Community Chat

[Carmie]

Thank you. My DH is Orthodox.  I will tell him you wished him a Merry Christmas.

Christmas is, actually on January 7th, so tomorrow is Christmas Eve,  we don't exchange gifts, but we party and eat well.

When my DH was a child, he had to wait until January 7th for Santa to arrive.  When we got married he celebrated with me on the 25th. So, when his parents were alive, we celebrated two big Christmas' every year.

[cherry]

In many catholic countries Epiphany ,is known as, Little Christmas @Carmie

[cherry]

When Pope Gregory XIII established the Gregorian calendar in 1582, he ushered in an era in which the people of Europe disagreed on what day it was. As a result, they celebrated Christmas on different days. ... In past eras the English sometimes referred to January 5 or 6 as "Old Christmas Day."

[Carmie]

@cherry  When I grew up everyone's left all of their Christmas decorations up until after January 14, the Orthodox New Year.

Today, we still do that as well as most of my neighbors and everyone in our community.  My neighborhood is still all lit up outside. We are made up of immigrant people from Europe and everyone is respectful of other's customs.  We also look forward to the parties and food.

[cherry]

@Carmie  I think Christmas tide ,lasts until Candlemas, which is Feb 2 ,and then it is Carnival, then lent.

[Sooner]

This is all new to me.  The church I grew up in did not celebrate these days. But for those of  you who do, I hope your holidays are joyful and meaningful!

[cherry]

I like the idea of the Kings bringing gifts, instead of Santa Claus. St Nicholas always came to my childrens school, on his feast day,  and left them candy. Fr ,always gave every child, a crisp, new, $1 bill. My kids saved theirs and still have them

[aroc3435]

@cherry  Thank you for this thread and the wealth of information on the customs you provided, some of which was new for me.

Always interested in seeing the culture and customs of others--brings happiness to my heart.

[golding76]

Speaking for myself and all the Greek Orthodox Christians I know, we celebrate Christmas on December 25.  Decades ago, some households celebrated a second Christmas date, dubbed "Little Christmas," but we never did that.

Tomorrow, January 6, is our Holy Theophany (known as Epiphany to most). 

[golding76]

Sooner,

I am not a religious scholar, but in broad strokes, here is is how Christianity evolved:

There was one ancient church that, in 1053 A.D. (I think), split into the Catholic Church and the Eastern Orthodox Church.  The seat of the Catholic Church was Rome while that of the Orthodox was Constantinople.  The Roman Empire had become stronger than the Byzantine Empire and flexed its muscles.  They introduced the Pope to lead the church in the West; in the East, however, the Patriarch remained the head of the Orthodox church.  There is still a Patriarch in what is now Istanbul.  (Remember the song "Istanbul Not Constantinople"?) 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wcze7EGorOk

Then came Martin Luther and John Calvin, leaders of the Protestant Reformation.  In time, the various Protestant denominations we know today emerged.  They relinquished certain aspects (depending on the denomination) of the ancient churches, developing their own ways of worship.  Some holy days were dropped from the religious calendars.

That's it in a nutshell.  Christianity had the same starting point, and then different branches began forming.