Nikolai Leskov, “Christ Visiting a Man”
This is a classic, very famous Yuletide story written in 1881. Its main theme is the miracle that happened to the rich Siberian merchant Timothy. His life was not easy; he grew up under the tutelage of his uncle, with whom he quarreled in his youth: his uncle cruelly and unfairly insulted and humiliated him. Unable to bear the insult, Timofey hit his uncle with a “weapon” (no details are given), was quite rightly convicted and sentenced to exile to Siberia. There he successfully socialized, got rich, got married... that is, on the external plane, everything was fine with him. But resentment towards his uncle lived in his soul, and Timofey, a deeply religious man, nevertheless remained in a difficult mood. The miracle that happened to him on Christmas night transformed his soul - he managed to forgive his uncle and eventually found peace in his soul.
When offering this story to teenagers, it must be emphasized that its setting is completely out of date, but the theme is eternal. And these days it’s just as hard to forgive someone who offended you as it was 150 years ago. But if you don’t forgive, then you won’t have a real life.
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"A Christmas Carol", Charles Dickens
Dickens's work is the story of a person's true spiritual rebirth. The main character, Scrooge, was a miser, became a merciful benefactor, and turned from a lone wolf into a sociable and friendly person. And this change was helped by the spirits who flew to him and showed him his possible future. Observing different situations from his past and future, the hero felt remorse for his wrong life.
Natalya Klyuchareva, “Yurka’s Christmas”
This modern story, written by a famous writer, winner of many literary awards, was first published in 2009 in the January issue of Thomas magazine and caused lively debate among readers. By outward appearances, this is tough social prose. The parents of the main character, the boy Yurka, become drunkards, and at some point he realizes: they not only ruined their own lives, but they could ruin his as well. Yurka becomes embittered, kicks her parents out of the house and begins to live independently, finds sources of income... Years pass, Yurka grows up, becomes an adult - and accidentally meets her mother on the street. A drunken, degenerate homeless woman. And this is where Christmas happens in Yurka’s heart - with a small letter, but still. He gets her into a hospital, begins to take care of her - and his mother does not recognize him, considers him a completely different person, complains to him about her heartless son...
What is important here, what to pay attention to? The fact that the Lord can perform a miracle is not at all where it is expected, and not at all in the way that it is expected. And the main miracle is in the change of the soul, which, it would seem, has become callous, in which, it would seem, there is nothing left to change. This is a tough story, there is no happy ending, but its ending is perceived as bright if viewed through the eyes of a Christian.
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"The Gift of the Magi", O. Henry
A well-known story about sacrificial love, which will give everything for the happiness of its neighbor. A story about tremulous feelings that cannot but surprise and delight. In the finale, the author ironically remarks: “And here I told you an unremarkable story about two stupid children from an eight-dollar apartment who, in the most unwise way, sacrificed their greatest treasures for each other.” But the author does not make excuses, he only confirms that the gifts of his heroes were more important than the gifts of the Magi: “But let it be said for the edification of the sages of our days that of all the givers these two were the wisest. Of all those who offer and receive gifts, only those like them are truly wise. Everywhere and everywhere. They are the Magi." As Joseph Brodsky said, “at Christmas everyone is a little wise man.”
Vitaly Kaplan, “Learning from a Star”
This is also a relatively modern story, written in 2003 and first published in Thomas magazine in December 2004. And, as in the case of “Yurka’s Christmas,” here the Christmas miracle takes place in a rather harsh setting. The main character, an elderly physics teacher Mikhail Nikolaevich, finds himself in a terrible situation - three bandits, swaggering, perform a “theological experiment” on him: they strip him in the cold, tie him to a tree... to check if there is a God. “Don’t be afraid, we won’t nail you. So hang there. And we'll go. Do you believe in Him? Do you love Him? Well, He will help you out. Like a chariot of fire, or angels... what do you think? And if not... then there is no God..." says the most frostbitten of these bandits. And God really intervenes, but not at all in the way the scumbags expected (or rather, did not expect at all). Here a miracle of transformation of the human soul takes place, an instantaneous transformation - as happened with the “prudent thief”, to whom the Lord promised on the cross: “today you will be with Me in Paradise.”
