It’s the most wonderful time of the year – Christmas!
A time of year where people connect with loved ones, eat delicious festive food, and sing Christmas carols to celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ.
This year, The Greek Herald spoke with Father Andrew Joannou of the Holy Trinity Greek Orthodox Parish of Hobart, Tasmania, to talk about what he considers some of the “biggest miracles” during this season.
Why we celebrate Christmas
Father Andrew, who was born in Western Sydney and has been a priest in Australia for the last 18 years, revealed the importance of December 25 and why it is celebrated.
“It’s the birth of Jesus – the reason why we celebrate Christmas,” he said.
“The fact that Jesus was born and put on human flesh to save the world is a great miracle, and a miracle that we all need to have deeply in our hearts.
“Without this miracle, Jesus would not have come into the world. Jesus would not have conducted all his miracles; he wouldn’t have resurrected from the dead. It’s because of the birth of Christ, a great miracle, that we all have the opportunity to be saved.”
A full church for Christmas
The priest also explained that another miracle experienced on Christmas Day “is the fact that all our churches are full of people.”
“We have church every Sunday however, our churches don’t always fill up. When it comes to these big days, such as the celebration of the Virgin Mary, Easter, and Christmas, all these people just come to church and receive Holy Communion. So that is indeed, a miracle,” Father Andrew said.
“It’s fantastic. As priests, we work hard to fill up the church and to spread spirituality amongst our communities, and to see the churches filled up is amazing.
“We see it as a miracle because it is. We have so many Sundays, and so many feast days throughout the year, and yes, people come, but not as much as Christmas and Easter. So that’s divine intervention and God just inspires everyone to come into the church.”
Father Andrew added that it’s an “amazing feeling” to see everyone in church smiling and enjoy the Christmas service.
“Doing the service, communicating to so many people, and giving antidoro afterwards is also so satisfying. It’s just amazing to see people in church on the day of the birth of Christ, which, in my view, confirms his existence,” he said.
Christmas wishes
To conclude his interview, Father Andrew expressed his wishes for the holiday season.
“May the birth of Christ inspire all of us to become stronger Christians, to become stronger human beings, and to stay close to our family – everything starts from the family,” he said.
“May you all have a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.”
