According to the Orthodox calendar, the Holy Trinity in 2024 and other countries falls on the penultimate Sunday of June (the 23rd). The date is a rolling date that changes annually. Otherwise, the holiday is called Pentecost - it comes on the 50th day after the Bright Sunday of Christ or Great Easter and on the tenth day after his Ascension. The Trinity, which is one of the twelfth holidays, is celebrated in a special way, following the traditions.
Meaning of Trinity in 2024
Pentecost is one of the 12 most important church holidays that always falls on a Sunday. On this day, the event described in the Gospel is remembered.The secret was revealed to all people that God is one, but in three persons - the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. Three hypostases exist in unity, creating the world and sanctifying it with grace.
During the Last Supper in the Zion Upper Room (Jerusalem), the Holy Spirit descended on the apostles, gave them special powers - to speak in the languages of other peoples, to carry the message of Jesus the Savior to the whole world. The Apostle Peter in his first sermon told the townspeople and guests of the city that in a miraculous descent an ancient prophecy was fulfilled. After that, about 3,000 people were baptized. Then the apostles went to different countries to glorify God and baptize people with the new faith.
Trinity celebration calendar for several years:
| Year | What date and month |
| 2024 | June 23 |
| 2025 | June 8 |
| 2026 | May 31 |
Customs and traditions of the Orthodox holiday
The Trinity is considered the beginning of the founding of the New Testament Church. The date of the celebration was set in 381 in Constantinople, and in Rus' only 300 years later. Solemn services are held in all churches, after the liturgy there is a great vespers. The main service takes place on Sunday morning. The main symbol is a birch, its branches consecrate, decorate churches, apartments and decorate icons, the floor is covered only with mowed grass. The clergy dress up in green or white and emerald colors, personifying the renewing, living power of the Holy Spirit.
Bouquets of birch brought from the temple are placed in the apartment in the most prominent place, then put into a vase and left near the icons. You can take it out of the house before the next Trinity, but do not throw it away, but put it in a place where they will not walk around the bouquet.
Before Sunday, it is customary to clean up the apartment, in the local area and in the garden. It is important to clean up and, if possible, throw away all unnecessary things. The day before, Parental Saturday is celebrated, in the morning they visit temples, light a candle for the repose of the souls of the dead and read a prayer. Then they visit the cemetery, remember the departed relatives. You can bring homemade food to the memorial table to the church, after the service it is distributed to the poor.
After visiting temples and praying for the salvation of the soul from mortal sins, according to tradition, they sit down at the festive table, covered with simple dishes (prepared in advance), it is important that there are no excesses. Relatives and closest friends are invited to visit. The next day - Monday is the Day of the Holy Spirit.
Folk traditions (what they do on Pentecost):
- Collect, consecrate and harvest medicinal herbs, they will be endowed with special powers. You can also do sorting and preparing for storage of herbs collected in advance, for example, in April or May.
- Girls tell fortunes. They weave wreaths of herbs and wild flowers, let them go down the river, they won’t sail far from the shore, which means that the betrothed needs to wait, it will carry over - the marriage will be happy. If the wreath is drowned - you have to survive the test.
- They go to church with bouquets of wildflowers and herbs. Putting a candle in honor of the holiday in the church, you need to drop a couple of tears on the bouquet, this will be a symbol of rain, designed to irrigate fertile soil.
- To get rich, they pluck a centaury branch, hide it in their bosoms and serve with it in the temple, and then take a steam bath with it.
- In the garden, weeds are uprooted and stuck into the ground with their tops. It is believed that they will no longer grow in this land.
What not to do (no strict prohibitions):
- work, do hard physical labor;
- visit the cemetery (on Sunday);
- swear and sort things out;
- throw noisy holidays with lots of food and alcoholic drinks;
- do things that take a lot of time (paperwork, shopping, etc.).
They say that on Monday after the holiday the earth is a birthday girl, you can’t work in the garden. The whole week after Sunday should be modest (in business and food, but strict fasting is not provided). It used to be believed that on Pentecost you can’t swim in reservoirs, mermaids can drag you to the bottom. It is better for future newlyweds to marry on the Trinity, and play the wedding on the Intercession, then the married life will be long and happy.
Early in the morning before the service, it is useful to walk barefoot in the morning dew, this will help improve your well-being. If it rains on a holiday, you don’t need to hide and take out an umbrella, it’s better, on the contrary, to try to spend as much time under it as possible, it will charge you with positive energy for a long time.Most of the rites appeared among the people, but do not apply to church canons. They can diversify the holiday, but the main ones are visiting the temple and prayer.
