At Pascha and during the days of Bright Week, Christians
ought not to fire rifles, pistols, muskets, or other similar firearms, because
the Risen Christ not only has no need of such things, but furthermore hates and
abhors them: a) because many people are injured by them and often killed; b)
because their noise does not allow Christians to hear the service and the
spiritual troparia and hymns of the Resurrection. And if in ancient times
gunpowder and such firearms had existed, and Christians had wished to use them
at Pascha, most certainly all the holy and divine Fathers would have written
about this and would have struggled to abolish such a wicked and pagan custom.
For it is characteristic of the pagans to use such things during their feasts,
and not of the Christians, for it is characteristic of the Christians to ring
only the bells and semantra, and to chant Christ is Risen and the
other joyful hymns of the Holy Resurrection.
- St. Nikodemos the Hagiorite, Christian Morality,
p. 34 (Greek edition).
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