The modern Mother’s Day holiday was created by Anna Jarvis as a day for each family to honor its mother, and it’s now celebrated on various days in many places around the world. It complements Father’s Day, the celebration honoring fathers. This holiday is relatively modern, being created at the start of the 20th century, [...]

Corpus Christi (Latin for Body of Christ) is a Christian feast. Its purpose is to honour the Eucharist, and as such it does not commemorate a particular event in Jesus’ life. Its celebration on the Thursday following Trinity Sunday is meant to associate it with Jesus’ institution of the Eucharist during the Last Supper, on [...]

Pentecost is one of the prominent feasts in the Christian liturgical year, celebrated on the 49th day (7 weeks) after Easter Sunday – or the 50th day inclusively, hence its name. Pentecost falls on the tenth day after Ascension Thursday. Historically and symbolically related to the Jewish harvest festival of Shavuot or the day, fifty [...]

Valentine’s Day or Saint Valentine’s Day is a holiday celebrated on February 14 by many people throughout the world. In the English-speaking countries, it is the traditional day on which lovers express their love for each other by sending Valentine’s cards, presenting flowers, or offering confectionery. The holiday is named after two among the numerous [...]

Many of Australia’s Christmas traditions also apply to New Zealand: as with its larger neighbour, New Zealand celebrates Christmas with traditional Northern Hemisphere winter imagery, though to some extent the symbols of the holly and ivy common to the British and North American Christmas are replaced by the P?hutukawa tree, which blossoms annually in late [...]

In Australia, as with all of the Southern Hemisphere, 25 December occurs during the height of the summer season. According to tradition, children are told Santa Claus visits houses on Christmas Eve placing presents for children under the Christmas tree or in stockings or sacks which are usually hung by a fireplace. Gifts are opened [...]

Israel is a Jewish state so the Jewish majority does not celebrate Christmas. They celebrate Hanukkah instead. In the Palestinian territories and in some areas under Israeli control a Christian minority exists. They celebrate Christmas. This is especially prevalent in Bethlehem and Nazareth.