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Christian Festivals
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Christianity shares many of its beliefs and some of its scriptures, or holy writings, with Judaism. There are major differences, however, between the Christian and Jewish faiths. Unlike the Jews, Christians believe that a Jew named Jesus, who was born about 2,000 years ago, was the Christ, or Son of God. Over 1,833,000,000 people now follow Christianity - more than any other world faith. There are many different churches, each with slightly different methods of worship. The three main Christian groups are Orthodox (based in Greece and Eastern Europe), Roman Catholic and Protestant, both of which have a world-wide following. There are also communities of Coptic Christians in Egypt and Ethiopia.
Festivals play a very important part in the Christian year. The holiest ones are Christmas and Easter, but there are also saints' days and many local festivals and thanksgivings. How the festivals are celebrated varies greatly from one part of the world to another. At Lalibela in Ethiopia, white-robed monks welcome Christmas Day with trumpets. In Italy and Spain there are splendid processions through the streets during Holy Week (the week before Easter). | | The Nativity |
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Book:
Festivals
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Section:
Festivals
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Chapter:
Christian
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