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The Church Calendar

A brief guide to the church calendar as probably used by Wodehouse. Please note that there are numerous variations, not least between the protestant, catholic and orthodox traditions. Easter is a 'movable feast' so it and the periods dependant on it do not have fixed points in the secular calendar.

Epiphany
January 6th to Ash Wednesday. There are between four and nine Sundays in Epiphany depending on the timing of Easter.
Septuagisima
The third Sunday before Lent, i.e. before Ash Wednesday.
Sexagisima
The second Sunday before Lent.
Quinquagisima
The Sunday before Lent, i.e. the Sunday before Ash Wednesday.
Shrove Tuesday
The Tuesday before Ash Wednesday.
Ash Wednesday
The seventh Wednesday before Easter Sunday, it is also the first day of Lent.
Lent
Starting on Ash Wednesday, forty weekdays concluding on the Saturday before Easter Sunday. Sundays are excluded from the forty days and therefore referred to as Sundays in Lent.
Holy Week
The last week of Lent.
Pentecost
The beginning of Pentecost is Pentecost Sunday, also known as Whit Sunday, and starts on the seventh Sunday after Easter Sunday (formally 50 days counting Easter Sunday as day 1)
Trinity Sunday
The Sunday after Whit Sunday.
Lammas
The first day of August, which used to be celebrated as a harvest festival. Lammas Eve is the day before, i.e. 31 July.
Ordinary Time
The rest of the year, with ordinary meaning counted rather than plain.
Advent
Begins on the fourth Sunday before Christmas Day, i.e. the Sunday nearest November 30th, and ends on Christmas Eve. If Christmas Eve is a Sunday, it is counted as the fourth Sunday.
Christmas Day
December 25th. The twelve days of Christmas end on 5th January.

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I am indebted to the web site of the Christian Resource Institute for the basic information presented above, to which I have added a few items. If you want to know more details about the Protestant church calendar - try their site at www.cresourcei.org. Please note that Catholic and Orthodox Christian calendars will differ. Wodehouse does not refer to the calendar of any other faith. As far as I can tell, all the clergy and festivals etc. are Church of England; indeed, I can only recall one mention of any other denomination.