Great Orthodox holidays: a list with dates, explanations and traditions

2024 Author: Miguel Ramacey | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 06:11

Besides Easter as the dominant Christian holiday, in our culture there are 12 more great Orthodox holidays, called the Twelfth. What are these holidays and how are they traditionally celebrated? You will learn about this from this article.

Hierarchy of holidays in orthodox Christianity

Easter - a sign of the eternal victory of life over death - is in this hierarchy of holidays one step above the rest. This is the most important holiday of the Christian tradition. Further along the hierarchy are the non-twelfth great and twelfth Orthodox holidays. In total, 17 holidays fall into the category of great holidays. The non-twelfth great dates include the following dates:

1. Protection of the Most Holy Theotokos is a holiday that falls on October 14 in the orthodox world. Associated with the vision of St. Andrew the Fool of Constantinople. At the hour when Constantinople was under siege, the Mother of God appeared to Andrew, stretching a veil over the city from her head, the city was saved.
2. Circumcision of the Lord - while we are celebrating the last New Year holidays on January 14, there is a service in the church in memory ofthis event, and also in honor of Basil the Great, one of the so-called Fathers of the Church.
3. The Orthodox Church celebrates the Nativity of John the Baptist (Baptist) on July 7 - this is the day that we know as Ivan Kupala. It is associated with the miraculous birth of John the Baptist six months before Jesus.
4. The Day of the Holy Apostles Peter and Paul, which is popularly known simply as Peter's Day, is celebrated on July 12th. Officially, on the Day of Peter and Paul, the memory of the acceptance of martyrdom by the apostles is commemorated, and for the common people this day symbolizes the complete transition to summer.
5. The beheading of John the Baptist in Russian tradition is celebrated on September 11th. On this day, they remember the martyrdom of John the Baptist, and also commemorate the soldiers who fell in the battle for the fatherland.

Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary

In the orthodox tradition, the birth of the Virgin Mother is celebrated on September 21st. Her parents, Joachim and Anna, have already come to terms with the idea of not leaving offspring - it is believed that both were already over 70 when Maria was born. Her birth is associated with Joachim's stay in the desert, where he retired to ask the Lord for procreation. In a dream, an angel appeared to him and announced that he would soon have a daughter. And the truth is - returning to the city, Joachim met Anna, hurrying to meet him with good news.

This holiday is designed to glorify the Mother of God as the protector and intercessor of all people before God. In the folk calendar, it is associated with the arrival of autumn, harvesting and the end of all summer work.

Ex altationHoly Cross

This holiday is associated with one of the main Christian symbols - with the cross on which the Son of God passed the test of death. And its appearance was facilitated by the Byzantine Empress Elena in the middle of the 4th century. Already at a rather advanced age (according to historians, she was about 80 years old), the mother of Emperor Constantine decides to go to Jerusalem in search of lost Christian relics. As a result of excavations on Mount Golgotha, they found not only a cross, but also a cave in which Christ was buried.

The date of the celebration was set in September 335 - after the Church of the Resurrection of Christ was consecrated in Jerusalem. The Orthodox world celebrates on September 27th by observing a strict fast and not doing hard work. People also believe that it is from this day that birds begin to fly south, and snakes crawl into holes for the winter.

Entering the Holy Mother of God into the Temple

The Orthodox Feast of the Entry into the Temple is celebrated on December 4th. It is dedicated to an episode from the life of the Virgin Mary - at the age of three, pious parents brought her to the Temple in Jerusalem to fulfill God's covenant - to dedicate her daughter's life to God. In all interpretations of this story, they say that little Mary entered the temple with unusual confidence, as if already knowing that she would play a great role in this religion. Maria never returned home to her parents - she lived in the temple until the age of 12, until the angel Gabriel brought her news of the extraordinary fate that was bestowed on her.

