Christian traditions
Christian traditions span the globe, from Ethiopian Orthodox fasts and Filipino Simbang Gabi to Swedish Lucia, Mexican posadas, Easter in Greece and the harvest services of Britain.
Christian traditions span the globe, from Ethiopian Orthodox fasts and Filipino Simbang Gabi to Swedish Lucia, Mexican posadas, Easter in Greece and the harvest services of Britain. They centre on Christmas, Lent, Holy Week and Easter, Pentecost, saints' days and the sacraments of baptism, communion, marriage and burial. Catholic, Orthodox, Protestant and Pentecostal churches each have their customs, and local cultures have shaped them in distinct ways. Here they are described with respect for the believers who keep them, and for the variety of ways of keeping them.
The church year
The year begins with Advent and builds to Christmas, then Epiphany, Lent, Holy Week and Easter, followed by Pentecost and the long season of ordinary time. Saints' days mark local patrons, and many towns have a patronal feast with a procession and fair. Orthodox churches keep their own calendar, so Christmas falls on 7 January in several countries. Fasting seasons shape food, and feasts follow.
Around the world
Christians in different countries have made the faith their own: the dawn masses of the Philippines, the carols of Wales, the gospel choirs of the American South, the white-clad pilgrims of Lalibela, the Corpus Christi carpets of flowers in Spain, and the Nativity scenes of Naples. These customs combine faith with local food, music and craft, and are among the most visible traditions of the world.
Written by the EveryParampara desk with AI assistance. Background on Christian (faith). Customs differ from place to place and family to family. If this is your tradition and we have it wrong, tell us.
🇮🇪 Ireland and 2 moreWake
A gathering before a funeral, where family and friends keep watch over the deadRite of passage
🇮🇪 Ireland and 1 moreHandfastingceangal na lámh (Irish); pòsadh-bliadhna (Scottish Gaelic)
A couple's promise made with joined or bound hands, kept from betrothal to weddingRite of passage
🇪🇸 Spain and 2 moreLas arras
Thirteen gold coins, blessed at a wedding and given by the groom to the brideRite of passage
🇫🇷 FranceConfirmation
A Christian rite of laying on of hands that completes baptism and strengthens faithRite of passage
🇺🇦 UkraineTraditional Ukrainian wedding
A wedding spread over many days, with matchmaking, bread, wreaths and songRite of passage
🇪🇸 Spain and 5 moreCompadre
A ritual kinship made at a child's baptism, binding parents and godparents for lifeSpiritual
🇷🇺 RussiaRussian wedding traditions
A Russian wedding runs two days to a week, with ransom games, crowns and toastsRite of passage
🇷🇺 Russia and 5 moreRadonitsaРа́доница (Russian), Ра́даўніца (Belarusian)
A spring day when Orthodox families visit graves, share Easter food and greet the deadSpiritual · Feasts and festival meals
🇬🇷 Greece and 2 moreAdelphopoiesisἀδελφοποίησις
A historical Christian church ceremony creating a spiritual bond of brotherhoodSpiritual
🇫🇷 FranceMos Teutonicus
A medieval European funerary custom of boiling bones to return nobles home for burialRite of passage
🇬🇧 United Kingdom and 1 moreCorpse road
Historical paths used to carry the dead to parish burial grounds across Britain and Ireland.Rite of passage
🇬🇧 United Kingdom and 1 moreQuaker wedding
A silent marriage ceremony in a Quaker meeting, with no priest and no set orderRite of passage
🇮🇹 Rome, Italy and 2 moreInsufflation
A ritual of blowing and breathing, used at baptism to drive out evil and breathe in graceSpiritual
🇸🇰 SlovakiaName days in SlovakiaMeniny
The Slovak tradition of celebrating personal name days alongside birthdaysSeasonal
🇬🇧 London, United Kingdom and 1 moreMarriage vows
The promises a couple speak to each other as they marryRite of passage
🇽🇰 Kosovo and 2 morePodruga
A Balkan custom in which a childless wife agreed to a second wife joining the householdRite of passage
🇬🇧 United Kingdom and 5 moreBridesmaid
The companions and attendants who support a bride during a weddingRite of passage
🇮🇸 IcelandIcelandic weddings
A blend of church rites and long feasts, where guests sit by family lines and gifts are saved for the morning.Rite of passage · Dinner
🇫🇷 France and 5 moreRespite SanctuarySanctuaire à répit
A historical Catholic custom of seeking brief revival to baptise stillborn infantsSpiritual
Photo credits on this page
The small pictures above come from Wikimedia Commons under free licences. Some are cropped to fit.
- Handfasting: Sander van der Wel, CC BY-SA 2.0, source
- Las arras: penny, CC BY 2.0, source
- Russian wedding traditions: GeorgeLouis, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Traditional Ukrainian wedding: Пимоненко, Николай Корнильевич, Public domain, source
- Radonitsa: Perohanych, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Marriage vows: Tumi-1983, Public domain, source
- Mos Teutonicus: Cryx thypex, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Confirmation: Unknown author, CC BY 2.0, source
- Wake: Julio Romero de Torres, Public domain, source
- Bridesmaid: Photographer not credited; relative or work for hire of relative., CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Respite Sanctuary: Atelier Roussel à Beauvais 1878, Public domain, source
- Corpse road: Mick Garratt, CC BY-SA 2.0, source