Thursday, December 26 is a holiday reserved for the Mother of God, as well as the secular Father's Day in Bulgaria.

The day is also seen as the second day of Christmas, and is a national non-working day in Bulgaria.

The day after December 25, when main Christmas festivities are held, Bulgarian Orthodox Christians celebrate the Convention of the All-Holy Mother of God, during which they pay their veneration to Mary, who bore Jesus into the world.

Special services are called at which the faithful sing songs in praise and thankfulness to the mother of Christ.

The second day of Christmas, Christians also honor Joseph, Mary's husband, which gave the occasion for the date of the secular Father's Day in Bulgaria.

It was instated in 1997 by civic organizations, but has not yet gained much popularity.

According to the Catholic Church, Father's Day is the day of St. Joseph, March 19. In the USA, it is celebrated in the third Sunday of June.