Christmas in Russia

In Russia, Christmas is celebrated on Jan. 7 rather than Dec. 25. The Russian Orthodox Church abides by the Julian calendar, while most other Catholics and Protestants use the 16th-century Gregorian calendar. After the Bolsheviks grasped control in the 1917 Russian Revolution, Christmas was banned. It wasn't openly observed until the ban was lifted 75 years later, in 1992. Today, most observe a fast during the Christmas season, which lasts six weeks until Christmas eve.
(AP Photo/Alexander Zemlianichenko)
In Russia, Christmas is celebrated on Jan. 7 rather than Dec. 25. The Russian Orthodox Church abides by the Julian calendar, while most other Catholics and Protestants use the 16th-century Gregorian calendar. After the Bolsheviks grasped control in the 1917 Russian Revolution, Christmas was banned. It wasn't openly observed until the ban was lifted 75 years later, in 1992. Today, most observe a fast during the Christmas season, which lasts six weeks until Christmas eve.