Cincy MultiFaith Calendar

Beltane (Pagan)
2022-05-01
Beltane: is celebrated on May 1st halfway between Spring Equinox and Summer Solstice. It is the beginning of summer. Among pastoral people this was when the flocks and herds were moved from the lower winter pasture to the higher summer pasture. To ensure fertility, the livestock was herded between two fires. This holiday celebrates fertility and sexuality. This is a time for fun and frolic. Jumping over the fire is part of the ritual.
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Ramadan Ends (Islam)
2022-05-01
This marks the the holy month where Muslims fast from sunrise to sunset for 30 days abstaining from food and drinks.
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Holiday Greeting: Ramadan Mubarak
There are evening prayers that some students may attend at the mosque during this month. Mostly middle and high school students will be fasting.

Maidyozarem Gahambar (Zoroastrian)
2022-04-30 - 2022-05-04
Maidyozarem (literally: midgreening) Gahambar is a seasonal festival celebrated in mid-spring. It is considered a religious duty to participate in a communal jashan prayer ceremony; as well as, fraternize and share a simple meal with fellow co-religionists from all walks of life, rich and poor.
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9th Day of Festival of Ridvan -(The Bahá’í Faith)
2022-04-29
9th Day of Ridvan. There are three holy Days as part of the Festival, the first day, the ninth and the twelfth. The annual Baha’i Festival commemorates the 12 days when Baha’u’llah, the founder of the Faith, publicly proclaimed his mission as God’s messenger.
Holiday Greeting: Happy Ridvan
Work is to be suspended and children excused from school.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ridv%C3%A1n

Feast of Jamal/ Beauty (Baha'i)
2022-04-28
Wherever they live, Baha’is gather every 19 days for what we call a Feast. This is a members-only event comprising three parts:
1. A spiritual portion that’s the time for prayer and reflection;
2. A business portion for consultation about administrative issues (plans for forming classes, organizing to perform community service, observing holy days, or any ideas or projects community members wish to discuss. It’s also a time when local members can ask their Local Assembly to forward their concerns to the National Assembly;
3. A social portion that can consist of anything from just glasses of water to a full-course dinner.

Yom Ha'shoah (Jewish)
2022-04-27 18:00 - 2022-04-28 18:00 (America/New_York)
Known in English as Holocaust Remembrance Day, Yom Ha’Shoah commemorates the approximately six million Jews, and five million others who perished in the Holocaust. Shoah in Hebrew means catastrophe. This is a national public holiday in Israel. In homes and synagogues around the world, Jews will light memorial candles in commemoration of lives lost. The Holocaust and Humanity Center Museum located in Cincinnati’s Union Terminal highlights the history, artifacts, humanity education, and stories of survivors and others who experienced the Holocaust.
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Commonly observed by synagogue attendance or family gatherings. Work is traditionally prohibited; individuals may be absent from school or work.

Easter / Pascha (Christian Orthodox)
2022-04-24
On the Great and Holy Feast of Pascha, Orthodox Christians celebrate the life-giving Resurrection of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. This feast of feasts is the most significant day in the life of the Church. It is a celebration of the defeat of death, as neither death itself nor the power of the grave could hold our Savior captive. In this victory that came through the Cross, Christ broke the bondage of sin, and through faith offers us restoration, transformation, and eternal life.
Learn more here.

Great and Holy Friday (Christian Orthodox)
2022-04-22
On Great and Holy Friday the Orthodox Church commemorates the death of Christ on the Cross. This is the culmination of the observance of His Passion by which our Lord suffered and died for our sins. This commemoration begins on Thursday evening with the Matins of Holy Friday and concludes with a Vespers on Friday afternoon that observes the unnailing of Christ from the Cross and the placement of His body in the tomb.

More information can be found here.

This is a day of fasting and abstinence for most over the age of 14.

