The bells rang at midnight to invite everyone to midnight mass, and in the morning presents were found under the Christmas tree.

Do you know what is being celebrated?
There may be more to this holiday than you think…
Christmas is a Christian holiday.
Christianity is one of the five major world religions.
Christians believe in God and that God’s son is Jesus Christ. For them, the most important book is the Holy Scriptures or the Bible.
The Christmas story is about the birth of Jesus described in the Bible.
There are many other stories about Jesus’s life called gospels.
The Christmas story begins before Christmas.
A long long time ago, Mary, who was heavily pregnant, and her husband Joseph had to travel from where they lived in Nazareth to Bethlehem.
Bethlehem is located in the Palestinian West Bank.
Mary and Joseph couldn’t find a place to stay, so an innkeeper offered a barn to sleep for the night.
That night Mary gave birth to a baby boy – Jesus.
Since they didn’t have a crib for him, they laid him in a manger.
This is the trough where food for animals is put.

And this is the reason why you may have a nativity scene next to your Christmas tree at home.
A nativity contains figurines made of various materials placed on a base of moss or straw that depict the scene of the birth of Christ.
The nativity scene is an important part of the Christmas celebration.
The making of nativity scenes, or crib-making, has been entered into the Slovene register of intangible cultural heritage since 2021.
Every year you can see one of the most beautiful living nativity scenes in the Postojna Cave in Slovenia.
Christmas is a family holiday that you usually spend with your loved ones.
Around the world, Christmas customs vary considerably, but they all have one thing in common – socializing with lots of holiday treats.
Bon appétit, and happy holidays!
Glossary
Intangible cultural heritage is a customary practice of local knowledge and skills that communities pass on from generation to generation.
Points to Consider
- Do you set up a nativity scene at home?
- What are some traditional Christmas treats?
- Do you know any Christmas songs?
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The original version of this article was published on December 25th.
