Darkness as Evil in Christian Symbolism

Abstract

The article deals with the rituals typical for the Christian worldview of Slavs. Among them the author focuses on: 1) the rituals and customs connected with giving birth to a child; 2) rites associated with the birth of the child and the newborn’s acceptance by the family or community; 3) the rites of purification of the mothers and women-midwives held on the third day after giving birth, after which the mother is allowed to attend church again. Slavs believed in gods and higher beings providing people with "wealth" and grace, on the one hand, and demons and evil creatures causing misery and misfortune, on the other. Slavs perceived these gods and demons through the phenomena of the surrounding nature and attributed everything that was happening to their free will. Faith as a special dimension of consciousness is identified with Christian philosophers. It is treated as a form of union with God, as a channel through which God acts upon the cognitive abilities of a person, healing, perfecting and improving them.