Jesus Christ

Police in the Mediterranean province of Adana seized on Feb. 22 an 18th century icon that has one of the Twelve Apostles of Jesus Christ embroidered on gazelle skin. 

BELGRADE - Millions of Orthodox Christians around the globe are celebrating Christmas. Christmas is known worldwide as a family holiday of happiness, which marks the birth of Jesus Christ.

The Fener GreekOrthodox Patriarchate in Istanbul has celebrated the birth and baptism of Jesus Christ with a special mass held on Jan. 6.    
    
The celebrations began with a mass held in the Hagia Yorgi Church, adjacent to the patriarchate's garden, led by Patriarch Bartholomew.      

The Orthodox Christian custom of blessing the waters on the day of Epiphany was celebrated throughout the country, despite the severe weather conditions. The menacing weather in Heraklion, Crete led to the cancellation of the Epiphany festivities, including the traditional throwing of the cross by the priest into the waters.

The Center of Modern Art (Çağdaş Sanatlar Merkezi) in the capital Ankara, where Russian Ambassador to Turkey Andrey Karlov was assassinated during a photo exhibition on Dec. 19, will reopen on Jan. 5 with a recital of the Catholic hymn "Stabat Mater." 

If you happen to be a Christian from the Western side of world, this weekend you might be celebrating the birth of Jesus Christ. In that case, let me begin this column with a wholehearted wish: Merry Christmas! I hope this holy day will be a great time for your family, and bring you all the blessings one could hope for. 

Turkish Culture Minister Nabi Avcı attended an event on Dec. 23 that was organized to introduce a restoration project for the Vlahsaray Panayia GreekOrthodox Church to be conducted by the Association for the Protection of Cultural Heritage and a foundation set up for the historic church. 

BELGRADE - For the first time in centuries, archaeologists opened Christians' holiest spot - the tomb of Jesus Christ located in the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in the Old City of Jerusalem. This will give researchers an unprecedented opportunity to analyze the original rock surface where Jesus' body was laid.

The "fate" or "milestone" of our story is at 6 p.m. on the sixth day of the sixth month of 1966. According to some, the numbers 666 are perceived as the "number of Satan." In Christianity, the number six also means bad luck because of some superstitions related to the day of Jesus Christ's death. 

The Solomon Monastery, which was carved out of the rocks in the eastern province of Erzurum's Şenkaya district nearly 1,000 years ago, is in need of restoration to attract more tourists according officials.