ADVENT                                 LENT                                       EASTER

CHRISTMAS                           Ash Wednesday                        Ascension Day

EPIPHANY                             Holy Week                               PENTECOST

                                                            Palm Sunday                             Sundays after Pentecost

                                                            Maundy Thursday

Good Friday

Holy Saturday

ADVENT is the first season in the Christian or Church’s liturgical year. The word "ADVENT" is derived from the Latin, meaning 'coming' or 'arrival.' This season reminds us of the Second Coming of the Lord and His Kingdom, which is "at hand." The Western church has also developed the Advent Season as a preparation for the festival of the Nativity.

In earlier times, Advent was seen totally as a penitential season. Similar to that of the Season of Lent, during the Advent Season, marriages were not solemnized in the Church and the faithful were asked to abstain from public amusements. The color used during the season was ‘purple,’ which is still used by some churches today. However, in modern times, this custom has changed and Advent has become a season of hope and anticipation. It is a season given to the preparation of the Feast of the Nativity; and the anticipation of Jesus' Second Advent again when he comes in glory to judge both the living and the dead and to establish a kingdom for all eternity. Blue is the color which is symbolic of hope and anticipation. This color originated at Salisbury Cathedral in England and is sometimes called "Sarum Blue," from the ancient name for Salisbury. The First Sunday in Advent is the beginning of the Christian Year (Church Year). The period begins with the Sunday closest to St. Andrew's Day (November 30).

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The second season in the Church or Christian Year is CHRISTMAS - The Feast of the Nativity of Jesus Christ. The dates of this season along with that of the Season of the Epiphany are both linked with the winter solstice. Some scholars and persons would argue that Jesus was not born on December 25, the day that is celebrated as his day of birth. But it is not the day that is important but the event which Christians celebrate and what it means for humanity.

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The EPIPHANY has its origin in the eastern celebration of the Incarnation, and its fundamental concern is the epiphany or the manifestation of God in Jesus Christ to the world. This third season in the Church or Christian Year always begins on January 6. This is probably so because this was the original date of the winter solstice in the East. However, it would appear that originally the Eastern epiphany celebrated two things. The first was the birth of Christ including the visit of the Wise Men, and secondly, the baptism of Jesus. This remained the case until the late fourth century. By A.D. 380, with the celebration of Christmas on December 25 in Constantinople, the incarnation was separated from the baptism in liturgical celebration.

Epiphany commemorates Christ's manifestation to the Gentiles as the promised Messiah, symbolized by the visit of the Wise Men; the baptism of Jesus by John the Baptist (celebrated on the First Sunday after the Epiphany), and the marriage feast of Cana, the beginning of Jesus' public ministry and his first miracle. Although the celebration of the Christmas season totally overshadows the season of the Epiphany, yet the latter is a time to ponder on Jesus being the light of the world. It is also a time for rededicating ourselves to our missionary tasks, spreading the light of Christ's forgiving and redeeming love. The color for the Feast Day of the Epiphany and the First Sunday after the Epiphany is 'white.' However, for the remainder of the season, the color is 'green' symbolizing life and growth. 

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The origin of LENT, the fourth season in the Christian or Church’s Year, probably lies in the period of preparation of candidates for baptism at Easter. This is coupled at a later time with those becoming penitents observing Lent as a means of preparation for re-admission to communion at Easter. The English word Lent means "spring," but there seems to be no significance between this and the period of spiritual discipline before Easter. As adult baptisms decline due to the growth of infant baptisms, Lent lost its association with baptismal preparation and became a general penitential season as one prepares for the celebration of the coming Easter. 

Initially, the period of Lent was variable in length, but six weeks seemed to be more common in many places from the fourth century onwards. The season started on "Quadragesima Sunday" (the Latin word for 'forty days'). However, the desire arose to keep the Lenten fast strictly to forty days, excluding Sundays, since traditionally Sunday was a 'feast day' and never a fast day. This meant that the days of the six weeks before Easter provided thirty-six days. Thus, Lent became extended by four days prior to Quadragesima Sunday to make the period forty days and therefore now starts on "Ash Wednesday." The observance of forty days was partly in keeping with devotional identification with Jesus' fasting and temptations in the wilderness for forty days. The period of Lent therefore started on Ash Wednesday and ended on "Holy Saturday" (the day before Easter Day). During the season, many churches have special services, Lenten programs, series of addresses, study groups and music suitable for the penitential nature of the season. The color of the season is 'purple' symbolizing penitence. 

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The first day of Lent is called Ash Wednesday. It is the Wednesday of the seventh week before Easter. However, Ash Wednesday was not always the first day of Lent, Quadragesima Sunday was. The day got its name from the imposition of ashes on the foreheads of worshippers in the service of the day reminding persons of their mortality and an exhortation to faithfulness to the gospel. The words: "Remember that you are dust, and to dust you shall return" and "Repent and believe in the gospel” are used as ashes are placed on one’s forehead. The Imposition takes place in the Eucharist after the Sermon, although the Eucharistic context is not obligated. The ashes are made from the burning of the palms from the previous year’s Palm Sunday. 

