Liturgical calendar of the Syro-Malabar Catholic Church

The Syro-Malabar Church is a Catholic Church sui iuris of the East Syriac Rite that adheres to the following calendar for the church's liturgical year. Like other liturgical calendars, the Syro-Malabar calendar loosely follows the sequence of pivotal events in the life of Jesus.[1]

Liturgical seasons

edit

The Syro-Malabar liturgical year opens with the season of Annunciation, which begins on the Sunday between November 27 and December 3. This day corresponds to the First Sunday of Advent in the Western Roman Rite tradition.

The liturgical year is divided into the following nine seasons.[1]

Season Start Date Duration
1 Annunciation (Subara) The Sunday between November 27 and December 3 3–4 weeks
2 Nativity December 25 1–2 weeks
3 Epiphany (Denha) The Sunday between January 2 and 6; otherwise January 6, if no such Sunday exists 4–9 weeks
4 Great Fast (Sawma Rabba) The 7th Sunday before Easter[note 1] 7 weeks
5 Resurrection (Qyamta) Easter Sunday 7 weeks
6 Apostles (Slihe) Pentecost Sunday (the 7th Sunday after Easter) 7 weeks
7 Summer (Qaita) The 7th Sunday after Pentecost 7 weeks
8 Elijah– Holy Cross–Moses (Elijah–Sliva–Moosha) The 14th Sunday after Pentecost 6–11 weeks
9 Dedication of the Church (Qudas–Edta) The Sunday between October 30 and November 5 4 weeks

Although the eighth season (Elijah–Cross–Moses) is considered one of the nine, it is also regarded as a combination of the three distinct seasons that are named (Elijah, Cross, and Moses).[2]

Holy days of obligation

edit

In the Syro-Malabar Church, there are 6 holy days of obligation:[3]

  1. Epiphany (January 6)
  2. Sts. Peter and Paul (June 29)
  3. The Ascension of Our Lord (sixth Thursday after Easter)
  4. St. Thomas (July 3)
  5. The Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary (August 15)
  6. Christmas (December 25)

Periods of fasting

edit

The Syro-Malabar Church proposes the following days of fasting to the faithful:[4][5]

Name Dates
25 Days' Lent December 1–24
Three Days' Lent The third Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday before the beginning of Lent
Great Lent The first Monday of Lent through Holy Saturday
Fifteen Days' Lent August 1–14
Eight Days' Lent September 1–7

See also

edit

References

edit
  1. ^ a b Syro-Malabar Major Archiepiscopal Commission for Liturgy. "Syro-Malabar Liturgical Calendar: 2020–2021" (PDF). p. 3.
  2. ^ Syro-Malabar Major Archiepiscopal Commission for Liturgy. "Syro-Malabar Liturgical Calendar: 2020–2021" (PDF). pp. 50–58.
  3. ^ Syro-Malabar Major Archiepiscopal Commission for Liturgy. "Syro-Malabar Liturgical Calendar: 2020–2021" (PDF). p. 5.
  4. ^ Syro-Malabar Major Archiepiscopal Commission for Liturgy. "Syro-Malabar Liturgical Calendar: 2020–2021" (PDF). p. 4.
  5. ^ Syro-Malabar Major Archiepiscopal Commission for Liturgy. "Syro-Malabar Liturgical Calendar: 2020–2021" (PDF). p. 19.

Notes

edit
  1. ^ In the Syro-Malabar calendar, Lent starts one week earlier than it does in the Roman Rite tradition.
edit