Photo:Easter display at Canadian Martyrs Church (photo by Heather Duggan).
The liturgical environment is something most churchgoers take for granted.
It contributes substantially to the experience of attending a church service. For this reason, it changes with the church’s seasons. Each has its own décor, changing most often at Advent and Lent.
During Advent, the church is slowly decorated for Christmas. The first week, the Advent wreath is set up and the empty crèche is brought into the church. The second week is busy as trees, garlands, and wreaths are added to the environment and lights are put on the trees in anticipation of Christmas Eve. The third and fourth weeks are used to prepare Christmas decorations. Flowers are purchased and a general theme is discussed: poinsettias, Christmas balls in vases, ornaments hung on spray painted branches, and so on. Then on Christmas Eve, decorations are put out for the celebration that night.
Lent starts with the removal of all decorations from a church for Ash Wednesday. It is a desert waiting to bloom. Each week something is added to the desert theme: rocks, sticks, cacti, small green sprouts, water, pussy willows, butterflies, and finally forsythia. Often, a symbol from the week’s readings is chosen and displayed at the altar. On Palm Sunday, the Lenten decorations are cleared away and palms are the theme. The days leading up to Easter Sunday are a busy time for people responsible for decorations. The décor changes for each day from Holy Thursday on. Easter flowers must be bought and arranged. Decorations remain for the six Sundays from Easter to Pentecost, when the décor is usually very striking since it involves fire colours – red, orange and yellow.
During the rest of the year, decorations reflect the season, summer and fall, with special decorations for Feast days and special days on the calendar (e.g. Canada Day, Chinese New Year). During summer, fresh flowers are often used either from the garden of the church or a parishioner. Autumn décor is dictated by the turning of the leaves and the arrival of Thanksgiving which leads into Advent and all the planning starts again.
