Christmas Sunday is a name for the Sunday after
ChristmasChristmas , also referred to as Christmas Day, is an annual holiday celebrated on December 25 that commemorates the birth of Jesus of Nazareth. The day marks the beginning of the larger season of Christmastide, which lasts twelve days. The nativity of Jesus, which is the basis for the anno Domini...
.
In the
United KingdomThe United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is a sovereign state located off the northwestern coast of continental Europe. It is an island country, spanning an archipelago including Great Britain, the northeastern part of Ireland, and many small islands...
, if Christmas Day falls on a Saturday, 26 December is correctly referred to as "Christmas Sunday", and
Boxing DayBoxing Day is a bank holiday or a public holiday in the United Kingdom, Australia, Canada, New Zealand, Hong Kong, and countries in the Commonwealth of Nations with a mainly Christian population...
moves to 27 December.
In
Western ChristianityWestern Christianity is a term used to include the Latin Rite of the Roman Catholic Church, the Churches of the Anglican Communion and Protestant Churches, which share common attributes that can be traced back to their medieval heritage. The term is used in contrast to Eastern Christianity...
, the first Sunday after Christmas is called the "First Sunday of Christmas".
In the "Sunday After the Nativity" and is a feast day commemorating King David,
Saint JosephSaint Joseph is known from the New Testament as the husband of Mary, mother of Jesus...
(who is called "Joseph the Betrothed"), and James the Brother of the Lord.
Christmas Sunday is a name for the Sunday after
ChristmasChristmas , also referred to as Christmas Day, is an annual holiday celebrated on December 25 that commemorates the birth of Jesus of Nazareth. The day marks the beginning of the larger season of Christmastide, which lasts twelve days. The nativity of Jesus, which is the basis for the anno Domini...
.
In the
United KingdomThe United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is a sovereign state located off the northwestern coast of continental Europe. It is an island country, spanning an archipelago including Great Britain, the northeastern part of Ireland, and many small islands...
, if Christmas Day falls on a Saturday, 26 December is correctly referred to as "Christmas Sunday", and
Boxing DayBoxing Day is a bank holiday or a public holiday in the United Kingdom, Australia, Canada, New Zealand, Hong Kong, and countries in the Commonwealth of Nations with a mainly Christian population...
moves to 27 December.
In
Western ChristianityWestern Christianity is a term used to include the Latin Rite of the Roman Catholic Church, the Churches of the Anglican Communion and Protestant Churches, which share common attributes that can be traced back to their medieval heritage. The term is used in contrast to Eastern Christianity...
, the first Sunday after Christmas is called the "First Sunday of Christmas".
In the "Sunday After the Nativity" and is a feast day commemorating King David,
Saint JosephSaint Joseph is known from the New Testament as the husband of Mary, mother of Jesus...
(who is called "Joseph the Betrothed"), and James the Brother of the Lord. Special
hymnA hymn is a type of song, usually religious, specifically written for the purpose of praise, adoration or prayer, and typically addressed to a deity or deities, or to a prominent figure or personification. The word hymn derives from Greek , "a song of praise"...
s for these
saintSaints, individuals of exceptional holiness, are significant in many religions, particularly Christianity.-General characteristics :Though the term is mostly used for Christians considered holy or virtuous, many religions use similar concepts to elevate people worthy of respect, e.g. see Hindu...
s are found in the
MenaionThe Menaion refers to the annual fixed cycle of services in the Eastern Orthodox and Greek-Catholic Churches...
, which are combined with hymns for the
Feast of the NativityThe Nativity of Jesus, or simply The Nativity, refers to the accounts of the birth of Jesus of Nazareth in the Gospels and in various apocryphal texts....
, and special
EpistleAn epistle is a writing directed or sent to a person or group of people, usually a letter and a very formal, often didactic and elegant one. The epistle genre of letter-writing was common in ancient Egypt as part of the scribal-school writing curriculum...
and
GospelA gospel is a writing that describes the life of Jesus. The word is primarily used to refer to the four canonical texts: the Gospel of Matthew, Gospel of Mark, Gospel of Luke and Gospel of John, probably written between AD 65 and 80...
readings are chanted at the
Divine LiturgyThe Divine Liturgy is the common term for the Eucharistic service of the Byzantine tradition of Christian liturgy. As such, it is used in the Eastern Orthodox and Eastern Catholic Churches. Armenian Christians, both of the Armenian Apostolic Church and of the Armenian Catholic Church, use the...
. If there is no Sunday between December 25 and January 1, this feast is moved to December 26, where it is combined with the
SynaxisIn Eastern Christianity , a Synaxis is an assembly for liturgical purposes, generally through the celebration of Vespers, Matins, Little Hours, and the Divine Liturgy.-Feast day:In Constantinople, the clergy and faithful would often gather together on specific...
of the
TheotokosTheotokos is the Greek title of Mary, the mother of Jesus used especially in the Eastern Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox, and Eastern Catholic Churches. Its literal English translations include God-bearer and the one who gives birth to God. Less literal translations include Mother of God...
. The Saturday After Nativity also has a special Epistle and Gospel reading (though no hymns, except those of the
AfterfeastAn Afterfeast is a period of celebration attached to one of the Great Feasts celebrated by the Eastern Orthodox and Eastern Catholic Churches ....
). The Saturday Before Theophany has a special Epistle and Gospel reading of its own, and if both days fall on the same Saturday, both sets of readings are chanted.
External links
- Sunday After Nativity Orthodox icon
An icon is a religious work of art, most commonly a painting, from Eastern Orthodox Christianity and Catholicism...
and synaxarion