Major Feast Days

Ærra Geola (December)
21/22 (winter solstice)	Start of Yuletide (Festival of Midwinter)
24	Christmas Eve or Modranecht.	On this night, we anticipate the birth of the divine Logos into our world. In particular, we celebrate motherhood; the mother of God, all mothers particularly our own and the mother goddesses of our folk and folklands.
25	Christmas Day	Celebration of the Holy Incarnation, the birth of the divine Logos into our human world.
Æfterra Geola (January)
17	Festival of labour (Charming of the Plough)	Festival of Labour and the bonds between our people and our land. Celebration of preparation for the new agricultural year.	Also known as Wassailing Day in which libations of cider are poured around the roots of apple trees and pieces of toast hung on their branches for the birds. Toasts to the tree are made and a wassailing song sung to encourage a fruitful year.
22	Christ the Pantokreter	Celebration of the Logos or Cosmic Christ.
25	Festival of the Word (Burns Night)	Celebration of poetry and the pudding.	Though technically a Scottish tradition, the roots of this celebration go deep into English folklore too. Robbie Burns wrote in the Scots language, which is derived from Old English. In particular, we celebrate Woden as god of poetry and inspiration.
Solmonað (February)			Month of cakes
2	Ewemeolc or Candlemas	Celebration of the start of the lambing season and the beginnings of the agricultural year. Candles are lit and offerings of milk and small cakes made. Ploughs would be decorated and processed around the area in a reflection of the processional rites of Nerthus. The Erce Bot, or special mass for a good agricultural new year has managed o preserve much of this ancient custom. Its Christianised version celebrates the purification of Our Lady and the Presentation of Christ in the Temple.
Movable	Shrove Tuesday	On this day, we recall our shortcomings and wrong doings and prepare for the period of Lent in which we will seek to atone for these and begin afresh.	In England, it is traditional to make pancakes on this day as a way of using up rich foods such as butter and eggs in readiness for the Lenten fast.
Movable	Ash Wednesday	Re-affirmation of our baptism and start of Lent.	The English Folk Church encourages Lent to be celebrated for its original purpose, that of preparation for the passion, crucifixion and resurrection of Christ. This is seen not just in terms of the usual Christian story, but more particularly one of looking back on the darkness of winter we have just experienced, the hardships we face in the coming year but most of all the glory of new life we are offered.
Hredmonað (March)
20	Celebration of the goddess Hretha.	Hretha is an anglo saxon names that means honour and as such we honour Hretha as a warrior goddess. She represents he on going battle against winter, its defeat and our anticipation of the coming of Eostre and summer.
Eosturmonað (April)
Movable	Good Friday and Easter	Celebration of holy week.	As with the Christmas season itself, Good Friday appears to be at the wrong time of the year. Whilst it would seem more natural to celebrate his death in December rather than his birth, it also feels more natural to celebrate his birth at Easter. However, the Christmas celebration is very much linked to motherhood and God’s physical birth into our human condition. At Easter we observe his death from this physical condition and his re-birth into his glorified condition. These two principle festivals therefore complement rather than contradict each other. We also honour the goddess Eostre, who represents the new season and re-birth. We therefore see in Eostre the mother of the resurrected Christ rather than the mother of the earth born Christ.
23	Feast of Beowulf (St George’s day)	Celebration of the myth of Beowulf and the folk God Ingeld (Ing Frey), Patron of England.
30	Walpurgis Night	Anticipation of spring and the final days of the dark months. Bonfires and candles are lit to ward off evil spirits.	St Walpurga is an Anglo Saxon princess, related to St Boniface, who has come to be associated with the older customs of the first day of spring or May day.
Þrimilchi (May)
1	May Day - feast of St Walpurga	Celebration of the arrival spring and the return of the months of light.
Movable	Holy Sunday	Celebration of the wholeness of the One God, the dynamic energies and essences of God and ff our spiritual journey into unity with that wholeness. Corresponds to the mainstream celebration of Trinity Sunday.
Movable	Corpus Christi	Celebration of the mysterious body of Christ and of the Holy Eucharist. Falls on the Sunday after Holy Sunday.
Movable	Feast of the Ascension	Celebration of the ascension of Christ into heaven.
Movable (50 days after Easter)	Pentecost	Celebration of the Holy Spirit, the divine wisdom and inspiration that leads us to knowledge and understanding of God.
Ærra Liþa (June)
21	Midsummer (Liþa)	Celebration of Midsummer and of life. Some believe that St John’s day on June 24 is a Christianised celebration of Liþa, though this is not a formal feast day of the EFC.
Æfterra Liþa (July)
31	St Joseph of Arimathea	Celebration of the bringing of the Holy Grael to the Holy land of England.	The legend of the Holy Grael is one that has gripped the English for centuries, despite pre-dating the establishment of England n Britain. However, it does represent a very important part of our mystical and religious traditions.
Weodmonað (August)
24	Festival of the discovery of the holy Runes.
Haligmonað (September)
21	Feast of the Harvest Home or Hlaefmass	A celebration of the harvest, called the Loaf Mass in Old England.
29	Michaelmas	Celebration of St Michael, Warrior Angel. The warrior cult of St Michael was transposed onto that of Woden and Thunnor and many sacred sites dedicated to these folk Gods now have Churches built on them dedicated to St Michael. Michaelmas is therefore as much a celebration of Woden and Thunnor as it is of St Michael.
Winterfylleþ (October)
2	Feast of Guardian Angels
12	Feast of the Settlement of England	Celebration of the landing of Hengest and Horsa in Kent marking the birth of the English Nation.
15	Our Lady of Walsingham, who we also know as Our Lady of the Angelcynn
26	Alfred the Great	King and Founder of Monasteries
31	Feast of the Eve of All Hallows or Hallowmas (Halloween)	Celebration of family and land spirits and family members both living and dead. (Preparation for All Saints day and All Souls day). Also called Winter Nights.
Blotmonað (November)
1	All Saints
2	All Souls
11	Remembrance Day

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