Public invited to celebrate Christmas with Russians in Vancouver

After a two-year hiatus, there will be another public Russian Christmas celebration in Vancouver today.

The event begins with a concert for kids from 2 p.m. to 3 :30 p.m. at the Russian Community Centre of Vancouver (2114 West 4th Avenue).

This will be followed by a main concert from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m. put on by Russian Palme Theatre and featuring the RCC Balalayka Orchestra and other performers.

A block away from the community centre in a West 4th Avenue Starbucks, organizer Andrew Ahachinsky told the Straight that the choir will sing traditional carols from Russia, Ukraine, and Belarus.

"I am humbly one of the members, one of the tenors," Ahachinsky said with a smile.

The Russian Orthodox Church celebrated Christmas Day on Thursday (January 7). It's preceded by a 40-day Lent during which adherents do not eat meat.

Ahachinsky noted that Christmas is mostly a religious celebration in Russia because the church plays such a large role in the country nowadays.

He said that many people fast prior to Christmas and attend overnight services. In smaller towns and cities, people dress up as characters from the Bible to celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ.

He likened it to Halloween, albeit with a far more spiritual dimension.

"They go door to door to different houses and sing," Ahachinsky said. "The hosts would try to give them money or treats or food for good fortune."

He also mentioned that 12 traditional dishes representing the 12 apostles are served at this time.

Christmas wasn't always celebrated so openly in Russia. During the Soviet era from 1917 to 1992, the government tried to make the arrival of the new year the major celebration.

That's because, in the words of Karl Marx, religion was considered to be "the opiate of the masses".

According to Ahachinsky, the Christmas celebrations continued, mostly in an underground way. Some Russians would keep religious artifacts hidden during that era.

There was a meltdown of sorts in the 1960s, but it wasn't until the 1990s that Christmas became a major public celebration in Russia.

"When the revival came, it came very hard," he said. "The appetite for religion had been very strong."

Ahachinsky is of Russian ancestry and was born in Ukraine. He moved to Canada about 20 years ago.

Last November, he attended a meeting in Moscow of members of the Russian diaspora from 97 countries. He said that most delegates came from cultural organizations, schools, and the scientific community. 

Ahachisky made a presentation about the importance of keeping Russian-speaking youth in other countries engaged with Russian culture.

"People say Moscow is not Russia and Russia is not Moscow," he emphasized. "Russia is a very big country with a very diverse demographic."