Orthodox Christians around Europe and Russia celebrated Christmas on January 6 and 7 with liturgies, processions, and an array of local traditions to mark the holiday. (22 PHOTOS)
Orthodox Christians Celebrate Christmas
1
Macedonian Orthodox Christians celebrate Christmas Eve in front of the cathedral of St. Clement of Ohrid in Skopje.
2
Christmas Liturgy at the Cathedral Church in Belgrade
3
Orthodox Christians celebrate in Podgorica, Montenegro.
4
Two sisters light candles during an Orthodox Christmas service in a church in the village of Sokuluk, Kyrgyzstan. (AFP/Vyacheslav Oseledko)
5
People walk past a church during an Orthodox Christmas Eve ceremony in Sabac, Serbia. (AFP/Andrej Isakovic)
6
Orthodox Christians mark Christmas festivities in Belgrade.
7
The Jelisavcic family celebrates Christmas in Uzice, Serbia.
8
An ethnic Serb boy roasts lamb and pig in front of his home in the village of Vojkovici for a traditional Orthodox Christmas meal. (REUTERS/Dado Ruvic)
9
A Christmas procession in Simferopol, Ukraine
10
Christmas Liturgy at the Cathedral Church in Belgrade
11
Clergy and believers watch fireworks during a Christmas service in the new Orthodox Church of the Nativity in the Siberian city of Krasnoyarsk. (REUTERS/Ilya Naymushin)
12
A traditional Christmas meal in Dnipropetrovsk, Ukraine
13
Participants march in "Alilo," a religious procession to celebrate the Orthodox Christmas in Tbilisi, Georgia.
14
More "Alilo" celebrations in Georgia
15
Sharing traditional Christmas bread in downtown Belgrade. Young Tijana Stevanovic found the coin in the bread, signaling good luck in the next year.
16
Christmas service in St. Petka Church in Skopje, Macedonia.
17
Orthodox rituals are observed in Skopje
18
A Christmas candle liturgy inside the Khor Virap Apostolic church in Armenia.
19
Belarusian Interior Ministry troops line up to kiss an Orthodox cross after a service at a military base in Minsk. (REUTERS/Vasily Fedosenko)
20
A procession of Christmas stars in Simferopol, Ukraine.
21
The Christmas candle liturgy at the Khor Virap Apostolic church in Armenia.