Lazarus Saturday, in the Eastern Orthodox and Byzantine Catholic Churches, is the day before Palm Sunday, and is liturgically linked to it. The feast celebrates the resurrection of Lazarus of Bethany, the narrative of which is found in John 11:1-45. The Eastern Orthodox Church is a Christian body that views itself: as the historical continuation of the original Christian community established by Jesus Christ and the Twelve Apostles. ... The Eastern Catholic Churches are autonomous particular Churches in full communion with the Pope of Rome. ... Palm Sunday is a moveable feast in the Christian calendar which falls on the Sunday before Easter. ... Resurrection of Lazarus by Juan de Flandes, around 1500 For other uses, see Lazarus (disambiguation). ... Bethany was originally two places in ancient Israel, the best known located near Jerusalem, “on the southeastern slope of the Mount of Olives”: see Bethany (Israel). ...

These two days (Lazarus Saturday and Palm Sunday) hold a unique position in the church year, as days of joy and triumph between the penitence of Great Lent and the mourning of Holy Week.^[1] Great Lent is the greatest fasting period in the church year in Eastern Christianity, which prepares Christians for the greatest feast of the church year, Easter (or Holy Pascha). Although it is in many ways similar to Lent in Western Christianity, there are important differences in the timing of Lent... Holy Week (Latin: Hebdomada Sancta) is in Christianity the week from Palm Sunday (also called Passion Sunday) through Holy Saturday, leading to Easter Sunday. ...

During the preceding week, the hymns in the Lenten Triodion track the sickness and then the death of Lazarus, and Christ's journey from beyond Jordan to Bethany. On Friday night, at Compline, the Canon on the Resurrection of Lazarus by Saint Andrew of Crete is read. Compline or Complin is the final church service (or office) of the day in the Christian tradition of canonical hours. ... A canon is a structured hymn used in a number of Eastern Orthodox services. ... Saint Andrew (Andreas) of Crete (or of Jerusalem) (ca. ...

The scripture readings and hymns for Lazarus Saturday focus on the resurrection of Lazarus as a foreshadowing of the Resurrection of Christ, and a promise of the General Resurrection. The Gospel narrative is interpreted in the hymns as illustrating the two natures of Christ: his humanity in asking, "Where have ye laid him?" (John 11:34), and his divinity by commanding Lazarus to come forth from the dead (John 11:43). Many of the Resurectional hymns of the normal Sunday service, which are omitted on Palm Sunday, are chanted on Lazaurs Saturday. During the Divine Liturgy, the Baptismal Hymn, "As many as have been baptized into Christ have put on Christ" (Romans 6:3), is sung in place of the Trisagion. Although the forty days of Great Lent end on the day before Lazarus Saturday, the day is still observed as a fast; however, it is somewhat mitigated. According to the New Testament, especially the Gospels, God raised Jesus from the dead on the third day after his crucifixion. ... Christology is a field of study within Christian theology which is concerned with the nature of Jesus the Christ. ... The Divine Liturgy is the common term for the Eucharistic service of the Byzantine tradition of Christian liturgy. ... The Trisagion (thrice Holy) is a standard hymn of the Orthodox Christian Divine Liturgy, chanted immediately before the Prokeimenon and the Epistle Reading. ...

In Russia, it is traditional to eat caviar on Lazarus Saturday. A can of black Iranian caviar Russian salmon caviar on buttered bread Caviar is the processed salted roe of various species of fish, most notably sturgeon. ...

The Resurrection of Lazarus is also commemorated on this same Saturday according to the Church Calendar of the Armenian Apostolic Church. Official standard of Karekin II Catholicos of Armenia The Armenian Apostolic Church (Armenian: Հայ Առաքելական Եկեղեցի), sometimes called the Armenian Orthodox Church or the Gregorian Church, is the worlds oldest national church and one of the most ancient Christian communities. ...

Notes

Timothy Ware was born in 1934. ...

External Links

• Lazarus Saturday - Icon and Synaxarion