Tomorrow we celebrate the Mother of God, you must respect these customs

Our Lady of the Three Hands, Photo: Public

The Serbian Orthodox Church is celebrating Mother’s Day tomorrow, one of the few holidays coming up for Christmas. Just as mothers tied their children to their children, in the same way that today children tie their mothers.

The womb is celebrated the second week before Christmas.

On that day, children with a previously prepared rope, thread, scarf, scarf or belt tie their mother to their legs in a raid, in the same way that their mothers tied children.

The mother pretends not to know why she is tied, while the children congratulate her on the holiday, and then she gives gifts to the children, and thus dresses.

All married women are also married, disguising themselves with gifts for children, cakes or other sweets.

This mutual “dressing” in Christian homes creates a festive and solemn atmosphere like that which, together with the gifts, the Eastern sages brought to the holy family of God in the cave of Bethlehem.

A festive and fasting lunch is being prepared that brings the whole family together.

On the Sunday before Christmas, which is called Fathers, mothers and children “tie” their fathers and “dress” them.

Like baptismal parties, these parties are our unique vacations. They abound in the warmth of the family environment, so the beauty of the celebration is in the unwavering love of parents and children.

Celebrating festivals with many customs, and that the Serbian people stand out for the wealth of details in their conservation, is also a guarantee of survival of the tradition.

In the Serbian spiritual treasure, the role of customs and their intergenerational transmission is expressed in the proverb “It is better for a village to die than a custom”.