St. Barbara in Belarus

AFP

Members of the Orthodox Church honored one of their most important saints on Friday -- the virgin martyr Saint Barbara, who died in Syria in 311 A.D. She's celebrated in eastern European countries on December 17, and part of the ceremony involves carrying a candle and an icon around to to neighboring houses. Here, a worshipper kisses a candle decorated with ribbons and paper flowers in the Belarus village of Bastenovichi, around 280km east of Minsk.