Serbian people in majority are Christians, Orthodox Christians. Another major religion in Serbia is Islam. There are a small number of Buddhists and Hindu. Of Corse same as all around the world there are younger generation who are not strict with their belief and views. They are just doing their own thing.
Orthodox Christmas in Belgrade Serbia
You have to know this!
When it comes to foreigners in Belgrade you should know few things about Orthodox Holidays in Belgrade Serbia.
- New Years Eve in Belgrade Serbia is still happening on the 31 Dec. Yap that’s when people of Belgrade go out and party hard.
- Orthodox New Years Eve is on 13th Jan, but not major celebrations are happening at that time.
- Christmas in Serbia is on the 7th of January and Serbian Orthodox are spending it with a family. There are no partys or Festivals in Serbia going on at this time.
- Orthodox Weddings are very much different. Whole process how Weddings are done is absolutely different than the one in the Catholic world. Check out the most popular Wedding Venues in Belgrade Serbia.
Keep on reading for more interesting facts…
What are the 3 branches of Christianity?
Christianity is split into three branches: Catholic, Protestant and (Eastern) Orthodox. Christianity is the world dominate religion. More then the 30% of the entire world population are declared as Christians. Roman Empire split at 395 ad, and formed 2 major sub religions. Orthodox on the East and Catholic at the west. Good to know: Orthodox and Catholic were the same church. They split from one another largely for political reason back in 1054.
The Ultimate Difference between Orthodox and Catholic
Orthodox Christmas DAY occurs every January 7-th. Orthodox Church celebrate the birth of Jesus as per the Julian calendar. While on the other hand Catholic follow the Gregorian calendar a Christmas Day is on December 25-th. Lets make it simple, interesting and easy to understand. On the head of the Catolic Church there is a Pope. Pope is the main figure and he is on the top of every single church in the entire world. On the head of the church in Orthodox is Jesus Christ himself. Another major difference is fasting. Catholics refused fasting during the time while Orthodox haven’t. Third is auditorium. Once you walk in a church you will notice a different religious art. Forth thing are Icons. Roman Catholic Church and Eastern Orthodox have absolutely different Icons. Difference number five. Eastern Orthodox are making a sign of a cross from a right to the left. While the Western Christians make a sign of a cross from a left shoulder to the right. Next thing is in power of a church to forgive your sins. Another difference is Holly Water. Its used differently. Another very much visible difference is in Visual Identity. Orthodox Priests and Monks wear long beard while Catholics are shaved.
Orthodox and Catholic
Who Else is Orthodox
The second biggest Orthodox Country is not in Europe. Its in Africa. YAP! Ethiopia has 45 million Orthodox followers. Orthodoxy is the third-largest branch of Christianity. Most dominant is Catholicism and then Protestantism. Approximately there are 300 million Orthodox Christians in the world. Greeks, Bulgarians and Russians are in a huge numbers. You would be surprised with the facts that there are 8 million Orthodox in Egypt and around 6 million in Serbia. USA and Serbia has more or less the same number of Orthodox Christians. Syria has around 2 million Orthodox while Poland on the East of Europe has 1,5 milon followers.
Good to know: Orthodox Christmas in Belgrade Serbia is time when Serbs spend time with their families. Clubs in Belgrade are closed. Shopping Malls are not crowded. If you are visiting Belgrade on this day be sure it will be really quite.