Quite simply, the liturgical year is the celebration of a series of religious feasts and seasons. In so doing, we make sacred the ordinary time of a twelve-month calendar. Actually, we inherited this notion from our Jewish ancestors of the Old Testament. In the Book of Leviticus, Chapter 23, we find the Jewish calendar which speaks of a week of seven days, with six for work and the seventh day, the Sabbath, for rest and for “sacred assembly.” This Sabbath Day belongs to the Lord. Leviticus then continues to speak of the dates of Passover, Yom Kippur, and other special feast days.
For Roman Catholics, we too have a liturgical calendar, which has evolved during the history of the Church. The purpose of such a calendar was to trace the mystery of salvation and the course of salvation history. Again, the idea is to sanctify time. Pope Pius XII wrote, “By commemorating the mysteries of the Savior, the sacred liturgy strives to bring all believers to participate in them in such a way that the divine Head of the Mystical Body may live in each of His members with the fullness of His holiness” (Mediator Dei, #152).
We see the beginnings of the calendar in the early Church. The Christians changed the Lord’s day to Sunday, in honor of the resurrection. In Acts, we read, “On the first day of the week when we gathered for the breaking of the bread…” (20:7). Fridays were designated as days of penance and sacrifice, in honor of our Lord’s sacrifice of Himself for our sins on Good Friday; to this day, Friday should be a day of penance when we abstain from meat or make some other sacrifice. In the early Church, the Didache (AD 80) also marked Wednesdays as a day of penance and prayer, which is perhaps why many parishes still have novenas or Holy Hours on Wednesday evenings. By the 10th century, especially in the western Church, our Blessed Mother was honored on Saturdays.
Over the centuries, the Church has punctuated the course of the year with feast days or holy days. In the midst of our normal routine, these days help focus our attention on Christ and the mystery of salvation. Several feast days are dedicated to our Blessed Mother, the exemplar of our faith, who participated intimately in the mystery of salvation, such as the Solemnity of Mary, Mother of God (January 1), the Annunciation (March 25), the Visitation (May 31), the Assumption (August 15), the Nativity of Mary (September 8), the Presentation of Mary (September 22) and the Immaculate Conception (December 8).
Many feast days commemorate the saints who glorified Christ in their lives on earth and now share His glory in the Kingdom of Heaven. Their feast days usually correspond to the date of death, the birth of the saint into eternal life. Many of the dates were established over time and sometimes varied according to locale. However, in 1568, Pope Pius V promulgated the universal calendar setting the feast days and their dates which would be celebrated throughout the whole Church. To date, various Popes have increased or decreased the number of feast days of saints honored by the whole church. The purpose is clear: “For the feasts of the saints proclaim the wonderful works of Christ in His servants and offer to the faithful fitting examples for their imitation” (Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy, #111).
Finally, the calendar follows a series of seasons: The calendar begins with Advent, which focuses on the preparation for the birth of the Messiah. Christmas Season then follows, beginning with the birth of the our Lord, celebrates the Epiphany, and concludes with the Baptism of the Lord. The Feast of Baptism of the Lord also commences the season of Ordinary Time, which traces the public ministry of Jesus. Lent interrupts Ordinary Time, and lasts for 40 days (not including Sundays) and prepares us for Easter. Easter Season begins with the Easter Vigil Mass, is followed by the 40 days leading to the Ascension and then concludes 10 days later with Pentecost. After Pentecost, Ordinary time resumes and concludes with the Solemnity of Christ the King, the last Sunday of the liturgical year. (https://catholicstraightanswers.com/what-is-the-liturgical-year/)
"Christ yesterday and today… All time belongs to him and all the ages." (Easter Vigil)
Introduction
The first words of the Universal Norms on the Liturgical Year and the Calendar, drawn from the Second Vatican Council's Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy, summarize the profound meaning of the liturgical celebrations of the Church and their organization:
Holy Church celebrates the saving work of Christ on prescribed days in the course of the year with sacred remembrance. Each week, on the day called the Lord's Day, she commemorates the Resurrection of the Lord, which she also celebrates once a year in the great Paschal Solemnity, together with his blessed Passion. In fact, throughout the course of the year the Church unfolds the entire mystery of Christ and observes the birthdays of the Saints. (no. 1)
The liturgical year consists of a seasonal cycle and a sanctoral cycle, called the Proper of Time and the Proper of Saints, respectively. Both are organized and published in a liturgical calendar, which is also enriched by observances proper to local Churches, whether national, diocesan, parish-level, or religious community. The Paschal Mystery of Jesus Christ—his suffering, death, and resurrection—is continuously proclaimed and renewed through celebrating the events of his life and in the feasts of the Blessed Virgin Mary and the saints.
