There are special days of commemoration of the dead. One of the most important days of memory for a deceased person is the fortieth day. This date is especially remembered by believing Orthodox people.
In the Russian tradition, it is customary to arrange memorial dinners on the fortieth day after the death of the deceased. They try to invite all relatives and friends to the commemoration in order to remember the deceased person, to remember his good deeds. In addition to the memorial dinner, on the 40th day after the death of the deceased, believers order memorial services and other funeral commemorations in memory of the deceased in churches. Why is the fortieth day after death so important for the soul of a deceased person?
The Orthodox Church attaches particular importance to the fortieth day after death to the extent that at this time the human soul ascends to a private judgment before God. Until this moment, the soul is shown the beauties of heaven and the horrors of hell, and on the fortieth day, the human soul appears for a private judgment before the Creator to determine its posthumous fate. This judgment by God is called private, as it is a kind of preliminary "judgment" of a specific soul until the moment of the general resurrection of the dead and the Last (general) Judgment.
That is why the Orthodox Church commands especially zealous prayer for a deceased person and giving alms on the fortieth day after the death of the deceased. Believers rely on God's mercy. Orthodox Christians believe that through the prayers of the living for the dead, as well as for good deeds in memory of the deceased, the Lord can forgive the deceased for sins and grant the latter an eternal life in paradise.
