Dear Children of God, how are you? In this section, we will be talking about the celebrations of Church Feasts and our role in them. May God open our hearts and minds!

Our Holy Church have many celebration of feasts specially praising Our Lord God, Holy Mother Saint Mary, Saint Archangels and Angels, Righteous Father and Mothers, Monks and Martyrs. We celebrate feasts in different ways inside the compound of Churches or in public squares

Dear Children of God, we all have role to play in the celebration of feasts. Our Patristic Fathers, Arch Bishops, Monks, Bishops, Priest and Deacons celebrate the holidays in accordance with the liturgy alongside laities (Christians). Specially Feasts that are celebrated in public squares have different celebration manner that includes walking

Dear Children of God, we shall celebrate all the feasts in Church by praising, singing and praying. We must be able to commemorate the crucifixion of Lord Jesus Christ on the celebration of the “Feast of Holy Cross” pleading for world peace alongside performing Christians endeavors of alms giving and good deeds

To answer this question we must understand why we celebrate church feasts to begin with.

Dear children of God, we shall celebrate all the feasts knowing the reason of commemorating the holidays and manner(liturgy) of celebrating them. We celebrate our creator God and the saints, in the remembrance of their righteousness (goodness), diligence (hard work) and life story. If we understand the reason, we will be able to celebrate the holidays in the right manner.

In Western cultures, Christmas carries significant elements that intertwine with pagan traditions, particularly in its timing and some of its customs. The date of December 25th was chosen to coincide with pre-existing pagan winter solstice celebrations, such as Saturnalia in Rome and Yule in Germanic cultures. These festivals honored the rebirth of the sun and the return of light during the darkest time of the year.

Moreover, many Christmas customs, such as decorating evergreen trees, exchanging gifts, and feasting, have roots in pagan practices. The decorating of evergreen trees, for instance, was a symbol of eternal life and fertility in pagan cultures long before it became associated with Christianity.

However, in Ethiopian Orthodox Church, Christmas, known as Ganna, is celebrated on January 7th according to the Julian calendar, which is 13 days later than the Western celebration. Ethiopian Christmas traditions are deeply rooted in Orthodox Christianity and are less influenced by pagan customs compared to Western celebrations. Ganna is marked by solemn religious observances, including fasting, attending church services, and participating in vibrant processions and hymns. The focus is on the religious significance of the birth of Jesus Christ rather than secular festivities. So dear children of God, we should emphasize on embracing our own festivity in order to commemorate the birth of our lord and savior, Jesus Christ.