Orthodox Russians will celebrate Parents' Day (Radonitsa) on Tuesday, April 25. On this day it is customary to remember deceased relatives and loved ones.

Radonitsa (Radunitsa, Parent's Day) - a spring holiday of remembrance of the dead, celebrated by everyone Eastern Slavs. U different nations Parents' Day is usually celebrated on Sunday, Monday or Tuesday of St. Thomas Week. In Russia, the spring day of remembrance is celebrated on the ninth day after Easter, so in 2017, Parents' Day falls on April 25.

The holiday's roots go back to pagan times, but this Slavic tradition was adopted and supported by the Russian Orthodox Church.

Radonitsa is a very ancient holiday, which has been known since pagan times. According to legends, Radonitsa was the name given to pagan deities who were the guardians of the souls of the deceased and personified the veneration of the dead. It was customary to make sacrifices and hold feasts on the mounds in honor of Radonitsa. This is how our ancestors paid tribute to the souls of the departed.

This holiday fits well into the Christian religion and remains in the Orthodox calendar. Before the USSR, this day was a day off. But during the Soviet era, it lost its significance and many traditions of Radonitsa were forgotten. And some of the traditions have become greatly distorted. So, now on Radonitsa people drink alcohol and even pour it on their graves. But the church does not approve of this.

In the Soviet Union, people began going to cemeteries on Easter. This was due to the fact that in the USSR the day off for Radonitsa was canceled. But people still wanted to honor the memory of their relatives and went to the cemetery on Easter, since this holiday always falls on Sunday.

Many people are interested in the question of what is prepared for Parents' Day after Easter, and what should be brought to the cemetery. Everyone's traditions are different here. The thing is that our ancestors adopted traditions from the times of paganism, so some of them do not coincide with church requirements.

So, on this day you can bring Easter, painted eggs, and jelly to the cemetery. It was also customary for our ancestors to bring wine and beer. However, the church does not approve of this, although it makes minor concessions to food. Also, priests do not understand the tradition of placing anything other than flowers on graves. And even more so, pour alcohol on them. Previously, vodka was poured only to those who dug graves in the cold.

Pagan traditions, which still exist in our lives, also said that pancakes and pancakes can be carried to the cemetery. They were precisely a symbol of resurrection. On this day, the deceased are shown that they too will be resurrected. By the way, honey is considered a very necessary product brought to the cemetery. This is what Jesus Christ ate after his resurrection.

According to the traditions of the church, in general, on this day people come to the cemetery in the morning and begin to clean up, after which they decorate the graves of the deceased with flowers and remember them kind words and thoughts. After this, you can light candles on the graves. According to the laws of the church, only the poor are treated to food on this day. However, you can remember it at home. It is noted here that the table should not be as rich as at Easter. You can’t get too drunk on this day either.

Parents' Day or, as it is also called, Radonitsa (Radunitsa) is a spring Orthodox church holiday special commemoration deceased. According to Radonitsa, it is one of the most important memorial days, when it is customary to visit cemeteries where the graves of relatives and friends are located.

This is the day of blessed memory and, oddly enough, joy, because this joy is for the birth of those who died in new life- eternal life. In order to prepare in time for this Orthodox holiday, you need to know what date is parent's day celebrated in 2017.

When is Parents' Memorial Day celebrated?

Total parenting days in a year, eight and seven of them fall on Saturday and therefore they are called parental Saturdays. But among parental days there is the most important, the most important holiday commemoration of the deceased (Radonitsa), which always falls on a Tuesday.

The Radonitsa holiday does not have its own date; it is always celebrated on different time, depending on what date it falls on. In the second week, or, to be more precise, nine days after the Holy Resurrection of Christ, on Tuesday, the day of remembrance of the dead comes - the first parent's day after the holiday of Easter.

Memorial days extremely important for everyone Orthodox Christian. They are also called “parental” so that we remember the need to take care of the souls of our ancestors.

It is imperative to know the dates of all memorial days so as not to miss the opportunity to remember and commemorate your deceased loved ones, relatives and friends, go to the cemetery and clean up the grave.

