December Diversity Holidays

DECEMBER 1 - 24

• Advent, a Christian season of celebration leading up to the birth of Christ.

DECEMBER 1

• World AIDS Day commemorates those who have died of AIDS and acknowledges the need for continued commitment to all those affected by the HIV/AIDS epidemic.

DECEMBER 3

•  International Day of Persons with Disabilities, designed to raise awareness in regard to persons with disabilities in order to improve their lives and provide them with equal opportunity.

DECEMBER 9

• Immaculate Conception of Mary, the Feast of the Immaculate Conception celebrates the solemn celebration by various Christian denominations of belief in the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary.

DECEMBER 10

• International Human Rights Day, established by the United Nations in 1948 to commemorate the anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

DECEMBER 12

• Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe, a religious holiday in Mexico commemorating the appearance of the Virgin Mary near Mexico City in 1531.

DECEMBER 13

• St. Lucia’s Day, a religious festival of light in Scandinavia and Italy commemorating the martyrdom of St. Lucia, a young Christian girl who was killed for her faith in 304 CE. She secretly took food to persecuted Christians in Rome while wearing a wreath of candles on her head so both her hands would be free.

DECEMBER 16 - 24

• Las Posadas, a nine-day celebration in Mexico commemorating the trials Mary and Joseph endured during their journey to Bethlehem.

DECEMBER 21

• Yule Winter Solstice, celebrated by Pagans and Wiccans. The shortest day of the year represents a celebration focusing on rebirth, renewal, and new beginnings as the sun makes its way back to the Earth. A solstice is an astronomical event that happens twice each year when the sun reaches its highest position in the sky.

DECEMBER 25

• Christmas Day is widely celebrated by Christians around the world, is observed with festive traditions and religious practices, and celebrates the birth of Jesus Christ. The name 'Christmas' comes from the Mass of Christ (or Jesus).

DECEMBER 25 - JANUARY 2

• Hanukkah, a Jewish holiday that is celebrated for eight days and nights. Hanukkah celebrates the victory of the Maccabees, or Israelites, over the Greek-Syrian ruler, Antiochus, approximately 2,200 years ago.

DECEMBER 26

• Boxing Day, a secular holiday celebrated in the United Kingdom, Canada, Ireland, Australia, New Zealand, Hong Kong, and South Africa.
• Zartosht No-Diso (Death of Prophet Zarathushtra), a day of remembrance in the Zoroastrian religion. It commemorates the anniversary of the death of the prophet Zoroaster, or Zarathushtra.
• St. Stephen’s Day, a day to commemorate St. Stephen, the first Christian martyr, or protomartyr.

DECEMBER 26 - JANUARY 1

• Kwanzaa, an African-American holiday started by Maulana Karenga in 1966 to celebrate universal African-American heritage.

DECEMBER 27

•  St. John’s Apostle and Evangelist Day, feast day for St. John, celebrated by Christian denominations.

DECEMBER 28

• Feast of the Holy Innocents, a Christian feast in remembrance of the massacre of young children in Bethlehem by King Herod the Great in his attempt to kill the infant Jesus.

DECEMBER 29

• Feast of the Holy Family, a liturgical celebration in the Catholic Church in honor of Jesus, his mother, and his foster father, St. Joseph, as a family. The primary purpose of this feast is to present the Holy Family as a model for Christian families.

DECEMBER 31

•  Watch Night, a day for Christians to review the year that has passed, make confessions, and then prepare for the year ahead by praying and resolving.