Jan. 7 marks Orthodox Christmas day for those following the Julian calendar.
Orthodox Christmas is celebrated by roughly 260 million people around the world. Many in Saskatchewan, including those that left Ukraine and arrived in different cities like Regina, and Saskatoon, are also celebrating Christmas Eve this Friday.
The festival is marked by traditional feasts, fasting and church ceremonies. The holiday has its roots in the centuries-old decision made by Orthodox churches to separate themselves from the Catholic Church and follow a calendar that is different from the one used by most Christians around the world.
“The 40 days prior to Christmas is a fasting time. This evening on the 6th of January, we all gather for our meal. Before that, the fast is broken,” said Pat Tymchatyn, president of the Saskatoon Ukrainian Canadian Congress.
“It is actually the biggest holiday, because everybody gathers and we have the 12 meat plus dishes and then we go to church, 11 to midnight for the liturgy, and then the next day is sort of a feast.”
Tymchatyn said that this year feels more poignant to her because of the people that have come to Saskatoon from Ukraine, knowing they have relatives and friends who are still fighting the war.
“This year seems kind of surreal that we’re actually celebrating Christmas when in Ukraine things are really terrible,” she said.
She added that it is a surreal experience for a lot of the refugees because prior to the war, they didn’t plan on coming to Canada, “I think that it’s a real accomplishment in the sense that Canada opened their doors and allowed people to come.”
Right Reverend Mitred Archpriest Taras Makowsky said that the icon is an important aspect of the religion and the holiday as it depicts an event in the scriptures.
“For those who are not able to read the scriptures very well, they would follow the icons in the church or the icons in the walls that they have in their homes, and they would know that, OK, this is what is happening at this time of the year,” Makowsky said.
He had a Christmas message for the newcomers and refugees: “we hope and pray that there will be peace, of course, in Ukraine and in all the lands in Europe, that this war will be over faster than we hope. And just to remember that patience is very important when we’re dealing with world situations that seem to be under control or out of control.“
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D’reen Joan has been catering for 34 years and this year she is prepping meals for two, with 40 orders to fulfill.
Joan is happy to be working her magic to create special meals for those celebrating Ukrainian Chritmas in Saskatoon.
“I bring in some of the traditional dishes, but I took twists on them, like with the beans I put bacon in it and of course, my bacon’s applewood smoked and it’s got lots of garlic in it,” Joan said.
She said she makes cabbage rolls using basmati rice, dill and fried onions. She also makes a lot of perogies, garlicky buns, creamy cucumber salads, cheesecake tarts, squares and meatballs in mushroom dill creamed sauce.
“It’s really nice because nobody’s going to go through all this work to make for two people. This is sort of like a special treat. Some people will come and they have tears in their eyes because they remember their grandmother or somebody doing this for them,” Joan said.
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