About 100 families as members of Holy Ghost Orthodox Church will celebrate Christmas this weekend, though the days of following the Julian calendar may be numbered.
By: Eric Schwarz
The 13-day difference in dates between the Orthodox celebration on Jan. 7 and the Western Christians’ holiday of Dec. 25 is based on differences in the calendars the churches use, not in liturgy, said the Rev. Msgr. Andrew Hutnyan of Holy Ghost, on South Sixth Avenue.
Father Andrew said all the Orthodox churches might soon concur on a Christmas celebration of Dec. 25 to accommodate younger people, such as high school and college students who are on vacation during the earlier date.
"I think it will be decided in the next 10 years," Father Andrew said.
The Greek church was the first Orthodox Church to change the Christmas date to Dec. 25. That happened in 1924, Father Andrew said.
Some Orthodox Christians celebrate Christmas twice a year, Father Andrew said, though that is not liturgically correct.
"Our people (members) usually bring out that the 25th is a ‘material Christmas’ and the 7th is spiritual," he said.
Father Andrew spoke Tuesday in his church, which was beautifully decorated for the season with a creche, poinsettias, an artificial Christmas tree, and a Nativity image on the hand-painted icon screen separating the sanctuary from the nave, or altar.
The icon screen, representing the passage to Heaven, contains many images of important events, people and divine figures in Christendom.
"We venerate the icons, as you would a photograph of your mother or father," Father Andrew said. "We don’t pray to them."
The Slovak, Serbian, Ukrainian and some Russian Orthodox churches follow the Julian calendar, while the Greek and other Russian Orthodox churches follow the Gregorian calendar.
Some Ukrainian Catholics also celebrate Christmas Jan. 7, said Steve Zacharko, a member of St. Michael the Archangel Church on Brooks Boulevard.
The Ukrainian Catholics in the United States are governed by four eparchies, Mr. Zacharko said. The archeparchy of Philadelphia, which governs churches in New Jersey, officially celebrates Christmas Dec. 25, though some churches also celebrate Jan. 7.
The Stamford, Conn., eparchy, which covers New York, celebrates Christmas Jan. 7, and a large celebration is held at St. George’s Cathedral in Manhattan, Mr. Zacharko said.
"My parents sometimes, if the weather is nice, drive into New York" for the service, Mr. Zacharko said.
The Provels of Middlesex Borough, members of Holy Ghost Orthodox Church, celebrate Christmas Jan. 7.
"It is a very old tradition, " said Donna Provel. "We are following the old calendar."
On Jan. 7 the Provels go to church in the morning, followed by Christmas with a large dinner in the evening. Her son, Gary, 16, will read an epistle from from Galatians at Sunday’s service.
Father Andrew noted that neither Dec. 25 or Jan. 7 is close to the date Jesus is believed to have been born about 2,000 years ago.
"The shepherds watching their flocks by night" and references to a rainy season in Bethlehem would signify that Jesus was born in March or April, Father Andrew said.
"I don’t think anyone knows the correct day," he said. The winter date is derived from Saturnalia, a nonreligious festival of lights."
And though Sunday is indeed the Orthodox Christmas, "we call it the Nativity of Jesus Christ," Father Andrew said.
The liturgical language of the Eastern Orthodox churches is Slovanik, which has similar root words to the common spoken language of Slovak, Father Andrew said.
"We don’t say ‘Merry Christmas,’" he said. "We say ‘Christ is born!’ The response to that is ‘Glorify Him!’ That’s more of putting Christ in it."
In Slovanik, the two phrases are "Christos Razdajetsja!" and "Slavite Jeho!" Father Andrew said.
The Orthodox Church also celebrates the holiday with a Living Nativity performed by children in the Sunday school, pantomiming the Christmas story from Matthew Chapter 2 in the Bible.
Father Andrew, 63, is of Slovak descent and was born in the coal-mining area of Pennsylvania. His three brothers also are priests.
He and his wife, Jean, have two grown children, Stephen and Barbara.