Among Orthodox Christians, three holidays are celebrated during the Christmas/New Year season.  First is the birth of Jesus Christ, celebrated December 25 in much of the world, though on January 7 by most Orthodox believers of Eastern Europe and the Middle East (the other days mentioned are also celebrated 13 days later by those following the older Julian calendar).  The second day is January 1, the feast of St. Basil and also New Year. 

The third day, January 6, celebrates the Theophany, the baptism of Jesus Christ in the Jordan River and the appearance of the Holy Spirit. Because by descending into the water, Christ made the water holy, so on this day in the churches the priest also blesses the water.  In the days after Theophany, it is our tradition for the priest to come to each house to bless it and its inhabitants by sprinkling it and them with the blessed water (following three reference photos from January 2007).

Reading the Prayers Before Blessing

Blessing with Holy Water

Blessing the Inhabitants

Each year we Orthodox Christians in Hsinchu invite Fr. Jonah to come from Taipei on one specific day to bless all our residences in turn.  On Saturday, January 12, 2008, Fr. Jonah blessed seven residences, ending with mine, where we gathered for a holiday dinner.  The photos and audio files below are taken from that dinner.  Click on the photos for a larger image; click on the audio links to hear the files in MP3.

                                                 

                                                 

Dobryj Vecer.mp3          Ukrainian song 1.mp3      Ukrainian song 2.mp3     Slovak song.mp3                      

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