The Maronite Liturgical Calendar
The Maronite liturgical year is one of the oldest continuously observed cycles of Christian prayer. It begins in early November with the Sunday of the Consecration of the Church, walks through six seasons, and ends in late October with the Season of the Glorious Cross. Every week of the year is tied to one of these seasons. There is no "Ordinary Time." Each Sunday has a proper name and a proper Gospel, and the arc of the year is, from first to last, the narrative of salvation, from the announcement of the Incarnation to the triumph of the Cross.
This article gives a complete overview: the six seasons, the named Sundays of the Advent and Lenten cycles, the major feast days with their dates, the fasting rules of the Maronite tradition, and the ways the Maronite year differs from the Roman calendar most Catholics are used to.
The Six Seasons of the Year
The Maronite year has six seasons, each named for the mystery of Christ it celebrates. The names echo the Syriac inheritance of the Antiochene Church: Denho, "the dawning," for Epiphany; Sawmo, "the fast," for Lent.
1. The Season of the Glorious Birth
First Sunday of November to January 5. The Maronite Advent. Unlike the Roman Advent of four Sundays, the Maronite preparation for Christmas runs eight named Sundays, walking the congregation through the prophecies, the annunciations, and the genealogy of Christ. Its mood is expectant, not penitential.
2. The Season of the Glorious Epiphany (Denho)
January 6 through to the beginning of Lent (variable length). Denho, Syriac for "dawning," is the manifestation of Christ, above all in his baptism in the Jordan. The season opens with the Feast of the Glorious Epiphany on January 6 and continues through the Sundays after Epiphany. It ends with the Three Sundays of Commemoration (for priests, for the righteous and just, and for the faithful departed), which are the Maronite prelude to Lent.
3. The Season of Great Lent
Cana Sunday through Passion Week. Maronite Lent does not begin on Ash Wednesday. It begins on Cana Sunday, the Sunday commemorating the wedding feast at Cana, and ashes are distributed the following day, Ash Monday. Six named Sundays walk the congregation through the great Gospels of healing and repentance. The season reaches its height in Passion Week, from Hosanna Sunday to the Sabbath of Light.
4. The Season of the Glorious Resurrection
Easter Sunday through Pentecost (fifty days). The Maronite Paschaltide. Easter falls on the same date as in the Roman calendar, not the Orthodox Julian date. The season includes the new Sunday, the Sundays of the apparitions of the Risen Lord, and Ascension Thursday, forty days after Easter.
5. The Season of Pentecost
Pentecost Sunday to mid-September. The Spirit's season, a long summer of Sundays on the mission of the Church and the life of the Christian community. Many of the great Lebanese saints have their feast days in this stretch: Saints Peter and Paul on June 29, Saint Charbel on the third Sunday of July.
6. The Season of the Glorious Cross
September 14 to the end of October. The season opens with the Exaltation of the Glorious Cross on September 14, which in the Maronite calendar also commemorates the finding of the Cross by Saint Helena. Its Sundays meditate on the Cross as the bridge from death to life, and on the Church as the body risen with Christ through the Cross.
The Named Sundays of the Glorious Birth Cycle
The Maronite Advent runs eight Sundays and walks the congregation, week by week, through the Gospel prehistory of the Incarnation.
- Sunday of the Consecration of the Church
- Sunday of the Renewal of the Church
- Sunday of the Announcement to Zechariah
- Sunday of the Announcement to the Virgin Mary
- Sunday of the Visitation of Mary to Elizabeth
- Sunday of the Birth of John the Baptist
- Sunday of the Revelation to Joseph
- Sunday of the Genealogy of Jesus
In some years the Sunday of the Renewal is omitted depending on where November 1 falls. The final Sunday, Genealogy Sunday, is immediately followed by Christmas.
The Named Sundays of Great Lent
Each Sunday of Lent is tied to a Gospel of healing or mercy. The sequence, from Cana to Hosanna.
