on 16 August, Christians of the Eastern Rite celebrate the Feast of the Transfer of the Saviour Jesus Christ. It is also popularly known as the Nut, Bread or Third Saviour, the Man-made Saviour or the Saviour on Canvas. This is the last of the three Saviours celebrated in August, Komersant ukrainskyi
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Previously, the Nut Savior was celebrated on 29 August, but the date changed after the OCU switched to the new calendar.
History of the holiday
The Nut Saviour is a church holiday dedicated to the transfer of the Man-made image of Jesus Christ from Edessa to Constantinople in 944. The image is considered to be man-made because it was formed after Jesus Christ put a cloth to his face, which was miraculously imprinted on it. Hence the second name of the holiday – the Man-made Saviour or the Saviour on the canvas.
What is celebrated on the Nut Saviour?
On 29 August, the Third Nut Saviour, it is customary to bless nuts and bread baked from the flour of the new harvest in the church. Just like on other feasts of the Savior, believers bring to the church fruits of the new harvest, water and honey.
After the consecration, people would go home and set a table rich in treats, which would include nut tincture, fresh bread and pies with fruit fillings. The celebrations were lavish and vociferous, because the strict Dormition Fast was over and it was possible to have rich feasts.
Traditions of celebrating the Nut Saviour
The Last Savior is considered to be a farewell to summer and preparation for autumn. A folk saying goes: “The first Spas is when people stand on the water, the second Spas is when they eat apples, and the third Spas is when they sell canvas on the green mountains.”
The harvest always ended in August, so it was customary to bake bread from the grain of the new harvest. That’s why it is also called the Bread Saviour.
Nuts were also gathered at this time and used to make a healing tincture for the winter.
Bath brooms were made from walnut branches on Spas. It was believed that such a broom could cure diseases. On this holiday, it was also customary to go to the bathhouse and take a steam bath with walnut brooms.
On this day, people also cleaned wells and blessed the water in them.
What not to do on the Nut Savior: prohibitions
The Bread Savior completes the cycle of summer Savior’s feasts, so, like the previous two, it has its own prohibitions. According to the rules, on 29 August it is forbidden to
- quarreling and swearing;
- going to the forest;
- to be lazy and idle;
- refuse to help the needy.
Third Nut Saviour: folk signs
- The Third Saviour is a bread supply.
- The Third Savior is on the canvas, and the bread is on the stream.
- If you have a lot of nuts for the Savior, you will have enough bread in a year.
- The crane flies away to the Third Savior – it will be frosty on the Intercession.
- Nutty Savior – the sun has gone into autumn.