The Entry of the Theotokos

As a small child, the Virgin is brought to the Temple, the living temple entering the house of stone.

The Entry of the Theotokos into the Temple, kept on November 21, remembers the young Virgin Mary being brought by her parents, Joachim and Anna, to the Temple in Jerusalem and dedicated to God. It is one of the Twelve Great Feasts, falls within the Nativity Fast, and on the Old Calendar is kept on December 4.

In 2026 the Entry of the Theotokos falls on Saturday, November 21, on the New Calendar, and on Friday, December 4, on the Old Calendar.

Also called the Presentation of the Theotokos in the Temple.

Reckoning the date…

Next in the calendar: New Calendar, November 21, 2026 · Old Calendar, December 4, 2026

According to the tradition received from the earliest centuries, Joachim and Anna, in thanksgiving for the child God had given them, brought the young Mary to the Temple in Jerusalem and dedicated her to God. The feast keeps this dedication: the girl who would become the living temple of God is herself given to the house of God.

The hymns dwell on the wonder of it, that she who would contain the Uncontainable is led, as a small child, into the holy place, and prepared there in prayer for the vocation no other human being has borne. The feast is not chiefly about a historical detail but about consecration: a life set apart for God from its earliest years.

The Entry falls on November 21, within the Nativity Fast, and the Church begins on this feast to sing the hymns of the coming Nativity, for the one dedicated in the Temple is being prepared to give the world its Saviour. It is the dawn's first light before the feast of the Incarnation.

Questions about the Entry of the Theotokos

When is the Entry of the Theotokos?

On November 21, or December 4 on the Old Calendar. The feast is kept until its leave-taking on November 25.

Where does the story of the Entry come from?

From the Protoevangelium of James, an early Christian writing outside the New Testament, received by the Church's tradition and hymns. It tells that Mary was three when her parents brought her to the Temple, and that she lived there until she was of age to be betrothed.

Can you eat fish on the Entry of the Theotokos?

Yes. The feast falls within the Nativity Fast, and fish, wine, and oil are allowed on it.

Why is the Entry tied to Christmas?

From this feast the first hymn of the Nativity is sung at Matins, "Christ is born, glorify Him!", for the child dedicated in the Temple is being made ready to bear the Saviour.

When is the Entry of the Theotokos in 2026?

In 2026 the Entry of the Theotokos falls on Saturday, November 21, on the New Calendar, and on Friday, December 4, on the Old Calendar.

What are the readings for the Entry of the Theotokos?

For the feast:

At the Liturgy, the Epistle is Hebrews 9.1-7 and the Gospel is Luke 10.38-42, 11.27-28.
The Matins Gospel is Luke 1.39-49, 56.
At Vespers, the readings include Ezekiel 43.27-44.4.

On the day itself the calendar also lists that weekday's or Sunday's readings, and any other saint's.

More questions about the Orthodox Church, answered ›

The saints of November

The saints of November, day by day ›

In Orthros

The feast is kept in Orthros within the Nativity Fast, marked on the calendar with its hymns and catechesis, free to read.