The liturgical year is made up of six seasons:
Advent - four weeks of preparation before the celebration of Jesus' birth
Christmas - recalling the Nativity of Jesus Christ and his manifestation to the peoples of the world
Lent - a six-week period of penance before Easter
Sacred Paschal Triduum - the holiest "Three Days" of the Church's year, where the Christian people recall the suffering, death, and resurrection of Jesus
Easter - 50 days of joyful celebration of the Lord's resurrection from the dead and his sending forth of the Holy Spirit
Ordinary Time - divided into two sections (one span of 4-8 weeks after Christmas Time and another lasting about six months after Easter Time), wherein the faithful consider the fullness of Jesus' teachings and works among his people
The mystery of Christ, unfolded through the cycle of the year, calls us to live his mystery in our own lives. This call is best illustrated in the lives of Mary and the saints, celebrated by the Church throughout the year. There is no tension between the mystery of Christ and the celebration of the saints, but rather a marvelous harmony. The Blessed Virgin Mary is joined by an inseparable bond to the saving work of her Son, and the feasts of all the saints proclaim the wonderful works of Christ in his servants and offer the faithful fitting examples for their imitation.
Each liturgical year begins on the First Sunday of Advent during the preceding calendar year (i.e., the First Sunday of Advent in 2019 began the 2020 liturgical year).
The organization of each liturgical year is governed by the Church and ultimately integrated into a liturgical calendar.
The Second Vatican Council brought renewed emphasis to Sunday as a unique liturgical category: "the Lord's day is the original feast day" (Sacrosanctum Concilium, no. 106), and it "must be observed in the universal Church as the primordial holy day of obligation" (Code of Canon Law, canon 1246 §1). Thus, only a limited number of feasts of the Lord or the saints may take the place of the scheduled Sunday celebration.
Saints and other celebrations are distinguished in accordance with the importance assigned to each one: each is a Solemnity, Feast, or Memorial. Sundays and Solemnities begin their celebration on the evening before, Feasts and Memorials are celebrated over the course of one day, and Memorials are either Obligatory or Optional.
