Advent is four weeks long and marks the beginning of the Christian year. The first Sunday of Advent is always four Sundays before Christmas, which means it could be as early as 27 November.

Many Advent customs involve counting the days until Christmas begins, such as the secular use of a chocolate advent calendar. There are different readings on each of the four Sundays leading up to ...

Turkey's Hagia Sophia will open to visitors outside prayer times and its Christian icons will remain, religious officials said on Tuesday, after a court ruling paved the way for it to become a mosque.