Tourists usually come by busloads six weeks of the year to see Dyker Heights’s lavish Christmas lights and displays. Due to the overwhelming tourism he experienced last year though, homeowner Nick Taverniti didn’t elaborately decorate his home. This year, his daughters convinced him to keep their family tradition alive and bring much needed Christmas cheer to the area.
St. Saviour High School junior Allie Giordano wanted to do more for others as the pandemic continued to unfold during the holiday season. She asked for help from her school’s administration with a Christmas service project she wanted to pursue — collecting items for the military through the American Red Cross Holidays for Heroes program.
Bishop Nicholas DiMarzio unveiled the replica of the “Angels Unawares” statue to serve in place of the Nativity scene for the Diocese of Brooklyn in Grand Army Plaza of Prospect Park.
Pope John XXIII once said, “Mankind is a great, an immense family … This is proved by what we feel in our hearts at Christmas.” The Christmas spirit will still be alive — albeit in modified ways, due to the pandemic — thanks to how Catholic parishes and dioceses will continue their annual programming.
The past eight months of the pandemic have given many people the opportunity to try new hobbies and catch up on reading or binging on television. For Marlys Halbeisen, a 78-year-old grandmother from Wheat Ridge, Colo., she spent the time writing Christmas cards for U.S. military members overseas – 40,000 cards to be exact.
The year, the Christmas tradition of the Peace Light of Bethlehem continues, despite COVID-19 restrictions and border and church closures.
The Tablet’s annual Bright Christmas Campaign has officially launched early this year due to the ongoing pandemic.
U.S. Catholic parishes, schools and groups have been collecting items since the fall to share Christmas joy in small packages for children in poverty-stricken nations and will deliver the gift boxes to local drop-off centers during Box of Joy Week, Nov. 7-15.
It might be “unbelievable” to people in other countries, but a Catholic chapel inside a shopping mall and thousands of people attending Mass there have become a new norm among Filipinos.
For Coptic Christians in Egypt, Christmas is celebrated somewhat differently than it is in most of the world, although some traditions are the same.
