For most Oriental Orthodox churches—including the Armenian Apostolic, Syriac Orthodox, Coptic Orthodox, and Malankara Orthodox—Sunday is the primary day of worship as the Day of the Resurrection. The Jewish Sabbath (Saturday) is not liturgically distinguished from other weekdays in these traditions, though Saturday may retain some penitential or commemorative significance.

A significant exception is the Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church and the Eritrean Orthodox Tewahedo Church, which observe both Saturday and Sunday as sacred days. Saturday is kept as the Sabbath (referred to as 'Sanbat') in honor of the Old Testament commandment and in the belief that the Sabbath commandment was not abrogated by the New Covenant; Sunday is celebrated as the Lord's Day of the Resurrection. This dual Sabbath observance is a distinctive feature of the Ethiopian and Eritrean Orthodox traditions with no parallel in other Oriental Orthodox churches.