# When Is Eastern Orthodox Christmas? > Churches on the Revised Julian calendar keep Christmas on December 25. Churches that still use the Julian calendar keep it on January 7. A Greek Orthodox Archdiocese essay names which is which. Easter is calculated apart from that split. - Canonical: https://apologetics.wiki/christianity/when-is-eastern-orthodox-christmas - Religions: Christianity - Denominations: Eastern Orthodox, Catholic - Beliefs: none - Tags: christmas, calendar, eastern-orthodox - Updated: 2026-10-12 Eastern Orthodox Christmas is December 25 on the church calendar. Churches that adopted the New Calendar keep that day with the rest of the churches on December 25 of the civil calendar. Churches that still use the Julian calendar keep the same feast 13 days later, on January 7. The Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America publishes that split in an essay by Lewis J. Patsavos. The essay is a historical account, not a synod. This page quotes it and the Catholic catechism’s note on the two calendars. It does not decide which calendar a church should use. ## Key Points - [Patsavos, on the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese site](https://www.goarch.org/-/the-calendar-of-the-orthodox-church) [(1)](#ref-1), says the Julian calendar “at present is 13 days behind” the calendar the rest of the churches adopted. - The same essay says the Orthodox churches on the New Calendar “observe Christmas with the other Churches of Christendom on December 25,” and the churches that have not adopted it “celebrate Christmas 13 days later, on January 7.” - It names the New Calendar churches as Constantinople, Alexandria, Antioch, Greece, Cyprus, Romania, Poland, and Bulgaria (1968). It names Jerusalem, Russia, Serbia, and the monasteries on Mount Athos as still on the Old Calendar. - It says Greeks who follow the Church of Greece are on the New Calendar, so their Christmas is December 25. Old Calendarists in Greece keep January 7. The Archdiocese of America is under Constantinople and uses the New Calendar. - The essay says Epiphany is January 6 on the New Calendar and January 19 on the Old Calendar. Easter is still calculated on the Old Calendar by all Orthodox churches except the Orthodox Church of Finland. - [Catechism 1171](https://www.vatican.va/content/catechism/en/part_two/section_one/chapter_two/article_1/iii_when_is_the_liturgy_celebrated.html) [(2)](#ref-2) places Christmas in the cycle of feasts of the incarnation, with the Annunciation and Epiphany. [Luke 2:11](/bible/luke/2/11) [(3)](#ref-3) is the angel’s word to the shepherds that a Savior is born. ## Why Some Orthodox Churches Use January 7 The feast on the church’s own list is Christmas, December 25. The civil date moves when the calendar does. Patsavos writes that an Inter-Orthodox Congress met at Constantinople in May 1923, called by Ecumenical Patriarch Meletios IV. Not every church attended. No unanimous agreement was reached. Several churches later adopted the New Calendar, not all at the same time. He then states the result: > The Orthodox Churches which have adopted the New Calendar observe Christmas with the other Churches of Christendom on December 25; the Orthodox Churches which have not adopted it celebrate Christmas 13 days later, on January 7. The 13 days are the present gap between the Julian calendar and the Gregorian calendar. The essay says that gap is why the same liturgical date, December 25, falls on January 7 for the churches that did not change. It is not a second feast invented in January. [What Does the Eastern Orthodox Church Believe?](/christianity/what-does-the-eastern-orthodox-church-believe) is the wider confession. This page is only the date. ## Do Greeks Celebrate Christmas on January 7? The essay says the Church of Greece adopted the New Calendar. Christmas in that church is December 25. The Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America, which publishes the essay, is in that New Calendar family under Constantinople. The same essay describes Old Calendarists, Palaioemerologitai, who refused the change in Greece and still keep the Old Calendar for fixed feasts and for Easter. Their Christmas is January 7. Mount Athos, with one monastery excepted, also remained on the Old Calendar, under Constantinople and still in communion with that patriarchate. “Greek” is not one date. The official Church of Greece and the Archdiocese of America use December 25. Old Calendar communities and Athos use January 7. ## Do Orthodox Churches Celebrate on December 25? Yes, when the church uses the New Calendar. Patsavos lists Constantinople, Alexandria, Antioch, Greece, Cyprus, Romania, Poland, and Bulgaria. Their Christmas is December 25, the same civil day as Catholic and Protestant Christmas. Jerusalem, Russia, Serbia, and the monasteries on Mount Athos keep January 7. Both groups are celebrating the Nativity on December 25 of the calendar they use. The civil dates differ because the calendars differ. The Catholic Church’s calendar is the Western one. [Catechism 1170](https://www.vatican.va/content/catechism/en/part_two/section_one/chapter_two/article_1/iii_when_is_the_liturgy_celebrated.html) [(2)](#ref-2) says the reform called Gregorian, after Pope Gregory XIII in 1582, “caused a discrepancy of several days with the Eastern calendar.” That paragraph is about Easter. The Christmas split is the one the Archdiocese essay states. [Catechism 1171](https://www.vatican.va/content/catechism/en/part_two/section_one/chapter_two/article_1/iii_when_is_the_liturgy_celebrated.html) [(2)](#ref-2) says the cycle of the incarnation — Annunciation, Christmas, Epiphany — commemorates the beginning