Pochaev Lavra expressed concern about the growth of pagan symbols and secularization of Christmas holidays in Ukraine

The Holy Dormition Pochaev Lavra has expressed serious concern over the increasing use of pagan paraphernalia and the general secularization of Christmas celebrations in Ukrainian cities. Representatives of the monastery urge Ukrainians to preserve pious Orthodox traditions, warning against losing the true meaning of Christmas.

As Pravlife.info reports, the monastery’s brethren called the use of pagan elements in the decoration of city squares during Christmas celebrations alarming and disturbing. The monastery reminded that from ancient times the Ukrainian people glorified the Christ Child through special chants and unique traditions, which have become part of its genetic code. It was hard to imagine Christmas without a church service, the Star of Bethlehem, Christmas trees and carols, but, as the Lavra noted, “today the diseases of the West are slowly penetrating our land too”.

As an example, representatives of the brethren cited their observations in Kiev in December, where they did not see a single banner with the words “Christmas”, only a few faceless posters “Merry Christmas”. “What Christmas, whose Christmas? And this is alarming,” the monastery emphasized, expressing fear that the same thing that happened in Britain 40 years ago could happen in Ukraine. Then, after Metropolitan Anthony Surozhsky’s congratulations on Christmas on London radio, the presenter asked in surprise if there was anything in common between Christmas and Jesus Christ. “Vladyka’s voice trembled after these words. Indeed, there is something to worry about, ” the Lavra noted.

The monastery drew special attention to this year’s innovation: in large cities they began to decorate Christmas trees not with traditional stars, but with didukhas and other pagan paraphernalia. “What is happening today is very alarming,” – stated in the message. In this regard, Pochaev Lavra sees its mission in continuing the pious traditions of its ancestors, which were missionary preaching even in Soviet times, where the name of Jesus Christ was mentioned. Moreover, the importance of passing on these traditions to the next generations is emphasized, so that “no forces could take away from us the most precious treasure – the Orthodox faith”.

Recall that the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine approved the decree of President Volodymyr Zelensky, according to which January 7 – the date traditionally associated with the celebration of Christmas for a number of Orthodox churches – will be officially celebrated as Programmer’s Day. This decision is part of a large-scale government initiative to regularize holiday dates in line with the national ideology.