What do the different colors on the altar represent?
The colors that adorn the sanctuary represent the different seasons in the Liturgical (Church) calendar. The traditional liturgical color scheme is fairly simple. White and Gold are used for festivals of great joy that focus on the work of Christ. White denotes purity, innocence or glory. Red is the color for the festival of the Holy Spirit and the commemoration of the lives of the martyrs. It is used on Pentecost, to remind us of the tongues of fire. Purple marks seasons of penitence or preparation. Recently, blue has often been used instead of purple during the season of Advent. [Light] Blue is expressive of hope (expectation, anticipation), which is the dominant mood of Advent. Green is used at all other times. Green is the color which denotes the growth of the Church. It is also symbolic of hope. The use of the seasonal color is ordinarily not affected by baptisms Holy Communion, or marriage services. For funerals, however, White is the standard color. Red is sometimes used for ord