- Cana Sunday (the wedding at Cana, entrance into Lent)
- Sunday of the Leper (the healing of the man cleansed)
- Sunday of the Hemorrhaging Woman
- Sunday of the Prodigal Son
- Sunday of the Paralytic
- Sunday of Bartimaeus the Blind
- Hosanna Sunday (Palm Sunday, the entrance into Jerusalem)
Passion Week follows Hosanna Sunday and culminates in the Sabbath of Light, the Maronite name for Holy Saturday. Sources vary slightly on whether the Prodigal Son falls on the third or fourth Sunday; the Eparchy of Saint Maron of Brooklyn places it third.
The Major Feast Days
Fixed and movable feasts celebrated universally across the Maronite Church. Dates given are as observed in the Maronite calendar; where the Roman calendar differs, this is noted.
| Feast | Date | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Nativity of the Lord | December 25 | Holy Day of Obligation |
| Glorious Epiphany (Denho) | January 6 | Holy Day of Obligation |
| Saint Maron | February 9 | Public holiday in Lebanon |
| Saint Rafqa | March 23 | Day of her death, 1914 |
| Annunciation of Mary | March 25 | Universal Catholic feast |
| Hosanna Sunday | Movable (Palm Sunday) | Opens Passion Week |
| The Glorious Resurrection | Movable (Easter) | Same date as Roman Easter |
| Our Lady of Lebanon | First Sunday of May | Established by Patriarch Howayek, 1908 |
| Ascension of the Lord | 40 days after Easter | Holy Day of Obligation |
| Pentecost | 50 days after Easter | |
| Saints Peter and Paul | June 29 (often transferred to nearest Sunday) | |
| Saint Charbel Makhlouf | Third Sunday of July (Maronite); July 24 (Roman) | Both dates observed |
| Assumption of Mary | August 15 | Holy Day of Obligation |
| Blessed Estephan Nehme | August 30 | Beatified 2010 |
| Exaltation of the Glorious Cross | September 14 | Opens the Season of the Cross |
| All Saints | November 1 | Holy Day of Obligation |
| Immaculate Conception | December 8 | Holy Day of Obligation |
| Saint Nimatullah Al-Hardini | December 14 | Day of his death, 1858 |
Fasting Rules
The Maronite Church preserves a more demanding fasting tradition than most Latin-rite Catholics are used to, though modern practice has adapted the ancient discipline for contemporary life. The four traditional fasts are Great Lent, the Apostles' Fast, the Fast of the Assumption, and the Fast of Christmas.
Great Lent. The principal fast. Traditionally, daily abstinence from meat and dairy, with a full fast from midnight to noon on weekdays. Contemporary practice in most eparchies: fast from midnight to noon on Lenten weekdays, with abstinence from meat and dairy on the Fridays of Lent and throughout the first and last weeks. Ash Monday and Good Friday are observed as strict fast and abstinence.
The Apostles' Fast. Traditionally a longer fast leading up to the feast of Saints Peter and Paul. Shortened by the Maronite Synod of 1736 to four days, June 25 to 28. Little observed outside monastic communities today.
The Fast of the Assumption. Eight days of abstinence, August 7 to 14, preparing for the feast on August 15. Still observed by many Maronite families.
The Fast of Christmas. Twelve days of abstinence, December 13 to 24, preparing for the Nativity. Most Maronites today observe the vigil only, but the older practice is still kept by the devout.
Fridays. Abstinence from meat is observed on all Fridays of the year, not only the Fridays of Lent.
How the Maronite Calendar Differs From the Roman
A summary of the clearest differences.
The year begins in November. The first Sunday of November is the Sunday of the Consecration of the Church, not the first Sunday of Advent.
Six seasons, not the Advent/Christmas/Lent/Easter/Ordinary pattern. Every week is tied to a season. Ordinary Time does not exist as a category.
