563-564

On the conclusion of the feast of the Assumption of Virgin Mary

• Καλαμάκης, Διονύσιος Χ.

According to the liturgical books of the Orthodox Church for the month of August, the feast of the Assumption of Virgin Mary is concluded on the 23d of that month. Nevertheless, in some monasteries, the last day of the aforementioned feast is August the 28th. The monk Bartholomaios Koutloumoussianos from Imbros explains that fact by referring to an old tradition whereby the feast of the Assumption was concluded on August the 28th in the monasteries of Mount Athos, but also, according to a manuscript of 1610 from Chalki, in the monasteries of Constantinople as well. The author has identified the manuscript that validates Bartholomaios ’ claim. This tradition originated from the urge to dedicate the month of August to the cult of the Holy Virgin. As for the question why the feast is not concluded on August the 31st (in which case the whole month would belong to the Mother of God), the answer is that, on August the 29th, the Orthodox Church commemorates the decapitation of St John the Baptist; therefore, the feast of the Assumption must close its cycle the day before.

• Philosophy, Ethics and Religion

• Church history