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| January 9, 2009 | (Use j/k keys to navigate)  Email to a friend  Permalink |
The end of the Christmas Season
In places around the world where people observe Christmas, they do so with a wide variety of religious, secular and folk traditions. Most traditions are celebrations of the birth of Jesus Christ, (observed on December 25th in most places, on January 7th by some Eastern Orthodox churches), but many incorporate other customs and figures, such as Santa Claus, Father Frost, Saint Nicholas the Krampus and others. Last Tuesday, January 6th, was Epiphany, the day the Magi became the first religious figures to worship the infant Jesus Christ, and the conclusion of the Twelve Holy Days of the Christmas season. Here is a collection of people around the world observing traditions and ceremonies of the Christmas Season. (30 photos total)
Pope Benedict XVI blesses the crowd from the central balcony of St. Peter's Basilica as he adresses the "Urbi et Orbi" message to the City and to the World at the Vatican on December 25, 2008. The Pontiff in his Christmas message warned that the world was headed toward ruin if selfishness prevails over solidarity during tough economic times for both rich and poor nations. Speaking from the central balcony of St. Peter's Basilica on the day Christians commemorate Jesus' birth in Bethlehem, Benedict XVI declared that the "heart of the Christian message is meant for all men and women". (OSSERVATORE ROMANO/AFP/Getty Images) #
A catholic woman reads the Bible after a Christmas Eve mass at the temporary Bailu Township Church on December 24, 2008 in Pengzhou of Sichuan Province, China. The church, destroyed in the May 12 Sichuan earthquake, was rebuilt in a makeshift house. Many pilgrims have come to worship at the church today with commemoration for the victims, over seven months after the devastating earthquake. (China Photos/Getty Images) #
A child attends a Christmas carol mass at the Central Methodist Church in Johannesburg, South Africa on Sunday, Dec. 21, 2008. The church has become a camp for Zimbabweans fleeing their nation's economic and political crisis as the situation worsens in the neighboring state. (AP Photo/Denis Farrell) #
Christian pilgrims from Nigeria are seen inside the Church of Nativity, believed by many to be the birthplace of Jesus Christ, in the West Bank town of Bethlehem, Wednesday, Dec. 24, 2008. Tourists from all over the world flocked to Jesus' traditional birthplace to celebrate Christmas Eve. (AP Photo/Muhammed Muheisen) #
A man dressed as Santa Claus holds a mock goose as runners take a break after the "Gaensebratenvernichtungslauf", or roast goose fat reduction run, at Berlin's Grunewald forest in Germany on December 26, 2008. Several hundred people took part in the annual run during the Christmas holidays. (REUTERS/Fabrizio Bensch) #
A Bulgarian Patriarch Maxim makes the sign of the cross as he attends Christmas mass in the golden-domed Alexander Nevsky cathedral, in central Sofia on December 25, 2008. Bulgaria unlike some other fellow Orthodox countries, celebrates Christmas on December 25. (BORYANA KATSAROVA/AFP/Getty Images) #
Swimmer, Joshoua Samios holds the cross after retrieving it from the water, during a traditional ceremony to bless the water in Greece's Perama port near Athens, on Tuesday. Jan. 6, 2009. Similar ceremonies to mark Epiphany day were held across Greece on river banks, seafronts and lakes, where an Orthodox priest throws a cross into the water and swimmers race to be the first to retrieve it. (AP Photo/Petros Giannakouris) #
More links and information
Christmas - Wikipedia Entry
12 Days of Christmas - Wikipedia Entry
Epiphany - Wikipedia Entry
Krampus - Wikipedia Entry
This blogger might want to review your comment before posting it.
Excellent! Number 10 should read "devastatING earthquake", not "devastatED".
@Julien - thanks, typo fixed.
JFTR: In #29, that "southern village" is in *Germany* - and not even particularly southern. In fact, it is nearly in the middle of Germany.
There's another Pottenstein in Austria - which is not the one with the bonfires however.
Nice collection of images.
#30 should read "lies in her bed" not "lays".
