Photos: Christmas around the world
Christians across the globe marked Christmas with prayer, reflection and celebration
Iraqi Christians attend a Christmas mass at Virgin Mary Chaldean Church in Baghdad, Iraq, Tuesday, Dec. 25, 2012. Iraqi Christians gathered for Christmas services amid tight security. The exact number of Christians remaining in Iraq is not known, but it has fallen sharply from as many as 1.4 million before the U.S.-led invasion nearly a decade ago. Community leaders believe there are about 400,000 to 600,000 Christians left in the country, according to figures from the U.S. State Department.Khalid Mohammed/The Associated Press
A man dressed as Santa Claus blesses a child at a Christmas Day party in Dhaka, Bangladesh, Tuesday, Dec. 25, 2012.A.M. Ahad/The Associated Press
Road side vendors sell Jesus posters during Christmas in New Delhi, India, Tuesday, Dec. 25, 2012. Although Christians comprise only 2 per cent of the population, Christmas is a national holiday and is observed across the country as an occasion to celebrate.Tsering Topgyal/The Associated Press
Pakistani Christians walk through a security gate to attend Christmas service at a local church in Lahore, Pakistan, Tuesday, Dec. 25, 2012. Authorities take strict security measures on the Christmas Day to avoid any act of terrorism.K.M. Chaudary/The Associated Press
A worshipper holds rosary beads during Catholic mass at the Church of St. Catherine, which is connected to the Church of Nativity, in the West Bank town of Bethlehem on Christmas day December 25, 2012.Mohamad Torokman/Reuters
Christian worshippers attend Christmas day mass in the Church of Nativity, traditionally believed by Christians to be the birthplace of Jesus Christ, in the West Bank town of Bethlehem, Tuesday, Dec. 25, 2012.Adel Hana/The Associated Press
Christmas ornaments sit amongst the remains of homes destroyed by fire during Hurricane Sandy in the Breezy Point area of New York's borough of Queens, December 25, 2012.Keith Bedford/Reuters
Families celebrate Christmas Day watching the symphony of lights and sound attraction at a park in Manila's Makati financial district December 25, 2012.Cheryl Ravelo/Reuters
People visit the Strasbourg Christmas Market outside the Kremlin in Manezh Square, with the State Historical Museum, left, and the Kremlin in the background, in Moscow, Russia, Tuesday, Dec. 25, 2012.Alexander Zemlianichenko/The Associated Press
Kai Kubierske from Bonn, Germany, smiles as he emerges from an ice-filled pond at the Gulf of Finland on Christmas Day in Lauttasaari, Helsinki, December 25, 2012.Jussi Nukari/Lehtikuva/Reuters
Members of Britain's royal family walk to Sandringham Church to attend the annual Christmas service on the Royal Estate at Sandringham in Norfolk, eastern England December 25, 2012.Toby Melville/Reuters
Pam Walker, of Carson City, Nevada, decorates a Christmas tree along Waikiki Beach in Honolulu, Hawaii, on Christmas day, December 25, 2012. Its the 14th year in a row that she has celebrated Christmas on the beach.Larry Downing/Reuters
Incense burns as Indonesians attend a traditional Javanese Christmas mass in Klaten, Central Java, Indonesia, Tuesday, Dec. 25, 2012.Gembong Nusantara/The Associated Press
Lithuanian Christians prays during the Christmas mass at the Cathedral-Basilical in Vilnius, Lithuania, Tuesday, Dec 25, 2012. Over 80 per cent of Lithuanians are Christians who celebrate Christmas on Dec. 25.Mindaugas Kulbis/The Associated Press
A worshipper lights a candle at the Cathedral-Basilica in Vilnius, Lithuania, Tuesday, Dec 25, 2012.Mindaugas Kulbis/The Associated Press
Fireworks light up the sky above a 326-metre-tall Christmas 'tree' decoration, illuminating the TV tower in Vilnius, Lithuania, during the official lighting-up ceremony on Christmas Day Tuesday, Dec. 25, 2012.Mindaugas Kulbis/The Associated Press