The 40 Days After the Resurrection: How Christ Appeared to His Disciples and Why This Time Is So Important for Us

Orthodox Christians around the world don't just celebrate the Resurrection of Christ on a single day. They live it. For Easter Sunday marks the beginning of one of the most profound and joyful times in the church year: the forty days leading up to the Ascension of the Lord. This period is filled with light, comfort, and spiritual closeness—an invitation to encounter Christ as the Apostles once did.

Easter Monday and the Week of Joy

The first seven days after Christ's Resurrection are called Svetla sedmica—the bright week . Each of these days is celebrated as another Easter day. Easter Monday ( Vaskršnji ponedeljak ) is especially significant: The same Resurrection hymns resound in the church as on Sunday, the royal doors of the iconostasis remain wide open, and the faithful joyfully repeat the Easter greeting:
“Hristos vaskrse!” – “Vaistinu vaskrse!”

Many families visit each other, exchange blessed eggs, and experience the Resurrection not only as a memory, but as a presence. During this week, no metanias are performed—the physical gesture of repentance gives way to the upright posture of joy.

Forty days of encounter

The Holy Scriptures tell us that Christ appeared to His disciples for forty days after the Resurrection. Not just once, not in a dream—but visibly, tangibly, and full of love. He walked with them, talked with them, ate with them, and comforted their hearts.

“And He appeared to them and spoke to them about the kingdom of God.”
(Acts 1:3)

These apparitions show us: Christ is not a distant God. He is near. He lives. And He remains.

What this time means for us today

Even today, these forty days are an invitation. A quiet opportunity to encounter Christ in our own everyday lives—in prayer, in reading the Acts of the Apostles, in the smile of another person.

Whether you live in Zurich, Paris, Belgrade, or Stockholm – the risen Lord calls us all. Not just priests, not just monks. But each and every one of us.
Now is the time to answer Him.

Many believers consciously mark this time by saying a short morning prayer every day, lighting a candle, or discussing the appearances of Christ with their families. The joy of the resurrection is meant to live on – day after day, in church and at home.

The Ascension: Not a Farewell, but a Promise

On the fortieth day, we celebrate Vaznesenje Gospodnje—the Ascension of the Lord . Christ returns to the Father, but not to be away. He goes to prepare an eternal dwelling place for us. And He promises to remain with us—through the Holy Spirit, who comes at Pentecost.

This movement—from the grave to glory, from earth to heaven—is also our calling. The time between Passover and the Ascension shows us: Life with Christ is a path upward. Full of light, hope, and truth.

Christ is risen. Not for a day, but forever. He is with us. In every prayer, in every liturgy, in every sincere search for truth. If we want to encounter Him, we only have to listen. Just like the disciples did back then, on the shores of Galilee.