History and customs of the holiday of the main parent's day

According to the testimony of John Chrysostom, this holiday was celebrated by Christians in ancient times. The name itself - Radonitsa - was instilled in us from the common Slavic spring pagan holiday with the obligatory remembrance of the departed, which was called Radavanitsy, Graves, Triznami, Navy Day.

The word “radonitsa” comes from “joy” and “kind”; moreover, this holiday takes pride of place immediately after the celebration of Bright Easter Week and, one might say, obliges Orthodox Christians not to delve too deeply into grief for the dead, but to rejoice in their eternal life together with the Lord God.

The whole Christian world celebrates Christ's Resurrection, His victory over earthly death, and then, nine days later, believers celebrate the revival of their ancestors, relatives and friends to a new life, remembering them on a special day - Radonitsa. The Resurrection of Christ, as a victory over death, displaces the sadness of separation from loved ones, and therefore on the ninth day from Easter we, as Metropolitan Anthony of Surzh said:

“...with faith, reliable and Easter confidence we stand at the tombs of the departed.”

What to do on Parents' Day

Enough a large number of People visit relatives and friends at the cemetery on Easter. Many, unfortunately, adhere to the blasphemous custom of accompanying visits to the dead with drunken wild revelry. And those who don’t do this very often don’t even know when to Easter days it is possible (and necessary) to remember the dead.

The first commemoration of the deceased after Easter takes place on the second Easter week(week), after Fomin Sunday, on Tuesday. And the widespread tradition of going to the cemetery on the Easter holiday itself sharply contradicts the institutions of the Church: before the ninth day from Easter, commemoration of the dead cannot be performed. If a person passes into another world on Easter, then he is buried according to a special Easter rite.

Like many Orthodox clergy, priest Valery Chislov, rector of the temple in honor of the Assumption Holy Mother of God at the Assumption Cemetery in Chelyabinsk, warns against rash actions and other actions committed out of ignorance on the feast of Radonitsa:

“It should be remembered that a cemetery is a place where one should behave with reverence. It is sad to see how some people drink vodka there and sing worldly songs. Someone crumbles bread and eggs onto the grave mound and pours alcohol. Sometimes they get into a real riot. All this is more reminiscent of pagan funeral feasts and is unacceptable for Christians. If we already took food to the cemetery, it is better to distribute it to the poor. Let them pray for our departed, and then the Lord may send some consolation to our relatives.”

When you come to the cemetery on the feast of Radonitsa, you need to light a candle and perform litia (pray intensely). To perform litia during the commemoration of the dead, a priest should be invited. You can also read the Akathist about the repose of the dead. Then you need to clean up the grave, be silent for a while, remembering the deceased.

There is no need to drink or eat in a cemetery, it is unacceptable to pour alcohol on a grave mound - these actions are offensive memory of the dead. The tradition of leaving a glass of vodka with bread on a grave is a relic of pagan culture and should not be observed in Christian Orthodox families. It is better to give food to the poor or hungry.

How to remember the deceased

Prayer for deceased relatives and loved ones is the most important and greatest thing we can do for those who have passed on to another world. By and large, the deceased does not need either a coffin or a monument - this is only a pious tribute to tradition.

A simple wooden or metal cross is more appropriate for the grave of a true Orthodox Christian. But the soul of the deceased experiences a great need for our unceasing prayer. Saint John Chrysostom wrote:

“We will try, as much as possible, to help the departed, instead of tears, instead of sobs, instead of magnificent tombs - with our prayers, alms and offerings for them, so that in this way both they and we will receive the promised benefits.”

And special help to the deceased is provided by commemorating them in the Church.

Honoring the memory of the dead is a constant process that occurs in the soul of every person. But there are special days of the year when all people who have lost loved ones unite in a single prayer for the dead. Such events are called “parental Orthodox Saturday” and depend on religious holidays, as well as the fasts accompanying them. Remembering the dead gives them eternal life in the hearts of living people, who in turn, through funeral prayer hope for the resurrection of the soul.

