Liturgical colours
Five colours, and about ninety per cent of the year is two of them.
GreenPurpleWhiteGoldRed
| Colour | Worn for | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| Green | Ordinary Time — after Epiphany, and the long stretch after Trinity | Growth; the ordinary faithfulness of most of the year |
| Purple | Advent and Lent | Preparation, penitence, waiting. Some parishes use Lenten array — unbleached linen — instead |
| White | Christmas, Easter, feasts of the Lord, weddings, and often funerals | Joy, light, resurrection |
| Gold | The greatest feasts, where a parish has it | White intensified; never required, always optional |
| Red | Pentecost, Holy Week, feasts of martyrs, confirmations, ordinations | The Spirit, and blood |
The awkward cases
- Holy Week is red through to Maundy Thursday, then Good Friday is red or nothing at all — many parishes strip the church bare.
- Advent 3 and Lent 4 traditionally admit rose, if the parish owns a rose set. Very few do.
- Funerals are white in most parishes now, purple or black in some. Follow the family and the incumbent.
- All Souls and the Kingdom season sit between red and green depending on local use.
None of this is law. The Church of England’s guidance on colour is explicitly permissive: it describes what is customary, and local custom prevails.
How SundayHQ handles this. The colour for any Sunday is computed, and it drives the printed booklet — the header rule and cover band take the day’s colour automatically, alongside your parish’s own accent.
Questions
What are the liturgical colours and when are they used?
Green for Ordinary Time; purple for Advent and Lent; white or gold for Christmas, Easter and feasts of the Lord; red for Pentecost, Holy Week and feasts of martyrs.
What colour is used in Advent?
Purple. Some parishes use blue, and Advent 3 traditionally admits rose where a parish owns a rose set.
Is a parish required to follow the liturgical colours?
No. Church of England guidance on colour describes what is customary rather than prescribing it, and local custom prevails.