When discussing this story with children, it is worth paying attention to such a thing as God’s Providence, how unexpectedly the Lord can unite human destinies, how what at first seems like trouble to you is actually sent in order to save not only you, but also those who are connected to you by chains of cause and effect invisible to you. And this is also about the fact that if you are a Christian, you must be faithful to him even if it threatens you with death. Such situations arise very rarely in everyday life, but if they do happen, they should not take us by surprise.
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Compiled by Tatyana Strygina Christmas stories by Russian writers
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Sergei Lukyanenko, “Girl with Chinese lighters”
This story by a famous Russian science fiction writer was written in 2002 and looks very unexpected for a Christmas story. First of all, because this is a fantastic story, and this is classic science fiction - that is, there is no mysticism, it’s just that in the future people have invented a time machine and can travel to a variety of eras. There is a lot of subtle irony characteristic of most of Lukyanenko’s works; there are no obvious religious paraphernalia. Yes, it happens on Christmas night. And yes, a miracle happens that night - but it does not consist at all in time travel, but in the fact that the main character managed to do a good deed. This is not easy for him - Valery, an average Moscow businessman, is used to living for himself, selfishness has long become second nature to him, but here is a situation where he has to sacrifice very, very much - risk being left without a lucrative contract, getting into serious money. And yet, it turns out that his soul has not completely dried up, and in order to save the father of a strange girl from the future, he dares to make a sacrifice.
When discussing this story with children, it is worth emphasizing that Valery’s selfishness is a completely ordinary, modern phenomenon, that he is not some kind of monster. An ordinary person, of whom perhaps the majority are. But how difficult it is for him to act kindly, how scary it is for him to let someone else’s misfortune into his life. But difficult does not mean impossible. And the fact that all this happens on the eve of Christmas is also no coincidence. The story ends with the words “This evening all people will become kinder” - and here is a completely transparent hint that God exists and He touches our hearts. And then it depends on our free will.
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BionicLuney
Orthodox Life
“There are holidays that have their own smell. At Easter, Trinity and Christmas there is something special in the air. Even non-believers love these holidays. My brother, for example, interprets that there is no God, but on Easter he is the first to run to matins” (A.P. Chekhov, story “On the Way”).
Orthodox Christmas is just around the corner! Many interesting traditions are associated with the celebration of this bright day (and even several Christmastides). In Rus', it was customary to devote this period to serving one’s neighbor and deeds of mercy. Everyone knows the tradition of caroling - singing songs in honor of the born Christ. The winter holidays have inspired many writers to create magical Christmas stories.
There is even a special genre of Christmas story. The plots in it are very close to each other: often the heroes of Christmas works find themselves in a state of spiritual or material crisis, the resolution of which requires a miracle. Christmas stories are imbued with light and hope, and only a few of them have a sad ending. Especially often, Christmas stories are dedicated to the triumph of mercy, compassion and love.
Especially for you, dear readers, we have prepared a selection of the best Christmas stories from both Russian and foreign writers. Read and enjoy, may the festive mood last longer!
"The Gift of the Magi", O. Henry
A well-known story about sacrificial love, which will give everything for the happiness of its neighbor. A story about tremulous feelings that cannot but surprise and delight. In the finale, the author ironically remarks: “And here I told you an unremarkable story about two stupid children from an eight-dollar apartment who, in the most unwise way, sacrificed their greatest treasures for each other.” But the author does not make excuses, he only confirms that the gifts of his heroes were more important than the gifts of the Magi: “But let it be said for the edification of the sages of our days that of all the givers these two were the wisest. Of all those who offer and receive gifts, only those like them are truly wise. Everywhere and everywhere. They are the Magi." As Joseph Brodsky said, “at Christmas everyone is a little wise man.”
“Nikolka”, Evgeniy Poselyanin
The plot of this Christmas story is very simple. At Christmas time, the stepmother acted very meanly to her stepson; he should have died. At the Christmas service, a woman experiences belated repentance. But on a bright holiday night a miracle happens...