Nice to see the variety of nations involved, from France to Ukraine, Italy to China and Indonesia, and even Palestine, Iraq and Pakistan.
Great shots!
I'm guessing that "other holidays such as Hanukkah or Kwaanza" weren't included in this post because the title is "The end of the Christmas Season," and it's about CHRISTMAS, not other holidays such as Hanukkah or Kwaanza.
Happy New Year, everyone!
I'd love to see the look on my kids face if Krampus (#12) came down the chimney next year.
@add - about #8
Mihai Barbu went there last year , too. it's a village very close to bucharest and it's called Pietrosani. However , this is not the only place where they have horse-back races at epiphany (for example , you can take a look at andrei's blog - http://unfoto.blogspot.com/2009/01/epiphany.html )
Nice collection once again! I enjoyed how you ended the collection with #30.
thank you for sharing!
#23, talk about imagination!!!
#4, looks like their is one lady in the crowd of crazy men jumping into the freezing water.
I wonder where the boy in #7 is today...
OMG. These are some of the most fantastic photographs I've seen on the net. I am astounded by their quality and artistry!
THANK YOU so much for sharing them with the rest of the world. This is truly a site I will pass along to friends online.
Your grateful fan,
anitalite ;-)_
Great pictures. This site is so interesting. I'm addicted!!
What's a Kwanza? An instrument of some kind, maybe? Does someone play it in some foreign country during the Christmas holidays?
Gervase,
You were just asking to be pummeled :>0
#21 is simply amazing, what color, what lights!!! FANTASTIC!
No surprise to see that Christmas means so much more to people around the world than it does to the folks just looking to do some great sales shopping here in the U.S.
On a side note, #12 is awesome and I plan on dressing up as Krampus next Christmas. I wonder if I can get a seat in the mall next to Santa.
I don't know anything about skydiving, but #11 looks scary...ending up in water with all that gear on.
#4 "Men jump into the icy waters" - It looks like there's at least one woman as well.
Santa claus and benedict16 are brothers? Belong to the same burlesque parade?
nice
the collection is really great! thank you very much!
I would like to mark picture #5 and #25. I like them
If Krampus was a little more commonly known, I'm pretty certain children around the world would, on the whole, be significantly better behaved.
All you people responding to Gervase are being ridiculous.
I think they meant why aren't other important religious holidays given equal time?
What is with the majority of commenters here being religious Christians? Snobby ones at that.
Am I the only one who thinks #29 is not a sane thing to do? I know gifts make people do weird things, but dang!
Thanks, Emotion of reverence arises seeing such nice images.
awesome Pics... especially the one of Santa diving..
excellent collection,. many thanks, keep up the good work :)
Excellent pics, great collection.
Amazing pics, as always, both festive and touchy :) #7 almost made me cry...
Glad to see a few from Bulgaria - greetings from Sofia :)
Have a wonderful 2009 and keep up this outstanding job!
I like Santa Claus.
nice collection. i'm liking the eastern european theme. Theres definite a distinct flavor/vibe that as a non-christian i can even pick up. thanks alan.
Si quelqu'un pouvait traduire les textes en français, j'en serais ravis mais surtout plus riche...
Wonderful pics.
re: comment #11
being a native, I assure you there is a Pietrosani 45 km north of Bucharest that has a tradition of showing horses on Jan.6. The photograph correctly identified the place and event
I'm glad I'm not Bulgarian! (#6)
my father used to live in Novogrudok. i had no idea one day i would see a photograph from it. thank you!
always awesome
@Adrian B (45)
You can tell she's a woman because she's the only one wearing a wetsuit :)
Greatings from Germany!
Santa in a shark tank riding a bike? How much things can happen at once?
To Mattan and Gervase: the other holidays aren't given equal time because they're not as popular or well-known. It's just that simple.
