Christmas I. Introduction Christmas, annual Christian holiday commemorating the birth of Jesus Christ. Most members of the Roman Catholic Church and followers of Protestantism celebrate Christmas on December 25, and many celebrate on the evening of December 24 as well. Members of most Orthodox Churches around the world also celebrate the holiday on December 25. Some Orthodox Christians in Russia, Ukraine, the Holy Land (the historic region of Palestine), and elsewhere celebrate Christmas on January 7 because they follow …showed first 75 words of 6756 total…

…showed last 75 words of 6756 total…at the Church of the Nativity. On Christmas Eve, a horseman bearing a large cross leads a procession of church members and dignitaries into the church. They continue down steep stairs and enter the Grotto of the Nativity, a long, narrow underground cavern. Carrying an ancient image of the baby Jesus, which they wrap in swaddling clothes, they place the figure in a manger at what is believed to be the actual birthplace of Christ.