Sunday 29 November
The liturgical year begins. Four weeks of waiting before the Nativity.
Adventus
Advent 2026
The four Sundays before Christmas, which open the church year in the West: waiting and preparation for the coming of Christ. The Orthodox keep the forty-day Nativity Fast from 15 November instead.
In 2026: Sunday 29 November, in Catholic and Protestant practice alike.
The date
In each branch
Sunday 29 November
The church year begins. Four Sundays of waiting before the Nativity.
The season
The days around it
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Thursday 24 December · Protestant
Christmas Eve
The vigil of the Nativity.
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Friday 25 December · Catholic
The Nativity of the Lord
Christmas Day.
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Friday 25 December · Protestant
Christmas Day
The Nativity of Christ.
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Sunday 27 December · Catholic
The Holy Family
Jesus, Mary and Joseph, kept on the Sunday within the Octave of the Nativity.
In ActivePray, each branch’s holy days and fasts come in its own year, with reminders for them, and every prayer at its hour.
ActivePray on the App StoreAdvent in other years: 2027 · 2028 · 2029. Every holy day of the year is on the calendar and in Christianity.