By the way, Evgeny Poselyanin has wonderful memories of his childhood experience of Christmas - “Yule Days”. You read and are immersed in the pre-revolutionary atmosphere of noble estates, childhood and joy.
"A Christmas Carol", Charles Dickens
Dickens's work is the story of a person's true spiritual rebirth. The main character, Scrooge, was a miser, became a merciful benefactor, and turned from a lone wolf into a sociable and friendly person. And this change was helped by the spirits who flew to him and showed him his possible future. Observing different situations from his past and future, the hero felt remorse for his wrong life.
“The Boy at Christ’s Christmas Tree”, F. M. Dostoevsky
A touching story with a sad (and joyful at the same time) ending. I doubt whether it is worth reading to children, especially sensitive ones. But for adults, perhaps it’s worth it. For what? I would answer with the words of Chekhov: “It is necessary that behind the door of every contented, happy person there should be someone with a hammer and constantly remind him by knocking that there are unfortunate people, that, no matter how happy he is, life will sooner or later show him its claws , trouble will strike - illness, poverty, loss, and no one will see or hear him, just as now he does not see or hear others.”
Dostoevsky included it in the “Diary of a Writer” and he himself was surprised how this story came out of his pen. And the author’s writer’s intuition tells him that this could very well happen in reality. The main sad storyteller of all times, H. H. Andersen, has a similar tragic story - “The Little Match Girl”.
"Gifts of the Christ Child" by George MacDonald
The story of a young family going through difficult times in their relationships, difficulties with a nanny, and alienation from their daughter. The last one is the sensitive, lonely girl Sophie (or Fosi). It was through her that joy and light returned to the house. The story emphasizes: the main gifts of Christ are not gifts under the tree, but love, peace and mutual understanding.
“Christmas Letter”, Ivan Ilyin
I would call this short work, composed of two letters from a mother and son, a real hymn of love. It is she, unconditional love, that runs like a red thread through the entire work and is its main theme. It is this state that resists loneliness and defeats it.
“Whoever loves, his heart blooms and smells fragrant; and he gives his love just like a flower gives its scent. But then he is not alone, because his heart is with the one he loves: he thinks about him, cares about him, rejoices in his joy and suffers from his suffering. He doesn't have time to feel lonely or wonder whether he is lonely or not. In love a person forgets himself; he lives with others, he lives in others. And this is happiness.”
Christmas is a holiday of overcoming loneliness and alienation, it is the day of the manifestation of Love...
"God in the Cave", Gilbert Chesterton
We are accustomed to perceive Chesterton primarily as the author of detective stories about Father Brown. But he wrote in different genres: he penned several hundred poems, 200 short stories, 4,000 essays, a number of plays, the novels “The Man Who Was Thursday,” “The Ball and the Cross,” “The Migratory Tavern” and much more. Chesterton was also an excellent publicist and deep thinker. In particular, his essay “God in the Cave” is an attempt to comprehend the events of two thousand years ago. I recommend it to people with a philosophical mindset.
“Silver Blizzard”, Vasily Nikiforov-Volgin
Nikiforov-Volgin in his work surprisingly subtly shows the world of children's faith. His stories are permeated with a festive atmosphere. So, in the story “Silver Blizzard”, with trepidation and love, he shows the boy with his zeal for piety, on the one hand, and with mischief and pranks, on the other. Consider one apt phrase from the story: “These days I don’t want anything earthly, especially school!”
Holy Night, Selma Lagerlöf
Selma Lagerlöf's story continues the theme of childhood.
Grandmother tells her granddaughter an interesting legend about Christmas. It is not canonical in the strict sense, but it reflects the spontaneity of the people's faith. This is an amazing story about mercy and how “a pure heart opens the eyes with which a person can enjoy seeing the beauty of heaven.”
“Christ visiting a man”, “Unchangeable ruble”, “At Christmas they offended”, Nikolai Leskov
These three stories struck me to the core, so it was difficult to choose the best one. I discovered Leskov from some unexpected side. These works by the author have common features. This is both a fascinating plot and general ideas of mercy, forgiveness and doing good deeds. Examples of heroes from these works surprise, evoke admiration and a desire to imitate.