Jashan-e Ardavahisht (Zoroastrian)
2022-04-22
Jashan-e Ardavahisht is a celebration ceremony, a Jashan, performed on Ardibehest day of
Ardibehest month, in honor of Ardavahisht or Ardibehest, a Pehlavi name derived from the ancient
Avestan term “Asha Vahishta” from the Gathas of Zarathushtra. Asha stands for “truth, order,
righteousness.” Vahishta means ‘the Best’ or ‘the Highest’. So, Asha Vahishta is the Best or the
Highest Righteousness which Zarathushtra attributes to Ahura Mazda. Asha is the universal law of
righteous precision. It may best be explained by stating that it means “to do the right thing, at the right
time, in the right place, and with the right means in order to attain the right result.” It should result in
constructive and loving good not only for oneself but also for one’s fellow creatures and for God. It is
the positive, beneficial and unselfish precision par excellence. In later Zoroastrian religious history,
the wise men/priests associated Ardavahisht with being the steward/guardian of all those forces that
give light, and warmth to our world. To us, Fire is that symbol of light and warmth, and represents
God’s Righteousness to us, that’s why a Zoroastrian prefers to pray in front of any form of light. In
our temples, the priest keeps an eternal Fire burning on a large urn, adding wood to it five times a
day. That holy fire in our temples serves as the medium of one’s concentration and communication
with God. Zoroastrians are wrongly believed by many as Fire-Worshippers, when in fact, Fire is an
element of great reverence to a Zoroastrian and reminds her/him of God’s Righteousness, and is
beneficial to have in some form in front of the devotee, to use as a medium of meditative focus and
concentration, as the devotee worships God/communicates with God, through her/his prayers.

Holy Thursday (Christian Orthodox)
2022-04-21
On Thursday of Holy Week four events are commemorated: the washing of the disciples’ feet, the institution of the Sacrament of the Holy Eucharist at the Last Supper, the agony in the garden of Gethsemane, and the betrayal of Christ by Judas.
You can learn more here.

First Day of Ridvan (The Bahá’í Faith)
2022-04-21
1st Day of Festival of Ridvan-**(There are three holy Days as part of the Festival, the first day, the ninth and the twelfth.) The annual Baha’i Festival commemorates the 12 days when Baha’u’llah, the founder of the Faith, publicly proclaimed his mission as God’s messenger. Begins at sundown on April 19 and ends at sunset on April 20.
Holiday Greeting: Happy Ridvan
Work is to be suspended and children excused from school.
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Easter Sunday (Catholic / Christian Protestant/ The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints)
2022-04-17
A festival and holiday celebrating the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead. After He died on the cross, his body was placed in a tomb, where it remained for three days, separated from His spirit, until on Sunday, when he was resurrected. It is the most important day of the Christian calendar.
More information from The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
More information from the Catholic Church
More information from the Christian Methodist Episcopal Church
Holiday Greeting: Happy Easter!

Theravada New Year (Buddhism)
2022-04-16
Generally, Theravada countries such as Sri Lanka , Thai land, Cambodia, Laos, and Burma celebrate the full moon day at the end of April as Theravada new year. Buddha’s enlightenment is also celebrated on that day. It is celebrated again during Wesak, on the full moon day of May, as Buddha’s birthday, enlightenment and death.
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Passover (Jewish)
2022-04-15 - 2022-04-22
Passover, known in Hebrew as Pesach, commemorates the liberation of the Hebrew slaves from Egypt. A feast called a seder is held on the first two nights. During the seder, the Exodus story is read aloud and freedom from slavery is celebrated. This is one of the most widely observed Jewish holidays.
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Holiday Greeting: Pesach Sameach (Happy Passover)
No food that is leavened (e.g., bread, cake) or contains wheat is eaten. Matzah (unleavened bread) is often consumed instead. Work is traditionally prohibited on the first, second, seventh, and eighth days. Absences may vary based on religious observance of the holiday.

