00:00With carols and hymns, many started the day with a traditional service reflecting on the
00:13past year.
00:16From the young to the young at heart, across the country religious leaders offered followers
00:22messages of hope and peace.
00:33If we want to have a sense of hope ourselves, I think we have to be people who try and give
00:37hope to others.
00:39In Melbourne, these pampered poochers attended their own special mass.
00:45Some people aren't happy to put up with the yapping, but yeah, it's part of Christmas,
00:49it's not just how I want it, but it's all us, everyone's welcome.
00:54The jolly man himself dropped by Hobart, where volunteers gave up their Christmas day to
01:00help those in need.
01:01There's so many people doing it tough, and to be able to avail ourselves of this, well,
01:02yeah, it's great.
01:03Absolutely.
01:04Yeah.
01:05And that's what Christmas is all about, getting together for people.
01:18St Nick made time to swing by charity the Les Twentymann Foundation to hand out presents.
01:24This is for families who've not got very much, so this gives them a Christmas day that they
01:29wouldn't ordinarily have.
01:31But the recent loss of the group's founder earlier this year was still raw.
01:36Not seeing Les here is a bit upsetting.
01:39At this charity lunch in Adelaide, a homemade meal was a gift in itself.
01:43If I didn't come here, I wouldn't eat breakfast or lunch anyway.
01:47Australians across the country have marked Christmas in very different ways, including
01:52at big community events like this, where a three-course meal and some live entertainment
01:57is uniting those from all walks of life.
02:03And it wasn't just Christians celebrating, the Jewish community today marked the start
02:08of Hanukkah.
02:09We're going to have multicultural Hanukkah, Pillars of Light, which is a celebration for
02:13all Victorians to come together.
02:17But the cost of living crisis hitting hard, charities say more people are feeling the
02:22pinch.
02:23We're seeing working families, families with children, older Australians who are really
02:27lonely.
02:28So this stuff matters.
02:29I mean, the cost of living and housing crisis are having a profound impact on our community.
02:35Merry Christmas, everyone.
02:36Happy New Year.
02:37Sentiment shared by many, far and wide.
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