I'm one of those wacky pagan folks. Do you think I flip my lid because no one ever mentions Yule this time of year (other than the occasional references to "yuletide" logs and carols)? Of course not, because I don't expect most people to know or to really care. Fact is, most people around the world celebrate Christmas, so you can do a cross-sectional piece like this about it. But very few people celebrate the other holidays. It's reality, not snobbery.
really? #23 is great and original? i know at least one other guy who did the same thing!
it's a big magic show! fun for the whole family! santa claus for the kids and jesus christ for the adults! a toy for everyone!!!
man that was cool!!!
hey gervaise its called christmas you bonehead
HA - You think Catholic is Christian
thank you for not showing a single picture of people shopping at the mall .
there are some amazing snapshots of private moments. worthy of a moments pause for reflection.
How in the world do you go about collecting all these photos? Do you collect them from the net?
Really enjoyed seeing them. Merry Christmas.
Why wasn't Hanukkah or Kwanzaa included in this pictorial? Because the heading said the end of Christmas season, not the end of Hanukkah or Kwanzaa season!
pic #15... prolly the hottest iraqi woman ive seen to date!... if she's even iraqi that is???
Is it me or does anyone else think the Pakistani girl on the left in #20 would be a hottie if she had all of her teeth?
I was very pleasantly surprised that this was not an article about the US economy or the retail industry. It's good to acknowledge that Christmas is a longstanding religious holiday in many cultures and languages all around the world, not just among Protestants or Americans.
And for the record, Kwanzaa does not have the depth of history as Christmas and Hanukkah. It was invented in the 1960s. I'm not saying it's a bad thing, I'm just saying that saying "Hanukkah, Christmas, and Kwanzaa" is like saying "Plumbers, Painters, and Career Novelists."
I like the lights on #29. Never heard of the monster is #12.
Am I the only one who misses the Manger scenes on our town commons ?
We live in a Democracy. The majority of our citizens are Christian, therefore, we should be able to celebrate Chistmas on our town commons. Is there anyone who is REALLY offended by this ??
BRING BACK THE MANGERS !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
After seeing Krampus, coal would be welcomed and appreciated. It looks like he may have been a disgruntled reindeer that Santa had to let go. I think I will avoid Austria around Christmas!
Nice collection as usual
While you pray&enjoj, Israel was killing innocent children in gaza
a tale!
Great Pics!
If you are interested in more Information&Pics about the Austrian Tradition of Krampusse (the devil looking creatures) you may have a look here
http://www.flickr.com/photos/brennuskrux/sets/72157610400794635/
wonderful pictures. thank you for your work. sorry that americans feel so free to be obstinate, ungrateful and fools.
Hamas is killing children in Israel and Gaza.
#23 is awesome! I have been wanting to see somebody do that for a while now. Glad there is a photographic record.
There are no Kwaanza or Hanukkah pictures posted because these pictures are about CHRISTMAS traditions across the world
Bulgaria is the best!
България е най-добрата!
This makes me want to cry.
Awesome!
Thanx a lot to the author for taking the time and the trouble to complete this video.
Kind wishes for the new year
gd
Cool photos !
#1 beautiful lighting; #18 original framing
Christmas mass is an oxymoron :)
This season really unites people around the world no matter their ethnicity, economic level, nationality or polical beliefs. Thanks Alan for this wonderful pics.
To Gervase: Hope you had a Merry Christmas Season wherever you are, even if you celebrated jewish Hannukkah or Kwanzzaa, regards pal. But certainly the title was "The Christmas Season"
Merry Christmas! Joy to world!!!!
Why weren't other holidays such as Hanukkah or Kwaanza included in this post?
because they're not real holidays
Absolutely Beautiful! But it does make me sad to see that someone can put such time and effort into a wonderful portrayal of our humanity across cultural borders and yet people are still so caught up in their own hate and prejudice that they have to make nasty comments to be sure it's included.
Interesting that Kwanza was totally omitted from this slide show. I found the show to be both racist in nature and ill informed as to locations.
One of the better emails of the holiday season, that should make us all reflect of what it is all about, not the commercial rush. And note it didn't matter what country or nationality, if we all can celebrate together we can all live together.
