✦ zenith calendar · the orthodox (eritrea) almanac
the fasts and feasts of the eritrean orthodox tewahdo church in one quiet layer of your sky, each one explained in the church's own words.
orthodox (eritrea) is one of the holiday almanacs that come with zenith calendar. it holds the fasts and feasts of the eritrean orthodox tewahdo church, by the ge'ez calendar and the church's own bahire hasab, as the patriarchate in asmara proclaims them each new year.
the church prints ge'ez dates; a gregorian day is here only where it is published, so the almanac reaches as far as the church has proclaimed and nothing is worked out on your phone. tap a day and read three short paragraphs: what it is, where it comes from, and how it is kept.
ge'ez · the ge'ez calendar and the church's bahire hasab
the nativity of our lord
tahsas 29 in the ge'ez calendar
the nativity of our lord jesus christ, born of the holy virgin mary in bethlehem.
the eve is a fast day, gehad, and the faithful, many dressed in white, gather for a night service holding candles. after the liturgy the long fast of the prophets is broken with family and a feast, and in asmara the patriarch gives his christmas blessing to the country.
epiphany
tir 11 in the ge'ez calendar
the baptism of our lord in the jordan, the showing forth of the holy trinity.
on the eve the tabots, the consecrated tablets at the heart of every altar, are carried in procession to the water, and the faithful keep vigil through the night. at dawn the water is blessed and the people are sprinkled with it; it is kept across eritrea as a church and national feast.
the resurrection of our lord
a sunday, as the church proclaims it
the resurrection of our lord, the feast of feasts and the crown of the year.
on saturday night the faithful gather with lit candles, and at midnight the resurrection is proclaimed; in asmara the patriarch leads the service. the great fast is then broken at home with family and a feast.
the assumption of st mary
nehase 16, the day the fast of filseta ends
the assumption of st mary, her being taken up to heaven. the eritrean church keeps the feast from nehase 16 to 21.
the faithful go to church for the liturgy and holy communion, and after the long fast they break it with family and neighbours in a joyful feast in honour of the mother of god.
zenith calendar draws the year as an orbit round the sun. lit, orthodox (eritrea) puts its fasts and feasts on their days on that ring, in ice blue. its mark is ✜.
each of its fasts and feasts carries three short paragraphs in its notes: what it is, where it comes from as its own tradition tells it, and how it is kept.
orthodox (eritrea) arrives locked, so nothing in it changes by accident. the lock guards your hand, not your eye: you can still read it, shine it or eclipse it. one tap unlocks it, and then it is yours to rename, recolour or add to.
tap its chip in the legend to eclipse it (kept, but not drawn) and tap again to bring it back. nothing is deleted either way.
orthodox (eritrea) shares one sky with your own commitments. like every almanac that comes with the app, it never counts toward the almanacs you can make for free, and it lives on your phone: zenith calendar has no server of its own.
✦ zenith calendar · the sky around it
orthodox (eritrea) is a single layer. beneath it is a whole calendar drawn as the sky, your year an orbit round the sun, and every part of it answers your touch.
the sun stands at the centre and the year rings round it, with today's earth riding at today's place, its small moon beside it. tap the ring anywhere else and a faint ghost earth waits on that day.
drag along the ring and the days pass under your finger, the big date and the day's list following as you go. lift, and the day you stopped on stays picked.
tap the small moon beside today's earth and you dive into the week. the moon above shows its phase, named underneath; swipe the dates and each week brings its own.
tap the sun and the ring tips on its edge into a ladder of years. in the week, pull the moon firmly down and the month opens, the moon resting half off its foot.
zenith calendar has no server of its own. tap the gear and switch on "nothing comes in" or "nothing leaves this phone"; lift them, and every almanac is back exactly as it was.
orthodox (eritrea) is waiting in the app, and the rest of the sky comes with it.
orthodox (eritrea) · the eritrean orthodox tewahdo church ·
Lidet, the Nativity, Tahsas 29, falls on 7 January 2027. In Zenith Calendar it sits on the ring of your year in the orthodox (eritrea) almanac.
Timqet, the Baptism of our Lord, Tir 11, falls on 19 January 2027.
Tinsae, the Resurrection, falls on 2 May 2027, as the church proclaims it.
Each church keeps its own dates, so each has its own almanac, and the days the two share are in both. Light the one your church keeps.
The church prints Ge'ez dates and proclaims its fasts and feasts each new year. A Gregorian day is in the almanac only where it is published, so it shows nothing rather than a guessed day.
Zenith Calendar for Android comes with an almanac called orthodox (eritrea): the fasts and feasts of the Eritrean Orthodox Tewahdo Church, drawn on the ring of your year beside your own days. Turning it on costs nothing.