Ecclesiastical New Year: September 1st
The Ecclesiastical New Year celebrated on September 1, traces its origins to the Roman Empire’s tax system. Roman emperors required yearly taxes to maintain their armed forces, with a comprehensive reassessment and new tax decree issued every fifteen years, called the Indictio, meaning “Definition” or “Order.” Saint Constantine the Great is often credited with introducing the Indiction in A.D. 312 after his victory over Maxentius, though some believe Augustus Caesar established it in 3 B.C. There are three types of Indictions: Imperial (beginning on September 24), Papal (starting on January 1), and Constantinopolitan (beginning on September 1), the latter adopted by the Church after the fall of Constantinople in 1453. The Church observes September 1 as the New Year because it marks the end of the harvest and the beginning of a new agricultural cycle. On this day, the Church also prays for favorable weather and abundant crops. This observance aligns with the Jewish New Year, which typically falls in September, and the Old Testament passages Leviticus 23:24-25 andNumbers 29:1-2 mentions the Feast of the Blowing of Trumpets celebrated on this day by the Israelites.
Additionally, the day commemorates Jesus’ entry into the synagogue in Nazareth, as described in Luke 4:16-30. The New Year was celebrated in Constantinople until its fall in 1453 and in Russia until the reign of Peter I. The Orthodox Church continues to observe September 1 as the New Year, contrasting with January 1, which commemorates the Circumcision of Christ and Saint Basil the Great, without any mention of the New Year.
In Christ, love ❤️ Jared
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