Anyone who has at least once attended a Divine Service of the Eastern Church, has most likely noticed the beauty and festivity of the vestments. The diversity of colors is an inalienable part of the Liturgical - Church symbolism, a way of affecting those praying. Bright and radiant vestments convey the joy and exultation of God’s beauty and greatness, while dark vestments instill within us a sense of repented to return to God.
Since ancient times, the Liturgical books have offered flexibility in Liturgical color, only specifying whether the vestments worn for a particular feast or season should be light or dark. This has led to various local practices over the years. In the contemporary practice common to many parishes, there are six basic color groups.
1. White is used for Pascha and Transfiguration. In some jurisdictions it is also used for the Nativity, Theophany and Ascension.
2. Gold is used on the Nativity of Our Lord and when no other color is called for as it conveys the riches and glory of God’s kingdom.
3. Dark Red or Purple is used for the Great Fast – Lent.
4. Green is used for Pentecost and monastic saints. In some jurisdictions it is also used on Palm Sunday.
5. Blue is used for the Feasts of the Mother of God.
6. Red is used for the Feast of the Holy Cross, Beheading of St. John the Baptist, martyr saints and during the Nativity Fast (Philip’s Fast).
The color of the Feast is worn from the Vigil the night before the Feast Day until the leave-taking of the Feast, the final day of the festal season. The length of these post-feasts vary, and are given in the Liturgical calendar and rubrics.
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