Liturgical texts and iconography of the Nativity of Christ in the museum collection

Christmas is one of the biggest Christian holidays, which is among the twelfth (25.12. Article. Article. / 07.01 new. Art.). This is the holiday of the appearance of God in the flesh on earth. Incarnation is a fundamental dogma of the Christian faith, its content and essence. Church statutes speak of Christmas as the second Easter, at the same time emphasizing the greater solemnity of the celebration of the Resurrection of Christ, whose celebration period is longer.

Like Easter, Christmas is preceded by a forty-day fast, though less harsh, which prepares believers for the holiday. Special preparation can also be traced in liturgical books. Christmas is preceded by divine services on the last two Sundays, which are dedicated to remembering the ancestors of Christ according to the flesh and all the righteous, who lived before the birth of Jesus and waited, when the Savior of the world comes. At Christmas, as well as all twelfth holidays, there are special days before and after the holiday. They last five and six days, respectively. All the hymnographical features of the holiday are beautifully reflected in the museum's old print - a minuet for the month of December, published in the printing house of the Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra in 1750 year (Інв. No. Ak-561)[1]. The museum copy has traces of active use of the book. The pages are covered with wax, especially those texts, which are pronounced in the evening period of the daily circle of services. So, for example, pages with the canon suffered the most. The text is decorated with a beautiful engraving, although not large in size, but very sophisticated work, detailed and multi-figured. Signed in xylograph "Dimitry, L.».

Identical hymnographic texts of the Christmas holiday are also contained in another liturgical book from the museum collection - "Anfologion" (inv. No. Al-955)[2] (literally: collection of flowers, from Greek άνθος - flower). This is a festive mineia that contains a collection of texts for the services of the biggest holidays for the whole year. Issued in 1678 Dr.. in the Novgorod-Siversk printing house. In the center of the screensaver is an engraving of Christmas in a medallion. Despite the small size, all elements are clearly visible, which shows the skill of the engraver. Both books are decorated with wonderful screensavers, engravings, endings and initials.

And the hymnography of the holiday, and its iconography express the dogmatic teaching of the Church. The mystery of the Incarnation is revealed to the ears and eyes of believers as much as possible in literary and pictorial languages. Icons of the Nativity of Christ are very close in content to liturgical texts. They are filled with many symbolic details and details.

So the Mother of God is depicted sitting as a sign of that, that gave birth to Christ painlessly. This is emphasized by the holy fathers in their words on Christmas, in particular, Saint Dimitry Rostov in "Chetia-Minea". In "The Tale of the Nativity of the Lord God" he says: "She gave birth to our Lord Jesus Christ without pain… because she was conceived in purity, then she gave birth without pain" (book of lives of saints for December-February (Інв. No. Al-410)[3], 1695 Dr.. printing house of the Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra. At one time, the owner was the Ukrainian historian Oleksandr Lazarevskyi. Near the title "Fables..." the owner's pencil mark left - "reader").

An important plot in the iconography of Christmas is the appearance of angels, who glorify God and inform the shepherds about the birth of the Savior. The latter go to the cave to worship the Infant God. Iconography, as well as liturgical hymns, they talk about the joy of heaven and earth at the birth of Christ. An ox and a donkey surrounded the manger of Jesus, that warm Him with their breath. One of the central places in the composition is occupied by a star, that led the Magi to Christ. It should be noted, as in the troparion of Christmas, singing, which reflects the essence of the holiday, the emphasis is placed precisely on the meaning of the Star of Bethlehem - "Your Christmas, Christ our God, shone the light of truth to the world: because those are in it, that served the stars, from the star they learned to bow to You - the Sun of truth".

The above-mentioned museum engravings do not depict the Magi, another important part of the iconography of Christmas. Of course, the reason for this is the limited area of ​​engravings, which are already sufficiently story-filled.

On the icon of the XVIII century. з музейної колекції (inv. No. Vi-2156) shepherdesses are also depicted, that approach the cave. The icon was part of the iconostasis of one of the churches in the town of Borzna. On it is a very expressive and largest figure of reverently concentrated Joseph the Bridegroom - an integral figure in the iconography of Christmas. In his hands he holds a long staff - a symbol of a traveler. The small figure of Christ surrounded by adults emphasizes the degree of voluntary self-depreciation and self-humiliation of the Son of God. The icon painter shows through paints, that God's love for man was revealed through the complete humility of the Creator. For the sake of man and his salvation, God became Man. This theological mystery is expressed by the term kenosis (from the Greek κένωσις – diminutive, exhaustion).

All icons and liturgical texts of the Nativity of Christ carry an important educational meaning. The museum artifacts we examined testify to the diligence and love with which the craftsmen treated their work. Printers, xylographs, icon painters attached great importance to every detail, filled it with deep symbolism, the understanding of which is important for understanding the mentioned plot from Sacred History.

Старший науковий співробітник музею,
Candidate of Theology Miroslav May-Boroda

[1] Collection Cyrillic old collection of Chernihiv Historical Museum. В.В.Тарновського: Catalog / Compilers S.O. Polovnikova, І.М. Ситий. К., 1998. С. 40

[2] There only. С. 124

[3] There only. С. 26