Relick Sunday

Last updated

Relick Sunday (or Relic Sunday) is a moveable feast in the Christian calendar celebrated in mid July on the third Sunday after Midsummer's day. [1] The feast celebrated Christian relics of all kinds, in which offerings were given to relics.

In England (Use of Sarum), the feast of relics fell in earlier times on the octave day of the nativity of blessed Mary (September 15), but in 1252 it was moved to the first Sunday after the Feast of the Translation of St. Thomas, therefore on the Sunday falling within July 8-14.

A manuscript from the late fifteenth century carrying a sermon entitled In festo Reliquarum describes its commemoration: [2]

"Worshipfull frendis, on Sunday next commyng shall be the holy fest of all relykis (called Relike Sonday), which that be left here in erth to the grete magnificence, honour and worship of god and profite to man bothe bodily and gostily, for in as much as we be in sufficient to worship and reuerence singulerly all reuerent Relikis of all seyntis left here in erth, for it passith mannis power. Wherefore holy Chirch in especiall the Chirch of Yngelonde hathe ordeynd this holy Fest to be worshipped the next Sonday aftir the translacion of seint Thomas of Cauntirbery yerely to be hallowed and had in reuerence."

The Exeter Ordinal places this feast on Monday after the Feast of the Ascension.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Liturgical year</span> Annually recurring fixed sequence of Christian feast days

The liturgical year, also called the church year, Christian year or kalendar, consists of the cycle of liturgical seasons in Christian churches that determines when feast days, including celebrations of saints, are to be observed, and which portions of Scripture are to be read either in an annual cycle or in a cycle of several years.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Liturgical colours</span> Properties of visual perception specified for religious festivities over the year

Liturgical colours are specific colours used for vestments and hangings within the context of Christian liturgy. The symbolism of violet, blue, white, green, red, gold, black, rose and other colours may serve to underline moods appropriate to a season of the liturgical year or may highlight a special occasion.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Holy Week</span> Calendar date

Holy Week is the most sacred week in the liturgical year in Christianity. For all Christian traditions it is a moveable observance. In Eastern Christianity, which also calls it Great Week, it is the week following Great Lent and Lazarus Saturday, starting on the evening of Palm Sunday and concluding on the evening of Great Saturday. In Western Christianity, Holy Week is the sixth and last week of Lent, beginning with Palm Sunday and concluding on Holy Saturday.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Feast of Corpus Christi</span> Catholic feast day, public holiday in some countries

The Feast of Corpus Christi, also known as the Solemnity of the Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ, is a Christian liturgical solemnity celebrating the Real Presence of the Body and Blood, Soul and Divinity of Jesus in the elements of the Eucharist; it is observed by the Latin Church, in addition to certain Western Orthodox, Lutheran, and Anglican churches. Two months earlier, the institution of the Eucharist at the Last Supper is observed on Maundy Thursday in a sombre atmosphere leading to Good Friday. The liturgy on that day also commemorates Christ's washing of the disciples' feet, the institution of the priesthood, and the agony in the Garden of Gethsemane.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Allhallowtide</span> Western Christian liturgical season

Allhallowtide, Hallowtide, Allsaintstide, or the Hallowmas season, is the Western Christian season encompassing the triduum of All Saints' Eve (Halloween), All Saints' Day and All Souls' Day, as well as the International Day of Prayer for the Persecuted Church and Remembrance Sunday in some traditions. The period begins on 31 October annually. Allhallowtide is a "time to remember the dead, including martyrs, saints, and all faithful departed Christians." The present date of Hallowmas and thus also of its vigil (Hallowe'en) was established for Rome perhaps by Pope Gregory III (731–741) and was made of obligation throughout the Frankish Empire by Louis the Pious in 835. Elsewhere, other dates were observed even later, with the date in Ireland being 20 April. In the early 11th century, the modern date of All Souls' Day was popularized, after Abbot Odilo established it as a day for the monks of Cluny and associated monasteries to pray for the dead.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Trinity Sunday</span> Western Christian feast day

Trinity Sunday is the first Sunday after Pentecost in the Western Christian liturgical calendar, and the Sunday of Pentecost in Eastern Christianity. Trinity Sunday celebrates the Christian doctrine of the Trinity, the three Persons of God: the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Paschal Triduum</span> Good Friday, Holy Saturday, and Easter Sunday

The Paschal Triduum or Easter Triduum, Holy Triduum, or the Three Days, is the period of three days that begins with the liturgy on the evening of Maundy Thursday, reaches its high point in the Easter Vigil, and closes with evening prayer on Easter Sunday. It is a moveable observance recalling the Passion, Crucifixion, Death, burial, and Resurrection of Jesus, as portrayed in the canonical Gospels.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Epiphany (holiday)</span> Christian feast, public holiday in some countries

