Rituals, reverence and revelry

From Gaza to Vilnius, Istanbul to Vevcani, Orthodox Christian communities honour centuries-old customs with ceremonies, carnivals and devotion.

1. Altar boys carrying candles as Christian worshippers attend a Christmas service at the Greek OrthodoxChurch of saint Porphyrius in Gaza City’s Old City, Palestine. — AFP

2. Greek Orthodox faithful kissing a wooden cross after it is retrieved from the Golden Horn during theepiphany ceremony in Istanbul, Turkiye. — AP

3. A senior Orthodox cleric swinging a thurible, spreading incense among worshippers gathered around aceremonial pool during Timkat celebrations in Jan Meda, addis ababa, ethiopia. — AFP

4. A worshipper lighting candles ahead of the liturgy on Orthodox Christmas eve at the Church of the Holyspirit in Vilnius, Lithuania. — AP

5. Revellers in fancy dress join a carnival procession through the village of Vevcani in southwesternMacedonia, during the annual carnival held on the eve of saint Basil’s feast, marking the new year under theJulian calendar observed by the Macedonian Orthodox Church. — AFP

6. A man celebrating on a boat after retrieving a wooden cross thrown into the waters of Gazivoda Lake duringa traditional epiphany procession near Zubin Potok, north of Mitrovica, Kosovo. — AFP