- Ukraine Moves Christmas Day State Holiday to December 25
- President Zelensky Signs Bill to Abandon Russian Christmas Celebrations
- Ukraine’s Ongoing Efforts to Distance Itself from Russia
The official Christmas Day state holiday in Ukraine has been moved from January 7 to December 25. This is Ukraine’s latest attempt to distance itself from Russia.
President Volodymyr Zelensky signed a bill intended to “abandon the Russian tradition of imposing Christmas celebrations.”
In recent years, Kyiv has severed its religious, cultural, and other ties to Russia to align itself with the West.
This process intensified after Russia’s full-scale invasion in 2022.
The measure was signed by Mr. Zelensky on Friday, two weeks after it was passed by Ukrainian lawmakers.
The legislation also shifts two other state holidays: the Day of Ukrainian Statehood from July 28 to July 15, and the Defenders’ Day, which honors veterans of the armed forces, from October 14 to October 1.
Moscow has not yet made any public statements regarding the issue.
Throughout the centuries, imperial Russia and then the Soviet Union dominated by Moscow had unsuccessfully attempted to exert total control over Ukraine.
This included the Russian Orthodox Church’s (ROC) imposed authority over Ukraine’s congregations.
In contrast, in 2019, Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew, the spiritual leader of Orthodox Christians worldwide, conferred independence to the newly formed Orthodox Church of Ukraine (OCU).
The action provoked a furious response from the ROC, which openly supports the invasion of Ukraine by President Vladimir Putin.
Before this year, the OCU, along with several other Orthodox churches, including the ROC, observed Christmas on January 7 by the Julian calendar.
However, the OCU has now formally adopted the more accurate Gregorian calendar used by the majority of the globe.
In recent years, a growing number of Ukrainians have joined the OCU, and the vast majority of them will presumably celebrate Christmas on 25 December.
Some celebrate Christmas twice.
Simultaneously, millions continue to adhere to the Ukrainian Orthodox Church (UOC), the other established branch with parishes throughout the nation.
The UOC has not commented on recent happenings.
It formally declared independence from Moscow in 2022, but a number of its clerics have been prosecuted for pro-Russian activities in recent years.
According to the UOC, there is no evidence to substantiate the allegations of collaboration.
Ukraine’s decision to relocate Christmas is its most recent effort to distance itself from its northeastern neighbor.
Cities and towns throughout Ukraine have recently renamed streets associated with Russian and Soviet historical figures.
Similarly, several monuments have been demolished and Russian films produced after 2014 have been prohibited in Ukraine.
These measures followed Russia’s illegitimate annexation of the Crimean peninsula in southern Ukraine in March 2014.
