Nativity Fast is one of four long fasts of the year. It lasts forty days, starting on November 28 and ending with the great holiday - Christmas. It was also installed in honor of Christmas and is necessary so that people are cleansed spiritually and physically before this holiday.
In its severity, the Nativity Fast is compared to the Peter Fast. The main prohibitions are imposed on meat, dairy products and eggs. Also on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays, dry eating is allowed (without heat treatment and vegetable oil), on Tuesdays, Thursdays, Saturdays and Sundays, it is allowed to eat food with vegetable oil. The fish can also be tasted on Saturday, Sunday and holidays, for example, on the day of the Entry into the Temple of the Most Holy Theotokos.
Nativity Fast falls on the secular New Year, and an Orthodox person must make a difficult choice - how to celebrate this holiday. This is not only about a special lenten table, but also about abstaining from entertainment, entertainment, watching entertainment programs on TV.
Many fasting people forget that fasting is not a diet, and it involves not only avoiding certain foods, but also spiritual abstinence. You cannot be angry, insults, on the contrary, you need to forgive, repent of your sins, give up worldly passions.
What if a person breaks loose? First of all, repent, go to confession. It is better in this case to start fasting already in the next post, but if you really want to, it is permissible to continue into this one, praying fervently. Prayer and repentance are the main ingredients of fasting.
Important dates for the Orthodox. Christmas post
November 28 - January 6 - Nativity Fast. Installed for spiritual and physical cleansing before the feast of the Nativity of Christ. Lasts 40 days.
Promotional video:
December 4 - Introduction to the Temple of the Most Holy Theotokos. At the age of three, the Virgin Mary was led into the temple of God, which gave rise to her great service to the Lord God.
December 7 is the day of memory of the great martyr Catherine. The saint pray for an early and successful marriage.
Why does a child need a double name?
This belief existed earlier in paganism. It was believed that the child must be baptized with a different name, and so that no one but the closest would know about him. So the baby was protected from evil spirits and unkind people.
In Christianity, such views are considered superstition. If the secular name of the child is present in the calendar, you can baptize him. If it is not in the calendar, then parents can choose any other church name. Often the baby is given the name of the saint on whose day he was born or on whose day he is baptized.
The choice of a name during baptism is in any case completely left to the will of the parents. The main and only condition is for the name to be in the calendar.