The Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary in 2025: date of celebration according to the new calendar, traditions and prohibitions
11 August 15:47
The Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary is one of the most important Christian holidays. On this day, it is customary to visit a church, address the Mother of God with your requests, and bless flowers, seeds, and ears of wheat. This holiday also symbolizes the end of the Dormition Lent, so Ukrainians traditionally set a festive table and spend time with their loved ones.
Meaning:
- When is the Dormition of the Most Holy Theotokos celebrated in 2025: the date of celebration according to the new calendar
- History of the celebration of this church holiday
- The Dormition of the Most Holy Theotokos: what you can and cannot do on this day
When is the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary celebrated in 2025: date of celebration according to the new calendar
Since September 2023, the OCU and the UGCC have switched to the New Julian calendar, so holidays that do not have a fixed date of celebration are now celebrated 13 days earlier. According to the old style, the date of the celebration was August 28, but according to the new calendar, the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary will be celebrated on August 15 in 2025.
The history of the celebration of this church holiday
According to the Holy Scriptures, during the last years of her earthly life, the Blessed Virgin Mary was under the supervision of the Apostle John the Theologian, who was entrusted by Jesus Christ Himself to take care of His Mother. A few days before her death, the archangel Gabriel appeared to her and told her that her life on earth would soon come to an end. Upon hearing this news, the apostles, who were preaching in different parts of the world at the time, left their places of ministry and arrived in Jerusalem to accompany the Mother of God on her last journey.
When that moment came, Jesus, accompanied by angels, appeared in a bright light, and the soul of the Blessed Virgin Mary passed away. Later, when Christ’s disciples opened her coffin, they discovered that the body of the Mother of God was gone.
The Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary: what you can and cannot do on this day
Most church holidays are characterized by the presence of certain traditions and prohibitions, and the feast of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary is no exception. In particular, on this day, believers go to church, where they light candles near the icon of the Virgin Mary and pray for the health of their loved ones or address her with other requests.
In addition, the faithful also bless grain and ears of wheat, as well as flowers, which they then take home and keep as a talisman. After returning from the service, it is customary to set a festive table and invite your family to the table. In ancient times, this holiday also symbolized the beginning of the wedding season.
Among the prohibitions that apply on this day are the following:
- To engage in heavy physical labor. This prohibition applied primarily to girls, who were forbidden to burden themselves with hard labor after this holiday;
- Quarreling, swearing, and cursing;
- Wearing old and dirty shoes;
- Pick up sharp objects;
- To walk barefoot on the grass;
- Making fires;
- Cutting girls’ hair.
It was also believed that the weather on the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary could tell what kind of fall would be coming.
Author: Olya Yushko