of salvation. [Do Catholics Celebrate Easter?](/catholic/do-catholics-celebrate-easter) is the Catholic rank of Easter above the other feasts. ## Epiphany, January 6, and “Old Christmas” On the New Calendar, Patsavos lists Epiphany on January 6 and Christmas on December 25. On the Old Calendar, Epiphany falls on January 19, and Christmas falls on January 7. January 6 is Epiphany for New Calendar Orthodox churches. It is not their Christmas. The twelve great feasts in the essay include Christmas (December 25) and Epiphany (January 6) as two feasts. The Christmas fast runs from November 15 to December 24. The essay does not call January 6 Old Christmas, and it does not say a country banned Christmas. Those questions are outside the text quoted here. ## When Is Orthodox Easter? Christmas moved for some churches. Easter did not, except in Finland. Patsavos says Easter continues to be calculated by all Orthodox churches on the dates of the Old Calendar, so they observe the Resurrection on the same day. The exception is the Orthodox Church of Finland, less than 2 percent of a mostly Lutheran country, which uses the New Calendar for practical reasons. He says Easter may not be celebrated before April 3 on the Gregorian calendar, because the churches still treat the vernal equinox as the Julian March 21. [Catechism 1170](https://www.vatican.va/content/catechism/en/part_two/section_one/chapter_two/article_1/iii_when_is_the_liturgy_celebrated.html) [(2)](#ref-2) says Nicaea in 325 agreed that Easter should be the Sunday following the first full moon after the vernal equinox, and that Western and Eastern churches are seeking a common date again. The feast both calendars are dating is the Nativity. [Luke 2:11](/bible/luke/2/11) [(3)](#ref-3) says, “For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord.” [Matthew 2:1](/bible/matthew/2/1) [(4)](#ref-4) says Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judaea. The Gospels do not print a December or January date. The churches assigned the feast. This page reports how they assign it now. ## Frequently Asked Questions ### Why Do Orthodox Christians Celebrate Christmas on January 7? Only the churches still on the Julian calendar do. The essay’s reason is the 13-day gap. December 25 on that calendar is January 7 on the civil calendar used in the United States. ### Which Orthodox Churches Use December 25 in the United States? The Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America publishes the New Calendar account and celebrates with the other churches on December 25. Churches in the United States that follow Jerusalem, Russia, or Serbia follow those churches’ Old Calendar and use January 7. The essay is the map. A parish follows its own church. ### Do Amish People Believe in Santa Claus? The calendar essay does not mention the Amish or Santa Claus. This page is the Orthodox date of Christmas. ## Passages Quoted on This Page ### Matthew 2:1 King James Version. > Now when Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judaea in the days of Herod the king, behold, there came wise men from the east to Jerusalem, ## Sources Numbered to match the HTML References list. Item 1 is `#ref-1` under `#references`. Scripture links to the King James Version on this site. 1. [The Calendar of the Orthodox Church, Lewis J. Patsavos](https://www.goarch.org/-/the-calendar-of-the-orthodox-church) (An essay on the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America website. It is a historical account by a named author, not a synod decree.) 2. [Catechism of the Catholic Church, 1169–1171](https://www.vatican.va/content/catechism/en/part_two/section_one/chapter_two/article_1/iii_when_is_the_liturgy_celebrated.html) (English on the Holy See’s website. Paragraph 1170 names the Gregorian reform and the Eastern calendar. Paragraph 1171 names Christmas in the incarnation cycle.) 3. [Gospel of Luke, 2:11](https://apologetics.wiki/bible/luke/2/11). King James Version 4. [Gospel of Matthew, 2:1](https://apologetics.wiki/bible/matthew/2/1). King James Version ## See Also - [Eastern Orthodox vs Catholic: What's the Difference?](https://apologetics.wiki/christianity/eastern-orthodox-vs-catholic) — Both confess the Nicene faith. They differ, in their own texts, on the filioque, the pope, Mary, purgatory, the cup for the laity, and clerical celibacy. - [What Does the Eastern Orthodox Church Believe?](https://apologetics.wiki/christianity/what-does-the-eastern-orthodox-church-believe) — Eastern Orthodox churches confess the Nicene faith. A Greek Orthodox Archdiocese teaching and the Orthodox Church in America catechism state Tradition, the mysteries, Mary, icons, and what they reject. - [Eastern Orthodox vs Protestant: What's the Difference?](https://apologetics.wiki/christianity/eastern-orthodox-vs-protestant) — Both confess the Nicene faith. Their texts differ on Scripture and Tradition, justification, Mary and the saints, icons, and the filioque. - [Can Eastern Orthodox Priests Marry?](https://apologetics.wiki/christianity/can-eastern-orthodox-priests-marry) — An Orthodox clergy answer says a married man may be ordained deacon or priest, once, and may not marry after ordination. The OCA’s Trullo essay says bishops are celibate. Catholic Canon 277 binds clerics to celibacy. Anglican Article XXXII says priests may marry. - [Can You Lose Your Salvation? What Each Church Teaches About "Once Saved, Always Saved"](https://apologetics.wiki/christianity/once-saved-always-saved) — Can a Christian lose salvation? Official teaching from Catholic, Orthodox, Lutheran, Reformed, Baptist, Methodist, Pentecostal, and other churches, with the King James verses each side cites.