Contrary to the beliefs of many, fasting is a particularly joyful time for an Orthodox person. Believers should spend these periods of abstinence for the benefit of their souls, striving to cleanse themselves of sinful filth.
In Orthodox Christian practice, there are four days of fasting, the observance of which is mandatory for all believers. If we talk about the posts that fall on the calendar for 2017, it is worth starting with a period of abstinence. called the Nativity Fast (aka Filippov Fast). This particular winter post is the first in 2017. The Civil New Year already falls at a time when the Orthodox Church has entered the saving period of abstinence.
The Nativity Fast begins on November 28th and lasts 39 days. In 2017, Filippov Lent ends on January 7 (as usual) on the feast of the Nativity in the flesh of the Lord Jesus Christ.
In the Christian tradition, the next after a long strict fast is a lighter fast (a less strict restriction on food is assumed) and vice versa. Thus, after a relatively light Christmas fast, the calendar provides for the longest and most important period of abstinence for believers - the Holy Forty Day, known to a wider community as Great Lent. In 2017, Lent begins on Monday, February 27th and will last 48 days, ending on the date of Orthodox Easter, which falls on April 16th. It turns out that the last day of Lent 2017 is Saturday, April 15th.
The next one after the Lent is the apostolic fast, or, as it is better known, Peter's fast (in memory of the holy supreme apostles Paul and Peter, who worked hard in the field of preaching the faith of Christ). In 2017, Petrov's fast is quite long, although not strict - it includes thirty calendar days. The beginning of Petrov's Lent in 2017 dates from Monday, June 12th. Exactly in the month of the twelfth, the Church will celebrate the day of the holy chief apostles. Therefore, the last day of abstinence in mid-summer in 2017 will be July 11th.
At the end of the summer, Christian believers enter another fast, which is already strict. This is a fast in honor of the Most Holy Theotokos, named after one of the Mother of God feasts of the Assumption. It begins on the feast of the Annihilation of the Trees of Chestnago and the Life-Giving Cross of the Lord on August 14th. In 2017, this date, popularly known as Honey Savior, falls on Monday. The Dormition fast in 2017 is the shortest of all four periods of abstinence. It is only two weeks long ending on 28th August.
For a more convenient visual perception of the calendar of Orthodox fasts for 2017, a table is presented below.
