Orthodox Christmas Gifts: Icons, Crosses and St Nicholas Day

The best Orthodox Christmas gifts are the ones that stay in the home and in prayer: an icon for the icon corner, a cross worn for life, or a St Nicholas icon given on his feast. Orthodox Christians celebrate the Nativity of Christ on 25 December, or on 7 January if their church keeps the Old Calendar. Below are our picks by person and budget, with the real dates to order by.

Two Christmas dates, one feast

The Church keeps the Nativity of Christ on 25 December. As the Orthodox Church in America explains, some Orthodox follow 25 December on the older Julian calendar, and 25 December in the Julian calendar is 7 January of the civil calendar. Most Orthodox Christians in the US keep the feast on 25 December of the Revised Julian (New) Calendar.

So before you buy, ask one question: which calendar does their parish keep? That tells you whether the gift needs to arrive by 25 December or by 7 January. If you’re unsure, our Old and New Calendar guide explains why the two dates exist.

The Nativity Fast comes first

The forty days before Christmas are a fast. In the OCA it begins on 15 November (28 November on the Old Calendar) and runs to Christmas Eve. On the eve itself, the faithful fast until the first star appears. That shapes the gift: an icon, a cross or a prayer rope fits the season; a box of chocolates or a ham can wait until the feast.

Gifts at Christmas are an old idea

The Gospel tells how the Magi “presented unto him gifts; gold, and frankincense and myrrh” (Matthew 2:11, KJV). An Orthodox gift follows the same direction. It points the person back to Christ.

St Nicholas Day: 6 December (19 December on the Old Calendar)

December has a feast of its own before Christmas: St Nicholas. The OCA life tells how, when a ruined father of three daughters was about to give them up to sin, Nicholas threw a bag of gold through his window at night so the eldest could marry. He provided for the other two daughters as well. He “always strove to do this secretly and to conceal his good deeds.”

The Church calls him “a speedy helper” of all who hasten to him, and merchants and sailors honored him as a protector of all who journey by land and sea. That is the real St Nicholas, and his icon is the most natural gift of December.

• St Nicholas Gift, $99. The St Nicholas and Guardian Angel folding diptych with a stainless steel IC XC NIKA medallion, in a gift box. For every Nicholas, Nikolai, Nikolaos and Nicole on their name day, and for children on 6 December.
• St Nicholas the Wonderworker & Guardian Angel diptych, $69. The icon on its own. It folds like a book, so it goes to a dorm room, a truck cab or a hospital bedside.

Read more in his saint page, or see our name day gift guide for other names.

Orthodox Christmas gifts by person

For a family, or a couple’s first Christmas

• Icon Corner Set, $199. Everything to begin a prayer corner: the Zvenigorod Saviour and Vladimir Mother of God diptych, a patron saint diptych chosen by name, an 8 in wooden wall crucifix, a prayer rope and a short guide to setting it up. Our icon corner guide shows how.
• Family Set, $249. Three patron saint diptychs, one for each name in the house, with the 8 in wooden wall crucifix. Add another saint for $59. The Family Set, Complete, $399, has its diptychs already consecrated by our priest before they left the workshop, each with its number on a signed certificate.
• Christ Pantocrator & Our Lady of Kazan diptych, $69. Christ and His Mother together: the heart of any icon corner, and of Christmas.

For a godchild

• Patron Saint & Cross, $99. Their own saint and the Guardian Angel in a red-velvet folding diptych, chosen by first name, with a stainless three-bar crucifix and the saint’s card. See also our godparent gift guide.
• Family Cross Set, $69. Three stainless steel crucifixes in the finishes you choose: one each for several godchildren.

For a man who wants something plain and strong

• IC XC NIKA medallion, silver color or gold color, $39. “Jesus Christ conquers”: an ancient confession of Christ’s victory, in four words.
• Orthodox crucifix, black, on a 60 cm chain, $49. A three-bar cross, ready to wear.

For someone keeping the fast

• Black wool prayer rope, 50 knots, $24. For the Jesus Prayer through the forty days. Our prayer rope guide explains how to use it.

For a grandmother or a convert

• Virgin Mary & Child, Jesus Christ wooden icon, $29. The Mother of God holding the Christ Child: the meaning of the feast in one small icon.

Orthodox Christmas gifts by budget

Free shipping on orders of $99 or more, to all 50 states, DC and APO/FPO addresses.

Consecration: a gift ready for the icon corner

Orthodox Christians have a new icon or cross consecrated before they hang it or wear it. You can add Consecration ($49) to most items. Our Orthodox priest consecrates it with holy water and the prayers of the Church, and it comes with a signed certificate and a vial of holy water.

• Folding diptychs, where a diptych’s page offers it, are consecrated by our priest one by one before they leave the workshop, each filmed with its number on a card. The number is on its box and certificate. They ship in the normal time.
• Crosses, icons and medallions are consecrated by our priest before they ship, commemorating the person you name. Orders with Consecration ship in 3–8 business days.

Consecrated items are final sale. Read what Consecration is before you choose.

Order-by dates for Christmas

These are our published order-by dates:

• Christmas on 25 December: order by 15 December.
• A cross, icon or medallion with Consecration, for 25 December: order by 10 December.
• Christmas on 7 January: order a cross, icon or medallion with Consecration by 24 December.

A gift of prayer

Some people already have every icon they need. For them, the best gift is prayer. Through our prayer services, our priest reads the names you give at the Divine Liturgy. For a family that has lost someone this year, the first Christmas is hard; you can ask for their names to be remembered in memory.

How to give it

Tell them why you chose that saint, and write it on the card: the saint’s name, the feast day, and a line of your own. If the icon isn’t consecrated, they can ask their own priest to consecrate it before it goes into the corner. For more, read giving an icon as a gift.

“Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people” (Luke 2:10, KJV).