Proof religion is ridiculous...
Enjoyed them very much...Thanks for sharing.
Boca Raton, FL, Jan.14, 2009 Happy New Year to all.
to 100. Of course! But most human gatherings are! Or for that matter most human traditions, events and the ways we communicate. We -are- ridiculous. And it isn't even an astute thing to say about the human condition. It also doesn’t change any other meanings. We can be ridiculous and sublime. Ridiculous and empty. Ridiculous and alive.
These are great photos.
perfect,thanks for your share
Thanks !
This is all about attention Romania ????? (picture 8)
So the tally for comments about beautiful Christmas pictures..
1 Anti - Catholic
1 Anti-American (quite low by Big PIcture standards)
1 Anti Dutch
1 Anti Israel
1 Anti Religion
1 accusation of racism
and 99 positive comments.
If Christmas is about Jesus and His coming to save us from our sins. I don't see any connection in so many of the pictures. Much of the celebrations are nice in themselves but they have nothing to do with what Christmas is about. Guess that is why its entitled "The End Of Christmas"......
That was a beautiful photo essay! How anyone can find fault with those photos is beyond me.
@3 Why didn't YOU mention Diwali or Eid al-Adha? Or why didn't I mention . . .
Come on!
But you (& I) DO effectively make some suggestions for future Big Pictures when these various festivities roll around again next year!
Also, a "Schwate Pete" (no idea how they spell it) would be a good addition - again, there's always next year.
Wow! Thank you for sharing these outstanding photos! They are a great inspiration to me as a photographer. The cross in the water shot - so awesome!
I just discovered your site via another photography blog and this is the first essay I viewed. Can't wait to see the others!
Happy 2009 to all!
Yes we can!
Except for the runner with the cross on his back imitating Jesus' suffering, I thought it was surprisingly respectful of our Saviour.
#80 Sure, Uptight, A.R., politically correct types seem to be offended by mangers. At least here in western Canada. I know of many Sikhs, Hindus & Muslims who love Christmas. My wife's Muslim co-worker has made a point of going to a Christian Christmas play/concert with a bunch of her Muslim friends for several years now.
Seems to me that if you want to be 'culturally sensitive', don't dump on Christmas, rather enjoy it AND join other cultures in their celebrations TOO.
Asian ('Chinese') New Years is coming up in one week (26 Jan).. If you can, get out to a parade - talk about explosions of color! Enjoy some Chinese food too!
Also, Persian New Year is around March 21 (Spring equinox). Learn a bit about their Seven S's & help them celebrate - just be careful jumping over those bonfires!
Waw, nice bunch again, especially nr 7, 13, 23 (Oh my...), 25, 29.
In response to comment 13...
Do you use Aunt Jemima syrup? That's pretty racist. Zwarte Piet is a voluntary helper of Sinterklaas. That's not racist. It's tradition.
In response to comment 13...
Do you use Aunt Jemima syrup? That's pretty racist. Zwarte Piet is a voluntary helper of Sinterklaas. That's not racist. It's tradition.
I'm late coming here but delighted to see how most people enjoyed the beautiful photo's. Hard to understand why the synical writers waste their time being so unhappy. Socially they must be miserable.....everyone shying away from such anger. Scarry. It's so easy to look at the beauty whether it be YOURS or SOMEONE elses faith and appreciate and honor what we humans try to do to better ourselves. Stop the fighting and love one another instead! Thank God we are all different. Makes life interesting.
In response to comment 23
If Christmas is about Jesus ..really? is great ...Versus Santa.. the Win is..?
beautiful pictukres and commentaries.
Jean M. Dillon
Bring back the mangers is right. Freedom of religion, not freedom from religion.
it was real real nice i real engoy it thank you for send me the flower mrs neal
ME PARECEN FOTOS FABULOSAS E INCREIBLES ALGUNAS
ME PARECEN FOTOS FABULOSAS E INCREIBLES ALGUNAS megustaria seguir recibiendo las nuevas que emitan
I like it
IMpresionante
good