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Octave of Christmas

Fresco of the Holy Family in Dobling Carmelite Monastery in Vienna, Austria. The Church celebrates the feast of the Holy Family this year on Friday, Dec. 30, 2022. | Renata Sedmakova / Shutterstock

The 8 Days of Christmas? A Look at the Christmas Octave

Dec 26, 2022

The Catholic calendar has several ways to divide the Christmas season. The Church’s Western liturgical tradition sees Christmas as an octave, an eight-day celebration of the birth of Jesus Christ.

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Blessed Jacques-Désiré Laval (right) and Bishop Jean Michaël Durhône (right). Credit: Catholic Diocese of Port Louis

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Members of the Inter-Religious Council of Sierra Leone (IRCSL). Credit: The Calabash Newspaper/Facebook

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Members of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of Ethiopia (CBCE). Credit: CBCE

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Nigerian Christian mother of five Rhoda Jatau was acquitted of blasphemy charges after a two-and-a-half-year legal battle. / Credit: Photo courtesy of ADF International

Major Religious Freedom Win for Nigeria: Christian Mother Acquitted of Blasphemy Charges 

Pope Francis addresses cardinals and senior Vatican officials during his annual Christmas speech to the Roman Curia, Dec. 21, 2024. / Credit: Vatican Media

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Bishop Gerhard Feige of Magdeburg in Germany. / Credit: Magdeburg Diocese

German Bishops Respond to Deadly Magdeburg Market Attack, Call for Prayer and Peace

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A burned-out home in Munga Dosso, Taraba State, is among the many that were damaged in clashes between members of the United Methodist and Global Methodist churches. Two children, ages 4 and 2, were killed in the December attacks. Credit: Bishop John Schol.

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Members of the envisaged Association of Catholic Bishops' Conferences of Malawi, Zambia and Zimbabwe (ACBC-MAZAZI) and Apostolic Nuncio in Zambia and Malawi, Archbishop Gian Luca Perici (in white). Credit: Episcopal Conference of Malawi (ECM)

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Christmas lights line a street in Rome, Italy, Dec. 17, 2024. / Credit: Courtney Mares/CNA

Christmas in Rome As First Jubilee Pilgrims Arrive in Eternal City: PHOTOS

Nigerian Christian mother of five Rhoda Jatau was acquitted of blasphemy charges after a two-and-a-half-year legal battle. / Credit: Photo courtesy of ADF International

Major Religious Freedom Win for Nigeria: Christian Mother Acquitted of Blasphemy Charges 

Pope Francis addresses cardinals and senior Vatican officials during his annual Christmas speech to the Roman Curia, Dec. 21, 2024. / Credit: Vatican Media

Pope Francis Warns against Gossip, Celebrates Family Life in Vatican Christmas Messages

Blessed Jacques-Désiré Laval (right) and Bishop Jean Michaël Durhône (right). Credit: Catholic Diocese of Port Louis

Church 2025 Jubilee Year in Mauritius: “Journey in hope” Guided by Island’s “Apostle”, Spiritan Missionary Blessed Laval

Members of the Inter-Religious Council of Sierra Leone (IRCSL). Credit: The Calabash Newspaper/Facebook

Pro-Abortion Activists Fabricating Maternal Death Statistics to Push for Abortion in Sierra Leone: Religious Leaders

Members of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of Ethiopia (CBCE). Credit: CBCE

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Bishop Gerhard Feige of Magdeburg in Germany. / Credit: Magdeburg Diocese

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Pope Francis prays during Mass at King Baudouin Stadium in Brussels, Belgium, Sunday, Sept. 29, 2024 / Credit: Daniel Ibáñez/CNA

Pope Francis Prays for Victims As Death Toll in German Christmas Market Attack Reaches Five

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