AnAfterfeast,orPostfeast,is a period of celebration attached to one of theGreat Feastscelebrated by theOrthodox ChristianandEastern Catholic Churches(somewhat analogous to what in Western Christianity would be called anOctave).
The celebration of theGreat Feastsof thechurch yearis extended for a number of days, depending upon the particular Feast. Each day of an Afterfeast will have particular hymns assigned to it, continuing the theme of the Feast being celebrated. At each of thedivine servicesduring an Afterfeast, thetroparionandkontakionof the feast are read or chanted. Thecanonof the feast will usually be chanted on every day of the Afterfeast (if two canons were chanted on the day of the feast, they will be alternated on the days of the afterfeast).
Most of these Great Feasts also have a day or more of preparation called aForefeast(most Feasts that are on the moveablePaschal Cycledo not have Forefeasts). Forefeasts and Afterfeasts will affect the structure of the services during theCanonical Hours.Some of the Great Feasts of the Lord have a special canon composed of only three odes, called aTriodion,which is usually chanted atComplineon each day of the Forefeast. (However, the Triodion of the Forefeast of the Transfiguration is said atMatins.)
The last day of an Afterfeast is called theApodosis(Ancient Greekfor "leave-taking", lit. "giving-back" ) of the Feast. On the Apodosis, most of the hymns that were chanted on the first day of the Feast are repeated. On the Apodosis of Feasts of theTheotokos,the Epistle and Gospel from the day of the Feast are repeated again at theDivine Liturgy.For the Annunciation, the Meeting, and Palm Sunday, the Apodosis may be celebrated for part of a day, atVespers,the remaining services of the day in question falling outside the festal period. This is indicated in the table below as1⁄2a day.
The Forefeasts and Afterfeasts break down as follows:
| Days of
Forefeast |
Name of
Feast |
Date | Days of
the festal period |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Nativity of the Theotokos | 8 September | 5 |
| 1 | Exaltation of the Cross | 14 September | 8 |
| 1 | Entry of the Theotokos | 21 November | 5 |
| 5[1] | Nativity of our Lord | 25 December | 7 |
| 4[2] | Theophany of our Lord | 6 January | 9 |
| 1[3] | Meeting of our Lord | 2 February | 11⁄2–8 |
| 0[4] | Palm Sunday | Sunday before Pascha | 1⁄2 |
| 1[5] | Annunciation of the Theotokos | 25 March | 11⁄2–2 |
| 0[6] | Pascha | Sunday of the Resurrection | 39 |
| 0 | Mid-Pentecost[7] | Twenty-fifth day of Pascha | 8 |
| 1[8] | Ascension of our Lord | Fortieth day of Pascha | 9 |
| 0 | Pentecost(Trinity Sunday) | Fiftieth day of Pascha | 7 |
| 1 | Transfiguration of our Lord | 6 August | 8 |
| 1 | Dormition of the Theotokos | 15 August | 9 |
Five of these Afterfeasts have a special commemoration on the day following the Feast, called aSynaxis.In this context, aSynaxiscommemorates a saint who is intimately bound up with the Feast being celebrated. The four Synaxes are:
- Synaxis of SaintsJoachimandAnna(9 September—the day after the Nativity of the Theotokos)
- Synaxis of the Theotokos (26 December—the day after the Nativity of our Lord)
- Synaxis of theForerunner(7 January—the day after the Theophany of our Lord)
- Synaxis of SaintsSimeon the God-ReceiverandAnna the Prophetess(3 February—the day after the Meeting of the Lord)
- Synaxis of theArchangel Gabriel(26 March—the day after the Annunciation) If the Annunciation falls during Holy Week the Synaxis is omitted.
Other Great Feasts that have Afterfeasts (although no Forefeasts) are:
- The Nativity of the Forerunner (June 24)
- TheBeheading of the Forerunner(August 29)
- The Feast of the Holy Apostles, SaintsPeterandPaul(June 29).
Each of these three has only 1 day of Afterfeast, and no Apodosis. These are not counted among the Twelve Great Feasts (i.e., Great Feasts of the Lord or Theotokos).
The Feast of theProcession of the Cross(August 1), though it is not counted as a Great Feast, has one day of Forefeast, and no Afterfeast.
Notes
edit- ^TheEve of the Nativityis a special day of strict fasting and preparation in anticipation of the Feast, called aParamony.
- ^The Eve of the Theophany is also a Paramony.
- ^The Afterfeast of the Meeting of the Lord is of variable length, depending on the date of Pascha: the Afterfeast must generally end before the beginning ofGreat Lent.However, it is never omitted entirely, but may be shortened to part of a Lenten day.
- ^The day before Palm Sunday,Lazarus Saturdaycould be considered a type of Forefeast for Palm Sunday.
- ^The Forefeast is omitted if it would fall on the third Sunday ofLent(the Veneration of the Cross) or on any day later thanSt. Lazarus Saturday.(For the Orthodox, the latter timing is only possible for Orthodox churches who continue to follow theJulian calendar,since March 25 in theRevised Juliancalendar falls too early to be that close to even the earliest date ofPascha.ForEastern Catholicsof theByzantine Rite,these same rules as the non-Revised Julian calendar Orthodox apply, as on theGregorian Calendar,Pascha can occur as early as March 22.) The Apodosis is celebrated at Vespers on the evening of the Feast if the following day is a Lenten weekday or St. Lazarus Saturday. If the following day is a Saturday or Sunday, the Feast is celebrated for two days.
- ^Holy Saturday could be thought of as a Forefeast of Pascha, but the Bright Resurrection of Christ is so far above and beyond the normal level of Great Feasts that it falls into a category all by itself. It does, however have an Afterfeast, and that is why it is treated in this table.
- ^Mid-Pentecost is unique in that it is a Feast that falls within a Feast (falling as it does within the Afterfeast of Pascha).
- ^The Forefeast of the Ascension is the same day as the Apodosis of Pascha. In contemporary practice, the Forefeast is often omitted or celebrated at Compline.