Priests start brawling in Bethlehem. According to the town's mayor, "As usual the cleaning of the church afer Christmas is a cause of problems."
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Peace on Earth
27 Dec 2007 02:52 pm
Comments (12)
Come to think of it, the Armenian church in Jerusalem also uses an older calendar, and celebrates a week after the Eastern Orthodox, on January 14.
The wikipedia article on the Church of the Nativity is interesting but doesn't clear up many questions:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Church_of_the_Nativity
Re: Actually, the Greek Orthodox Church in Jerusalem still uses the Julian Calendar, so what they were doing was cleaning up the church before Christmas, which doesn't come until January 7th.
Most Orthodox churches use the Western reckoning nowadays for fixed feasts (e.g. Christams). The only major Orthodox churches still using the Julian calendar 100% are the Russian and the Serbian (Ok, possibly the Georgian and Ukranian too, I'm not sure about them). Among the Orthodox in the Middle East, as in Greece, Cypus, Bulgaria, Romania, and mostly in this country, Tuesday was indeed the Feast of the Nativity.
Religion of Peace indeed!
heh!
Jonf, while it is true that Orthodox Christians in most of the Middle East, like in Lebanon and Syria, use the new calendar, the Orthodox Patriarchate of Jerusalem still uses the Old Calendar.
Also, the Orthodox monastic community of Mt. Athos is entirely on the Old Calendar.
I don't blame religion in this case.
I blame the primitive state one regresses to when cleaning.
I'm just waiting for the usual Israel bashers to blame the fact that Christian factions can't get along with each other on Israel.
Both the Orthodox and Armenians must have Irish priests.
All I want for Xmas is for this brawl to show up on Youtube.
My money's on the Armenians. Every Armenian kid I knew growing up was tough and knew how to fight.
Moe,
Just out of curiosity, did you grow up in Watertown (Little Armenia)? I know you mentioned you're from MA. I got beat by an Armenian kid in the last match I wrestled in high school.
SLC,
The Israelis leaving Bethlehem would be a nice start, but no one said it would solve all problems. I suppose the bigger problem for Christians in that part of the world is the Muslims, really.
Hector asks: "Just out of curiosity, did you grow up in Watertown (Little Armenia)? I know you mentioned you're from MA. I got beat by an Armenian kid in the last match I wrestled in high school."
No, but I knew some people there. And of course you got beat, I told them you were a Turk.
Comments closed January 10, 2008.
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Heads in the Sand
Actually, the Greek Orthodox Church in Jerusalem still uses the Julian Calendar, so what they were doing was cleaning up the church before Christmas, which doesn't come until January 7th.
Posted by Tyro | December 27, 2007 3:16 PM