2024 Author: Jasmine Walkman | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-16 08:29
Christmas Eve is one of the brightest Christian holidays. With it, the religious world celebrates the birth of Jesus Christ.
In some parts of our country Christmas Eve is called Little Christmas, Vespers, Not Eating and Incense Dinner. The holiday is dedicated to the family, home and hearth.
Tradition dictates that before calling the festive dinner, the owner of the house should light the biggest stump in the hearth. It is called a Christmas tree and must be a pear, oak or beech tree. When he puts it in the fireplace, the owner calls As many sparks, so many chicks, spikes, calves, children in this house!
In some parts there is a tradition to carve a hole in the Christmas tree. Red wine, incense and olive oil are poured into it for blessing. Shortly before putting it on the fire, seal it with beeswax. In this way, it is believed that Christmas Eve is sanctified and anointed and can now be sacrificed to the deities.
On Christmas Eve at the table there must be an odd number of lean meals - 7, 9 or 12. Lean sarma, stuffed peppers and dried fruit compote are mandatory. The table is arranged on straw on the ground in the southeast corner of the room under the iconostasis. In some parts, a small pie with a hidden coin in it is prepared. Whoever falls will be happy all year round. A walnut is placed in the four corners of the room.
Before dinner begins, the oldest man in the home smokes. The incense drives the greedy devils off the table. It is used to smoke all other rooms in the house.
The first to break the festive bread, often called Bogovitsa. This makes again the owner and the oldest in the family. The first piece is placed under the icon of the Holy Mother of God. From the dough for the cake are baked small cookies - cakes, which are given to the carolers the next day.
Photo: Maria Simova
During dinner, everyone should try all the dishes to have a good year. The table on Christmas Eve he doesn't get up all night so that luck doesn't escape. Exactly at midnight Christ is born. Then come the carolers.
At midnight the so-called dirty days or pagan days. They are twelve - from Christmas to Jordan's Day. Through them the boundary between earth and sky disappears. Spirits of the dead come into the world of the living, and there is a fear that one of them may like a member of the family and take it with him.
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What To Put On The Table For Christmas Eve
On Christmas Eve, the table should be sumptuous and festive. At the same time with its splendor, however, on Christmas Eve we can put only lean dishes on the table. The number of dishes should be seven, nine or eleven. Nowadays, there are hardly many households where all traditions are strictly observed.
Prepare The Table For Christmas Eve
Late tonight, the whole family will gather around the table to celebrate Christmas. The Christmas Eve table should be solemn. The most important thing is that her dishes are an odd number - five, seven, nine. They must be lean. Most often for the table the hosts of the house prepare boiled beans stuffed with rice or beans peppers, vine or cabbage sarma, boiled wheat, pumpkin, oshav, garlic, honey, walnuts, wheat, fruits, ritual bread, pie, zelnik.
Twelve Dishes For The Christmas Eve Table
Twelve dishes should be present at the family table for Christmas Eve. The number corresponds to the months of the year, but you can put seven dishes, as many as the days of the week. Dried peppers stuffed with beans, pumpkin, lean cabbage leaves, lean cake with luck - made without egg and milk, only from bread and water, oshav, bean or lentil stew, various types of salads and nuts must be present at the table .
More Expensive Table For Christmas Eve This Year
This year, the traditional table for Christmas Eve will cost us more than usual. The highest prices are dried fruits and nuts, according to an inspection every day. Raising prices around the biggest holidays in the calendar is traditional for our markets, but this year the most affected are the products that should be on our table for December 24.
Replace White Foods With Black Ones On Christmas Eve
Replace all white foods with their alternative in black, nutritionists recommend for the Christmas Eve table. The reason is that the black menu will be more beneficial to your health than white. Black foods contain anthocyanin, which reduces the risk of heart disease, protects against diabetes and some cancers.
