Period of abstinence and penance in Christianity
In
Christianity
, the
Nativity Fast
?or
Fast of the Prophets
in
Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church
and
Eritrean Orthodox Tewahedo Church
?is a period of abstinence and penance practiced by the
Eastern Orthodox Church
,
Oriental Orthodox Church
and
Catholic Church
in preparation for the
Nativity of Jesus
on December 25.
[1]
Ethiopian and Eritrean Orthodox Churches commence the season on November 24 and end the season on the day of
Ethiopian Christmas
, which falls on January 7. The corresponding
Western
season of preparation for
Christmas
, which also has been called the Nativity Fast
[2]
and
St. Martin's Lent
, has taken the name of
Advent
. The Eastern
fast
runs for 40 days instead of four (in the
Roman Rite
) or six weeks (
Ambrosian Rite
) and thematically focuses on proclamation and glorification of the
Incarnation of God
, whereas the Western Advent focuses on three comings (or
advents
) of
Jesus Christ
: his birth, reception of his
grace
by the faithful, and his
Second Coming
or
Parousia
.
The Byzantine fast is observed from November 15 to December 24, inclusively. These dates apply to the Eastern Catholic Churches, and Eastern Orthodox churches which use the
Revised Julian calendar
, which currently matches the
Gregorian calendar
. For those Eastern Orthodox churches which still follow the
Julian calendar
?the
Greek Orthodox Patriarchate of Jerusalem
, the
Russian Orthodox Church
, the
Serbian Orthodox Church
, the
Georgian Orthodox Church
, the
Ukrainian Orthodox Church
, the
Macedonian Orthodox Church
,
Mount Athos
, the
Portuguese Orthodox Church
, and all
Old Calendarists
, as well as some parishes of the
Romanian Orthodox Church
, of the
Polish Orthodox Church
, and of the
Orthodox Church of America
?the Winter Lent does not begin until November 28 (Gregorian) which coincides with November 15 on the Julian calendar. The
Ancient Church of the East
fasts dawn til dusk from December 1 until December 25 on the Gregorian calendar.
Sometimes the fast is called
Philip's Fast
(or the Philippian Fast), as it traditionally begins on the day following the Feast of
St. Philip the Apostle
(November 14). Some churches, such as the
Melkite Greek Catholic Church
, have abbreviated the fast to start on December 10, following the Feast of the
Conception
by
Saint Anne
of the Most Holy
Theotokos
.
Purpose of fasting
[
edit
]
Through the discipline of
fasting
, when practiced with prayer,
repentance
, and
almsgiving
, it is believed that by tempering the bodily desire for food, other passions are tempered as well, and that the soul can orient more away from worldly needs and more towards spiritual needs. Through this practice one is better enabled to draw closer to
Christ
, and engage in the continuous and synergistic process of becoming more
Christ-like
. While fasting is practiced with the body, it is important to note that emphasis is placed on the spiritual facet of the fast rather than mere physical deprivation.
Eastern Orthodox theology
sees a synthesis between the body and the soul, so what happens to one can be used to have an effect on the other.
[3]
Fasting rules
[
edit
]
In the Byzantine Rite, the fast traditionally entails
fasting
from
red meat
,
poultry
,
meat products
, eggs,
dairy products
, fish, oil, and wine. Fish, wine and oil are allowed on Saturdays and Sundays as well as most Mondays, Tuesdays and Thursdays, and oil and wine are generally allowed on Tuesdays and Thursdays, except in the
Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church
.
The fasting rules also permit fish, wine and oil on certain
feast days
that occur during the course of the fast:
Evangelist Matthew
(November 16),
Apostle Andrew
(November 30),
Great-martyr Barbara
(December 4),
St. Nicholas
(December 6),
St. Spiridon
and
St. Herman
(December 12),
St. Ignatius
(December 20), etc. The Nativity Fast is not as severe as
Great Lent
or the
Dormition Fast
.
As is always the case with Byzantine fasting rules, persons who are ill, the very young or elderly, and nursing mothers are exempt from fasting. Each individual is expected to confer with their
confessor
regarding any exemptions from the fasting rules, but should never place themselves in physical danger.
There has been some ambiguity about the restriction of fish, whether it means the allowance of
invertebrate
fish or all fish. Often, even on days when fish is not allowed, shellfish may be consumed. More detailed guidelines vary by jurisdiction, but the rules strictly state that from the December 20 to December 24 (inclusively), no fish may be eaten.
The
Eve of Nativity
(December 24) is a strict
fast day
, called
Paramony
(
lit.