In folk tradition, this holiday is called Introduction. He was associated with the arrival of winter - it was from thisIn the afternoon, winter festivities and sleigh rides began. It was also worth forgetting about field work until spring - the peasants believed that it was better not to disturb the land after the Introduction.

Christmas

Of all the twelve great Orthodox holidays, Christmas is considered the most significant. In Western tradition, it is customary to celebrate it on December 25, while in our country it is on January 7.

The birth of Jesus took place in the city of Bethlehem, the hometown of Joseph. He arrived here with the pregnant Maria, but there was no room for them in the hotel. The travelers had to settle down in a cave. When Mary felt the approach of childbirth, Joseph hurried in search of a midwife. He managed to find a woman named Salome, together they went back to the cave. The first thing they saw in the cave was a bright light flooding the entire space. Gradually, the light faded away - and Mary appeared with a baby sitting in her arms. At this time, a star of extraordinary brightness rose over Bethlehem, announcing the arrival of the Son of God to the world.

It is believed that every great Orthodox holiday gives birth to kindness in the heart, but especially Christmas. On Christmas Eve, it is customary for the whole family to gather at the festive table - according to folk tradition, twelve dishes should be on it.

Historians believe that it is not known for certain what time of year Jesus was born. It is believed that the date of the great Orthodox holiday of Christmas is connected with more ancient holidays dedicated to the winter solstice (December 21 or 22). This holiday is preceded by a forty-day fast,starting November 27.

Baptism of the Lord

The second most important holiday of the Orthodox Church after Christmas is the Baptism of the Lord. It is celebrated on January 19 - we all know about the folk tradition of swimming in the hole on this day. However, the church and historians unanimously argue that this tradition is not as ancient and primordial as it seems, and only acquired a mass character in the 80s - as a symbol of the country's return to religion.

This celebration is connected with an episode from the life of Christ, which is traditionally considered the beginning of his ministry. At the age of 30, Jesus was baptized in the Jordan River. The person who baptized the Son of God was John the Baptist. When Christ came ashore, the Holy Spirit descended on him in the guise of a dove, and from heaven came the voice of God the Father, announcing the appearance of God the Son. Thus, the Lord manifested himself in his trinity. Therefore, Baptism among the great holidays of the Orthodox Church is also known as the Epiphany. In the Catholic tradition, the Epiphany is associated with Christmas and the offering of the Magi.

The Presentation of the Lord

From the Old Slavonic language, Candlemas can be interpreted as the word “meeting” - the church believes that it was on this day that mankind met with Jesus Christ. This great Orthodox holiday is celebrated on February 15 - forty days after Christmas. On this day, Mary and Joseph brought baby Jesus to the temple for the first time, where he was received by St. Simeon the God-bearer. There is a separate legend about Simeon - he was one of the seventy scholars who translated Holy Scripture fromHebrew into Greek. The entry about the Virgin, who should conceive and give birth to a son, embarrassed Simeon, he decided to correct the mistake of an unknown scribe: it is the Wife who should give birth, and not the Virgin. But at that moment, an angel appeared in the room and said that this would indeed happen one day. The Lord will not let the elder die until he sees this miracle with his own eyes. When the day finally came to meet the baby Jesus, Simeon was already about 360 years old - all his life the righteous old man had been waiting for a meeting with the human incarnation of God.

Annunciation of the Blessed Virgin Mary

The Feast of the Annunciation is a symbol of hope and expectation. On this day, April 7, they celebrate the appearance of the archangel Gabriel by Mary, who brought her good news with the words: “Rejoice, Blessed One! The Lord is with you; Blessed are You among women,”this line subsequently entered many prayers dedicated to the Mother of God. As a moving feast, the Annunciation is often included in the number of Orthodox holidays during Lent. In this case, those who fast are incredibly lucky - in honor of the holiday, a slight indulgence in the form of animal food is allowed (only not meat, but fish).

