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.

About this page

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.

🇬🇧 United Kingdom and 4 moreTwelve Days of Christmas A festive Christian liturgical season linking Christmas Day to the eve of EpiphanySeasonal · Feasts and festival meals

🇩🇰 Denmark and 1 moreQuinquagesima The last Sunday before Lent in Western Christianity, marking the start of Carnival and Shrovetide.Festival · Feasts and festival meals

🇪🇸 Spain and 4 moreDay of the Holy InnocentsDía de los Santos Inocentes A 28 December day of pranks and fake news, kept in the Spanish-speaking worldFestival

🇵🇱 Kraków, Poland and 5 moreDozhinkiDożynki A Slavic harvest festival of the last sheaf, a woven wreath and a shared mealSeasonal

🇬🇷 Greece and 1 moreEpiclesisἐπίκλησις The liturgical calling upon the Holy Spirit to bless the bread and wine during communionSpiritual 🇬🇷 Greece and 2 moreAdelphopoiesisἀδελφοποίησις A historical Christian church ceremony creating a spiritual bond of brotherhoodSpiritual

🇬🇷 Greece and 1 moreAnastenariaΑναστενάρια A barefoot firewalking and dance rite honouring Saint Constantine and Saint HelenSpiritual

🇮🇹 Italy and 5 moreTranslation of relicsTranslatio The ceremonial transfer of holy remains or relics to a new church or shrineSpiritual

🇬🇧 United Kingdom and 3 moreRogation days Springtime Christian days of prayer, fasting, and parish boundary walks.Spiritual · Fasting and breaking the fast

🇷🇺 RussiaAsperges The Christian liturgical ceremony of sprinkling the faithful with blessed waterSpiritual

🇪🇸 Spain and 5 moreCavalcade of Magi A parade of the Three Magi through town on Epiphany Eve, with sweets thrown to the crowdFestival

🇮🇹 Rome, Italy and 8 moreSaint Joseph's Day A 19 March feast honouring Jesus' earthly father, kept with altars and processionsSpiritual · Feasts and festival meals

🇪🇸 Toledo, SpainFeast of the Holy Name of Mary A Catholic feast day honouring the name and intercession of the Virgin MarySpiritual

🇫🇷 FranceMos Teutonicus A medieval European funerary custom of boiling bones to return nobles home for burialRite of passage

🇫🇷 France and 5 moreFeast of the Sacred HeartSollemnitas Sacratissimi Cordis Iesu A Catholic holy day honoring Christ's love and mercy, observed in early summerSpiritual

🇮🇹 Italy and 6 morePatronal festivalFiesta patronal A town's yearly feast for its patron saint, with processions, a fair and shared foodFestival

🇸🇪 SwedenElevationēlevātiō The ritual lifting of the bread and chalice during the Christian EucharistSpiritual 🇬🇷 Greece and 1 moreIncubationἐγκοίμησις The sacred practice of sleeping in holy shrines to seek divine healing and dreamsSpiritual

🇩🇪 Germany and 5 moreSaint Sylvester's Day A Christian feast day and year-end celebration marked across Europe and beyondSeasonal · Dinner

🇧🇦 Bosnia and HerzegovinaDay of Republika SrpskaДан Републике Српске An annual civic holiday observed across Republika Srpska on 9 JanuaryCeremony 🇦🇱 Gjirokastër, Albania and 5 moreDodola and Perperuna A rainmaking ritual kept across Southeast Europe, where children dressed in greenery lead processions to call for summerSpiritual

🇧🇦 Medjugorje, Bosnia and Herzegovina and 1 moreMedjugorje International Youth Festival A six-day August gathering of Catholic youth in Medjugorje, Bosnia and HerzegovinaFestival

🇩🇪 Wittenberg, Germany and 1 moreVersus populum A liturgical stance where the priest celebrates Mass facing the congregation from the opposite side of the altar.Spiritual

🇩🇪 Germany and 1 moreRäucherkerze A scented incense cone burned in German and Czech homes during the Christmas season to fill rooms with fragrance.Festival

🇷🇸 Serbia and 3 moreLazariceлазарице A spring procession of girls in flower wreaths, singing door to door before Palm SundaySpiritual

🇬🇧 United KingdomHarvest Festival An autumn thanksgiving for the crops, kept in churches and schools across the UKSeasonal · Supper

🇮🇹 Avezzano, ItalyFeast of the Madonna di PietraquariaMadonna di Pietraquaria A three-day spring festival in Avezzano marked by neighborhood bonfires, a street fair, and a mountain-to-city processioFestival

🇮🇹 Venice, Italy and 2 moreFeast of Saint MarkFesta di san Marco Saint Mark's day on 25 April, kept with rosebuds in Venice and harvest care in LithuaniaSpiritual

🇭🇷 Hvar, CroatiaZa križen A night procession on Hvar island where six villages walk simultaneously to honor the cross.Spiritual

🇬🇧 London, United Kingdom and 1 moreMarriage vows The promises a couple speak to each other as they marryRite of passage

🇵🇹 Lisbon, PortugalGraça Procession of the Lord of the PassionProcissão do Senhor dos Passos da Graça Lisbon's Lenten walk of seven Passion stops, kept every year since 1587Spiritual

🇫🇷 Lyon, France and 2 moreWeek of Prayer for Christian Unity An eight-day international period of shared prayer for reconciliation among churchesSpiritual