Epiphany, also known as "Theophany" in Eastern Christian tradition, is a Christian feast day commemorating the visit of the Magi, the baptism of Jesus, and the wedding at Cana.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Feast of the Cross</span> Christian celebration of the crucifix

In the Christian liturgical calendar, there are several different Feasts of the Cross, all of which commemorate the cross used in the crucifixion of Jesus. Unlike Good Friday, which is dedicated to the passion of Christ and the crucifixion, these feast days celebrate the cross itself, as the sign of salvation. In Western Catholicism, Eastern Catholicism, Eastern Orthodoxy, Oriental Orthodoxy, Lutheranism and Anglicanism the most common day of commemoration is 14 September, or 27 September in churches still using the Julian calendar.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Feast of the Holy Name of Jesus</span>

The Feast of the Holy Name of Jesus is a feast of the liturgical year celebrated by Christians on varying dates.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Feast of the Ascension</span> Christian commemoration

The Feast of the Ascension of Jesus Christ commemorates the Christian belief of the bodily Ascension of Jesus into Heaven. It is one of the ecumenical feasts of Christian churches, ranking with the feasts of the Passion and Pentecost. Following the account of Acts 1:3 that the risen Jesus appeared for 40 days prior to his Ascension, Ascension Day is traditionally celebrated on a Thursday, the fortieth day of Easter, although some Christian denominations have moved the observance to the following Sunday, sometimes called Ascension Sunday. The day of observance varies by ecclesiastical province in many Christian denominations, as with Methodists and Catholics, for example.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Eastertide</span> Festal season in the liturgical year of Christianity

Eastertide or Paschaltide is a festal season in the liturgical year of Christianity that focuses on celebrating the Resurrection of Jesus Christ. It begins on Easter Sunday, which initiates Easter Week in Western Christianity, and Bright Week in Eastern Christianity.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Feast of the Transfiguration</span> Christian feast day

The Feast of the Transfiguration is celebrated by various Christian communities in honor of the transfiguration of Jesus. The origins of the feast are less than certain and may have derived from the dedication of three basilicas on Mount Tabor. The feast was present in various forms by the 9th century, and in the Western Church was made a universal feast on 6 August by Pope Callixtus III to commemorate the raising of the siege of Belgrade (1456).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Feast of the Circumcision of Christ</span> Christian celebration

The Feast of the Circumcision of Christ is a Christian celebration of the circumcision of Jesus in accordance with Jewish tradition, eight days after his birth, the occasion on which the child was formally given his name.

The Church of England commemorates many of the same saints as those in the General Roman Calendar, mostly on the same days, but also commemorates various notable Christians who have not been canonised by Rome, with a particular though not exclusive emphasis on those of English origin. There are differences in the calendars of other churches of the Anglican Communion.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">All Saints' Day</span> Christian feast day

All Saints' Day, also known as All Hallows' Day, the Feast of All Saints, the Feast of All Hallows, the Solemnity of All Saints, and Hallowmas, is a Christian solemnity celebrated in honor of all the saints of the church, whether they are known or unknown.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pentecostarion</span> Liturgical book in Eastern Christianity

The Pentecostarion is the liturgical book used by the Eastern Orthodox and Byzantine Catholic churches during the Paschal Season which extends from Pascha (Easter) to the Sunday following All Saints Sunday.

The Lutheran liturgical calendar is a listing which details the primary annual festivals and events that are celebrated liturgically by various Lutheran churches. The calendars of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) and the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada (ELCIC) are from the 1978 Lutheran Book of Worship and the calendar of the Lutheran Church–Missouri Synod (LCMS) and the Lutheran Church–Canada (LCC) use the Lutheran Book of Worship and the 1982 Lutheran Worship. Elements unique to the ELCA have been updated from the Lutheran Book of Worship to reflect changes resulting from the publication of Evangelical Lutheran Worship in 2006. The elements of the calendar unique to the LCMS have also been updated from Lutheran Worship and the Lutheran Book of Worship to reflect the 2006 publication of the Lutheran Service Book.

The ranking of liturgical days in the Roman Rite is a regulation for the liturgy of the Roman Catholic church. It determines for each liturgical day which observance has priority when liturgical dates and times coincide, which texts are used for the celebration of the Holy Mass and the Liturgy of the hours and which liturgical color is assigned to the day or celebration.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Feasts of Jesus Christ</span> Specific days in the liturgical calendar

Feasts of Jesus Christ are specific days of the year distinguished in the liturgical calendar as being significant days for the celebration of events in the life of Jesus Christ and his veneration, for the commemoration of his relics, signs and miracles. While Easter is treated everywhere as the central religious feast in the Christian liturgical year, the other feasts differ in the liturgical practice.

References

  1. Nicholas Harris Nicolas (1824). Tables, Calendars, &c. for the use of Historians, Antiquaries, and the Legal Profession.
  2. London, British Library, Harley MS 2247, f. 169v. Punctuation and spelling are slightly modernized from the original.