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Prep Feast Celeb Cycle
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Preparation - Fasting
Pre-Nativity Jesus
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Our Lady's Fast

Preparation - Praying
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Dormition Theotokos Prayingt

Feast
Nativity Jesus Christ
Holy Pascha
Apostles Peter Paul
Dormition Theotokos

Celebration - Feasting
Nativity Jesus Christ Feasting
Holy Pascha Feasting
Apostles Peter Paul Feasting
Dormition Theotokos Feasting

40 Days Liturg. Cycle
Liturg. Cycle 40 Days

Calendar
Liturgical Year Begins
Great Feast Days
Liturgical Year
Melkite Calendar

Specific Cycles
Nativity Jesus Cycle
Theophany Cycle
Holy Hypapanty Cycle
Annunciation Cycle
All Souls Cycle
Pascha Cycle
When Pascha occurs
Pentecost Cycle
Apostles Cycle
Transfiguration Cycle
Dormit. Theotokos Cyc.
Nativ. Theotokos Cyc.
Holy Cross Cycle
Entra. Theotokos Cycle

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Melkite Greek Catholic Church Information Center

Liturgical Cycle Preparing (Fasting, Praying, and Performing Charity) and Celebrating (Feasting) Home Page

 

Cycle Preparing and Celebrating Preparing (Fasting, Praying, and Performing Charity) Fasting Praying Performing Charity Feasting (Celebrating)

 

Theology
Preparing
Periods
Preparing

 

Theology
Fasting
Definition
Fasting
Periods
Fasting
Nativity
Fasting
Prophonisimon
Fasting
Great Lent
Great Week
Theology
Fasting
Great Lent
Great Week
Guidelines
Fasting
Our Lady's
Fasting
Apostles
Fasting
Holy Theophany
Fasting
Exaltation
Holy Cross
Fasting
People
Excused
from
Fasting

 

Praying
Theology
Great Lent and Great Week
Praying
Dormition of The Theotokos
Praying

 

Theology
Charity

 

Theology
Feasting
Periods
Feasting
Nativity
Feasting
Pascha
Feasting
Our Lady's
Feasting
Apostles
Feasting
Holy Theophany
Feasting
Exaltation
Holy Cross
Feasting

The Melkite Greek Catholic Church has an Annual Liturgical Cycle. Each Liturgical Cycle has a Preparing Time Period and a Celebrating Time Period. The Preparing Time Period and the Celebrating Time Period are equally important because the reason for both time periods is equally important. Every Preparing Time Period (fasting, praying, and performing Charity) is followed by a Celebrating (Feasting) Time Period. The Feast Day is counted as the first day (day one) in the Celebrating Time Period.

Preparing Time PeriodCelebrating Time Period
Days before the Feast DayThe Feast Day and its following Celebration Days
Begins on a set day determined by the number of days in the Preparing Time Period.Ends on a set day determined by the number of days in the Celebrating Time Period
Ends just before Vespers of the Feast DayBegins at the beginning of Vespers of the Feast Day
Includes praying, fasting (not eating at certain times [fasting] and not eating certain foods [abstinence] ), and performing charity / alms / helping others / good worksIncludes feasting eating at certain times [the times which no eating occurs during the Preparing Time Period - no fasting ] (eating certain foods [the foods not eaten during the Preparing Time Period - no abstinence ]).

Forty Days Preparation Time Period and 40 Days Celebration Time Period

Feast40 Days Preparation Time Period40 Days Celebration Time Period
Nativity Flesh Jesus ChristPre-Nativity FastFeast and its Celebration Days
Holy and Glorious PaschaGreat LentFeast and its Celebration Days

Four Great Preparation and Celebration Cycles

These feasts have a Great Preparation and Celebration Cycle.

FeastDays Preparation Time PeriodPreparation Time Period Begins EndsStrict Fasting PeriodDays Celebration Time PeriodCelebration Time Period Begins Ends
Feast of Holy and Glorious Pascha 1. Prophonisimon
2. Great Lent 40 Days
3. Great and Holy Week
1. Some theologians think Preparation Time Period (Triodion) with the Prophonisimon Subsection begins at the beginning of Vespers of the First Sunday of the Pharisee and the Publican, which is the 22 Day Before Great Lent
2. Because Sunday is the last day of the week during this period, some theologians think Preparation Time Period (Triodion) with the Prophonisimon Subsection begins at the beginning of Vespers of the Monday after the First Sunday of the Pharisee and the Publican, which is the 21 Day Before Great Lent
1. Clean Monday
2. Liturgical Day of Great and Holy Thursday On the calendar Great and Holy Wednesday
3.
Liturgical Day of Great and Holy Friday On the calendar Great and Holy Thursday
4.
Liturgical Day of Great and Holy Saturday On the calendar Great and Holy Friday
Celebrating
40 Days
Some theologians think that the Celebrating Time Period (Pentecostarion) begins with the invitation to "Come, take light from the Light that never fades" at the beginning of the Hajmeh service of Holy and Glorious Pascha, which is celebrated on Great and Holy Saturday night.
Ends just before Vespers of the Feast of the Ascension into Heaven of Jesus Christ
Feast of Nativity Flesh of Jesus Christ Pre-Nativity Fast
40 Days or 15 Days
Traditional or Modern
Traditional Preparation begins at the beginning of the Vespers of the Feast of St. Philip the Apostle, 15 November, on 14 November evening.
Modern Preparation begins at the beginning of the Vespers of the Feast of the Conception of Ancester of Christ Ann of the Theotokas, December 10, on December 9 evening.
Ends just before Vespers of the Great Feast of the Nativity According to the Flesh of Our Lord, God, and Savior Jesus Christ, 25 December, on 24 December evening
The Paramony of the Great Feast of the Nativity of Our Lord, Jesus Christ December 24 Celebrating
40 Days
Begins at the beginning Vespers of the Feast of Nativity Flesh of Jesus Christ, 25 December, on 24 December evening
Ends just before Vespers of the Great Feast of the Holy Hypapanty of Jesus Christ and the Purification of The Theotokos, 2 February, on 1 February evening
Feast of Dormition of The Theotokos Our Lady's Fast
14 Days
Begins at the beginning the Vespers of the Feast of the Procession of the Holy Cross, 1 August, on 31 July evening
Ends just before Vespers of the Feast of Dormition of The Theotokos, 15 August, on 14 August evening
  Celebrating
9 Days
Begins at the beginning of the Vespers of the Feast of Dormition of The Theotokos, 15 August, on 14 August evening
Ends just before the Vespers of the Holy Hieromartyr Eutyches, 24 August, on 23 August evening.
Feast of the Holy Apostles Peter and Paul Apostles Fast
Number of Days changes
Begins at the beginning the Vespers of the Monday after the First Sunday after Pentecost, Sunday of All Saints
Ends just before the Vespers of the Feast of the Holy, Glorious and Illustrious Princes of the Apostles Peter and Paul, 29 June, on 28 June evening
  Celebrating
1 Day
Begins at the beginning of the Vespers of the Feast of the Holy, Glorious and Illustrious Princes of the Apostles Peter and Paul, 29 June, on 28 June evening
Ends just before Vespers of Synaxis of the Holy Twelve Apostles, 30 June, on 29 June evening.

