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7 January: what is celebrated today
Winter continues, and with it come days of reflection and memory, of faith and nostalgia. On 7 January the calendar is divided between the spiritual and the tangible: on one hand, Orthodox Christmas, which lights up eastern churches with the promise of Christ’s birth; on the other, Postal Stamp Day, a small tribute to that rectangle of paper which for centuries carried words and affections from one continent to another. Two different celebrations, joined by one idea: communication—between heaven and earth, between souls and distances.
Orthodox Christmas: the faith that follows the calendar of the stars
While the Western world has already put away its Christmas decorations, in countries with an Orthodox tradition the spirit of the Nativity is only just beginning to flourish. Based on the Julian calendar, Orthodox Christmas is celebrated on 7 January, thirteen days after the Catholic one. In Russia, Serbia, Greece, Ukraine or Ethiopia, churches resound with ancient hymns, families light candles and the air fills with incense and songs.
The day begins with fasting and culminates with the first star of the night — a symbol of the birth of Jesus. On many tables, twelve dishes are served, one for each apostle, including kutia, a mixture of wheat, honey and poppy seeds that symbolises abundance and eternal life. The streets fill with choirs, processions and the traditional greeting: “Christ is born”, to which the response is “Glory to Him!”.
This celebration preserves the original meaning of Christmas: an experience of humility and reflection, in which what is essential is neither bought nor wrapped. Its strength lies in its sobriety: the light that is born in the midst of winter and shared, from heart to heart.
Postage Stamp Day: the word that travels
On the same day on which the incarnation of the divine Word is celebrated, the world pays tribute to another form of communication: the postage stamp, an invention that allowed words to cross oceans and borders. 7 January marks the birth of Heinrich Stephan, founder of the Universal Postal Union and architect of the modern postal system. Thanks to him, a letter could travel around the planet with a single stamp: a small miracle of organisation and trust.
The stamp was far more than proof of postage: it was a miniature work of art, a portrait of nations, heroes and landscapes. From Queen Victoria's legendary Penny Black to today's commemorative issues, each one holds a fragment of history, an emotion encapsulated in paper. Collectors — philatelists — know it well: behind every stamp there is a life, a journey, a message that was once urgent.
Today, in times of instant messaging, the stamp becomes a symbol of patience and memory. In museums and exhibitions, countries celebrate its silent art: that of joining, with a small square of paper, the person who writes and the person who waits. In a world saturated with noise, the slowness of traditional mail reminds us that words, like prayers, need time to arrive.