The Ukrainian parliament has overwhelmingly decided to move Orthodox Christmas, which until now was mainly celebrated on January 7, to December 25. President Volodymyr Zelenskyy introduced the law to distance himself from the “Russian tradition”. Already in 2017, December 25 was introduced parallel to January 7 as a non-working holiday before Christmas.
Two of the three major Orthodox churches had previously decided to switch to the current Gregorian calendar.
However, the largest Ukrainian Orthodox Church so far, which has long been linked to Moscow, has not commented on the transition. She continues to celebrate the holidays according to the old Julian calendar.
The Day of the Ukrainian State and the Day of the Defenders of Ukraine, celebrated on the occasion of Christianization, will also be brought forward by 13 days. According to the old church calendar, these were on July 28 and October 14.
Since the 2014 pro-Western coup d’état and Moscow’s subsequent annexation of the Black Sea peninsula of Crimea, Ukraine has been trying to cut all ties with the Soviet and Russian past. The Russian attack on the neighboring country more than 16 months ago gave the process a new impetus.
Source: Krone
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