Great Feast of the Holy Theophany of Holy God the Son within the Holy Trinity / Our Lord, God and Savior, Jesus Christ

FeastDays Preparation Time PeriodBegins EndsStrict Fasting PeriodDays Celebration Time PeriodBegins Ends
Feast of the Holy Theophany of Jesus Christ Theophany Fast
Paramony
1 Day
Preparation Number of Days changes
4 days plus maybe 1 Sat. and/or Sun.
Begins at the beginning the Vespers of the Preparation Day 1, 2 Jan.
Unless the Sat. or Sun. before that day is also the Sat. or Sun. before the Feast Day, then begins at the beginning the Vespers of that Sat. or Sun.
Ends just before the Vespers of the Feast of the Holy Theophany of Jesus Christ
The Paramony of the Great Feast of the Theophany of Our Lord, Jesus Christ January 5 Celebrating
9 Days
Begins at the beginning of the Vespers of the Feast of the Holy Theophany of Jesus Christ, 6 January, on 5 January evening
Ends just before Vespers of Holy Fathers Paul of Thebes and John the Hut-Dweller, 15 January, on 14 January evening.

Feasts of Feasts and Great Feast Days with Preparing (Fasting, Praying, and Performing Charity) and Celebrating (Feasting)

Great Feast of the The Annunciation (Al Bisharah) of The Theotokos and Ever-Virgin Mary

Because this feast is so important, the regulations for feasting on the Great Feast of the Annunciation (Al Bisharah) of The Theotokos and Ever-Virgin Mary, 25 March, always supersedes the regulations for fasting during the Preparation for the Feast of Feasts Holy and Glorious Pascha - Fesakh - Hajmeh. This Great Feast Day is always a day of feasting.

Transition Period between Great Lent and Great and Holy Week

The Transition Period between Great Lent and Great and Holy Week is Lazarus Saturday and Palm Sunday --Shaneeneh is a Celebrating Time Period.

Great Feast of the Exaltation of the Precious and Lifegiving Holy Cross

Because this feast is so important, The Great Feast of the Exaltation of the Precious and Lifegiving Holy Cross, 14 September, is always a day of fasting (fast and abstience).

More Information

CyberTypicon by Reverend Father / Abouna Peter Boutros
CyberTypicon lists Fast and Abstinence days.

"CyberTypicon" Definitions by Reverend Father / Abouna Peter Boutros
CyberTypicon has the Fasting and Abstinence rules. Please click on Fast and Abstinence.

Traditions of Great Lent and Holy Week Please click on Fast and Abstinence, Reasons why. Melkite Greek Catholic Church Eparchy of Newton Material prepared by Fr. Philaret Littlefield for inclusion in the St. George Melkite (Byzantine) Greek Catholic Church, Milwaukee, Wisconsin, United States Sunday Bulletin

Abouna, Why do We Fast? by Fr. Philaret D. Littlefield, Reprinted from Sophia, Volume 31, Number 1, Jan. - Feb. 2001, Melkite Greek Catholic Church Eparchy of Newton


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Melkite Greek Catholic Church Information Center
Martha Liles
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Melkite Greek Catholic Church Information Center is dedicated to my cousins: Bucky (Richard C. Liles), Shirley (Shirley Jean Liles Buck), and Donna (Donna Bertha Liles Campbell). Bucky fell asleep in the Lord on Dec. 12, 2000, Shirley fell asleep in the Lord on Nov. 8, 2001, and Donna fell asleep in the Lord on March 9, 2020.
O God of all spirits and of all flesh, who have destroyed death, overcome the devil, and given life to the world: grant, O Lord, to the souls of your servants Bucky and Shirley, who has departed from this life, that it may rest in a place of light, in a place of happiness, in a place of peace, where there is no pain, no grief, no sighing. And since You are a gracious God and the Lover of Mankind, forgive him/her every sin he/she has committed by thought, or word, or deed, for there is not a man who lives and does not sin : You alone are without sin, your righteousness is everlasting, and your word is true. You are the Resurrection and the Life, and the repose of your departed servants Bucky and Shirley. O Christ our God, and we send up glory to You, together with your eternal Father and your all-holy, good and life-giving Spirit, now and always and for ages upon ages. Amen.

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