Home›Observances›TraditionBrowse ByTraditionThis page groups holidays by the religion whose adherents keep them. Wikipedia notes that "a religious festival is a time of special importance marked by adherents to that religion." Browsing by tradition lets a visitor read every holiday from one religious tradition together.FactsLearn MoreTraditionSourcesComments (0)Reader Challenges (0)FactsOverviewWhat Defines This GroupingWell-attestedDays a tradition marks without ranking them as feasts or festivals - commemorations of a teacher or a martyr, preparatory and penitential seasons, monthly and fortnightly observances, days of remembrance for the dead. The grouping is residual: it collects what the calendar sets apart but does not celebrate. 2DirectoryCategoryWell-attestedHolidays & Festivals 1Learn MoreThe Observances This group holds observances, the appointed days and periods a tradition sets aside for religious attention, whether in commemoration, devotion or discipline, spanning the range of solemn and reflective occasions of the sacred year. The browser will find the observances the atlas gathers from across the traditions. The entries describe each observance's occasion and customs, noting the tradition and the time in the calendar it marks.TraditionFilter Results59 entriesAdherents Today MaximumAll225,776 (1)278,000 (1)1,000,000 (1)1,500,000 (3)3,500,000 (2)95,000,000 (1)110,000,000 (1)260,000,000 (1)1,406,000,000 (1)Adherents Today MinimumAll225,776 (1)278,000 (1)1,000,000 (1)1,200,000 (1)1,500,000 (3)2,500,000 (1)3,500,000 (1)78,000,000 (1)80,000,000 (1)220,000,000 (1)1,406,000,000 (1)Bankruptcy FilingsAll28 (1)Basis of the Education Facility CountAllThe Body's Own Published Statistics (1)Basis of the Health Facility CountAllThe Body's Own Published Statistics (1)Basis of the Membership FigureAllChurch-Reported Rolls (26)Independent Survey (14)National Census (12)Scholarly or Demographic Estimate (19)Basis of the Wealth FigureAllAudited Annual Report (6)Court-Documented Inventory (1)Journalistic or Scholarly Estimate (5)Regulator Filing (2)The Body's Own Published Statistics (3)Calendar SystemAllJulian (Old Calendar) (2)Church FamilyAllAnglican (5)Baptist (2)Church of the East (1)Eastern Catholic (2)Eastern Orthodox (10)Evangelical (2)Lutheran (3)Methodist (7)Moravian (1)Oriental Orthodox (5)Reformed (4)Restorationist (1)Roman Catholic (1)Date of SeparationAll2022 (1)2019-2023 (1)Date of Separation End YearAll200 (2)451 (2)680 (1)1204 (2)1555 (2)1560 (1)1566 (1)1571 (1)1600 (1)1795 (1)1850 (1)1908 (1)1925 (3)2019 (1)Date of Separation Start YearAll100 (2)451 (4)632 (1)1054 (3)1346 (1)1448 (1)1457 (1)1500 (1)1517 (1)1521 (1)1534 (2)1536 (1)1560 (1)1600 (1)1666 (1)1700 (1)1736 (1)1784 (1)1787 (1)1796 (1)1804 (1)1811 (1)1833 (1)1858 (1)1870 (1)1885 (1)1895 (1)1915 (1)1961 (1)1993 (1)2018 (1)Defining Doctrinal PositionAllA celibate renunciant discipline outside the Khalsa rahit (2)Affirms the Filioque: the Spirit proceeds from the Father and the Son (1)An inner (batin) meaning of scripture and law alongside the outward (1)Awakening by tantric means (Vajrayana) (1)Belief may be concealed where disclosure would bring harm (taqiyya) (2)Buddhahood realised in this very body and lifetime (1)Chalcedonian: two natures in the one person of Christ (Chalcedon, 451) (5)Chalcedonian: two natures in the one