Entry of the Lord into Jerusalem

There is still a week left before Easter, and the world is already beginning to celebrate and honor the memory of Christ's deeds this week. This date is popularly known as Palm Sunday - a great Orthodox holiday. On this day, Jesus solemnly entered Jerusalem, choosing a donkey as a mount - as a sign thathe arrived in peace. The people met him as the Messiah, laying palm branches on the road - later they became the main symbol of this holiday. Since palm trees do not grow in our latitudes, the branches were replaced with willow ones.

Many folk traditions are associated with this day. It was customary to sanctify willow branches in the church, and then keep them in the house all year long so that good luck and prosperity would not leave it. They also lightly hit each other with a willow, saying: “I don’t beat - the willow beats.” Since this Orthodox holiday is celebrated modestly during Great Lent, the main meal of the feast could be fish, but not meat.

Ascension of the Lord

When Easter is over and another forty days have passed, Orthodox Christians celebrate Ascension. This day is one of the great twelfth holidays of the Orthodox Church. The image of Christ ascended to heaven recalls the predominance of the ideal divine nature over the imperfect human. Until this day, you can congratulate all Orthodox on the holiday of Great Easter with the words "Christ is Risen!"

Having resurrected, Jesus Christ preached for another forty days, and then gathered his apostle disciples and ascended to heaven, bequeathing that he would appear a second time (this is considered the promise of the second coming) and that the Holy Spirit would also descend on the apostles - this happened ten days later.

Holy Trinity Day

Another ten days pass after Ascension and fifty afterEaster is when the orthodox world celebrates the next great Orthodox holiday. In a simple way, it is also called the Trinity, Pentecost. The event that led to the appearance of this holiday is the indulgence of the Holy Spirit on the apostles. When all twelve were assembled, a gust of wind suddenly came up and enveloped the apostles in flames. The Holy Spirit spoke so brightly. From that day on, the disciples of Jesus gained the ability to understand hitherto unknown languages and dialects, and most importantly, to speak them. This blessing was given to them in order to spread the word of God around the world, so the apostles went to preach in the countries.

In the folk tradition, the Trinity completed the series of spring holidays - after it the summer season began. They prepared thoroughly for this holiday - a few days before it, the housewives cleaned the house, trying to get rid of unnecessary things, and the garden and vegetable garden were cleared of weeds. They tried to decorate their homes with bunches of herbs and flowers, as well as tree branches - it was believed that this would bring good luck and prosperity to all its inhabitants. In the morning we went to the church for the service, and in the evening the festivities began. Young people were ordered to be careful these days - after all, mermaids and mavkas came out of the forests and fields to lure guys into their networks.

Transfiguration of the Lord

The Feast of the Transfiguration is associated with a small episode from the life of Christ. Taking with him three disciples - James, John and Peter - Jesus ascended Mount Tabor for the sake of conversations and prayers. But as soon as they climbedpeak, a miracle happened - Jesus ascended above the earth, his clothes became white, and his face shone like the sun. Next to him appeared the images of the Old Testament prophets Moses and Elijah, and from heaven came the voice of God, announcing the son.

The Transfiguration is celebrated on August 19th. This great Orthodox holiday in the folk tradition is called the Apple Savior (the second after the Honey). It was believed that from this day autumn begins to come into its own. Many of the customs of this day are associated with the harvest of apples and fruits in general - before the Savior, the fruits were considered immature. Ideally, the harvest should have been blessed in a church. Then apples could be consumed without restrictions.

Assumption of the Virgin

The feast of the Assumption of the Virgin is associated with the end of the earthly life of the Virgin Mary and the ascension of her soul and body to heaven. The word “assumption” can be interpreted more as “sleep” than “death” - in this regard, the name of the holiday reflects the attitude of Christianity to death as a transition to another world and testifies to the divine nature of Mary herself.

This great Orthodox holiday is celebrated on August 28, although it is not known exactly in which year and on which day the Virgin Mary passed away. In folk tradition, this day is called Obzhinki - it is associated with the end of the harvest.