Florence Christian Church celebrates the seasons of the Christian year with special worship services, changes in scenery and music, reminding us of the birth, life, ministry, death and resurrection of Jesus the Christ and what that means for us as people of faith and as Christ’s Church.
The seasons of the church year are as follows:
- Advent: 4 weeks leading to Christmas Day which prepare us spiritually for Christmas. This is the beginning of the church year, and is an opportunity to order our lives, not on the secular calendar and priorities, but on Christ.
- Christmas: The season of Christmas begins the evening of December 24 and lasts for 12 days (called Christmastide). During this joyous season, we celebrate the birth of Jesus to the arrival of the Magi at the Feast of the Epiphany (January 6).
- Epiphany: The season of Epiphany begins with the Feast of Epiphany, celebrated on January 6, and extends to Ash Wednesday, which marks the beginning of the season of Lent. The term epiphany means “to show” or “to make known” or “to reveal.” During this season, we celebrate the ways in which Jesus is revealed as the manifestation of God in flesh.
- Lent: Is a season of 40 days—not including Sundays—before Easter. During this 40-day season, we celebrate many special worship services including Ash Wednesday, Palm Sunday, Maundy Thursday, and Good Friday. Throughout the season of Lent, we reflect on our lives and focus on repentance, or turning our lives in the direction of God.
- Easter: The Easter season, beginning with the joyous celebration of resurrection on Easter Sunday, lasts for 50 days, celebrating that Christ is risen and that the powers of evil, fear, death, and destruction do not have the final word. The season reaches its conclusion with the feast of Pentecost, celebrating the presence of the Holy Spirit and the birth of the church.
- Pentecost: Pentecost Sunday leads us into what is called “Ordinary Time,” which covers about half of the year. During this season we remember that God is with us every day…in the ordinary times of our lives, giving us faith, hope and love to experience and share.