person of Christ (Chalcedon, 451) (20)Full mendicancy requires the abandonment of clothing (1)In the Imam's absence a qualified jurist holds his political authority (1)In the Imam's absence the jurist guides and judges but does not rule (1)Initiation into the Khalsa and its rahit as normative (1)Liberation by the path of the arhat (1)Liberation is attained only from a man's birth (1)Mendicants wear white cloth (1)Miaphysite: one incarnate nature of the Word, divine and human united (2)Miaphysite: one incarnate nature of the Word, divine and human united (3)One vehicle: every teaching leads to a single buddhahood (1)Rejects the Filioque: the Spirit proceeds from the Father (1)Rejects the Filioque: the Spirit proceeds from the Father (10)Restorationist: holds the apostolic church to have been lost and restored (1)Shiva as the supreme reality (1)Sikh scripture read through Sanskrit and Vedantic learning (1)Strict dyophysite: two distinct natures held in two qnome (concrete hypostases), not Chalcedon's two natures in one hypostasis (1)Succession by divine designation in the Prophet's family (2)The Agama canon accepted as authentically preserved (1)The Imams are protected from sin and from error (ismah) (2)The original canon held to have been lost (1)Trinitarian: one God in three persons (19)Trinitarian: one God in three persons (14)Universal liberation by the path of the bodhisattva (2)Women may attain liberation from a woman's birth (1)Documented Accused CountAll3 (1)5 (1)19 (1)21 (1)237 (1)390 (1)800 (1)1670 (1)1880 (1)2900 (1)4392 (1)Education Facility Count As OfAll2023-12-31 (1)GovernanceAllA federation of autonomous member organisations (4)A single central governing body over the whole movement (1)Authority in living jurists whom the laity choose to emulate (1)Authority in monastic seats (mathas) and their heads (1)Authority in recognised reincarnate lineages (1)Authority through monastic ordination lineage and its seats (6)Autonomous local bodies under a national umbrella association (3)Connexional: congregations bound in a conference with itinerant ministry (7)Delegated representation from congregations up to a general conference (2)Episcopal: governed by bishops (12)Lay boards or trusts govern, alongside the priesthood (2)No central authority (7)Presbyterian: governed by elders in graded courts (4)Priestly office passing by descent (1)Self-governing churches under patriarchs, deciding in synod (16)Synodal: governed by synods of clergy and lay delegates (4)Universal primacy of a single bishop (1)Health Facility Count As OfAll2023-12-31 (1)How the Expectation Is EnforcedAllCodified Obligation With Consequences (6)Customary Norm (13)Obligation to Support, No Set Rate (2)Preached Expectation, Not Enforced (9)Liturgical LanguageAllArdhamagadhi Prakrit (1)Church Slavonic (6)Classical Arabic (2)Classical Armenian (Grabar) (2)Classical Chinese (read in Sino-Japanese where used in Japan) (1)Classical Syriac (3)Classical Tibetan (1)Coptic (2)Geez (3)Georgian (1)Greek (liturgical) (5)Jain Shauraseni Prakrit (1)Latin (1)Pali (1)Punjabi in Gurmukhi script (3)Sanskrit (6)The vernacular (32)Membership Figure As OfAll1868-01-01 (1)1876-01-01 (1)1910-01-01 (1)1912-01-01 (2)1917-01-01 (1)1923-01-01 (1)1924-01-01 (1)1939-01-01 (1)1958-01-01 (1)1968-01-01 (1)1970-01-01 (2)1972-01-01 (1)1988-12-31 (1)1991-01-01 (1)1996-01-01 (1)2002-01-01 (1)2004-01-01 (1)2005-01-01 (1)2006-01-01 (2)2007-01-01 (4)2008-01-01 (2)2009-01-01 (2)2010-01-01 (7)2011-01-01 (7)2012-01-01 (1)2013-01-01 (1)2014-01-01 (6)2015-01-01 (4)2016-01-01 (5)2016-12-31 (1)2017-01-01 (2)2017-10-30 (1)2017-11-08 (1)2018-01-01 (3)2019-01-01 (3)2020-01-01 (5)2021-01-01 (3)2021-03-21 (1)2021-12-31 (1)2022-01-01 (13)2022-12-31 (2)2023-01-01 (3)2023-04-29 (1)2023-07-01 (1)2023-08-08 (1)2023-12-31 (1)2024-01-01 (3)2024-03-01 (1)2024-12-31 (2)2025-01-01 (4)2026-02-01 (1)2026-08-14 (2)2026-08-16 (1)OrdinationAllA full female ordination lineage continues (1)Celibacy required of the ordained (5)Conferred by a teacher's certification of learning (1)Married clergy permitted (20)No ordination; authority rests on learning or on the whole body (2)Office passes by descent (2)Open to women and men (19)Ordination is into a monastic order, not to a congregation (7)Restricted to men (23)The full female ordination lineage is held lapsed; revival contested (4)Varies between provinces or member bodies (10)Origin Period End YearAll52 (1)100 (1)200 (1)301 (1)337 (1)340 (2)410 (1)431 (1)451 (2)454 (1)800 (1)900 (1)941 (1)988 (1)1100 (1)1204 (1)1219 (1)1448 (1)1467 (1)1527 (1)1530 (1)1555 (1)1559 (2)1560 (1)1571 (2)1592 (1)1596 (1)1600 (1)1667 (1)1699 (1)1700 (2)1745 (1)1784 (1)1789 (1)1816 (1)1821 (1)1832 (1)1850 (1)1860 (1)1867 (1)1870 (1)1900 (1)1908 (1)1915 (1)1961 (1)1968 (1)1988 (1)2022 (1)Origin Period Start YearAll800 BCE (1)250 BCE (1)100 BCE (1)30 (3)42 (1)49 (1)100 (2)295 (1)320 (2)326 (1)390 (1)431 (1)600 (1)632 (1)988 (2)1200 (1)1219 (1)1457 (1)1517 (2)1527 (1)1534 (3)1536 (1)1550 (1)1560 (2)1571 (1)1596 (1)1652 (1)1686 (1)1699 (1)1734 (1)1738 (1)1787 (1)1789 (1)1796 (1)1801 (1)1850 (1)1860 (1)1870 (1)1880 (1)1895 (1)1961 (1)1968 (1)1988 (1)2022 (1)Position on JustificationAllFaith Alone (3)No Communion Wide Standard (1)Position on MarriageAllMarriage is held to be a lifelong, monogamous, indissoluble union; remarriage after divorce is not sanctioned while a spouse lives (2)Marriage is held to be monogamous, with remarriage after divorce sanctioned under specified conditions (3)Marriage may licitly be polygynous (1)No single uniform teaching on marriage's terms holds across the body (1)Position on PredestinationAllDouble Predestination (1)Election Affirmed Reprobation Unstated (1)Single Predestination (1)Unsettled (1)Position on SexualityAllSame-sex marriage is performed and LGBT clergy are ordained on equal terms with heterosexual clergy (6)Same-sex orientation or practice is held to bar full membership or participation (3)Same-sex sexual relationships are held contrary to teaching; LGBT individuals are welcomed as members but not ordained, and same-sex unions are not blessed (12)Same-sex unions may be blessed, but ordination is not extended to partnered LGBT clergy (1)The body holds no single settled position; the question is actively and openly contested within it (6)Position on the EucharistAllNo Communion Wide Definition (1)Sacramental Union (1)Spiritual Reception by Faith (2)Position on UsuryAllInterest is permitted but bound by ethical constraints against exploiting the poor (1)Principle of WorshipAllNormative (3)Regulative (1)Relation to the StateAllDisestablished (5)Established (4)No Establishment (15)Privileged Never Established (10)Varies by