One very beautiful custom still practiced to some extent by Catholics, Orthodox and Westerners in general is the Name Day celebration. This is a celebration similar to a birthday except the feast of a person's patron saint is celebrated rather than the date of their birth.
There was a time when the Church required parents to give their children Christian names. This was because when a Child is named after a Saint, that Saint becomes the child's Patron and prays for his or her soul to be saved. In those days everyone had a patron and everyone had a name day.
Due to Catholicism's vast importance in the West (causing nearly everything known as Western Civilization), the people of the West's lives revolved around The Catholic Church and their Traditions, Customs and Culture and were all influenced by it. The Catholics of the West, especially the wholesome peasants took their faith very seriously and were always thinking of religion. It is not surprising therefore that a good custom like the Name Day celebration came into being.
Traditions for Name Days include: Holy Mass on the feast of one's Saint, Prayers to that Saint by the whole family, gifts and pastries that are associated with that Saint.
Those trying to live more traditionally should consider celebrating Name Days (even more than birthdays) for this was a special Tradition to our forefathers and celebrating Name Days in a religious way, especially in Protestant countries like the United States would greatly help the Counter Revolutionary cause (and obviously improve one's spiritual life).
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