🇪🇸 Madrid, Spain and 4 moreFeast of Saint Isidore the LaborerFiestas de San Isidro Labrador A May festival honoring the patron saint of farmers, marked by processions and harvest gratitude in Spain and former colFestival · Feasts and festival meals

🇩🇪 Weingarten, Germany and 1 moreBlutritt An equestrian pilgrimage across southern Germany honoring a relic of the Holy BloodSpiritual

🇮🇹 Benevento, ItalyWitches of Benevento A southern Italian tradition of walnut-tree gatherings and protective folk charmsFolklore

🇷🇺 Russia and 3 moreGeorge's Day in AutumnЕгорий Осенний (Yegoriy Osenniy), Юрьев день (Yuriev den); Serbian: Ђурђиц (Đurđic) The autumn feast of Saint George, kept at harvest's end in Slavic landsFestival

🇮🇹 Palermo, ItalyFeast of Saint RosaliaFestino di Santa Rosalia An annual July festival in Palermo honouring the patron saint who ended the plague.Festival

🇬🇧 United KingdomChurch parade A formal military procession held to attend a religious serviceCeremony 🇬🇷 GreeceKalanta ChristougenonΚάλαντα Χριστουγέννων A Greek Christmas carol, sung around the feast with triangle and guitarPerformance

🇵🇹 PortugalMissas do Parto Nine morning Masses in Madeira that follow Mary through the last days of her pregnancySpiritual · Feasts and festival meals 🇭🇷 Metković, CroatiaŽudije Dalmatian guardians who watch the tomb of Christ from Holy Thursday to Easter VigilSpiritual 🇮🇹 Rome, Italy and 2 moreInsufflation A ritual of blowing and breathing, used at baptism to drive out evil and breathe in graceSpiritual

🇮🇸 Skálholt, IcelandThorlak's MassÞorláksmessa Iceland's feast of its patron saint on 23 December, the last day before ChristmasSpiritual 🇬🇧 United Kingdom and 1 moreQuaker wedding A silent marriage ceremony in a Quaker meeting, with no priest and no set orderRite of passage 🇬🇧 United KingdomJack o' Lent An English Lenten custom of abusing and burning a straw figureSeasonal

🇮🇹 Gubbio, Italy and 1 moreSaint Ubaldo DayFesta dei Ceri A May procession in Gubbio where three teams carry tall wooden ceri to a hilltop basilicaSpiritual

🇪🇸 Córdoba, Spain and 5 moreFiesta de las Cruces A May festival where communities decorate crosses with flowers and crafts to celebrate faith and local heritage.Festival

🇷🇸 Serbia and 2 moreZapisзапис A consecrated village tree marked with a cross, venerated in Serbian folk traditionSpiritual · Feasts and festival meals

Photo credits on this page

The small pictures above come from Wikimedia Commons under free licences. Some are cropped to fit.

Fiesta de las Cruces: Michelangelo-36, Public domain, source
Saint Ubaldo Day: Marco Riccardini, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
Thorlak's Mass: Orf3us, Public domain, source
Medjugorje International Youth Festival: Piotr Frydecki, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
Day of the Holy Innocents: Attributed to Pieter Brueghel the Younger, Public domain, source
Dozhinki: Unknown author, Public domain, source
Cavalcade of Magi: Diario de Madrid, CC BY 4.0, source
Saint Joseph's Day: Guido Reni, Public domain, source
Missas do Parto: Porto Bay Events, CC BY 2.0, source
Twelve Days of Christmas: Giotto, Public domain, source
Quinquagesima: Unknown author, Public domain, source
Anastenaria: Artkostov, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
Asperges: Ian42, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
Rogation days: Ray Trevena, CC BY-SA 2.0, source
Translation of relics: User:Vmenkov, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
Feast of the Holy Name of Mary: Jean-Pol GRANDMONT, CC BY 3.0, source
Elevation: Vojtěch Slovák, CC BY 3.0, source
Day of Republika Srpska: Ministry of Defence of Republic of Serbia, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
Feast of Saint Mark: No machine-readable author provided. Cremedia assumed (based on copyri, Public domain, source
Versus populum: Stebunik, CC BY 4.0, source
Za križen: E.mil.mil, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
Marriage vows: Tumi-1983, Public domain, source
Graça Procession of the Lord of the Passion: Franciscomendia, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
Week of Prayer for Christian Unity: Kaihsu Tai, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
Feast of Saint Isidore the Laborer: Ángel Lizcano Monedero, Public domain, source
Blutritt: Joseph Bayer, Public domain, source
Räucherkerze: Richard Huber, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
Witches of Benevento: Guglielmo della Porta, CC0, source
George's Day in Autumn: Sergey Ivanov, Public domain, source
Feast of Saint Rosalia: Unknown author, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
Church parade: Boris Kustodiev, Public domain, source
Mos Teutonicus: Cryx thypex, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
Patronal festival: Ranieljosecastaneda, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
Feast of the Sacred Heart: José de Páez, Public domain, source
Saint Sylvester's Day: Unknown medieval artist in Rome, Public domain, source
Lazarice: Svetlina bov at Bulgarian Wikipedia, Public domain, source
Epiclesis: Nheyob , cropped by Tahc, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
Zapis: Zblagojevic, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
Feast of the Madonna di Pietraquaria: Marica Massaro, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
Harvest Festival: Derek Harper, CC BY-SA 2.0, source