Nagpurians chill in Christmas fervour

Nagpur: The Christian community in the city is already in the festive mood as the most important of all festivals in their calendar is just round the corner. Christmas, which marks the birth of Jesus Christ, is preceded by a week of festivities which includes special prayers service/mass, carol singing, and Christmas Tree programmes in churches, which are primarily for the young ones.Both the Catholic and Protestant churches have minor variations in the prayer services they hold and the timings. In almost all churches, the week leading up to December 25 starts with “Nine Lessons & Carols”. The nine lessons are short readings from the Holy Bible, which encompass the beginning of time till the birth of Jesus. They are read out either by the pastor or members of the church, and intertwined with singing of hymns by the choir.

Carol singing is one of the most looked forward to events, especially by the youth. A group from each church visits homes of their members and sing carols, armed only with ‘unplugged’ version of instruments like guitar, harmonium, dafli etc. The songs usually focus on announcing the birth of Jesus, and the promise of sending a messiah being fulfilled by God.Depending on the language used in that particular church, the songs are either in English, Hindi, Marathi or any other regional one. Carol groups usually visit homes from around 8pm till late in the night. At Christmas Tree programme, the young ones of every church perform dramas/plays related to stories from the Bible and sing songs. The main attraction is the Santa Claus who comes bearing gifts for the kids, much to their amusement. And no festival can be complete without desserts and savouries. Manish Hirekan, a Nagpurian said, “Traditionally this part of India, rose cookies, kulkuls, karanjees, rum cake, sweet cookies (sakkar para) etc are the must-have items prepared at home with all elders and young ones playing there part in the preparations with traditional Christmas carols playing in background.”Decorations comprising a Christmas tree and a star hung outside the door are common at every Christian home. In the morning, kids look for their gifts from the Santa below the Christmas tree. And the star signifies the North Star in the sky, which was used as a direction by the famed “Three Wise Men” to locate Jesus’ birthplace, the night he was born. The faithful visit church in the morning for prayers.