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It would appear that the celebration of services during HOLY WEEK came into being around the end of the fourth century. The week before the Pasch (the Christian Passover) was of unique significance in the Christian year since the middle of the third century, but there is no evidence that observances were of this great intensity. Thus, at the latter part of the fourth century, Palm Sunday and Good Friday came into being. What Christians were doing was to link the events of the ministry of Jesus with the occurrence and the places where they happened. Jerusalem became the place where these services in Holy Week took place. The city was the prime location where the process of change could go forward quite naturally. After all, it was in Jerusalem that the events of the first Holy Week took place. Nevertheless, the rest of the church soon adopted these services as well. 

In the celebration of Holy Week, four great services highlight the main events being celebrated: Palm Sunday, Maundy Thursday, Good Friday and the Easter Vigil. However, for the rest of the week, normal Eucharist and Offices are held. The color during Holy Week is normally ‘red,’ symbolizing the Cross, but purple can also be used.

Palm Sunday, also called the “Sunday of the Passion” is the first day of Holy Week. It reminds us of Jesus' triumphal entry into Jerusalem with people waving palms branches. Today, the church blesses and distributes palm crosses and branches, hold processions and the reading of the Gospel of the Palms as well as the Passion Gospel during the Eucharist. The color on the day is either ‘purple’ or ‘red.’

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There are a variety of events that took place on Maundy Thursday, the day on which Jesus was arrested that are commemorated in various ways in services of worship. These include the last meal the disciples shared together, which was probably a Passover meal, the institution of the Eucharist or Communion, Jesus’ washing of his disciples’ feet, the betrayal by Judas Iscariot, and Jesus praying in Gethsemane while the disciples fell asleep and the arrest.

In the Church, Maundy Thursday is a day of great liturgical complexity, with three quite distinct acts of liturgical celebration. These are: 

• The public reconciliation of penitents prior to their re-admission to communion at Easter. This is however no longer practiced. 

• The Chrism Mass, or in some dioceses may be called the Liturgy of Collegiality, is the service at which oils are blessed by the bishop, normally in the cathedral, for use in baptism, confirmation, ordination and the anointing of the sick and bishops, priests and deacons renew their ordination vows. In dioceses where there are vast geographic areas, this service may be held on an earlier day in Holy Week.

• The Evening Mass (The Lord’s Supper) – is a celebration of thanks for the institution of the Eucharist. This service also has the associated ceremonies of the Washing of the feet (remembrance of Jesus washing of his disciples’ feet), the Sacrament of Repose, the stripping of the Altar and the Watch. 

Traditionally in the Christian Church, this day is known as Maundy Thursday. The term Maundy comes from the Latin word mandatum (from which we get our English word mandate), from a verb that means "to give," "to entrust," or "to order." The term is usually translated "commandment," from John's account of this Thursday night.  According to the Fourth Gospel, after Jesus and the disciples had finished the meal, as they walked into the night toward Gethsemane, Jesus taught his disciples a "new" commandment (John 13:34-35).

The color used on this day is normally 'white' although some churches may use 'purple' or ' red.' 

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Good Friday commemorates the Passion and Death on a cross of Our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Christians view Christ's crucifixion as a voluntary and vicarious act, and one by which, along with his resurrection on the third day, death itself was conquered. It is also linked to fasting on the Friday before the Pasch. Traditionally, the service for this day was the Three Hours Devotion, which was invented by the Peruvian Jesuits. This service consisted of a series of addresses usually based on the seven words of the cross, interspersed with readings, prayers, silence, psalms and hymns in whatever combination is chosen by the Officiant of the service. 

In recent years, the Good Friday Liturgy is becoming more prominent. This service comprises mainly of four parts: 

• The Liturgy of the Word

• The Solemn Prayers/Intercessions

• The Veneration (Meditation) of the Cross          

• The Reception of Communion

The color for this day is normally ‘red’ symbolizing the Cross. 

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Holy Saturday is the day before Easter, the last day of Holy Week and the season of Lent in the Christian calendar. It is the day when Christ's body lay in His Tomb. Also called Easter Even, especially by Anglicans, it is the third and final day of what is often referred to as the Easter Triduum. In the early church, Holy Saturday was a day of fasting and preparation for the Easter Vigil. After dusk or sunset on Holy Saturday, the Easter Vigil is celebrated, marking the official start of the Easter Season.

Holy Saturday is also often incorrectly called Easter Saturday, a term that properly refers to the following Saturday.

The Easter Vigil, also called the Great Vigil of Easter, is a service held in many Christian churches as the official celebration of the resurrection of Jesus. Historically, this is the preferred service for people to be baptized. It is held on the night of Holy Saturday. Although the Easter Vigil is not universal in the Anglican Communion as it is in the Roman Catholic and Orthodox churches, its use has become far more common in recent decades. Formerly it was only common in parishes in the Anglo-Catholic tradition.

