Nearly two years after Russia began its invasion of their country, Orthodox Ukrainians took part in religious services on Sunday evening to celebrate Christmas on December 25, for the first time in their history and as a sign of defiance against – vis-a-vis Moscow.
“We pray for the end of the war. We pray for victory,” said President Volodymyr Zelensky.
“For peace, for justice,” he continued in front of a majestic monastery which housed until the end of 2022 the primate of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church dependent on Moscow.
This is the first time in the modern history of Ukraine that Orthodox believers celebrate Christmas synchronously with Catholics, but also Greek, Romanian and Bulgarian Orthodox, on December 25 and not January 7 of the civil calendar as it was traditional until then.
The Russian Orthodox Church has in fact kept the old Julian calendar for religious holidays, shifted by 13 days.
“We really want to celebrate this holiday in a new way. It is a holiday with all of Ukraine, with our independent Ukraine,” says Olena.
In July, Volodymyr Zelensky formalized the move of Christmas celebrations from January 7 to December 25, a decision that is part of a series of measures taken by Ukraine to distance itself from Russia.