Dear site visitors, you will find memorial days for 2018 in the new article: Parents' Saturdays 2018

Dear site visitors, you will find memorial days for 2019 in the new article: Parents' Saturdays 2019

Parents' Saturday The year 2017 does not always fall on the corresponding day of the week on the calendar. Quite often, memorial days can be on any other day. The importance of such events lies not only in honoring loved ones. These days the memory of those who gave their lives in all alone and there is no one in the world of the living to pray for the soul of such a person. Such universal commemorations repay the energy debt to all the deceased, regardless of family ties. Although the name at first glance looks like a veneration of the closest and dearest people - parents, this is not entirely true. The formulation of such a sample is endowed with the meaning of remembering everyone who is related to the race, and not to a specific family, but to the human race.

Orthodox calendar 2017 (parental Saturdays)

Based on the greatest religious holidays, general memorial days do not have a clearly established date, but nevertheless occur in almost every month of the first half of the year. The main commemoration may have a two-week delay. Parental Saturdays in 2017 (Orthodox calendar) are distributed as follows:

Of course, every person has the right to honor the memory of his loved ones in any way convenient for him. But, as practice shows, we are increasingly making mistakes that do more harm than good, even in such a matter as remembering a deceased soul.

If you adapt your behavior to a day like Parents' Saturday ( orthodox calendar) requires the fulfillment of all canons corresponding to a certain religious holiday. Although the rules have several common points, the implementation of which will enrich such a day and make it more productive:

• It is worth visiting the temple, praying under the church dome, lighting a funeral candle and leaving funeral products for all those in need.
• If the cemetery is close, you can visit the graves of the dead and bring them a “gift” in the form of bread, cookies or sweets. Under favorable weather conditions, it is not prohibited to clean up the burial site: pull out weeds, remove dry grass, etc.
• You shouldn’t turn your funeral dinner into a drunken spree. After all, drinking alcohol by Orthodox standards is a sin, and honoring the memory and sinning at the same time is at least illogical.
• Also, in the cemetery you should not speak in a raised voice or use foul language.

It would be good to remember that Parents' Saturday in 2017, as always, is not necessarily a day of grief and crying, but a time of rethinking one's actions and life in general.

Parents' Saturdays are important dates in the Orthodox calendar, and are named so precisely because they fall on the sixth day of the week. As all believers know, some Orthodox dates shift from year to year, and therefore every year you need to turn to the current Orthodox calendar, which not only indicates important dates and holidays, but also tells their history. When Parents' Saturdays will take place in 2017, we will tell you in this material.

Parents' Saturdays: dates for 2017

In total, there are 8 days of remembrance in the year, seven of which always take place on Saturdays, and the eighth day of remembrance always falls on Tuesday and this date is tied to the date of one of the most important Orthodox holidays Easter. Memorial Day, which falls on Tuesday, is always celebrated on the 9th day after Easter.

Parents' Saturdays in 2017 will be held on the following days:

02/18/2017 – Ecumenical (meat-free) Saturday. This day of remembrance always takes place 7 days before the start of Lent.
11.03.2017.
18.03.2017.
25.03.2017.
04/25/2017 – Radonitsa, the ninth day since the celebration of Easter.
05/09/2017 is the day of remembrance of fallen soldiers.
06/03/2017 – Trinity Saturday.
28.10.2-17 – Dmitrievskaya Saturday.

Despite the fact that there are 8 parental Saturdays in total, the most important are Meat Saturday (the eve of the week of Last Judgment) and Trinity Saturday before the great feast of the Holy Trinity. Radonitsa and Dmitrievskaya Saturday are also considered important.

Parents' Saturdays: what to do

Parents' Saturdays are days of remembrance for those who have passed on to another world. As a rule, churches hold memorial services for the dead, where you can light a candle for the repose of your loved ones. These days you need to visit the graves of your loved ones, remember them, and pray.

Many people mistakenly visit the cemetery on the bright holiday of Easter, not having reliable information about when this can be done and when it cannot be done. Moreover, visiting a cemetery on Easter day contradicts the church charter, which states that the dead cannot be commemorated before the ninth day of Easter. Even if a person passes into another world on Easter, he is buried according to a special Easter rite.

