The colors used by churches throughout the liturgical calendar vary somewhat from tradition to tradition, and even from church to church. However, there are many broad similarities, as summarized below.
Advent / Christmas
The church calendar begins with Advent, four Sundays before Christmas Day. Dark blue or purple/violet are typical for this season, and pink is sometimes used for the 3rd week, beginning with Gaudete Sunday—following the colors of the candles on the Advent wreath.
For the Christmas season, beginning Christmas Eve or Christmas Day, white is used, or sometimes gold. That lasts through Epiphany (January 6), or, in some traditions, through the Sunday thereafter (Baptism of the Lord Sunday).
Ordinary Time
Following Epiphany, we enter ordinary time, which is universally marked by green.
In Protestant traditions, the Feast of the Transfiguration is typically observed on the Sunday before Ash Wednesday, and white is used for that one day.
Lent / Easter / Pentecost
For the season of Lent, beginning with Ash Wednesday, purple/violet is common, although black or red are sometimes used. Red (or scarlet) more often appears for Holy Week, beginning with Palm Sunday.
During Good Friday, or even as soon as Maundy Thursday, a switch is made to black, or rarely no color. This change can be made in connection with a Good Friday service to mark the death of Christ.
On the evening of Holy Saturday (Easter vigil), or certainly come Easter Sunday, white or gold are used to celebrate the resurrection. The Easter color is used until Pentecost.
On Pentecost, the seventh Sunday after Easter, red is used.
Ordinary Time
Following Pentecost, we again enter ordinary time and return to green. During this time, there are a few days that get special attention. Trinity Sunday, the Sunday after Pentecost gets white (or gold). Reformation Sunday, the Sunday on or before October 31 can be marked with red. All Saints’ Day (November 1) or the first Sunday thereafter can be marked with white or red.
Finally, we close out the church calendar with Christ the King Sunday, the last Sunday before Advent, for which white (or gold) is used.
