Guardian East January Issue | Page 21

Catholic Christmas in Kosovo Story by Ardian Nrecaj Public Affairs Specialist W hen we hear “Christmas,” we think of Santa Claus, presents under the tree and families getting together to celebrate. Although Catholics in Kosovo have their own customs and traditions, they are slowly adapting some of these western Christmas traditions. Don Dominik Qerimi, a Catholic priest and the director of the Don Bosco Educational Social Centre in Gjilan, says the media is having a big influence by bringing the globalized world inside many Kosovo homes. “In Kosovo it was a tradition that children would receive gifts and new clothes for Easter, but it’s becoming more common now with Christian families to buy gifts for Christmas,” said Qerimi. “The western world traditions are becoming part of ours, and this is an enrichment of our old traditions with new o