'
preparation
'
), on which no solid food should be eaten until
Sirius
is seen in the evening sky (or at the very least, until after the
Vesperal
Divine Liturgy
that day). If Paramony falls on a Saturday or Sunday, the day is not observed as a strict fast, but a meal with wine and oil is allowed after the Divine Liturgy, which would be celebrated in the morning.
Liturgical aspects
[
edit
]
In some places, the services on weekdays during the fast are similar to the services during
Great Lent
(with some variations). Many churches and monasteries in the
Russian
tradition will perform the Lenten services on at least the first day of the Nativity Fast. Often the
hangings
in the church will be changed to a somber, Lenten colour.
During the course of the fast, a number of
feast days
celebrate those
Old Testament
prophets
who
prophesied
the
Incarnation
; for instance:
Obadiah
(November 19),
Nahum
(December 1),
Habbakuk
(December 2),
Zephaniah
(December 3),
Haggai
(December 16),
Daniel
and the
Three Holy Youths
(December 17). These last are significant not only because of their perseverance in fasting, but also because their preservation unharmed in the midst of the
fiery furnace
is interpreted as being symbolic of the Incarnation?the
Virgin Mary
conceived
God the Word
in her womb without being consumed by the fire of the
Godhead
.
As is true of all of the four Byzantine fasts, a
Great Feast
falls during the course of the fast; in this case, the
Entry of the Theotokos
(November 21). After the
apodosis
(leave-taking) of that feast, hymns of the Nativity are chanted on Sundays and higher-ranking feast days.
Forefeast
[
edit
]
The liturgical
Forefeast
of the Nativity begins on December 20, and concludes with the Paramony on December 24. During this time hymns of the Nativity are chanted every day. In the
Russian usage
, the
hangings
in the church are changed to the festive color (usually white) at the beginning of the Forefeast.
Sunday of the Forefathers
[
edit
]
Two Sundays before Nativity (hence, between 11 and 17 December of each year
[4]
), the Church calls to remembrance the ancestors of the church, both before the giving of the
Law of Moses
and after,
[5]
like
Adam
,
[6]
"and on through
Seth
,
Enoch
,
Noah
,
Abraham
,
Isaac
,
Jacob
,
King David
, and other" biblical righteous.
[7]
[8]
Seth, son of Adam, started the descendants of the
Sons of God
.
[9]
The
Menaion
contains a full set of hymns for this day which are chanted in conjunction with the regular Sunday hymns from the
Octoechos
. These hymns commemorate various biblical persons, as well as the
prophet
Daniel
and the
Three Young Men
. There are also special
Epistle
(
Colossians 3:4?11
) and
Gospel
(
Luke 14:16?24
) readings appointed for the
Divine Liturgy
on this day.
Sunday of the Holy Fathers
[
edit
]
The Sunday before Nativity is even broader in its scope of commemoration than the previous Sunday, in that it commemorates all of the righteous men and women who pleased God from the
creation of the world
up to
Saint Joseph
.
[5]
The Menaion provides an even fuller service for this day than the previous Sunday. At the
Vespers
portion of the
All-Night Vigil
three
Old Testament
"parables" (
paroemia
) are read:
Genesis 14:14?20
,
Deuteronomy 1:8?17
and
Deuteronomy 10:14?21
. The Epistle which is read at the Divine Liturgy is a selection from
Hebrews 11:9?40
; the Gospel is the
Genealogy of Christ
from the
Gospel of Matthew
(
1:1?25
)
Paramony
[
edit
]
Christmas Eve
is traditionally called
Paramony
(
Greek
:
παραμον?
,
Slavonic
:
navecherie
). Paramony is observed as a strict fast day, on which those faithful who are physically able to, refrain from food until the first star is observed in the evening or after the Vesperal Divine Liturgy, when a meal with wine and oil may be taken. On this day the
Royal Hours
are celebrated in the morning. Some of the hymns are similar to those of
Theophany
(Epiphany) and
Great and Holy Friday
, thus tying the symbolism of Christ's Nativity to his death on the Cross. The Royal Hours are followed by the Vesperal
Divine Liturgy of St. Basil
which combines
Vespers
with the
Divine Liturgy
.
During the Vespers, eight
Old Testament
lections
("parables") which prefigure or prophesy the
Incarnation
of Christ are read, and special
antiphons
are chanted. If the Feast of the Nativity falls on a Sunday or Monday, the Royal Hours are chanted on the previous Friday, and on the Paramony the Vesperal
Divine Liturgy of St. John Chrysostom
is celebrated in the morning, with its readings and antiphons, and the fasting is lessened to some degree?a meal with wine and oil being served after the Liturgy.
