Quick Facts and Stats Summary: Festival marking the death of Buddha, his achievement of Parinirvana, final enlightenment. 2021 Date: 15th February Celebrated by: Buddhists, particularly Mahayana Buddhists Linked Holidays: Vesak Background and Theological Significance Nirvana is the ultimate aim for a Buddhist. Buddha himself is seen as the first to have achieved it, at around […]
Quick Facts Summary: a three-day Christian commemoration of the saints and all the faithful departed. 2020 Date: 31st October, 1st November, 2nd November Celebrated by: Western Christians, Western Culture Linked Holidays: Hallowe’en (Western), Samhain (Pagan) Background and Theological Significance Hallowtide, also called Allhallowtide or the Hallowmas season, is a triduum (three day observance) in the […]
by Alexander Taylor Last month, by way of a late summer holiday, I was able to spend a couple of weeks backpacking around northern Greece. One of the highlights of the trip was the day I spent visiting the ancient monasteries of the Meteora. The Meteora is a magnificent geological formation of many great rock […]
by Alex Taylor The 31st October is known throughout the world as the celebration of Halloween. The word ‘Halloween’ is a contraction of ‘All Hallows’ Eve’, the vigil before the feasts of All Saints and All Souls in the Western Church (1st and 2nd November respectively). Despite this Christian etymology, the day and its festivities […]