In order to avoid such mistakes, it is best to remember the dead on parental Saturdays, of which there are 8. On these days, special services are held in churches in the morning and evening. And if it is not possible to visit the temple, then you can pray for the dead at home, choosing a quiet place where no one will disturb you. On Parents' Saturdays it is very important to remember and pray for those who are no longer with us - this is the most important thing and purpose of such days of remembrance. It is believed that the souls of the deceased find peace when they are prayed for on earth, when they are remembered. It’s not for nothing that they say that love for those who are no longer with us lives in the hearts of living people. It is believed that the soul of the deceased is alive as long as it is remembered and prayed for.

In addition to prayers and visiting church, on Parents' Saturdays you need to go to the cemetery, light a candle on the grave and pray. You can invite a priest to the cemetery to perform a litiya.
On Parents' Saturdays, you need to clean up the grave: weed the ground, throw out old flowers, bring new ones, change the lamps and ribbons on the gravestone. Contrary to the widespread tradition of bringing food and alcoholic drinks to the cemetery to remember the deceased, this cannot be done, since such an action is pagan in nature, and therefore inappropriate in Orthodoxy.

It is important to remember that Parents' Saturdays are not days of mourning and sorrow, they are days of remembrance. There is an important nuance here - you need to remember the deceased with bright thoughts, and not with sadness, otherwise the soul will not be able to find peace. No matter how difficult it may be to survive the loss, you need to remember your deceased loved ones with a smile and a light heart, then they will also have a good time in the next world.

The Orthodox calendar is an obligatory and integral part of the life of believers.

By looking into it, you can find out the dates of Lent and holidays, as well as plan your schedule for the next year - working days, weekends, planting days, fasting days and memorial days.

Parents' Saturdays in 2017 have clearly established dates. If you don’t have time to go to church and light a candle, then you should definitely go to the graves of the departed. Deliver flowers, clean up and pay respects. There are not many parent's Saturdays throughout the year, but they allow us to stop in the daily bustle and remember, at least for a minute, about those people who were and remain very dear to us. It is important to have the whole meaning of Lent in your heart and limit yourself to weaknesses.

Parents' Saturdays in 2017

Parents' days are special days on which it is customary to remember deceased people.

. May 9, 2017, Tuesday is the day of remembrance for those killed in the Great Patriotic War.

June Parent's Saturday precedes the great holiday of Trinity and falls on June 3.

1September 1, 2017, Monday is the day of remembrance of departed Orthodox soldiers

What to do on Parents' Day

Quite a large number of people visit relatives and friends at the cemetery on Easter. Many, unfortunately, adhere to the blasphemous custom of accompanying visits to the dead with drunken wild revelry. And those who do not do this very often do not even know when on Easter days they can (and should) remember the dead.

The first commemoration of the deceased after Easter takes place on the second Easter week (week), after St. Thomas Sunday, on Tuesday. And the widespread tradition of going to the cemetery on the Easter holiday itself sharply contradicts the institutions of the Church: before the ninth day from Easter, commemoration of the dead cannot be performed. If a person passes into another world on Easter, then he is buried according to a special Easter rite.

Like many Orthodox clergy, priest Valery Chislov, rector of the church in honor of the Dormition of the Blessed Virgin Mary at the Assumption Cemetery in Chelyabinsk, warns against rash actions and other actions committed out of ignorance on the feast of Radonitsa:

“It should be remembered that a cemetery is a place where one should behave with reverence. It is sad to see how some people drink vodka there and sing worldly songs. Someone crumbles bread and eggs onto the grave mound and pours alcohol. Sometimes they get into a real riot. All this is more reminiscent of pagan funeral feasts and is unacceptable for Christians. If we already took food to the cemetery, it is better to distribute it to the poor. Let them pray for our departed, and then the Lord may send some consolation to our relatives.”

When you come to the cemetery on the feast of Radonitsa, you need to light a candle and perform litia (pray intensely). To perform litia during the commemoration of the dead, a priest should be invited. You can also read the Akathist about the repose of the dead. Then you need to clean up the grave, be silent for a while, remembering the deceased.

There is no need to drink or eat in the cemetery, it is unacceptable to pour alcohol on the grave mound - these actions insult the memory of the dead. The tradition of leaving a glass of vodka with bread on a grave is a relic of pagan culture and should not be observed in Christian Orthodox families. It is better to give food to the poor or hungry.