Sunday, A Holyday And The First Day Of The Week – Explanations Concerning The Christian Orthodox Calendar On 2011

30/12/2010

The Press Office of the Romanian Patriarchate informs us:

In the Romanian Christian Orthodox calendar on 2011, Sunday is no longer barred by two red lines, but there is continuity between Sunday and Monday, in order to underline the truth of the Holy Gospel that our Lord, Jesus Christ, was risen on the first day of the week that follows after Saturday (cf. Matthew 28:1; Mark 16:2,9; Luke 24:1; John 20:1).

So, nothing is changed in the Christian – Orthodox calendar on 2011, but only the truth is underlined that Sunday, the day of the Resurrection of the Lord from the dead, is the holyday that gives us light for the whole week, so that we may live in the light of the Resurrection of Christ and prepare for our resurrection.

In the Christian Orthodox calendar of the Greek speaking Churches – the basic calendar of Orthodoxy – Sunday appears as the first day of the week, as the Holy Gospel says, and Monday as the second, Tuesday as the third, Wednesday as the fourth, etc, namely Monday is the second day after Sunday, as this one is the first day of the week.

In conclusion, the Romanian Christian Orthodox calendar does not change anything in the order of the days, but only underlines the fact that the week does not begin with Monday, a weekday, but with a spiritual day, Sunday, a day of feast and rest. For the people who do not know the Holy Gospel and the meaning of the calendar well enough, Monday is considered the first day of the week, because it is the first weekday, but for the spiritual Christians who know the Holy Gospel and the spiritual Tradition of the Church, the first day of the week is the day of the Resurrection, namely Sunday.

Therefore, we must not be disturbed and we should not ask useless questions, but we need to have a more spiritual understanding of the calendar and of the time of our life, as time of salvation focused on the truth of the Resurrection of Christ, as foundation of our resurrection from sin and from death.

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