The service begins normally consists of four parts:

• The Service of Lights which includes the Lighting of the Paschal Candle.

• The Service of Lessons – biblical readings from the Old Testament or Hebrew Scriptures, not less than three and no more than nine.

• Christian Initiation, in the form of Baptism or Confirmation, if the Bishop is present to administer the latter, or the Renewal of Baptismal Vows.

• The Holy Eucharist with the administration of Easter Communion.

The color of the season is 'white' or 'gold.'  

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EASTER is the principal feast day and season in the Christian or Church's liturgical year. The fifth season, it is on this day that we celebrate the resurrection of Our Lord Jesus Christ. The key to the Christian faith is found in the fact that Jesus Christ has risen. Being called the "Queen of the feasts," the date of Easter is determined by the Jewish lunar calendar. Easter Day is always the first Sunday after the full moon that occurs on or after the spring equinox on March 21. Therefore Easter cannot be earlier than March 22 or later than April 25. 

Easter is the transformation of the Jewish Passover, celebrating with joyfulness and thanksgiving the central event of the old covenant, that of God's deliverance of his people out of Egypt from tyranny and oppression. The Pasch, the Christian Passover, the transformation of the Jewish Passover, was the great festival of redemption. But in his cross and resurrection, the central events of the new covenant, the Lord Jesus was to accomplish a new and supreme deliverance for all humankind, the redemption from sin and death. The cross and resurrection, seen as a unity, constituted the new exodus. 

The Sacrament of Baptism and Renewal of Baptismal Vows are done at Easter. It is the principal season whereby the faithful should receive their communion. The Easter season includes Ascension Day and lasts a full fifty days, ending with the Day of Pentecost.  The Easter message gives us confidence and hope. The color for the season is 'white' or 'gold.' 

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The Ascension is one of the great feasts in the Christian liturgical calendar, and commemorates the Ascension of Jesus into Heaven. Ascension Day is the fortieth day of Easter and always falls on Thursday. During the period of Christ's appearance to the apostles and prior to his disappearance from their sight, Jesus ordered the apostles to remain in Jerusalem and to await the gift of the Holy Spirit, which would empower them to carry out their divine commission. The collect for the Sunday after Ascension Day is filled with expectation because in it we ask God not to leave us comfortless but to send us the Holy Spirit as a strengthener. 

Christ also directed his disciples, after his resurrection and before his ascension, to “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything that I have commanded you. And remember, I am with you always, to the end of the age” (Matthew 28: 19-20). The three days before Ascension Thursday are sometimes referred to as the Rogation Days (and the previous Sunday, the Fifth Sunday after Easter, as Rogation Sunday).

The color for the day is 'white.' 

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The Day of PENTECOST is the Christian festival that commemorates the descent of the Holy Spirit upon the Apostles (Acts 2: 1ff.), the fiftieth day of Easter, and ten days after the Ascension. On this day, Christians celebrate our Lord’s promise of sending the Holy Spirit to reinforce the faith of the apostles. Upon receiving this gift the apostles went out into the world to preach, teach and baptize in Christ's name.

The day used to be a united festival commemorating both the Ascension of Jesus and the descent of the Holy Spirit. But this eventually changed with Ascension Day becoming a part of Easter. 

In Jewish custom, the Passover was brought to completion some seven weeks after Passover at the Feast of Weeks, one of the pilgrim festivals of the old covenant celebrating the wheat or grain harvest). This was called Pentecost, meaning 'fiftieth day' in Greek. In earliest Christian custom the Passover recalled the Last Supper, the Crucifixion, the Resurrection, the Ascension and the coming of the Holy Spirit as a single story over fifty days, celebrating the mystery of the salvation of Christians through Jesus Christ.

The Day of Pentecost is commonly called Whitsunday (white Sunday) in English speaking countries, the name being derived from the white garments worn by those to be baptized at Pentecost. On this sixth season of the Church's Year, we celebrate the gift of the Holy Spirit as the birth of the church. 

The color for this day is 'red' symbolizing the tongues of fire. 

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The First Sunday after the Day of Pentecost is called Trinity Sunday. Subsequent Sundays are numbered 'after Pentecost' ending with the Last Sunday after Pentecost, traditionally known as Christ the King Sunday.  

Trinity Sunday is the day on which the doctrine of the Trinity: God as Father, Son and Holy Spirit – Three in One and One in Three has been celebrated since the late middle ages. It is the only day of the liturgical cycle, which does not call to mind one of the mighty acts of God. It stresses a balanced understanding of the mystery of God's self-revelation.

 
With Trinity Sunday we see the culmination of our Lord's teachings as set forth in the creed. The word "growth" best sums up the purpose of the six month long season of Pentecost. 
The color for Trinity Sunday is 'white.' However, the color for the remainder of the Sundays after Pentecost is 'green,' except for Christ the King Sunday, the color of which is also 'white.'

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                         2006 -- St. Michael's Episcopal Church, O'Fallon, Illinois                            Last Updated: 04/01/2008

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