Radonitsa and Antipaskha: what can and cannot be done when commemorating the dead
In 2025, Holy Week will end for believers on April 27 and St. Thomas Week will begin, with a special day of commemoration of the dead — Radonitsa. The Church, taking into account the psychology of people, divides the days of celebration and the days of sorrow. When is Radonitsa in 2025, and when is Krasnaya Gorka, and what traditions are associated with these holidays, see the Izvestia article.
Krasnaya Gorka in 2025: what date, what kind of holiday
On the first Sunday after Easter, Fomina or Radonitsa Week begins for believers, and Sunday itself is called Antipascha or Krasnaya Gorka. In 2025, Krasnaya Gorka falls on April 27. The name "Antipascha" does not mean opposing the main holiday, but referring to it and repeating it.
The gospel says that when Christ appeared before his disciples after the resurrection, Thomas was not among them and he did not believe in a miracle. A week later, the Savior appeared to "the unbeliever Thomas," after which he became one of the most zealous preachers of Christianity.
Spring has long been celebrated on Krasnaya Gorka, and weddings were allowed in churches for the first time after Lent. It is not surprising that in Russia it was a time of renewal and wedding festivities. According to popular belief, those who get married on this day will never get divorced. Holidays were often held on hillocks and hills, which were the first to be freed from snow captivity and flourished, became beautiful, or "red." That's how the popular name Antipaskha appeared. Now Krasnaya Gorka is not celebrated as widely as before. The church does not recommend visiting cemeteries on Krasnaya Gorka: there is a special day for this, Radonitsa.
Radonitsa: what's the date, what should I do
Radonitsa is the day of the first ecclesiastical commemoration of the dead after Easter. It is celebrated on Tuesday after Krasnaya Gorka. In 2025, Radonitsa falls on April 29. On this day, the funeral liturgy is served in churches, and believers visit the cemetery to pray for the deceased, so that the Easter joy may be passed on to them. Hence the name of the holiday — Radonitsa.
According to church tradition, cemeteries are sacred places where the bodies of the dead rest until the future resurrection, they must be kept clean and tidy. Upon arriving at the cemetery, the priests recommend lighting a candle and performing a litiya, a special prayer, the text of which can be found in the "Complete Orthodox Prayer Book for the Laity." You can also invite a priest to the cemetery. The deceased are remembered in silence and prayer, and the grave is cleaned. "By flowing to the graves of those close to us, praying for the dead, asking the Lord to bestow His mercy on them, we seem to be paying our debt to those to whom it is no longer possible to repay the debt with earthly values," explains Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Russia. The popular tradition of leaving something from one's Easter table in cemeteries is closer to the pagan one, and priests recommend refraining from it. As well as from commemorating the deceased with alcohol or leaving a glass and a piece of black bread on the grave.
According to church regulations, the usual commemoration of the deceased is allowed already from Monday Morning, no wonder the second name of this week is Memorial. Prayer will be more effective if the person commemorating this day receives communion himself.
How to file a memorial note about the deceased?
Prayer for the deceased is the most important thing that relatives can do. Home prayer is important, but commemoration in the church provides special help to the deceased, the priests explain. To pray in the temple, you need to submit a memorial note about the deceased.
There are unspoken rules for submitting notes about the deceased. You can submit a handwritten note or a computer-printed one. In most temples, you can take special slips of paper for notes, the design of which will tell you how to fill them out. If the note is written on an ordinary piece of paper, then a cross is drawn at the top, and the inscription "For repose" is placed below. Notes are served either at a church shop or in a specially designated place, preferably in the morning.
The note usually indicates no more than 10 deceased, their names are written in the genitive case, and their surnames are omitted. Those who died less than 40 days ago are called newly deceased, and those who are commemorated on their birthday or on the anniversary of their death are celebrated as "ever-remembered." His rank is indicated before the name of the clergyman. Children under the age of 7 are labeled "babies" in the note, and teenagers aged 7-14 are labeled "boys". Before the name of the military man, "warrior" is indicated, and before the murdered man, "slain".
There are several types of memorial notes. When submitting a simple request, the name of the deceased will be mentioned once at the next divine service, and at forty-eight, they will ask for the deceased for 40 consecutive days during the liturgy. Such a prayer is considered more powerful.
On the day of the beginning of Lent, you can submit a fast note. In this case, they will pray for the deceased until Wednesday of Holy Week. A note with the name "Memorial Service" is a funeral service that is ordered on the 3rd, 9th and 40th days after death, as well as on the birthdays and death days of the deceased. In this case, the petitioner must necessarily be present at prayer and pray with the priest from the bottom of his heart.
How often can you submit notes, who should not be mentioned in the notes of repose
Birthdays and name days on church holidays are considered the highest priority for submitting notes, but you can submit it on any other day. The church does not restrict people from submitting notes. The only thing that is forbidden is to indicate unbaptized people and atheists in them. Such people are commemorated in private house prayer.
Переведено сервисом «Яндекс Переводчик»
