Where Did It Go??? The Fast this Year of the Holy Apostles for New Calendarists
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This year, as happens when Pascha is late, New Calendarists will not observe the Fast of the Holy Apostles. According to the New Calendar, today is the 29th of June, which is for them the Feast of the Holy Apostles Peter and Paul. This timing affects the observance of the Apostles’ Fast, which traditionally begins on the Monday following the Feast of All Saints. The Fast before this feast starts on this coming Monday and now the New Calendarists are already celebrating the feast!
The Feast of All Saints falls on the first Sunday after Pentecost, which this year has resulted in a unique scheduling overlap. Consequently, the period allocated for the Apostles’ Fast, which would typically precede the Feast of the Holy Apostles, is completely absent this year.
This occurrence underscores the differences between the New Calendar and the traditional Julian Calendar. In the traditional Orthodox calendar, the Fast of the Holy Apostles is always observed, as it is a period of spiritual preparation and reflection leading up to the Feast of the Holy Apostles Peter and Paul. This year, those adhering to the Julian Calendar continue to maintain the fasting period, in contrast to their New Calendarist counterparts.
The absence of the Apostles’ Fast in the New Calendarist observance this year highlights the ongoing liturgical and ecclesiastical differences and problems between the two calendar systems. It is a reminder that the feasts and fasts of the Church were arranged using the Church (Julian) calendar.
