Orthodox Christmas
January 7 · Level 8 · #585 of 2238
Christmas is one of the main Christian feasts, when believers remember the birth of Jesus Christ. Churches that follow the Julian calendar keep it on 7 January.
How it is celebrated: many people attend a festive church service on the night of 6 to 7 January, then gather with relatives for a meal. After a strict fast, the table often begins with simple meat-free dishes such as sochivo or kutya, and only then comes the big feast.
The Julian calendar currently runs 13 days behind the Gregorian one, so 25 December in the old style falls on 7 January. In Ethiopia, which also marks the day on 7 January, Christmas is called Genna.