The Coptic Katameros

This page has been roughly twenty-one years in the making. I began tabulating the references in this Coptic Orthodox Church lectionary in 1999, when available sources were few. Occasionally revisiting the subject, I finally discovered (in December 2020) the sources available to complete the tables, a compilation of full Katameros readings in Coptic, English, and Arabic, the work of Fr Jacob Nadian of St Bishoy Coptic Orthodox Church in Stouffville, Ontario, Canada. As the texts of Fr Nadian included full readings, it was possible to provide versification for the Psalms following Septuagint versification, so I have done that work and included it in the tables below.

The distinctive name of this lectionary, Katameros, Coptic Ⲕⲁⲧⲁⲙⲉⲣⲟⲥ, is usually said to derive from a compound Greek word, (τὸ) κατάμερος, derived from the phrase κατά μέρον, or κατά μέρους, denoting “part by part” or “by section,” or the plurals thereof. A less likely suggestion is that it derives from the Greek καθ᾿ ἡμέραν, “by day” or “daily.”

The lectionary itself is also distinguished by its fullness of readings, not only in length of pericopes but also in number of pericopes per service. The readings for a typical day include a Psalm excerpt (usually in the form of a cento of roughly two verses in length) and Gospel pericope for both Vespers and Matins, and for the Liturgy pericopes from all of the following: the Epistles of Paul, the Catholic Epistles, the Acts of the Apostles, Psalms, and a Gospel. In addition, one will find lengthy selections from the Synaxarion included among the Liturgy readings selected for every day of the year.

In addition, the Coptic Katameros is to be distinguished amongst other lectionaries as being thoroughly thematic. That is, rather than including long stretches of (semi-)continuous readings from Old Testament texts, Epistles, and Gospels, the Katameros pericopes of a given service are selected to represent a particular theme. It is really quite extraordinary. I like to think that the multi-millennial literary tradition in Egypt contributed to this thematic organization of pericopes in the Katameros. The only comparably extensive thematic lectionary is that of the Ethiopian Tawahedo Church, itself initially derived from the Coptic Katameros.

The tables below present the full set of pericopes assigned to Pre-Lent and Lent, the Week of Pascha (or Holy Week), the Joyous Fifty Days (or the days from Pascha to Pentecost), and a table combining the readings for Sundays in each month (these are given at the head of each month) with all the days of each month. At the end of the Sundays and Daily table are the readings provided for a fifth Sunday in either the first or second half of the year. Note that the dates of the table are those of the Coptic calendar of thirteen months, with twelve months of thirty days each, and a small month of five or six days as needed. It is the ancient Egyptian calendar recontextualized.

(The tables scroll both vertically and horizontally. The headers and day should remain in place for reference.)

Pre-Lent and Lent

The Week of Pascha

The Joyous Fifty Days

The Sundays and Days of the Months