Liturgical year
The annual cycle of seasons, feasts, and readings that structures Christian worship and commemorates events in the life of Jesus and the church.
Advent: The Christian season of preparation before Christmas, beginning the liturgical year in many Western churches. It opens the Western liturgical year with expectation and preparation.
Paschal cycle: The calendar cycle organized around Easter and its related observances. It determines the timing of Lent, Holy Week, and Eastertide.
Western Christianity: The Christian traditions historically shaped by the Latin-speaking churches of western Europe. Its calendars commonly use Advent, Ordinary Time, and the Gregorian calendar.
Pascha: The Christian celebration of Jesus’s resurrection, derived from the Greek name for Passover. This early feast became the organizing center of the Christian year.
Christmas: The Christian feast celebrating the birth of Jesus, observed on December 25 in many churches. It anchors the season that celebrates Jesus’s birth.
Christmas cycle: The sequence of Christian observances centered on Christmas, including Advent and Epiphany. It gathers the calendar’s preparations and celebrations around the Nativity.
Eastern Orthodox Church: A communion of self-governing Eastern Christian churches sharing Orthodox doctrine and worship. Its liturgical cycle and feast dates differ in notable ways from Western practice.
Epiphany: A Christian feast commemorating the manifestation of Jesus to the world, especially the visit of the Magi in Western churches. Its development added another major celebration to the winter cycle.
Lent: A Christian season of penitence and preparation before Easter, traditionally lasting about forty days. It prepares worshippers for the central feast of Easter.
Easter date: The calendar date of Easter, calculated by a rule tied to the spring equinox and a full moon. Its moveable date shifts the timing of several seasons and feasts.