Yule

Bosnia says it will tighten controls over illegal logging ahead of the Christmas holiday, when the hunt for free yule logs and Christmas trees poses a threat to the country's woodlands.

BELGRADE - Orthodox believers in Serbia today celebrate Christmas Eve, when in temples and homes they burn Yule logs and have services on the eve of the Christian holiday - Christmas.

December in the northern hemisphere is the darkest of all months. As midwinter advent solstice days get shorter, nights get longer and colder. All one needs is the warmth of the glow of a fire. As each night gets darker, we need another candle to lift our spirits, another log in the fire to warm our hearts. 

BELGRADE - Patriarch Irinej of the Serbian Orthodox Church headed the consecration ceremony and the burning of the Yule log at the plateau in front of the Saint Sava Cathedral in Belgrade downtown late on Tuesday.