Good Friday (Christian Protestant/ Catholic/ The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints)
2022-04-15
Good Friday is the day on which Christians commemorate the crucifixion and death of Jesus Christ.

More information from The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
More information from the Catholic Church
More information from the Christian Methodist Episcopal Church

This is a day of fasting and abstinence from meat for Catholics over the age of 14.

Puthandu (Hindu)
2022-04-14
Today is Puthandu (also called Puthuvarudam or Tamil New Year). Many Hindus consider today the solar new year and mark the occasion by thanking God/Universe for another new year and new beginnings.
Traditional celebrations include an elaborate feast with 6 different tastes – sweet, sour, spice (hot), salt, bitter and ‘thuvarpu’ (like Umami). This is to symbolize that our life is filled with different experiences and emotions and remember to embrace and enjoy them all. Celebrants will typically make one dish with all of these tastes in it. The recipe is all about balancing each of the ingredients, like the recipe to a balanced life.
You can learn more about this holiday here.
Traditional Tamil greetings include: “Puthāaṇdu vāazhthugal!” or “Iṉiya puthaandu nalvāazhthugal!”, which is equivalent to “Happy new year”.

Mahavir Jayanti (Jain)
2022-04-14
Mahavir Jayanti is the anniversary of birth of the 24th and last Tirthankara for the followers of Jain religion and culture, or Lord Mahavir. The festival is celebrated to champion the cause of peace and harmony, and also spread the teachings of Lord Mahavira. A procession is carried out in the form of “rath yatra” with Lord Mahavira’s murti placed on the top. Jain temples are decorated with flags, while the Jains offer food and clothes to the needy. Also, prayers are offered in temples dedicated to Lord Mahavira and some devotees often engage in meditation—a practice championed by Mahavir.
More information can be found here.
Typical greetings would be as follows: “May Lord Mahavir bless you abundantly and fill your life with the virtue of Truth, Nonviolence and External compassion. Happy Mahavir Jayanti,” or “Prayers for Peace and Harmony for all humankind on this auspicious day of Mahavir Jayanti.”

Vaisakhi – Khalsa Day (Sikh)
2022-04-14
On Vaisakhi in 1699, the tenth Guru, Guru Gobind Singh, established the initiated community of Sikhs, the Khalsa, through the Amrit ceremony and became initiated himself too. Vaisakhi holds great significance in the history of the community. Sikhs acquire their formal, distinct identity from this day onward. The identity includes the unique physical appearance and the names of Singh and Kaur. This new community of equals were to dedicate their lives to the service of others and pursuit of justice for all faiths. Vaisakhi has a deep spirit of equality, unity, identity, and commitment for the Sikhs. Sikhs celebrate Vaisakhi by organizing religious services, martial arts exhibitions, parades, etc.
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Holiday Greeting: “Vaisakhi di Lakh Lakh Vadhaaiaa Ji” – Infinite Congratulations for Vaisakhi
Students and Co-Workers may be absent this day to celebrate at home with their family and with the entire community at their local Gurdwara

Holy Thursday (Catholic/ Christian Protestant/ The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints)
2022-04-14
Holy Thursday is the commemoration of the Last Supper of Jesus Christ, when, prior to his arrest and crucifixion, he established the practice of communion, which is considered a sacrament among most Christian communities. Later that evening, he prays in the Garden of Gethsemane.
More information from the Catholic Church
More information from The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
More information from the Christian Methodist Episcopal Church

Palm Sunday (Christian Protestant/ Catholic/ Hispanic/ The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints)
2022-04-10
Palm Sunday is the final Sunday of Lent, the beginning of Holy Week, and commemorates the triumphant arrival of Christ in Jerusalem, days before he was crucified. In the Gospels, Jesus entered Jerusalem riding a young donkey, and to the lavish praise of the townspeople who threw clothes, or possibly palms or small branches, in front of him as a sign of homage. This was a customary practice for people of great respect.
More Information:
Palms for the Lord – from The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints
From the Christian Methodist Episcopal Church