"Reader! be kind: intervene in our history too, remember what today’s Newborn taught you: to punish or have mercy? To the One who gave you the “verbs of eternal life”... Think! This is very worth your thought, and the choice is not difficult for you... Do not be afraid to seem funny and stupid if you act according to the rule of the One who said to you: “Forgive the offender and gain yourself a brother in him” (N. S. Leskov, “Under Christmas was offended."
Many novels have chapters dedicated to Christmas, for example, “The Unquenchable Lamp” by B. Shiryaev, “Conduit and Schwambrania” by L. Kassil, “In the First Circle” by A. Solzhenitsyn, “The Summer of the Lord” by I. S. Shmelev.
The Christmas story, for all its apparent naivety, fabulousness and unusualness, has always been loved by adults. Maybe because Christmas stories are primarily about goodness, about faith in miracles and the possibility of human spiritual rebirth?
Christmas is truly a holiday of children's faith in miracles... Many Christmas stories are devoted to describing this pure joy of childhood. I will quote wonderful words from one of them: “The great holiday of Christmas, surrounded by spiritual poetry, is especially understandable and close to a child... The Divine Child was born, and to Him be praise, glory and honor of the world. Everyone rejoiced and rejoiced. And in memory of the Holy Child, on these days of bright memories, all children should have fun and rejoice. This is their day, a holiday of innocent, pure childhood...” (Klavdiya Lukashevich, “Christmas Holiday”).
PS When preparing this collection, I read a lot of Christmas stories, but, of course, not all of them in the world. I chose according to my taste those that seemed the most fascinating and artistically expressive. Preference was given to little-known works, which is why, for example, the list does not include N. Gogol’s “The Night Before Christmas” or Hoffmann’s “The Nutcracker.”
What are your favorite Christmas works, dear matrons?
Evgenia Novoseltseva
Matrony.Ru
“Silver Blizzard”, Vasily Nikiforov-Volgin
Nikiforov-Volgin in his work surprisingly subtly shows the world of children's faith. His stories are permeated with a festive atmosphere. So, in the story “Silver Blizzard”, with trepidation and love, he shows the boy with his zeal for piety, on the one hand, and with mischief and pranks, on the other. Consider one apt phrase from the story: “These days I don’t want anything earthly, especially school!”
“The Little Match Girl”, H. H. Andersen
The short story of a young match seller who is afraid to return home for fear of her cruel father's wrath and freezes outside on New Year's Eve is a classic Christmas story. The narrative, aimed at softening callous souls and calling for mercy, has repeatedly inspired directors and musicians: several films have been made based on the story (1903, 1919, 1928, 2013), a short Disney cartoon (2006) and even an opera (1897).
The tree was burning with thousands of lights, and from the green branches the colorful pictures that she had seen before in shop windows looked out at the girl. The little one stretched out both hands to the tree, but the match went out, the lights began to rise higher and higher, and turned into clear stars; one of them suddenly rolled across the sky, leaving a long trail of fire behind it.
“Christmas” (from the novel “The Summer of the Lord”), I. S. Shmelev
The story about Christmas, which Ivan Shmelev wrote for his seven-year-old godson in 1927, formed the basis of the novel “The Summer of the Lord,” which collected the writer’s memories of his patriarchal childhood, the milestones of which were church holidays. Shmelev admitted that working on the novel saved him from severe depression caused by the death of his son. “In the book,” he said, “I show the face of Holy Rus', which I carry in my heart... Russia, which looked into my childhood soul.”
Before Christmas, three days before, in the markets, in the squares, there was a forest of fir trees. And what Christmas trees! There is as much of this goodness in Russia as you want. Not like here - stamens. At our Christmas tree... as soon as it warms up and straightens its paws, there is a thicket. There used to be a forest on Theater Square. They are standing in the snow. And the snow will fall - I’ve lost my way! Men, in sheepskin coats, like in the forest. People walk and choose. <…> Frosty Russia, and... warm!..
Bethlehem Child
Selma Lagerlöf
The road twisted in a deep gorge, where not the slightest wind could reach. Both horse and rider were ready to fall exhausted.
