The Ukrainians will celebrate Christmas for the first time on December 25 instead of January 7 as was the tradition until then, quite a symbol in the middle of the war against Moscow, the Orthodox Russians celebrating the birth of Jesus Christ two weeks later . If the news focused last summer on the counter-offensive of the Ukrainian forces supposed to repel the Russian army, a new symbolic law appeared at the end of July.
Move of celebrations from January 7 to December 25
President Volodymyr Zelensky formalized the move of Christmas celebrations from January 7 to December 25. “The Ukrainian people have long been subject to Russian ideology in almost all areas of life, including the Julian calendar and the celebration of Christmas on January 7,” said the explanatory note to the text of the law approved by the deputies.
However, the text continued, “the successful struggle (…) for its identity contributes to the awareness and desire of each Ukrainian to live their own life, with their own traditions, their own holidays”.
Measures to distance yourself from Moscow
The decision to move Christmas is part of a series of measures Ukraine has taken in recent years to distance itself from Moscow. The law also illustrates the gap that has widened between the churches of kyiv and Moscow for several years, further reinforced by the Russian invasion launched in February 2022.
Placed for several centuries under the religious supervision of Russia, the Ukrainian Orthodox Church was declared autocephalous and independent of the Moscow Patriarchate in 2019. In May 2022, the Ukrainian Church, which remained faithful to Moscow, also declared its independence in reaction to the support for the war expressed by Russian Patriarch Kirill.
A handful of Orthodox Churches in the world, including those in Russia and Serbia, still use the Julian calendar for their religious celebrations and not the Gregorian calendar, designed at the end of the 16th century.
Atheism advocated under the USSR
Under the USSR, authorities advocated atheism, and Christmas traditions, such as Christmas trees and gifts, were moved to New Year’s Eve, which became the main holiday and still is for many Ukrainian families.
On Christmas Eve, Ukrainians have a tradition of sitting at the table in the evening with 12 meatless dishes, including “koutia”, a dessert composed of boiled wheat grains, honey, raisins, crushed walnuts and poppy seeds.