Within fair Christmas days, January 6, 7 and 8, 2012, the clergy and the faithful of the Ukrainian Autocephalous Orthodox Church Canonical put moving theatrical performance "The History of the nativity of Jesus the Savior" based on the stories of the Holy Gospel.
More than 2000 years have already passed since the birth of the Savior. But the story of the birth of the Holy Son of God even now grips the hearts of people, giving them clear joy and hope for salvation.
A story of nativity of Jesus the Savior is read from the Holy Gospel.
"My son, it's time to destroy the Earth. I love people and I love this planet, but it is shrouded in darkness of human sins and breaks the harmony of the universe."
"Father, send me to Earth. I will bring teaching to people, I will teach them to love, to forgive, to save themselves from sin and darkness to live in harmony with the Universe."
In the days of Herod, king of Judea, there were a priest Zechariah and his wife Elizabeth. They were both righteous before God but they had no child.
Zechariah, your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you shall call his name John. He will be great before the Lord and he will turn many of the children of Israel to the Lord their God. He will go before him in the spirit and power of Elijah, to turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the disobedient to the wisdom of the just, to make ready for the Lord a people prepared.
In a city of Galilee named Nazareth there was a virgin Mary betrothed to a man named Joseph.
Angel Gabriel came to her and said: ?Greetings, O favored one, the Lord is with you! ... Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus. The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power ofthe Most High will overshadow you; therefore the child to be born will be called holy?the Son of God?.
"I am the servant of the Lord; let it be to me according to your word."
When mary entered the house of Zechariah, the baby leaped in womb of Elizabeth. And Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit, and she exclaimed with a loud cry: ?Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb!?
When Elizabeth gave birth to a son, he was named John. And Zechariah said, filled with spirit of prophecies: ?And you, child, will be called the prophet of the Most High; for you will go before the Lord to prepare his ways, to give knowledge of salvation to his people in the forgiveness of their sins, because of the tender mercy of our God?.
Now the birth of Jesus Christ took place in this way: when his mother Mary had been betrothed to Joseph, before they came together...
...she was found to be with childfrom the Holy Spirit. And her husband Joseph, being a just man and unwilling to put her to shame, resolved to divorce her quietly.
"Joseph, son of David, do not fear to take Mary as your wife, for that which is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. She will bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins".
When Joseph woke from sleep, he did as the angel of the Lord commanded him: he took his wife
And in the same region there were shepherds out in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night.
And an angel of the Lord appeared to them said to them: ?For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord?. And suddenly there was a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying: ?Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace among those with whom he is pleased!?
When the angels went away into heaven, the shepherds said to one another: ?Let us go over to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has made known to us?.
And they went with haste and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby lying in a manger. And when they saw it, they made known the saying that had been told them concerning this child.
And all who heard it wondered at what the shepherds told them. But Mary treasured up all these things, pondering them in her heart.
Now after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, behold, wise men from the east came to Jerusalem,
saying: "Where is he who has been born king of the Jews? For we saw his star when it rose and have come to worship him".
When Herod the king heard this, he was troubled, and all Jerusalem with him. Then Herod summoned the wise men secretly and ascertained from them what time the star had appeared. And he sent them to Bethlehem, saying: ?Go and search diligently for the child, and when you have found him, bring me word, that I too may come and worship him? .
And the star that they had seen when it rose went before them until it came to rest over the place where the child was. When they entered, they saw the child with Mary his mother, and they fell down and worshiped him.
Then, opening their treasures, they offered him gifts, gold and frankincense and myrrh.
And being warned in a dream not to return to Herod, they departed to their own country by another way.
Now when they had departed, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream and said: ?Rise, take the child and his mother, and flee to Egypt, and remain there until I tell you, for Herod is about to search for the child, to destroy him?.
And he rose and took the child and his mother by night and departed to Egypt and remained there until the death of Herod.
Then Herod, when he saw that he had been tricked by the wise men, became furious, and he sent and killed all the male children in Bethlehem and in all that region who were two years old or under. But not long after that Herod ruled, and he died.
An angel of the Lord appeared in a dream to Joseph in Egypt, saying: ?Rise, take the child and his mother and go to the land of Israel, for those who sought the child's life are dead.?
And he rose and took the child and his mother and went to the land of Israel. And he went and lived in a city called Nazareth, so that what was spoken by the prophets might be fulfilled, that he would be called a Nazarene.
This is a story of the birth of our Savior Jesus Christ. And now about 2,000 years grateful mankind exalts the glory of gratitude to God for His priceless gift, for the Son, who brought love in this sinful world, gave faith to the hearts of and gave hope for salvation. He sacrificed Himself to expiate our sins.
Joy to the world, the Lord is come! Let earth receive her King; Let every heart prepare Him room, And Heaven and nature sing, And Heaven and nature sing, And Heaven, and Heaven, and nature sing.
Joy to the world, the Savior reigns! Let men their songs employ; While fields and floods, rocks, hills and plains Repeat the sounding joy, Repeat the sounding joy, Repeat, repeat, the sounding joy.