The warrior had long since lost all trace of the fugitives and had completely lost heart.
But suddenly he noticed in one of the rocks rising near the road a vaulted entrance to a cave. He stopped his horse and thought: “I’ll rest here for a while. Maybe with new strength I can continue the chase.”
When he was about to enter the cave, something amazing struck him. On both sides of the entrance grew two beautiful lily bushes. They stood tall and slender, thickly strewn with flowers that gave off the sweet smell of honey, and many bees scurried and buzzed around them.
It was such an extraordinary sight that the warrior unexpectedly picked one of the large white flowers and took it with him to the cave.
the cave was not deep and not dark, and as soon as he entered under its arch, he saw that there were already three travelers there. It was a man, a woman and a child who were lying on the ground, deep in sleep.
The warrior's heart began to beat faster than ever at this sight. These were precisely the fugitives he had been pursuing for so long. And so they lay and slept, completely defenseless, being completely in his power.
The soldier quickly grabbed the sword from its sheath and bent over the sleeping baby. He carefully pointed the sword at the child's heart, intending to end him with one blow. Just as he was preparing to stab him, he stopped for a moment to look into the baby's face. His joy increased even more when he recognized the child as a tiny boy who was playing before his eyes with bees and lilies in the meadow at the city gates.
“It’s not for nothing that I always hated him,” the soldier thought. “After all, this is the prince of peace, whose appearance was foretold by the prophets.” When I lay the head of this child before Herod, he will make me the commander of his bodyguards.”
Bringing the tip of his sword closer and closer to the sleeping baby, he rejoiced. But the soldier was still holding in his hand the lily he had picked at the entrance to the cave, and suddenly a bee flew out of its corolla and began to buzz around his head. The warrior shuddered. He remembered the bees that the little boy had carried to their home hive, and it occurred to him that one of these bees had helped the boy escape at the festival given by Herod. This thought struck him. He lowered his sword, straightened up and stood listening to the bee.
“The Night Before Christmas”, N.V. Gogol
“The Night Before Christmas” from the series “Evenings on a Farm near Dikanka” is perhaps the most famous story about Christmas in the school curriculum, and it has a truly happy ending. Good here defeats evil, the hero Vakula is brave and generous, like a classic epic hero, whom a righteous lifestyle and faith help him cope with the devil himself and emerge victorious. The plot inspired two composers at once: operas based on Gogol's story were written by Pyotr Tchaikovsky and Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov.
The month shines wonderfully! It’s hard to tell how good it is to hang out on such a night, between a bunch of laughing and singing girls and between boys, ready for all the jokes and inventions that a cheerfully laughing night can inspire. It's warm under the thick casing; the frost makes your cheeks burn even more vividly; and in a prank the evil one himself pushes from behind.
“The Boy at Christ’s Christmas Tree”, F. M. Dostoevsky
A touching story with a sad (and joyful at the same time) ending. I doubt whether it is worth reading to children, especially sensitive ones. But for adults, perhaps it’s worth it. For what? I would answer with the words of Chekhov: “It is necessary that behind the door of every contented, happy person there should be someone with a hammer and constantly remind him by knocking that there are unfortunate people, that, no matter how happy he is, life will sooner or later show him its claws , trouble will strike - illness, poverty, loss, and no one will see or hear him, just as now he does not see or hear others.”
Dostoevsky included it in the “Diary of a Writer” and he himself was surprised how this story came out of his pen. And the author’s writer’s intuition tells him that this could very well happen in reality. The main sad storyteller of all times, H. H. Andersen, has a similar tragic story - “The Little Match Girl”.
A Christmas Tale 2
Saint Nicholas of Serbia
In ancient, ancient times, long before the birth of Christ, there lived in Bethlehem a man named Jesse, the son of Obed, the grandson of Boaz and Ruth. Jesse had eight sons; the youngest son was named David. He was a shepherd, tending the sheep of Bethlehem. The Holy Scripture says that he was a slender, fair-haired and handsome youth. This young, handsome shepherd was amazingly strong and brave: if a lion or bear stole a sheep from his flock, he easily overtook the beast, tore it out of its bloodthirsty mouth and killed the kidnapper. So, our David was truly a good and faithful shepherd of his snow-white flock. And he honored his father, as the Lord commanded.
