Christmas and New Year

On the holiday of Christmas, December 25th, Christians all around the world celebrate the birth of a little God – Jesus who was born in a stable in Bethlehem by the Virgin Mary with the help of Joseph. The newborn in his manger first came to see shepherds to whom the angels had passed on the joyous news. Thereupon, following the star of Bethlehem, three wise men had come to give tribute to little Jesus and had given him three gifts: frankincense as to a God, gold as to a King and myrrh as to a man. God has become a man because He is pure love; he became a man to bring human beings in a perfect union with God. Preparations for Christmas begin with Advent. Christians spiritually prepare for this holiday, daybreak holy masses and early morning holy masses are being held, that symbolize alertness in the preparation time for Christmas. Believers try to cherish their own life, but also the lives of others in order not to lose their eternal life.
From past times, Christians have considered the day of Jesus' birth as the beginning of a New Year which was often called Young Christmas or Little Christmas. But in 1691 the Church had accepted the 1rst of January as the beginning of the New Year and the very holiday of New Years. New Year's celebrations take place all around the world in the company of family and friends or on city squares with songs and fireworks.