The
All-Night Vigil
on the night of December 24 consists of
Great Compline
,
Matins
and the
First Hour
. One of the highlights of Great Compline is the exultant chanting of "God is with us!" interspersed between selected verses from the
prophecy
of
Isaiah
8:9?18
, foretelling the triumph of the
Kingdom of God
, and
9:2?7
, foretelling the birth of the
Messiah
("For unto us a child is born...and he shall be called...the Mighty God....").
The Divine Liturgy for the Nativity of Christ is celebrated on Christmas morning. However, in those
monasteries
which continue to celebrate the All-Night Vigil in its long form?where it literally lasts throughout the night?the conclusion of the Vigil at dawn on Christmas morning will often lead directly into the celebration of the Divine Liturgy. When the Vigil is separate from the Divine Liturgy, the Lenten fast continues even after the Vigil, until the end of the Liturgy the next morning.
Fasting during the afterfeast
[
edit
]
On December 25, the
Afterfeast
of the
Nativity of Christ
begins. From that day to January 4 (the day before
Theophany
Eve) is a
fast-free
period. The Eve of the Theophany (January 5) is another strict fast day (
paramony
).
Coptic fast
[
edit
]
In the
Coptic Orthodox Church
, an additional fast is observed on the three days before the beginning of the Nativity Fast, to commemorate the miraculous moving of the mountain of Mukattam (which lies within a suburb of
Cairo
) at the hands of Saint
Simon the Tanner
in the year 975, during the rule of the Muslim
Fatimid Caliph
Al-Muizz Li-Deenillah
.
Armenian fast
[
edit
]
Uniquely, the
Armenian Apostolic Church
celebrates Nativity on January 6. Their Fast of Advent begins after seventh Sunday before Christmas.
[10]
They then observe a Fast of the Nativity for one week prior to the Feast of the Nativity on January 6 (see
Armenian Calendar of Saints
).
See also
[
edit
]
Notes
[
edit
]
- ^
December 25 on the traditional
Julian Calendar
(
O.S.
) falls, during the 20th and 21st centuries, on January 7 of the modern
Gregorian Calendar
). All dates in this article refer to the dates as they are written in the
Menaion
. For those churches which follow the Julian Calendar, the date on the Gregorian Calendar are now 13 days later (December 25 Julian = January 7 Gregorian). For those churches following the
Revised Julian Calendar
, the services are celebrated on the date according also to the calculation of the Gregorian Calendar.
- ^
Joseph Bingham,
Origines Ecclesiasticae
(W. Straker, 1840), p. 240
- ^
Kallistos (Ware), Archimandrite
(1978), "The True Nature of Fasting",
The Lenten Triodion
, South Canaan, PA: St. Tikhon's Seminary Press (2002 reprint),
ISBN
978-1-878997-51-7
- ^
"Liturgy of the Sunday of the Holy Fathers"
.
Eastern Orthodox Church of America
.
Archived
from the original on Oct 11, 2018
. Retrieved
Oct 11,
2018
.
- ^
a
b
Kallistos (Timothy Ware), Bishop
(1969), "Background and Meaning of the Feasts",
The Festal Menaion
, London: Faber and Faber, p. 53,
ISBN
0-571-11137-8
- ^
"Sunday of the Holy Forefathers"
.
Russian Orthodox Church Outside Russia. House Springs, MO
. Dec 14, 2009
. Retrieved
Oct 11,
2018
.
- ^
"Sunday of the Holy Forefathers"
.
Russian Orthodox Church of Baltimora, U.S
.
Archived
from the original on Oct 3, 2007
. Retrieved
Oct 11,
2018
.
- ^
"Biblical righteous Saints of the Forefathers Sunday"
.
oca.org
.
Archived
from the original on Oct 11, 2018.
The list also includes High Priest
Aaron
,
Benjamin
,
Deborah
,
Ezra
,
Judith
,
Miriam
, prophets
Nathan
and
Nehemiah
,
Noah
,
Rebecca
,
Sarah
,
Solomon
,
Susanna
,
Ruth
, Mary (the mother of
Saint Anne
), the prophet
Daniel
- ^
"Afterfeast of the Entry of the Most Holy Mother of God into the Temple"
.
oca.org
.
Archived
from the original on October 11, 2018
. Retrieved
Oct 11,
2018
.
- ^
"Answering The Why Of Christmas"
. 30 November 2017
. Retrieved
Nov 21,
2021
.
External links
[
edit
]