Patriarch Kirill leads Orthodox Christmas mass in Moscow

Head of the Russian Orthodox Church Patriarch Kirill leads the traditional Orthodox Christmas Eve mass at Moscow’s Christ the Saviour Cathedral on Thursday, January 6. Orthodox Christians celebrate Christmas in accordance with the Julian calendar on January 7. One of the main differences between Orthodox Christmas and Christmas in Western countries that stands out for anyone is the date it is celebrated on. Why? It’s quite simple: it is celebrated using a different calendar. For church holidays in Orthodox Christianity, the old Julian calendar introduced by Julius Caesar in 45 BCE is used, which is also simply called “old style.” In the Julian calendar, the 25th of December falls on the 7th of January, which is why it is being celebrated on that date. In other areas, Christmas is celebrated using the Gregorian calendar established by Pope Gregory XIII in 1582.  However, not all of the various Orthodox chruches celebrate Christmas on the 7th of January! For example, in Greece, Bulgaria, Cyprus,