Christmas, Grand Christian Festival
Many Christians from all over the country celebrate Birthday of Lord Jesus Christ as Christmas Day held on December 25th.
There are many churches spread all over the country and the affect of the British was that they spread a good deal of Christianity all over India. The spirit of Christmas will stay in the last five days of the year. The New Year that comes will add to the celebrations. The locals call it the Big Day or the Bada din. There are certain regions where the Christian population is concentrated.
Goa is a place where huge no of Churches with maximum population of Christians are found. The homes are decorated and people visit churches for different services and the prayers will be held all over the day. The children and people will enjoy this festival with new clothes and exchanging gifts and sharing various sweets and arranging a grand Chirstmas Party. This will be the only day of celebration for the Christians in the name of God. Christians are normally well-disciplined and on this special day, they clean and keep their houses very neat and tidy. They also bring Christmas tree to their home and decorate with Jingle Bells, lights, gold or silver decorative balls, colorful stars, greeting cards, music system and so on. The people who have gone abroad will return for the celebrations and will enjoy the reunion.
The maximum no of people attend eh church for the masses. Though there are various languages in India, the masses are held in the local language and in English. There are Christian Songs and Carols that is melodious to hear. The food which is specially prepared for Christmas is served for the family members and guests. Each and every region in India has its own dishes for Christmas, but cake is the very common Sweet dish available in all Christian houses during the time of Christmas.
Parties are usually conducted by different people in the beaches and hotels where People enjoy Christmas by having great food and stay with their loved ones. People of India have a large population of Christians who celebrate Christmas with pomp and show. There are churches in almost all the states and districts all over India where Christmas lanterns are put in front of the houses and large no of people come for wishing their Christian friends on this day.
E-mails and SMS will flow into the phones of Christians on 25th December which is the only day that is celebrated by the Christians. In Mumbai and the states of the east, the Festival is very grand and the people will enjoy giving a Festive Look for the state. The churches are decorated and they give special programs which are represented by the religious leaders. To some churches like Velankhanni, the people from all over the world will travel. They believe that Jesus Christ will bless them on that particular day. This is a National Holiday in the country.