Throughout its entire history, the Orthodox Church has resolutely and unwaveringly fought against the soul-destroying remnants of pre-Christian pagan rituals and practices. As a result of this, over time, such senseless pagan rituals have been almost entirely eradicated globally, except in some isolated areas where they barely survived, having lost almost all significance. Even these rare pagan remnants gradually faded away, confined to their local surroundings. However, modern society, with its different norms and life philosophies, tragically distanced man from God and gradually led humanity to the brink of immorality and spiritual decadence. This society has begun to resurrect those once-abandoned pagan rites, which, in recent decades, seem to be awakening again, under the guise of quasi-religiosity and quasi-celebrations. The media, along with certain organizations and institutions, play a significant role in promoting these manifestations, alien to our Christian culture and tradition, presenting them as a “significant cultural heritage,” though from a spiritual perspective, they represent more of a regression than a cultural gain.
A typical example of such a “cultural gain” is the carnival. Although it has absolutely no connection with the sacred Orthodox tradition, carnival is presented in our country as if it were, practically, a part of Church practice. The absurdity goes so far that in some places, carnival is even equated with significant Church days, such as the beginning of the Holy Great Lenten fast—Trimir (the word “trimir” means “three days”, during which the faithful completely abstain from all food and drink).
It is an understatement to say that such manifestations have absolutely nothing in common with Orthodoxy. Not only are they unrelated to the symbolism of the day, but on the contrary, they blatantly defile the deep Christian meaning of that holy day, on which the Holy Orthodox Church calls upon the faithful, through fasting and prayer, to purify their souls and bodies so that they may, in all purity and piety, prepare to celebrate the glorious Resurrection of Christ. At the Vevčani Carnival, paradoxically, the great Christian saint, St. Basil the Great, is depicted as the patron of this pagan manifestation, with his image even flying on banners! How can this great father of the Church, whose divinely inspired words most strongly denounced such immoral and dissolute celebrations, be associated with that which he most zealously fought against!? Furthermore, mocking the religious feelings of adherents of any faith is completely contrary to the spirit of Christ’s exalted teaching on love, peace, non-judgment, and forgiveness. Our Lord, who gave us the two greatest commandments of love, teaches us to treat everyone as our brothers and neighbors, never to grieve anyone with our actions. Not only that, He says, “Love your enemies, and pray for those who persecute you.” This is our thorny path, the narrow road to salvation. Therefore, it is both wrong and unjust that someone would associate our Holy Orthodox Church with such manifestations, subjecting her to extreme cruelty and suffering through the vandalistic desecration and destruction of her holy places.
In fact, historically speaking, the pagan origins of carnival clearly testify to its non-Christian spirit, entirely opposed to Orthodox tradition. Carnivals were once part of celebrations associated with the Hellenic god Dionysus, known as the Dionysian festivals. In ancient Rome, similar rituals were performed during the festivals called Saturnalia and Bacchanalia, which were, and still are, synonymous with debauchery and moral impurity. The Christianization of the Roman Empire put an end to such festivals through fervent preaching and the exposure of these immoral vices, leaving only some traces in remote and neglected areas, but without significant influence. However, the further departure of nations from the Holy Apostolic Tradition led to the resurgence of these pagan remnants, gaining momentum. By the 10th century, the first organized carnivals appeared in Western European cities, especially in Italy. Unable to completely oppose this phenomenon, the Roman Catholic Church at least ensured that carnivals were integrated into the annual Church calendar without disrupting the fasts. Thus, carnivals were held before the beginning of Great Lent, specifically during Meatfare Week. Hence, the word carnival derives from the Italian carnevale, which originates from the Old Italian carnelevare, a compound of the Latin caro, carnis, meaning ‘meat’, and levare, meaning ‘to leave’. Consequently, the word carnival literally means ‘to leave meat’.
Among the Orthodox peoples of the East, carnivals were unknown. They were introduced from the West as a result of the increasing influence of Western Europe in the Balkans during the Ottoman Empire. There are records that diplomatic representatives (consuls) from European countries were the first to introduce organized carnivals in major cities (e.g., Thessaloniki and Bitola). Additionally, our migrant workers in Western countries adopted certain aspects of their cultures and brought them back to their homelands. As a result, carnival games, in a modified form, began to appear in certain parts of Macedonia. In the absence of proper masks and costumes like those in the West, our people improvised by combining what they had seen abroad with inherited pagan elements, such as dressing in animal skins and various rags, as seen in the example of the Babari. From the very inception of such rituals, the Holy Orthodox Church, through preaching and teaching, has peacefully pointed out the spiritual harm caused by such non-Christian practices, primitive customs, and quasi-celebrations.
