Why should saints be removed & when does this happen?
"They've caused such a scandal, хоть святых выноси (“khot' svyatykh vynosi!” or “it's time to remove the saints”)!" This phrase contains an entire dramatic story. First, there’s a major quarrel; second, it's a matter of tradition, since people want to move the icons far away from the troublemakers.
In the old days, icons that hung in the house were called ‘saints’. Icons were treated with reverence and it was believed that nothing scandalous should happen under the gaze of the ‘saints’. And if a scandal or something sinful did occur, it was necessary to shield them from witnessing such things. Therefore, at the slightest hint of anything beyond the bounds of decency, be it a fight, binge drinking or simply swearing, icons were removed from the house. In the homes of Old Believers, icons might be covered with a curtain placed near it.
This expression was used not only in everyday situations, but also in literature. For example, Ivan Bunin described a character in his novella ‘The Merry Yard’ as follows: "When drunk, Miron would get rowdy. It's a well-known fact: when sober, he wouldn't hurt a child, but, when he got drunk, he'd remove all saints." In everyday speech, this might be used to describe something that is completely out of the ordinary, something that's impossible to tolerate and that is unbearable for everyone.
