Calendar and Typikon in ROCOR

ROCOR uses the Julian calendar (Old Calendar) for all liturgical calculations and adheres to a conservative interpretation of the Russian Typikon, maintaining the fullness of liturgical services with minimal abbreviation. This liturgical conservatism is both a theological statement about the integrity of Orthodox worship and a practical expression of ROCOR’s commitment to preserving the heritage of pre-revolutionary Russian Orthodoxy.

Tradition: ROCOR-specific

The Julian Calendar (Old Calendar)

Background: The Calendar Question in Orthodoxy

The calendar question has been one of the most divisive practical issues in modern Orthodox history. The Julian calendar, introduced by Julius Caesar in 45 BC and adopted by the Christian Church, had accumulated a discrepancy of 13 days relative to the astronomical (Gregorian) calendar by the twentieth century. In 1923, a Pan-Orthodox Congress in Constantinople proposed the adoption of the Revised Julian Calendar (a corrected calendar that aligns with the Gregorian calendar for fixed feasts while retaining the traditional Paschal calculation).

Several Orthodox churches adopted the Revised Julian Calendar for fixed feasts (saints’ days, Christmas, Theophany, etc.) while retaining the old Paschal calculation (Paschalion):

  • The Ecumenical Patriarchate (1924)
  • The Greek Church (1924)
  • The Romanian Orthodox Church (1924)
  • The Bulgarian Orthodox Church (by Holy Synod decision of July 1968, effective December 20, 1968)
  • Other churches followed at various dates

Other churches retained the Julian calendar in its entirety:

  • The Russian Orthodox Church (Moscow Patriarchate)
  • The Serbian Orthodox Church
  • The Georgian Orthodox Church
  • The Jerusalem Patriarchate
  • The monasteries of Mount Athos
  • ROCOR

ROCOR’s Position

ROCOR uses the Julian calendar for all liturgical calculations – both fixed feasts and the Paschal cycle. ROCOR’s adherence to the Old Calendar is rooted in several considerations:

  1. Fidelity to tradition: The Julian calendar was used by the Orthodox Church for centuries. Changing the calendar is, in ROCOR’s view, an unnecessary and potentially divisive innovation.

  2. Unity of the liturgical cycle: The Julian calendar maintains the integrity of the relationship between fixed feasts and the moveable cycle of Great Lent and Pascha. On the Revised Julian Calendar, anomalies arise in the Apostles’ Fast: the fast runs from the Monday after All Saints’ Sunday (a moveable date tied to Pascha) until the fixed feast of Sts. Peter and Paul on June 29, so moving the fixed feasts 13 days earlier while keeping the old Paschalion shortens the fast by 13 days every year – and in years when Pascha falls late, the Monday after All Saints can land on or after June 29, eliminating the fast entirely (see “Can the Apostles Fast Ever Be Skipped by Those Using the New Calendar or Old Calendar?”, Sretensky Monastery Q&A, Pravoslavie.ru/OrthoChristian).

  3. Opposition to innovation: The 1923 Pan-Orthodox Congress that proposed the calendar change was viewed with suspicion. Its chairman, Ecumenical Patriarch Meletios IV (Metaxakis), was a controversial figure, and the Congress was not a genuine Ecumenical Council with authority to make such changes.

  4. Solidarity with Old Calendar communities: ROCOR has historically maintained sympathy for Old Calendarist groups in Greece and Romania that refused the calendar change, though formal relations have been complex.

Practical Implications

Using the Julian calendar in the diaspora means that ROCOR parishes celebrate Christmas on January 7 (Gregorian), while the surrounding culture celebrates on December 25. Similarly, other fixed feasts fall 13 days later than their Gregorian equivalents. This can create practical challenges:

  • Parishioners in Western countries must navigate a holiday calendar that does not align with ROCOR’s liturgical calendar.
  • Some families celebrate both “secular” and “church” Christmas.
  • Employers may not recognize the Orthodox Christmas or other feasts as holidays.

Despite these challenges, ROCOR has maintained the Old Calendar as an integral part of its identity.

Typikon Observance

What Is the Typikon?

The Typikon (Ustav) is the liturgical rule book that governs the order of Orthodox worship: which services are served, how they are combined, which hymns and readings are appointed for each day, and how the variable elements (tone, feast, season) interact. The Russian Typikon follows the tradition of the Monastery of St. Sabbas (Mar Saba) in Palestine, as adapted for the Russian Church.

ROCOR’s Liturgical Conservatism

ROCOR is known for adhering closely to the Typikon, serving the full cycle of daily services with less abbreviation than is common in many other Orthodox parishes:

  • The full daily cycle: In monasteries and some cathedral-style parishes, the full cycle of services is maintained: Vespers, Compline, Midnight Office, Matins (with the full canon), the Hours, and the Divine Liturgy.
  • Matins (Utrenia): ROCOR parishes typically serve the full Matins service, including the complete canon, rather than the abbreviated form common in some other jurisdictions. On Sundays and great feasts, the All-Night Vigil (Vsenoshchnoe Bdenie) – a combined Vespers and Matins – is served on Saturday evening.
  • Great Lent: The full Lenten cycle is observed, including the Liturgy of the Presanctified Gifts on Wednesdays and Fridays, the Canon of St. Andrew of Crete in the first week and the fifth week, and the full services of Holy Week.
  • The Hours: The services of the Hours (First, Third, Sixth, and Ninth) are read before the Liturgy, rather than omitted.
  • Paraklesis, Akathists, and Molebens: These supplementary services are also regularly served.

