Christ is born!
December 25, 2008
It’s 1:20 am on Christmas morning and I just got home from church. Services went from 7 pm to 11:30 pm (divine offices followed by Qurbana), and after some cake and conversation, I picked up some tandoori chicken on my way home to celebrate. Oh, and I have wine too, of course—something cheap and Australian. Not that I’d been fasting like a Stylite or anything. But still, the Savior is born!
Merry Christmas to all!
December 25, 2008 at 3:31 am
I thought EO celebrate Christmas on a different day? So.. what calendar do OO use? I’m always confused about the calendar thing.
December 25, 2008 at 11:52 am
I’m confused about the calendars too, but since my pastor announced when we were celebrating Christmas, it saved me lots of trouble!
I can’t speak for the other Oriental Orthodox, but we’re on the Gregorian Calendar entirely. As for the Eastern Orthodox, those who follow the Julian Calendar celebrate Christmas later (January 6th at this point, I think), and those who follow the Revised Julian or “New” Calendar (e.g. the Orthodox Church in America) celebrate it on December 25th as well.
December 26, 2008 at 9:48 pm
Elias & Ben,
A Blessed & Merry Christmas to you all and have a happy new year too.
Ben, we were on the Old Calendar till 1953, we changed to the Gregorian then. Indians, Armenians & Syrian Orthodox by and large use the New Calendar.
Armenians and Syriacs in Jerusalem and the Holy Land use the Old Calendar, primarily because the primary Orthodox feasts in the Holy Land and the ceremony of the Holy Fire are reckoned according to the Old Calendar.
Copts, Ethiopians & Eritreans still use the Old Calendar.
Suraj
November 11, 2009 at 5:31 am
Can you tell me who owns the rights to this icon photo or if it is public domain?