Merry Christmas!

No, I'm not in a time warp, it's just that today is Christmas Day in Russia, and all other Orthodox countries. The Orthodox Church sticks to the Julian calendar even after governments and most other churches shifted across to the Gregorian calendar. Over time the difference between them is effectively a week, as the Gregorian skips the odd leap day (three every 400 years) to stay with the lunar calendar, while the Julian doesn't. Hence the decision to blip what in this country would be called a Christmas decoration, but in Russia was actually a New Year gift from some friends. It is probably my all time favourite tree decoration. The date on which to celebrate Christmas is pretty arbitrary anyway, we don't have a precise date, just a rough guide for when Jesus was born, and the exact date doesn't change the fact that he was born, nor what he came to do, which are what it's all about anyway, not the festival of consumption we see around us each December.

So Merry Christmas to you all, or s Rozhdestvom Khristovym!

PS I am trying to catch up on commenting, but recently have only been able to get on at busy times, so get chucked off regularly.