The Season

The Season After Pentecost, also called Ordinary Time, begins the day after Pentecost and ends the day before the First Sunday of Advent. It may include twenty-three to twenty-eight Sundays, depending on the date of Easter, but the first Sunday is always Trinity Sunday, and the last Sunday is always the Sunday of the Reign of Christ, or Christ the King. The season also includes All Saints and Thanksgiving.

United Methodists have the option of calling this season Kingdomtide, a term first used in 1937 in a book sponsored by the former Federal Council of Churches as a name for the half of the year between the Day of Pentecost and Advent, during which churches are urged to emphasize JesusÕ teachings concerning the kingdom of God. In 1940 the season was shortened to three months, beginning the last Sunday in August. The former Methodist Church adopted it in its shortened three-month form in the 1945 and 1965 editions of The Book of Worship. Today, no other denomination uses the term Kingdomtide.

Paraments, stoles, and banners may show a variety of color, texture, and symbols. Regardless of the name given to this season, its basic color is green, symbolizing growth in Christ. White is the customary color for Trinity Sunday, All Saints, and Reign of Christ/Christ the King Sunday. Red is appropriate for homecomings, anniversaries, evangelistic services, consecrations, and civil holidays.

  The Christian Year

The Christian Year is a remarkable reflection of the life and faith of the early church that has remained in use ever since. Modern efforts to systematize it and tidy it up have never been satisfactory. Granted, the ancient Christian calendar leaves large gaps in the year, especially after Pentecost. But its strength lies in its proclamation of the core of the Christian experience and its ability to reflect vividly that Christ has made God manifest, that Christ has risen from the dead, and that Christ has sent the Holy Spirit to dwell in the holy church.

The Christian Year begins with the season of Advent (four Sundays leading up to Christmas). Advent is followed by the Christmas Season which includes Christmas Eve/Day, New Year’s Eve/Day and Epiphany. The Season after Epiphany begins with the First Sunday after Epiphany (Baptism of the Lord) and continues through the Sunday before Ash Wednesday. The Lenten Season begins on Ash Wednesday and continues for five Sundays through Holy Week and ends on Holy Saturday, the Saturday before Easter Sunday. The Easter Season begins on Easter Sunday and continues for seven Sundays, ending on Pentecost. The Season After Pentecost (also called Ordinary Time) begins immediately after Pentecost and continues until the Year begins again with Advent.

 The Common Lectionary

The Lectionary is closely related to the Christian Year. The word lectionary denotes an ordered system of selected Bible readings appointed for use on specific occasions in the church year. The Common Lectionary is used by many protestant denominations, and arranges the Bible readings into a three-year cycle; Year A, Year B, and Year C. With such a cycle, all the major Bible passages are contained in the three-year cycle and are repeated every three years.

The Christian year contains two cycles: the Christmas Cycle (Advent-Christmas-Epiphany) and the Easter Cycle (Lent-Easter-Pentecost). Within each cycle are a season of preparation symbolized by the color purple, and a season of celebration symbolized by the color white. After each cycle there is an ordinary time of growth symbolized by the color green. Thus there is a sequence of seasons using purple, white, and green in that order twice each year.

Purple is a color of both penitence and royalty used curing the preparatory seasons of Advent and Lent. Blue, a color of hope, may also be used during Advent.

White and gold are joyous and festive colors used during the Christmas and Easter Seasons (except on the Day of Pentecost) and in other seasons on festive days such as Baptism of the Lord, Transfiguration, Trinity, All Saints, and Christ the King. White may also be used at weddings and at services where the Sacrament of Baptism is central. White is recommended at services of death and resurrection because it symbolizes both death and resurrection. At services of Holy Communion white linens on top of the Lord’s tale are customary, but the paraments hanging over the front or sides of the table and the other visuals should reflect the day or season n the year.

Green is a color of growth, used in the Seasons after the Epiphany and After Pentecost, except when special days call for white or red.

Red is a color of fire, symbolizing the Holy Spirit. It is used on the Day of Pentecost and at other times when the work of the Holy Spirit is emphasized. Red is also the color of blood – the blood of Christ and the blood of martyrs. Because of its intensity, red is most effective when used occasionally rather than continuously for a whole season. It is appropriate for evangelistic services, for ordinations and consecrations, for church anniversaries and homecomings, and for civil observances such as Martin Luther King, Jr. Day or Memorial Day. It may be used beside white and gold through the Easter Season. It may be used during Holy Week, beginning with Passion/Palm Sunday, to symbolize the blood of Christ.

Although use of these colors is based on broad ecumenical tradition, other colors have been and are being used in Christian churches. Creativity with colors and other signs for days and seasons is encouraged.

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