He often spent the night in the field, on a wide earthly bed, covered with a golden-woven blanket of the starry sky. But what I will tell you happened not in a field under the stars, but in a stone cave in Bethlehem.
One day it turned out to be a very hot day (such days are not uncommon in this eastern country). David's sheep lay down in the shade of the olive trees. The sun burned mercilessly, and the sheep groaned with thirst. David also suffered from thirst. He entered a cave to hide from the heat and rest. These caves are cool in summer and warm in winter. Entering the cave, the young shepherd sat down on a stone, but drowsiness overcame him, and he lay down and fell asleep. Only the dream was short-lived: through his sleep, David felt something cold on his body, shuddered and woke up. Opening his eyes, he saw that a vile snake had curled up on his chest and wrapped around his arms! So she raised her flat head above his face and angrily, without blinking, looked at the boy with eyes burning like coal. David shuddered with horror. His situation was desperate, there seemed to be no salvation. As soon as he moves, the snake will bite into him and spill its poison into his blood. Oh, how much easier it was for him to fight a roaring lion or a roaring bear than with this creeping and tenacious reptile!
What to do? And then David remembered his unfailing helper in troubles, his Lord, and cried out with all his heart, full of pain and tears: “Do not leave me, O Lord my God, do not depart from me! Hasten to help me, my Savior in so many troubles!” As soon as he uttered these words, an extraordinary light shone in the corner of the cave. The light had the shape of a circle, human height. In the middle of this shining circle, David saw a beautiful Maiden with a gentle and serious face. The young woman sat down, Her head slightly bowed towards the Baby, Whom She was holding in her arms: the son of Jesse had never seen such a beautiful Baby. Suddenly the Child straightened up in the Mother’s arms and vigilantly looked at the snake with eyes like two lightning bolts. And he pointed his finger at the exit from the cave, as if commanding her to disappear. David jumped up and fell on his face before the Maiden and the radiant Child. He wanted to thank Them for the unexpected salvation, but as soon as he opened his lips, he looked and saw no one. After this, the entire cave was filled with some wonderful fragrance, reminiscent of the aroma of the most expensive incense or myrrh.
Until the last day of his life, David could not forget this miraculous phenomenon. Raised by the Lord from shepherding to the royal throne, he always remembered this miracle. Already being a king, he wrote two inspired songs - one to the Most Beautiful of the sons of men, and the other to the Queen in gilded robes. And, playing the harp, he sang these songs in the high tower of his Jerusalem castle.
And you, little one, guess quickly: what kind of cave is this? What does a terrible snake mean? Who is this Young Lady? Who is the Baby?
“Christmas Letter”, Ivan Ilyin
I would call this short work, composed of two letters from a mother and son, a real hymn of love. It is she, unconditional love, that runs like a red thread through the entire work and is its main theme. It is this state that resists loneliness and defeats it.
“Whoever loves, his heart blooms and smells fragrant; and he gives his love just like a flower gives its scent. But then he is not alone, because his heart is with the one he loves: he thinks about him, cares about him, rejoices in his joy and suffers from his suffering. He doesn't have time to feel lonely or wonder whether he is lonely or not. In love a person forgets himself; he lives with others, he lives in others. And this is happiness.”
Christmas is a holiday of overcoming loneliness and alienation, it is the day of the manifestation of Love...
"God in the Cave", Gilbert Chesterton
We are accustomed to perceive Chesterton primarily as the author of detective stories about Father Brown. But he wrote in different genres: he penned several hundred poems, 200 short stories, 4,000 essays, a number of plays, the novels “The Man Who Was Thursday,” “The Ball and the Cross,” “The Migratory Tavern” and much more. Chesterton was also an excellent publicist and deep thinker. In particular, his essay “God in the Cave” is an attempt to comprehend the events of two thousand years ago. I recommend it to people with a philosophical mindset.