Feast of Jalal / Glory (Baha'i)
2022-04-09

Jashan-e Fravardegan (Zoroastrian)
2022-04-08
Jashan-e Fravardegan is a celebration ceremony, a Jashan, performed on Fravardin day of
Fravardin month, in honor of fravashis, the souls of all the righteous people who have ever lived in
our world. In Zoroastrianism, we have special prayers dedicated to honoring and remembering with
respect and love the souls of our beloved departed as well as all the righteous souls in the universe.
Righteous people with their righteous actions throughout their lives help in progressing our world
further. Hence, in this Jashan especially, we show our respect to all such righteous souls who have
helped in the progress of our world so far, and we seek their blessings so we too can follow in their
footsteps and perform righteous actions to further the progress of our world in our lifetime.

Ramadan Begins (Islam)
2022-04-02

Khordad Sal (Parsi Zoroastrian)
2022-03-26
Birth anniversary of Zarathushtra (Zoroaster), the founder of Zoroastrianism. Zoroastrians gather in Fire temples for prayers and then celebrate with a family feast.
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Jamshedi Navroze (Parsi Zoroastrian)
2022-03-21
The spring equinox festival celebrated by Parsi Zoroastrians with family and friends. Celebrations may also include the Sofreh-e-Haft Seen table.
Holiday Greeting: Navroze Mubarak
Children may miss school to celebrate with families
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Naw-Ruz (The Bahá’í Faith)
2022-03-21
Baha’i New Year coincides with spring equinox. Ancient Persian festival celebrating “new day”. For Bahai’s it marks end of the annual 19 day Fast. Starts at sundown on the 20th and ends at sunset on the 21st.
Holiday Greeting: Happy Naw Ruz or Happy New Year

Explanation of the Baha’i calendar. Baha’i dates begin and end at sunset. Also, the first day of each month is the Feast Day (starts in the evening). The Baha’i calendar isn’t aligned with either the Gregorian or the lunar calendar.

http://– https://www.bahai.us/events/holy-days/

Nowruz (Zoroastrian / Persian New Year)
2022-03-21 - 2022-03-22
The arrival of spring is celebrated by the coming together of family in new clothes. Weeks before Nowruz, homes are given a spring cleaning and festive foods are prepared. Also, the Sofreh-e-Haft Seen table is set up.
(what follows is included in the detailed description)
The Seen table is laid out with seven foods each beginning with the letter “S”: Sabzeh (growing sprouts of wheat symbolizing rebirt); Samanoo (a wheat pudding signifying rejuvenation); Seeb (apples symbolizing fruit of the earth); Seer (garlic for health); Senjed (lotus fruit represeting love and Beauty); Serkeh (vinegar for age and patience) and Somagh (orange sumac berries symbolizing sunrise which banishes the darkness). Other items on the table include a mirror, candles, painted eggs, a bowl of water, goldfish, coins, hyacinth, pastries and a religious book.
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Holiday Greeting: Happy New Year or Nowruz Mubarak
Children may miss school to celebrate with families

Feast of Baha / Splendor (Baha'i)
2022-03-21

Ostara – Spring Equinox (Pagan)
2022-03-20
Spring Equinox or Ostara is celebrated March 21st or 22nd. At the spring equinox, the hours of daylight are exactly equal to the hours of night. It is the middle of spring. This holiday celebrates the blooming of the earth. It was named after the German goddess of spring, Ostara, known to the Anglo Saxons as Eostre, whose symbols were the egg, the rabbit, and the chick.
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Feast of St. Joseph (Catholic)
2022-03-19
This is the feast day of Joseph, a carpenter who was the stepfather of Jesus and husband of Mary. He is the patron saint of the Universal Church. Traditionally it is believed he died in the presence of Jesus and Mary, before Jesus began his public ministry. For this reason, St. Joseph is also the patron saint of a holy death.
More information can be found here.
