The Twelve Great Feasts
The year turns on the great feasts, the Nativity and Theophany, the Meeting and the Annunciation, the Transfiguration and the Dormition, and the rest, and over them all, the Feast of Feasts.
The Orthodox Church keeps twelve Great Feasts through the year, with Pascha, the Feast of Feasts, above them all. Nine fall on fixed dates, from the Nativity of the Theotokos on September 8 to the Dormition on August 15; three, Palm Sunday, the Ascension, and Pentecost, move with Pascha. Each has its own page below.
THE TWELVE
- The Nativity of ChristGod became man, born in a cave in Bethlehem, that man might be raised to God.
- TheophanyThe Baptism of Christ in the Jordan, and the first open showing of the Holy Trinity.
- The Annunciation“Let it be to me according to thy word”, the day salvation began, in a young woman's yes.
- The Meeting of the LordThe old man Simeon takes the infant God in his arms, the Old Covenant meeting the New.
- The TransfigurationOn Mount Tabor the disciples see Christ shining with the uncreated light of the Godhead.
- The Dormition of the TheotokosThe falling-asleep of the Mother of God, death met not with fear, but with hope.
- The Nativity of the TheotokosThe birth of the Virgin, the first Great Feast of the church year, and the dawn before the Sun.
- The Exaltation of the CrossThe Cross lifted up for all to see, the weapon of death made the tree of life.
- The Entry of the TheotokosAs a small child, the Virgin is brought to the Temple, the living temple entering the house of stone.
- The Entry into JerusalemThe King enters His city, not on a war-horse, but on a colt, to go to the Cross.
- The AscensionForty days after Pascha, Christ ascends, and carries our human nature up to the throne of God.
- PentecostFifty days after Pascha, the Spirit descends in tongues of fire, and the Church is born.
Questions about the Great Feasts
What are the twelve Great Feasts of the Orthodox Church?
Nine fall on fixed dates, given here on the New Calendar; on the Old Calendar each falls thirteen days later:
- The Nativity of the Theotokos, September 8.
- The Exaltation of the Cross, September 14.
- The Entry of the Theotokos, November 21.
- The Nativity of Christ, December 25.
- Theophany, January 6.
- The Meeting of the Lord, February 2.
- The Annunciation, March 25.
- The Transfiguration, August 6.
- The Dormition of the Theotokos, August 15.
Three move with Pascha, and fall on the same day on both calendars:
- The Entry into Jerusalem (Palm Sunday), the Sunday before Pascha.
- The Ascension, forty days after Pascha.
- Pentecost, fifty days after Pascha.
Is Pascha one of the twelve Great Feasts?
No. Pascha is the Feast of Feasts, kept above the twelve, and the feasts that move each year are counted from it.
Also in the Church Year
- Orthodox ChristmasWhy some Orthodox Christians keep Christmas on January 7.
- The date of PaschaOrthodox Easter for every year to 2050, and why it moves.
- Clean MondayThe first day of Great Lent, and Forgiveness Sunday before it.
- The Sunday of OrthodoxyThe first Sunday of Great Lent, and the restoring of the icons.
- The eight tonesThe resurrection hymns of each tone, and the tone of the coming Sundays.
- The liturgical calendarEvery day of the year with its saints, readings, and fast.
- The fasting calendarThe fasting seasons and fast-free weeks, this year and next.
A feast is kept by keeping it.
Orthros marks each feast and its fast, but the feast is celebrated at the table of the Church. See the whole liturgical year ›