On December 24, Catholics, Protestants and parishioners of most local Orthodox churches celebrate Christmas Eve. This is the evening that precedes the feast of the Nativity of Christ.

Christmas Eve Traditions.

On the evening and night of December 24, as well as before dawn on December 25, three liturgies are held in churches. Christmas is celebrated as Words from God the Father (at night), God the Son from the Virgin (at dawn) and the birth of God in the soul of believers (during the day).

On the holiday, it is customary for the whole family to attend a service in the church..

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On Christmas Eve the whole family gathers at the Christmas table. However, the fast is still going on, so the dishes should be lean..

It was customary to leave a free seat at the Christmas table. This is done as a symbol for relatives and friends who cannot celebrate Christmas with their families.. If someone comes to visit, he will be received as a brother.

It is customary to put hay under a white tablecloth. This is a symbol of the poverty of the Bethlehem cave and the Virgin, who put the newborn Jesus in a manger of hay.

It is also not customary to eat before the appearance of the first star.. This tradition is connected with the fact that the star announced the appearance of Christ, therefore, before its appearance, you can not eat festive dishes..

Prayer on Christmas Eve.

I believe in one God, the Almighty Father, the Creator of heaven and earth, of everything visible and invisible. And the only Lord Jesus Christ, the only begotten Son of God, begotten of the Father in all ages.

God from God, Light from Light, true God from true God, begotten, uncreated, consubstantial with the Father, that through Him all things happened. For the sake of us people, and for the sake of our salvation, He descended from heaven and became incarnate from the Holy Spirit and Mary the Virgin, and became a man..

And he was crucified for us for Pontius Pilate, and suffered, and was buried. And he rose again on the third day according to the Scriptures, and ascended into heaven and sits at the right hand of the Father. And the second time he will come with glory to judge the living and the dead, and His Kingdom will have no end.

And by the Holy Spirit, the Lord, the Life-Giving One, who ascends from the Father and the Son, who is equally worshiped and equally glorified with the Father and the Son, speaking through the prophets. And into one, holy, universal and apostolic Church. I confess one baptism for the forgiveness of sins. I look forward to the resurrection of the dead and the life to come. Amen.