Province (12)Rule Established or Last ChangedAll2000-01-01 (1)2007-11-28 (1)2010-10-24 (1)2019-01-01 (1)Sacraments RecognisedAllTwo (4)Settlement TotalAll500,000 (1)137,300,000 (1)1,500,000,000 (1)5,590,000,000 (1)Standard Rate ExpectedAllFive percent. (1)Ten percent. (5)Twenty percent. (1)Standing of Holy OrdersAllHistoric Episcopate (1)Historic Episcopate Locally Adapted (1)Historic Episcopate Received Not Required (1)Ministry by Lawful Call (1)Status TodayAllDissolved; the community wound itself up (1)In active religious use (1)Living tradition, practised today (56)Wealth Figure As Of YearAll2007 (1)2008 (1)2009 (1)2014 (1)2016 (2)2023 (1)2024 (8)2025 (3)Show ResultsBrowseCompareAfrican Methodist Episcopal ChurchTradition4 entriesAfrican Methodist Episcopal Zion ChurchTradition4 entriesAlevismTradition1 entryAnglican CommunionTradition3 entriesAnglicanismTradition3 entriesArmenian Apostolic ChurchTradition1 entryAssyrian Church of the EastTradition1 entryCalvinism (Reformed)Tradition2 entriesChristian Methodist Episcopal ChurchTradition4 entriesChurch of CyprusTradition5 entriesChurch of EnglandTradition3 entriesChurch of GreeceTradition5 entriesChurch of IrelandTradition3 entriesChurch of ScotlandTradition1 entryChurch of SwedenTradition3 entriesChurch of the NazareneTradition1 entryCoptic OrthodoxyTradition2 entriesDigambaraTradition1 entryDisciples of ChristTradition1 entryDutch Reformed ChurchTradition1 entryEastern OrthodoxyTradition6 entriesEcumenical Patriarchate of ConstantinopleTradition5 entriesThe Episcopal ChurchTradition3 entriesEritrean Orthodox Tewahedo ChurchTradition2 entriesEthiopian Orthodox Tewahedo ChurchTradition2 entriesEvangelical Lutheran Church in AmericaTradition3 entriesEvangelicalismTradition1 entryFree Methodist ChurchTradition1 entryGeorgian Orthodox ChurchTradition5 entriesGlobal Methodist ChurchTradition4 entriesGreek Orthodox ChurchTradition5 entriesKhalsaTradition3 entriesLutheranismTradition4 entriesMahayanaTradition1 entryMaronite ChurchTradition2 entriesMethodismTradition4 entriesMoravian ChurchTradition4 entriesNational Baptist Convention of AmericaTradition1 entryNirmalaTradition1 entryOld BelieversTradition5 entriesOriental OrthodoxyTradition3 entriesPresbyterianismTradition2 entriesProgressive National Baptist ConventionTradition1 entryProtestantismTradition2 entriesRoman CatholicismTradition6 entriesRomanian Orthodox ChurchTradition5 entriesRussian Orthodox ChurchTradition5 entriesSerbian Orthodox ChurchTradition5 entriesShaivismTradition1 entryShia (Twelver)Tradition1 entrySvetambaraTradition1 entryTheravadaTradition4 entriesUdasiTradition1 entryUkrainian Greek Catholic ChurchTradition5 entriesUkrainian Orthodox ChurchTradition5 entriesThe United Methodist ChurchTradition4 entriesVajrayanaTradition1 entryWesleyan ChurchTradition1 entryZenTradition1 entrySources1. Divinity Atlas Directory Taxonomy, First Edition Category Treetier 12. Encyclopedia of Religiontier 1Mircea Eliade (ed.); Lindsay Jones (ed., 2nd ed.), Macmillan Reference, 2005View the SourceDivinity Atlas Directory Prose, First Edition Category Descriptionstier 1Comments (0)No comments yet. Be the first to share a thought.Sign in to join the discussion.Reader Challenges (0)No disputes yet. Spotted an error or a better source? Open the first one.Sign in to dispute this or suggest a correction.