Vinh - A magical and sacred Christmas night
Sharing the joy with 240,000 Catholics in 9 parishes and 328 parishes in the whole province, the people of Nghe An had a warm and bustling Christmas. Whether Catholic or not, everyone worshiped and prayed for the best things for this life, this homeland...
(Baonghean.vn) -Sharing the joy with 240,000 Catholics in 9 dioceses and 328 parishes in the whole province, the people of Nghe An had a great season.ChristmasSo warm and bustling. Whether Catholic or not, everyone worships and prays for the best things for this life, this homeland...
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Strangely, every year on Christmas the weather turns cold. This Christmas is the coldest day of this year's winter in Nghe An, even though just a few days before it was sunny. The cold winter night makes people closer, more open and friendly. In the house, it seems that everyone likes to admire and decorate the colorful pine trees, and buy warm red hats for the children. In the church, the parishioners sit peacefully and gently listening to the priest preach. Under the church bell tower, everyone silently watches, worships and anxiously waits for the moment of the birth of the baby Jesus. Like in 82 other parishes, in Cau Ram parish, this is the most joyful and bustling day of the year for the parishioners.
Cau Ram Cathedral was splendid and brilliant with candles, golden bells, colorful flashing lights, and elaborately decorated caves. A special art program called “Jesus Christ: The Eternal Word of God the Father”, with performances by nuns, church choirs, parishioners, and artists, attracted a large crowd.
Sharing with us her feelings about a Christmas Eve in the parish, Chu Thi Vinh (Quang Trung ward, Vinh city) shared: “I felt a little bit emotional when entering the church, although I am not a religious person, I still felt the wonderful, interesting and sacred feeling. At this moment, I wish everyone peace and happiness. I wish our world to be free of war, poverty, natural disasters, and epidemics”... The later it got, the more people flocked to the parish. Everyone tried to wait until 12 o'clock, the moment when the Virgin Mary gave birth to the baby Jesus on the green grass...
Different from the solemn atmosphere in the church, on the streets, at shopping centers, supermarkets, restaurants or entertainment venues, bars, cafes... are also colorful and especially decorated with typical images of Christmas Eve. Displayed in front of the lobby of Intimex Supermarket for about a week now is the image of a herd of reindeer pulling a sleigh carrying Santa Claus with a heavy bag of gifts on his shoulder.
Central Park is also notable for its grottos, pine trees, sparkling stars, pretty bells, large gift packages tied with stylish bows, sparkling garlands... and "white snow", with the words: "Merry Christmas and Happy New Year" decorating the walkways. In particular, there are dozens of "Santa" in red shirts and white beards enthusiastically serving everyone. Mickey Mouse, "Santa" is the one that many children ask to take pictures with.
Christmas is also a time for business people to "buy fresh and sell well". In front of Vinh University, grocery stores that usually only sell helmets and flowers, on Christmas quickly switch to products that serve the needs of students: gift boxes, scarves, stuffed animals, socks... Ms. Huong, the owner of a kiosk here, said: from morning to afternoon of December 24, there were many customers, the stores selling decorative items looked eye-catching, but perhaps the most attractive were many places hanging signs of discounts, discounts, promotions, and sales with gifts...
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Instead of showing off with expensive gifts, students who are “poor” in money but rich in creativity and skillful in their hands have made gifts for each other. Many students have prepared Christmas gifts 1-2 weeks in advance, such as handmade cards and knitted scarves. Walking around the streets on Christmas afternoon with her boyfriend, Nguyen Thanh Thuy excitedly showed off a pair of hand-knitted scarves: “It took me 2 weeks to complete them, in time for Christmas. The scarves are black and white, beautiful and suitable for both of us. I feel very happy and this is the most meaningful and warmest Christmas gift I can give to my lover.”
Christmas Eve is truly a night for the young. The joy of a resounding victory that has been awaited for many years by the Vietnam Football Team exploded when the final whistle blew in the second leg of the AFF Cup final against Thailand. Many young people poured into the streets, their heads wrapped in banners, five-pointed yellow star T-shirts... The national flag fluttered in the ecstasy, excitement, and joy of enthusiastic people... The hardest working force on Christmas Eve is probably the security force. To have a safe Christmas, without traffic accidents, fights, racing, and extremism, the mobile police force, traffic police... are stationed on every road to perform their duties.
I, a Buddhist, but in that beautiful moment, still felt the love of God, and of people for each other, as He taught: "Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to people of good will". The church bell rang out mournfully...
Article and photos: Nguyet Anh