The seasons are narrative and Christological. Glorious Birth, Glorious Epiphany, Great Lent, Glorious Resurrection, Pentecost, Glorious Cross.
Ash Monday, not Ash Wednesday. Because Lent begins on Cana Sunday.
Named Sundays. Every Sunday has a proper name, tied to a mystery or a Gospel healing, not simply "Sunday of the Year."
Three Sundays of Commemoration before Lent. Priests, the righteous and just, and the faithful departed. A Syriac inheritance shared with the Syriac Orthodox Church.
Syriac saints in the calendar. Saint Ephrem the Syrian, Saint Jacob of Sarug, and the Lebanese saints (Maron, Charbel, Rafqa, Nimatullah, Estephan).
Easter is the same date. Gregorian computation, not Julian. Maronite Easter never falls on a different date from Roman Easter.
Using the Calendar for Daily Prayer
The Maronite calendar is not only a list of dates. It is a shape for the year. A family that prays within it will move, week by week, through the full story of salvation: the prophecies of Advent, the baptism in the Jordan, the healings of Lent, the Resurrection, the Spirit's descent, the Cross. Each season has its own music, its own prayers, its own color in the memory. One of the gifts of the Maronite tradition to anyone who adopts it is this: the year becomes a spiritual direction, and the days of an ordinary life are set to a rhythm older than almost anything else in Christianity.
Frequently Asked Questions
When does the Maronite liturgical year begin?
On the first Sunday of November, with the Sunday of the Consecration of the Church. This is the start of the Season of the Glorious Birth, the Maronite preparation for Christmas, which runs through eight named Sundays to the Nativity on December 25.
How many seasons are in the Maronite liturgical calendar?
Six: the Glorious Birth, the Glorious Epiphany (Denho), Great Lent, the Glorious Resurrection, Pentecost, and the Glorious Cross. Every week of the year is tied to one of them; there is no Ordinary Time in the Maronite rite.
When is Saint Charbel's feast day?
In the Maronite calendar, Saint Charbel's feast is the third Sunday of July. In the universal Roman calendar it is July 24. Both dates are observed by Maronite parishes around the world, with the Sunday observance as the principal liturgical celebration.
When is Maronite Easter?
Maronite Easter falls on the same date as Roman Catholic Easter. Both follow the Gregorian computation: the first Sunday after the first full moon on or after the spring equinox. This is different from the Eastern Orthodox date, which uses the Julian calendar.
What is Ash Monday?
Ash Monday is the Maronite equivalent of Ash Wednesday. Great Lent in the Maronite rite begins on Cana Sunday, and ashes are distributed the following day, the Monday of Ashes. It opens the six Sundays of Lent, which end with Hosanna Sunday and Passion Week.
What is the Season of Denho?
Denho is the Syriac word for "dawning" or "rising of the sun." The Season of Denho is the Maronite Epiphany season, beginning on January 6 and running until the beginning of Great Lent. It celebrates the manifestation of Christ, above all in his baptism in the Jordan, which in the Antiochene tradition is the principal Epiphany event.
What are the Three Sundays of Commemoration?
They are the three Sundays immediately before Great Lent, unique to the Syriac tradition. The Maronite and Syriac Orthodox calendars both observe them: the Sunday of the Priests (for deceased priests and bishops), the Sunday of the Righteous and Just (for the holy ancestors of the Old Covenant), and the Sunday of the Faithful Departed.
Is the Maronite calendar the same as the Roman calendar?
No. The year is structured into six narrative seasons rather than the Roman Advent/Christmas/Lent/Easter/Ordinary pattern. The liturgical year begins in November. Lent begins on Cana Sunday, not Ash Wednesday. Every Sunday is named. The calendar includes Syriac and Lebanese saints, most of whom are not on the Roman calendar. But Easter falls on the same date as in the Roman calendar.
See also: The Maronite tradition. Eastern Christianity. Saint Maron. Saint Charbel. The Maronite Rosary. Our Lady of Lebanon.