Colors of the Christian Church Year

The Dates below are for the Church Year 2021, Year B of the Revised Common Lectionary and Year 1 of the Daily Office of the Book of Common Prayer, beginning with the First Sunday of Advent, 2019.

Colors		Season	Dates	Alternate
Dark Blue	Blue	Advent 1-2	Nov 29-Dec 12	Blue Violet	Purple
Pink*		3rd Wk of Advent	Dec 13-Dec 19	Rose*
Dark Blue	Blue	Advent 4	Dec 20-24	Blue Violet	Purple
Dark Blue	Blue	Christmas Eve	Dec 24	Blue Violet	Purple
White	Gold	Christmas	Dec 25-Jan 5	White	Yellow
White	Gold	Epiphany	Jan 6	White	Yellow
Green		After Epiphany	Jan 7-Feb 13	Lt. Green
White	Gold	Transfiguration	Feb 14-16	White	Yellow
Purple		Ash Wednesday	Feb 17-20	Gray
Purple		Lent	Feb 17-Apr 3	Red Violet
Rose*		[Laetere Sunday] (Lent 4)	[March 14]	Rose*
Purple		Palm Sunday	Mar 28-31	Red**
Purple		Maundy Thursday	Apr 1	Red**
Purple	Black	Good Friday	Apr 2	//// No Colors ////
Black		Holy Saturday	Apr 3	//// No Colors ////
White	Gold	Easter	Apr 4-10	White	Yellow
White	Gold	Eastertide	Apr 11-May 22	Red**
White	Gold	Ascension Day	May 13	White	Yellow
Red		Pentecost Sunday	May 23-29	Red	Gold
White	Gold	Trinity Sunday	May 30-Jun 5	Red**
Green		Ordinary Time	Jun 6-Oct 31	Lt. Green	Bronze
				Aqua	Olive
Red**		All Saints Day or Sunday	Nov 1 [or the next Sunday]	White	Gold
Green		Ordinary Time	Nov 2-20	Lt. Green	Bronze
				Aqua	Olive
White	Gold	Christ the King	Nov 21-27	White	Yellow

* In some churches, Pink or Rose is used the Fourth Sunday of Advent; in Catholic and Anglican traditions, Pink or Rose is also used the Fourth Sunday in Lent (Laetere Sunday).

** In some churches, Red is used only on Pentecost Sunday and the following week.

In the chart above, with the exception of Advent, more traditional colors are in the left column and alternate colors in the right column. Some Protestant church traditions use only traditional colors, including purple for Advent, while others are more free to use alternate colors within the basic sequence. Where two colors are given for a particular Sunday, either color is appropriate. For example, for Advent either Dark Blue or Bright Blue can be used if using Blue (many Protestants), or either Purple or Blue Violet are appropriate if using Purple (Catholic traditions). The exceptions are Holy Days in which White and Gold (or White and Yellow) are usually used together, with White being the primary color. For more detailed information on each Season of the Church Year, visit the page for that Season (The Church Year).

Metallic Silver is sometimes used for, or with, white, especially at Easter and Christmas. Ivory can also be used for white. Likewise Metallic Gold can be used for gold or yellow. While some traditions (Roman Catholic, for example) still use for purple for Advent, there is a trend to use a bluish violet for Advent and deep red violet for Lent.

In most traditions, the sanctuary cross is draped in color only during Lent (purple), Good Friday (black), and Easter (white). Some churches leave white on the cross through Eastertide, drape the cross in red for Pentecost Sunday, and then leave the cross undraped until the beginning of Lent the next year. Usually the cross is not decorated during Ordinary Time, nor during the Holy Days of Advent-Christmas-Epiphany both because the focus is not yet on the cross, and because the Greens of Advent and the other symbols of the Christmas season carry the visual message of that season.

Click below for information about the various Seasons and Holy Days that comprise The Christian Church Year. Except as noted, the dates are for 2020-2021, Year B of the Revised Common Lectionary, Year 1 of the the Daily Office (daily readings) of the Book of Common Prayer. (For a more complete calendar, see The Church Year, 2021)

Colors of the Church Year and Seasonal Dates, 2021

Colors of the Church Year
and Seasonal Dates, 2021