Practical Adaptations in Diaspora Settings

While the ideal of full Typikon observance is maintained, practical adaptations are inevitable in diaspora parish settings where:

  • Many parishioners work secular jobs and cannot attend weekday services.
  • Clergy may be bi-vocational (working secular employment in addition to their priestly duties).
  • Parish size may not support daily services.

Common adaptations include:

  • Serving the All-Night Vigil on Saturday evenings with some abbreviation (though less than in many other jurisdictions).
  • Combining services (e.g., reading the Hours immediately before the Liturgy rather than at their appointed times).
  • Serving weekday services less frequently than the Typikon prescribes (e.g., only on major feasts and during Lent, rather than daily).

ROCOR monasteries, particularly Jordanville, maintain a fuller liturgical cycle that more closely approximates the Typikon ideal.

The Slavonic Language in Worship

Church Slavonic as the Liturgical Language

Church Slavonic has been the primary liturgical language of ROCOR since its founding. This ancient liturgical language, derived from the translation work of Sts. Cyril and Methodius in the ninth century, is the traditional language of worship for all Slavic Orthodox churches (Russian, Serbian, Bulgarian).

ROCOR’s use of Church Slavonic reflects:

  • Continuity with the pre-revolutionary Russian Church
  • A belief that the sacred language of worship should be elevated and set apart from everyday speech
  • The rich tradition of Russian church music, which is composed for Church Slavonic texts

The Increasing Use of English and Other Local Languages

As ROCOR’s membership has increasingly included converts and second- or third-generation diaspora faithful who are not fluent in Russian, the use of English and other local languages has grown:

  • Many ROCOR parishes now serve some or all of the Liturgy in English, particularly in North America and Australia.
  • The Jordanville Prayer Book and other English-language liturgical resources published by ROCOR have facilitated this transition.
  • Some parishes use a mixed approach, with certain fixed portions in Slavonic and variable portions (readings, sermons) in English.
  • In other countries, local languages are used (e.g., German in Germany, French in France, Spanish in South America).

This linguistic transition has been a source of internal debate:

  • Traditionalists argue that Church Slavonic is an integral part of the Russian Orthodox liturgical heritage and should be preserved.
  • Others argue that liturgical intelligibility is a pastoral necessity and that the mission of the Church requires worship in the language of the people (citing the precedent of Sts. Cyril and Methodius themselves, who translated the services into Slavonic precisely so that the Slavic peoples could worship in their own tongue).

Comparison with Greek Practice

ROCOR’s liturgical practice differs from that of the Greek Orthodox churches in several notable ways:

Calendar

  • Most Greek churches use the Revised Julian Calendar for fixed feasts; ROCOR uses the Julian Calendar.
  • Both use the traditional Paschal calculation, so Pascha (Easter) is celebrated on the same date.

Liturgical Language

  • Greek churches use Greek (modern or a mix of modern and liturgical forms); ROCOR uses Church Slavonic or English.

Musical Tradition

  • Greek churches use Byzantine chant (monophonic, modal); ROCOR uses the Russian choral tradition (polyphonic harmony, typically four-part choir settings).
  • Notable Russian composers of liturgical music include Bortniansky, Kastalsky, Rachmaninoff (his All-Night Vigil), Tchaikovsky, and Chesnokov, among many others. ROCOR preserves this choral heritage.

Typikon Strictness

  • ROCOR generally adheres more closely to the full Typikon than many Greek parishes, which often employ greater abbreviation of services.
  • However, this generalization has many exceptions on both sides, and liturgical practice varies widely within any jurisdiction.

Vestments and Architecture

  • Russian and Greek traditions differ in vestment styles, church architecture (Russian onion domes vs. Greek domes), and iconographic styles (Russian iconographic tradition vs. Greek/Byzantine).
  • These are matters of cultural expression rather than doctrinal significance.

See Also

References

  • Hapgood, Isabel Florence. Service Book of the Holy Orthodox-Catholic Apostolic Church. Various editions. [A classic English-language liturgical reference]
  • Nassar, Seraphim. Divine Prayers and Services. Antiochian Archdiocese, various editions.
  • Uspensky, N.D. Evening Worship in the Orthodox Church. St. Vladimir’s Seminary Press, 1985.
  • Taft, Robert. The Liturgy of the Hours in East and West. Liturgical Press, 1986.
  • Holy Trinity Monastery. Jordanville Prayer Book. Jordanville, NY: Holy Trinity Publications, various editions.
  • Morosan, Vladimir. Choral Performance in Pre-Revolutionary Russia. Russian Music Studies, no. 17. Ann Arbor, MI: UMI Research Press, 1986; repr. San Diego: Musica Russica, 1994.