to earth, the Son of God became the Son of Man. And we, when we celebrate this greatest event in the life of people, must be firmly aware that this is the beginning of eternal life. When we see the Infant lying in swaddling clothes, we must realize that this is the God-Man, the Son of God.
I would like to quote two phrases of two reverend fathers. St. Basil the Great in his liturgy says these very important words: "Lord, You have given us the knowledge of Your truth." This is the greatest thing that can be in life - the knowledge of Your truth, Divine truth, and in the future - eternal life. The second phrase - St. Andrew of Crete, who said: "You, Lord, in Your Birth showed us our value."
Who we are, we found out by looking at the Baby in the den: we are not just living beings on earth, but for our sake Christ came to earth. And our life is meant for eternity, and our Lord brought us this eternity, having been born in a den. We must not tire of knowing this eternal Divine truth in the coming year, as well as in all the days of our life, so that we are not alien to the truth, not alien to God. Because all eternity consists in knowing Him - our Lord Jesus Christ. This is a great joy and a great celebration!
Help, Lord, all of us, all of you, readers and listeners of such important words in the church. Help, Lord, this year you come closer, realize and pray closer to that understanding and consciousness: “Lord, You came and saved us! Thank you. We give thanks and cry out from the bottom of our hearts: “Christ is born - praise! Christ from Heaven - hide!” And we, Lord, meet You. We rejoice, we gain eternal life - now, here on earth - for all eternity through You, Lord.
And this is the meaning of our whole life. Not just an earthly holiday, but a holiday of earth and Heaven, a holiday of time and a holiday of eternity - here when we celebrate the Nativity of Christ. Happy holiday to all of you, dear readers!
Today is a special, bright day - today Christ has come into the world! Love boundless, selfless He brought a bright light with him. Congratulate each other on the holiday, dedicating a prayer to God. Put another candle for health to all those who are dear and loved!
Since ancient times Christmas considered a family holiday. The whole family got together that day. In our time, Christian traditions began to return to their origins. Increasingly, in Orthodox families, he rightfully began to take his traditional place.
Peace and joy to all in the light feast of the Nativity!
On this page you will find Merry Christmas greetings in verse and prose, short congratulations on Orthodox Christmas, beautiful Christmas greetings for adults and children.
Holy holiday, orthodox
We will meet in peace, with kindness.
That's why he's the main one for us -
Our hearts are with Christ!
Let's celebrate a family holiday
With a Christmas tree, home warmth.
May this day be bright!
To all of you friends, Merry Christmas!
Merry Christmas greetings in prose
Christmas is the day when Jesus Christ entered the world with love. This is the day of forgiveness, bright feelings, the day when love triumphs.
On this holiday, may our desires be united in grateful prayer to the Redeemer, who through suffering saved the world, and therefore all of us.
Merry Christmas!
Christmas is the very holiday when the soul is filled with light. And on this day I want to sincerely congratulate you on the hope, love and mercy that the Lord gives us! Praise God and His son!
May all bright prayers bring you humility and repentance today! May God grant you forgiveness of sins and a happy life!
With all my heart I congratulate you on the bright holiday of the Nativity of Christ.
Christmas is a family holiday. This is a holiday of joy and hope. And I am glad that our family has gathered together at a beautiful table, on this festive, quiet evening, filled with divine light.
With all my heart I want to wish all of us love ... Love for each other, attention and forgiveness. This is what brings us closer to God, makes us kinder and cleaner.
Happy Christmas!
On the bright holiday of the Nativity of Christ, I would like to wish peace and tranquility in every home, love and understanding, peace of mind, success in all endeavors, good health and more joy. May all expectations come true and the most cherished dreams come true!
Let grief and misfortune bypass your home! May your dreams come true and wishes come true! Happiness to you and your families, relatives and friends!
Merry Christmas greetings in verse
In the quiet winter dawn
In anticipation of a miracle, everything will calm down.
Grace will descend on us from above,
In the sky, a young star will flash.
Christmas will bring faith,
Restore hope in the hearts of people
It saves from adversity and sorrows,
The light will illuminate boundless love.
The great holiday has already come again;
Everywhere fun, feasts, celebration ...
Let's remember what word he told us
The one we are celebrating Christmas now:
"Let everyone always be merciful
To the weak, the orphans, the poor, the sick!
What he has, he will share with the poor
And call him his brother!
Today, at our big table
Congratulations on Christmas!
So I want to wish you all
Never be discouraged in life
Health, happiness, every success,
Happy and joyful laughter
Love each other, enjoy life,
May it be so forever and ever!
christmas let snowflake
Spinning like a white moth
Let the ice melt on the heart,
Today we are all waiting for a miracle!
I hasten to congratulate you soon.
May this holiday bring
We are happy, let it become warmer,
And it will come true, all that everyone is waiting for!
Merry Christmas SMS
Short Merry Christmas Greetings
The Christmas sky prophesies purity
I will embrace you with frosty arms,
God's son was born - joy for people,
Beloved, dear, rejoice soon!
On the eve of Christmas, the stars are almost invisible.
Candles are lit and bring blessings
What will bind us, enchanting, with inextricable kinship;
And I say to you: “Dear friend! Merry Christmas!"
Merry Christmas!
Peace to you, love!
May the Lord fill
Happy your days!
Silver sparkles
Let fluffy snow.
I wish you joy
You for a century!
May Christmas bring you
Peace of mind, joy in life.
All that the soul asks for
May the Lord make it real!
Good luck, peace triumph
Let it give this Christmas!
Christmas is knocking on the window!
Only happy faces
Let him always meet
And worthy of note!
May the bright holiday of Christmas
Will give you love, warmth!
Let the candle light warm the house
Let the smell of fresh pine needles be in it!
May close friends be near
Let the family be happy and joyful!
Merry Christmas,
The house will be a full bowl!
It's good to live in it
With peace, happiness and kindness!
Merry Christmas voice greetings
Merry Christmas greetings on the phone you can listen to and send what you like to the recipient as a musical or voice greeting on a mobile or smartphone. You can order and send a Merry Christmas greeting to your phone either immediately or by specifying the date and time of delivery of the audio postcard. Sound Merry Christmas greetings on your phone will be guaranteed to be delivered to your mobile, smartphone or landline phone, which you can personally verify by tracking the status of receiving the congratulations by clicking on the received link in the SMS message after payment.
Merry Christmas 2018
January sixth. Winter. Christmas Eve.
Two thousand and eighteenth year.
For all people - both together and separately -
Let everyone say aloud now:
Health to all, and happiness, and patience,
Kindness, warmth and peace in every home!
And let the whole world be filled with congratulations
With a unique bright Christmas!
Holiness, light, a triumph is coming -
Two thousand eighteenth Christmas.
I wish you pure thoughts
Good deeds, and let them help
Light forces are always and in everything.
So that your house shines with happiness,
To forget the worries
When such a holiday is on the doorstep.
Your faces burn with joy
Radiates happiness with every look,
And the whole world is solemn for a reason -
Today is the birthday of Christ!
No one makes noise and no one is in a hurry;
May all those who believe from the heart,
They will say, signing themselves with the cross:
"People! Merry Christmas!"
Let them sound today congratulations on Orthodox Christmas, let the snow swirl easily outside the window, and let everyone be only happy today, let everyone be successful!
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