from LA Daily News coverage http://www.dailynews.com/news/ci_17021102
Tens of thousands of Christians in the San Fernando Valley and the rest of Los Angeles will celebrate the most ancient Christmas Day on Thursday. Armenians will be commemorating their Christmas, a tradition recognizing both the birth and baptism of Jesus Christ.
"I grew up attending Armenian schools, speaking Armenian and in the Armenian culture, so I was always used to having my Christmas in January," recalls Hatamian. "I always thought it was just us, but I'm finding out that we're not alone. "In my family, it's not as much about religion as it is about maintaining culture and tradition."
Some, in fact, regard the Jan. 6 and 7 commemorations as part of a doubly rich Christmas cultural experience. "In my family we recognize Jan. 6 and Jan. 7 as Christmas and what we celebrate on Dec. 24 and 25 as the American Christmas," said Coptic Christian Helena Botros, a political science instructor at Los Angeles Harbor College.
Similarly, Armenians flocked to Christmas Eve religious services on Wednesday night, observing a solemn, centuries-old service in which the faithful are blessed with holy water believed to contain some of the same oil used to baptize Jesus.
At Glendale Adventist Medical Center, Archbishop Hovnan Derderian of the Western Diocese of the Armenian Church of North America marked the tradition Wednesday by blessing and delivering the traditional Armenian sweet Gata bread to Armenian patients.
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