Mixed feelings for some Ukrainians in Manitoba about shift to celebrating Christmas on Dec. 25

Many Ukrainian Orthodox Christians in Manitoba will be celebrating Christmas earlier than usual this year, after changes made both in Ukraine and by the Ukrainian Orthodox Church in Canada.

Earlier this year, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy signed a law moving his country’s official Christmas Day holiday to Dec. 25 from Jan. 7 — the day it’s observed by the Russian Orthodox Church, and some other Eastern Orthodox churches that still use the ancient Julian calendar.

The stated aim of Ukraine’s law, passed in July, was to “abandon the Russian heritage” of celebrating on Jan. 7, following Russia’s ongoing invasion of Ukraine, which began in February 2022. 

The Ukrainian Orthodox Church of Canada began consultations with its members soon after, and announced earlier this month that it will officially adopt the revised Julian calendar — which marks Christmas on Dec. 25.

“This is a huge change, a monumental change in our psychology and in the way we have done things for generations,” said Father Eugene Maximiuk of Holy Trinity Ukrainian Orthodox Metropolitan Cathedral in Winnipeg.

“But it is a change that will be embraced, and it will take time to accept completely.” 

Father Timothy Chrapko — an Edmonton-based spokesperson for the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of Canada who also teaches theology at the University of Manitoba’s St. Andrew’s College — said that following Ukraine’s new law, Ukrainian Orthodox priests across Canada had met by the end of August.

“A fairly large majority felt that they would like to see the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of Canada also adopt the revised Julian calendar,” he said.

“The situation in Ukraine … did play a factor,” in the change in Canada, he said, “but the discussion of the revised Julian calendar was something that had been going on for a while already.”

It’s a change that not only affects Christmas, but many other fixed holidays like Epiphany or Saint Nicholas Day, because the Julian calendar celebrates most church holidays 13 days later than the Gregorian calendar.

However, no parish will be compelled to adopt the revised dates immediately, and some parishes are remaining on the old Julian calendar until February of next year, he said.

Some cathedrals, like those in Edmonton and Toronto, will celebrate Christmas Eve and Christmas Day exclusively on Dec. 24 and 25 this year, he said.

But others, like Holy Trinity in Winnipeg, will hold celebrations in December, but also hold traditional celebrations on Jan. 6 and 7 as well.

That will accommodate the existing plans of many members, said Holy Trinity’s Father Maximiuk.

“This will allow those families that still … would like to celebrate at least one more Christmas on the old Julian calendar,” he said.

Some Ukrainians had already shifted their Christmas celebrations to Dec. 25 last year, following the Russian invasion.

Since the war broke out, many displaced Ukrainians have come to Canada, and the change has been greeted positively by some families seeking to make Canada their new home for themselves, said Maximiuk.

‘Hard to also lose … our old traditions’

But he said there has been a mixed response in the community, and since this year will be the first since the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of Canada made the change official, celebrating both holiday dates will allow families to adjust to the change.

“This is the right thing to do to help our families in this time of transition.”

Winnipeg’s Michelle Kowalchuk, 50, is a second-generation Ukrainian-Canadian who is still adjusting to the recent change.

Because it was only announced by the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of Canada a few weeks back, “it’s a little bit late to make a change,” she said. “We’re still preparing for Jan. 6.”

She says, though, that she has mixed feelings between preserving old traditions and opposing the ongoing war.

“On one hand we have a lot of empathy for our Ukrainian brothers and sisters … and we want to kind of be aligned with that,” Kowalchuk said.

“But on the other hand, for those of us who’ve been celebrating on the old calendar all of our lives, it’s a big change.… It’s hard to also lose, or feel like we’re moving away from, our old traditions.”

But she says that for her family, next year “we need to kind of move forward with this change.”

Maximiuk also acknowledges the decision was not easy for many Ukrainians who have lived in Canada for generations and celebrated Orthodox Christmas.

“This is something that is very familiar to us, something very dear and precious. It also made us unique in a way as well. And so the emotions are varied.”