Christmas Period
The Greek Christmas period according to the popular holiday calendar lasts 12 days from Christmas Eve (December 24) to Epiphany (January 6th)
Three major holidays are celebrated on those days:
Christmas, New Year and Theophany.
Christmas
As the Greek word for Christmas is Christougena, from Christ+ gena (birth, the celebration of Christmas for the Greeks has a purely religious significance. As Orthodox Christians, Greeks celebrate the incarnation of the Lord and God-Savior Jesus Christ.
The birth of Christ, the second important celebration day of the Orthodox Church after the Resurrection (Easter), is celebrated every year on December 25th by the churches that follow the new calendar (Gregorian) and January 6th by the Churches that follow the old calendar (Julian).
Christmas, for Orthodox Christians, is a time of fasting, prayer, worship, sacraments, spiritual renewal, and philanthropy.
Christmas 40 days fasting period starts on November 15th (Saint Philipos celebration day) and ends on December 24 on Christmas eve.
Christmas morning service at church and family gatherings strengthen ties with religion and family.
For the Greeks is a more religious celebration rather than commercial.
The present of Christmas is the family and friends gathering at the Christmas day lunch table.
Beautiful Greek Christmas customs that stay alive through centuries, fill the Christmas period preparing everyone to welcome the coming of Jesus to the world.
The Greek tradition is very rich in flavors and events for the entire Christmas holiday season.
Theophany
A great feast of Christianity, commemorating the Baptism of Jesus Christ in the Jordan River by St. John the Baptist. It is celebrated every year on January 6th and is the third and last feast of the Twelve Days period, which begins with Christmas. It is also called Epiphany and Lights (Fota in greek)
The name of the feast comes from the manifestation of the three persons of the Holy Trinity, which according to the Scriptures occurred at the Baptism of Jesus. Theo+ phania: God appears.
The basic ritual of Theophany is the "sanctification of the waters" with the immersion of the Cross in imitation of the Baptism of the God-Man, Jesus. This Holy Communion has the meaning of purification, the purification of people as well as their release from the influence of demons.
The feast of Theophania also includes many events that are a perpetuation of ancient Greek customs without a strictly Christian dimension but with roots in ancient worship.
New Year
In contrast to the Christmas religious atmosphere, the New Year's celebration is more entertaining without losing the religious spirit as well.
New Year's Eve in Greece, as a day of welcoming each new year, is celebrated as in all countries of the world with enthusiasm and splendor.
According to Greek tradition, New Year's Eve customs are inextricably linked to the ancient notion that whatever happens at the beginning of a new year is repeated during the course of it.
Thus, the main purpose of most of the customs of the period is connected with a wish list, to ensure happiness during the whole new year.
January 1st is the celebration day of Saint Vasilios the Great, a Greek, Cappadocian Christian philanthropic bishop of the 4th century AD, who is considered Santa Claus for the Greeks.
New Year's Eve, as it was shaped under the influence of the Church and its connection with the feast of St. Vasilios, has been perpetuated to this day as a popular celebration with genuine Greek customs and Western habits that were incorporated into the general spirit of the New Year’s celebrations.
CHRISTMAS TRADITION & CUSTOMS
NEW YEAR TRADITION & CUSTOMS
THEOPHANY TRADITION & CUSTOMS