Communion With the Christ:: The Liturgical Year and Colors :Part 2

The use of the Historic Christian Liturgical Cycle can help us focus upon our Lord Jesus Christ and his Salvation Acts in our lives.

The following is the basic Liturgical Year and Colors, it is not and all-encompassing list of the observances of all Church Bodies of East and West Churches or of all denominations. There are distinctive observances which are used by each Church differing one from another, along with related Sacramental functions and or traditions.

Beginning of the Liturgical Year

Advent- Is the beginning of many Church’s year, it usually begins in November-December. It spans four Sunday’s of each year and leads up to Christmas (Nativity) Season. Each Sunday of Advent focuses on varies aspects of Jesus’ coming, from looking ahead to the conclusion of human history and the second coming of Christ, to the preparation of Jesus’ coming into history centuries ago.

Each Sunday of the Advent Season often carries with it lessons for believers such as Hope, Peace, Joy and Love.

Purple or Deep Blue-Are the general colors used. Purple or Deep Blue reflects Jesus as King and his Royal Patton which is his rightful claim upon the Throne of all things. The Weekly Themes are Hope, Peace, Joy and Love.

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Christmas or the Nativity- This is the birth of our Lord Jesus, that the Eternal Son of God, the second person of the Trinity takes on our humanity and is born into our world.

For some Churches Christmas is a season often of twelve days starting with Christmas day and concluding with the Epiphany on January 6th .

White or Gold- Can be used, represents purity, holiness and even resurrection to glory. The Gold represent Kingly virtue.

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Epiphany or the Manifest-Which concludes the twelve days of the Christmas Season on January 6th and recalls three events in the life of Jesus; the coming of the Magi to Bethlehem, the Baptism of Jesus (which is itself observed the first Sunday after Epiphany) and the Wedding Super at Cana.

White- Is the general color used, again with holiness and purity in view.

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Ordinary Time- The season which follows the Advent-Christmas- Epiphany Seasons. In Ordinary Time. There are generally are no outstanding observances.

Green or Olive-Is the color and is used to represent life.

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The Transfiguration- Usually kept in February-March time frame. Some Church bodies celebrate the Transfiguration in August, which commemorates Jesus’ transfiguration on the mountain and which looked ahead to his bodily resurrection and glorification.

White- The color represents purity, holiness and even resurrection to glory.

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Ordinary Time- Again is resumed until the Season of Lent.

Green or Olive -Is the once again the color of life.

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The Season of Lent- Which begins with the Ash Wednesday after Transfiguration Sunday , usually in March of the year. Lent originally began in the early Church as a period of time which baptismal candidates would consider their lives and the commitment they were about to make at Baptism in light of the work of Jesus. In the early Church baptism were often preform once a year on Easter-Resurrection Sunday.

Purple-The color purple, in regard to Lent, represents change of mind, repentance and confession of our need for our Lord Jesus. Purple is used from the start of Lent and up until and even during Holy Week.

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Holy Week and the Triduum, or the Three Days, comprised of Holy Thursday, Good Friday and Easter.

Palm-Passion Sunday- Jesus’ entrance into Jerusalem. Celebrated usually in April.

Holy Thursday- Jesus gathered with the Disciples in the upper room and introduces the Lord’s Supper, being simultaneously both the Last Supper of the Old Covenant and First Super of the New Covenant. Jesus takes the Passover and transposed it in to the Lord’s Supper, the Communion or Eucharist.

White or Purple- White to again to bring holiness and purity into view and a hint at the glory of the resurrection, or purple as being a linage of the Lent season. Some fellowships strip their sanctuaries of colors or will shroud their sanctuaries cross in black at the conclusion of the service and stay shrouded until Easter.

Good Friday- The Sacrifice of our Lord Jesus and his death on the cross for all humanity.

Colors Black or None is used- Representing Jesus’ death, mourning or some Churches use Red representing sacrifice and his death (blood).

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The Easter Season or the Great Fifty Days

In the Post Apostolic Church Easter was thought of not just as a day ,but as a Season of fifty days which begins on Resurrection Sunday and lasted until Pentecost. White or Gold can be used throughout the fifty days or Green or Olive as it is considered Ordinary Time.

Easter- The Resurrection of Jesus from the dead to glory usually in April.

White or Gold-Is the color representing resurrection, holiness and purity and the gold kingliness.

The Ascension- Which is observed on the fortieth day after Easter which always places it on a Thursday in June. Jesus’ returning to Heaven. The Ascension is observed ten days prior to Pentecost and the promise of the coming of the Holy Spirit.

White or Gold or even Green-Olive -Is the color.

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Pentecost- The manifesting of the Holy Spirit in lives of believers and life in the Spirit and the empowering the Church to carry out the Great Commission. Celebrated mostly in May.

Red-Is the color recalling the tongues of fire which manifested over the heads of the believers in the upper room.

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Trinity Sunday- Celebrated in June. Celebrating the One true God who is the Holy Trinity, the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit.

White -Is the color representing the pure holiness of God.

Ordinary Time- Green or Olive- The colors of life.

Christ the King Sunday some times called the Reign of Christ Sunday- Focuses upon the Kingship of our Lord Jesus, not just in the years to come after his glorious return but even now as the Lord and Sovereign over our lives here and now. Is observed in November and is the last Sunday of the Liturgical year.

Purple or Deep Blue or Gold- Representing Jesus’ Kingship and His Royal Patton over our lives.

The End of the Liturgical Year

This list is not a full or comprehensive account of all observance of the Liturgical calendar utilized by Christian bodies. There are additional observances which are not contained within this treatment, nor does this treatment attempt to contain varies traditions associated with the Liturgical Calendar, such as the Advent candles or other related practices attached to the Calendar. This treatment is highly generalized and highlights those observance which are utilized by the local Congregation which I pastor within our broader Communion.

There are additional days which we, as a local Congregation have chosen to note, as part of our Liturgical Cycle such as:

Sunday- The weekly reminder of the Resurrection of Jesus and his abiding presence in our live.

The Communion, the Lord’s Supper- The regular sharing of the Sacrament of the Bread and Cup throughout the year.

The Annunciation- In March. The Angel Gabriel visiting Mary in Nazareth with the message that she will bear the Messiah.

The Presentation of Jesus-In February. Jesus presented in the Temple and is recognized by Simeon and the Prophetess Anna.

Thomas Sunday-In April The Sunday after Easter. St. Thomas was not present at the time Jesus shows himself alive to the group of Disciples.

When there are observances which fall on a week-day, we generally observe those days on the nearest Sunday to them preferably prior to the days but not always. We do this that we might keep focused upon our Lord Jesus and his Salvation Acts for each and all of us and that we might adhere to St. Paul’s admonishment to preach in and out of Season.

Most of the time the Revised Communion Lectionary which is a set of Scriptures presented on an ongoing basis in conjunction with the weekly Sunday and Liturgical Cycle is used. This helps the Church as a whole to be reviewing many of the same lessons and messages found within the Bible.

The Liturgical Calendar is not enjoined upon the Church as a “have to” but rather as a “want to”. This means that, under the New Covenant there are no observances which Christians are forced to follow through written Scriptural indict, but rather, we are free to be led by the Holy Spirit to look to Jesus as the “author and finisher of our faith” and fix our hearts and minds upon him in grateful worship throughout the year for all his Salvation Acts on our behalf.

Benediction: May we each and all worship our Lord Jesus Christ for his Salvation Acts on our all of our behalf’s, today, tomorrow and forever more. Amen.