Holy days of obligation (also known as feasts of precept) are days when the faithful are obliged to participate at Mass and abstain from unnecessary work or other activities which hinder the suitable relaxation of mind and body. Each Sunday is a holy day of obligation. (USCCB)
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
PROPER TO THE DIOCESES OF CANADA
APPROVED BY THE CONGREGATION FOR DIVINE WORSHIP AND THE DISCIPLINE OF THE SACRAMENTS
JANUARY 27, 2016 PROT. N. 32/16
January
7. St. André Bessette, Religious Memorial
8. St. Raymond de Penyafort, Priest[1]
12. St. Marguerite Bourgeoys, Virgin Memorial
March
19. ST. JOSEPH, HUSBAND OF THE BLESSED VIRGIN MARY,
PRINCIPAL PATRON OF CANADA Solemnity
April
17. St. Kateri Tekakwitha, Virgin Memorial
18. Bl. Marie-Anne Blondin, Virgin
26. Our Lady of Good Counsel
30. St. Marie de l’Incarnation, Religious Memorial
May
1. St. Pius V, Pope
4. Bl. Marie-Léonie Paradis, Virgin
6. St. François de Laval, Bishop Memorial
8. Bl. Catherine de Saint-Augustin, Virgin
21. St. Eugène de Mazenod, Bishop
24. Bl. Louis-Zéphirin Moreau, Bishop
June
27. Bl. Nykyta Budka and Vasyl Velychkowsky, Bishops and Martyrs
July
1. CANADA DAY
26. ST. ANNE, PATRON OF THE PROVINCE OF QUEBEC,
AND ST. JOACHIM, PARENTS OF THE BLESSED VIRGIN MARY Feast
5. Bl. Frédéric Janssoone, Priest
September
2. Bl. André Grasset, Priest and Martyr
4. Bl. Dina Bélanger, Virgin
24. Bl. Émilie Tavernier-Gamelin, Religious
25. Sts. Cosmas and Damian, Martyrs
26. STS. JEAN DE BREBEUF, ISAAC JOGUES, PRIESTS,
AND COMPANIONS, MARTYRS, SECONDARY PATRONS OF CANADA Feast
First Monday Labour Day
October
6. Bl. Marie-Rose Durocher, Virgin
16. St. Marguerite d’Youville, Religious Memorial
20. St. Hedwig, Religious
St. Marguerite-Marie Alacoque, Virgin
22. DEDICATION OF CONSECRATED CHURCHES whose date of Consecration is unknown Solemnity
Second Monday THANKSGIVING DAY
11. REMEMBRANCE DAY
December
12. OUR LADY OF GUADALUPE, PATRONESS OF THE AMERICAS Feast
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Blessed Virgin Mary, Mother of the Church (Memorial)
– Decree
– Commentary: The Memorial of Mary, ‘Mother of the Church’
Saint Mary Magdalene (Feast)
– Decree Concerning the Feast of Saint Mary Magdalene
– Commentary on the New Preface
Pope Saint Paul VI (Optional Memorial)
– Decree on the Inscription of the Celebration of Saint Paul VI, Pope, in the General Roman Calendar
– Commentary: “A Courageous Apostle of the Gospel”
Our Lady of Loreto (Optional Memorial)
Saint Faustina (Optional Memorial)
– Decree
Saints Martha, Mary and Lazarus (Memorial)
– Decree
Saint Gregory of Narek, Saint John De Avila, Saint Hildegard of Bingen – Doctors of the Church (Optional Memorials)
– Decree on Inscription of the Celebrations of Doctors of the Church
[1] When no rank is given for a celebration, it is an optional memorial.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Advent marks the beginning of the Church year. Each year is marked by a different set of readings from the Bible in its worship. Advent is followed by Christmas, Ordinary Time, Lent, Easter and then Ordinary Time for the rest of the Church year. Each season has its own colour that we see in the cloths at church and the clothing worn by the priest:
Purple has several meanings, including suffering and penance as well as royalty. It is used during Advent and Lent, which are both times of preparation. The royalty of the cloth refers to Christ, who is our spiritual ruler.
White represents purity and holiness and is worn at the important feasts of Christmas and Easter. White is also worn at baptisms and funerals.
Green is worn during Ordinary Time, when we are not celebrating special feasts or seasons. It is the colour of living vegetation and represents life and growth.
Red is used on special occasions such as Pentecost and feast days of the saints who were martyrs. The red of Pentecost reminds us of the tongues of flame that appeared as the Holy Spirit came upon the disciples. Red is also the colour of blood shed by many of the saintly martyrs.
The colour of the robes worn by the priest is not intended to be a fashion statement. Colours have their own language and meaning. Knowing that language can help us to understand the Mass more deeply.
Pink or rose is worn twice a year, on the third Sunday of Advent and on the fourth Sunday of Lent. This colour represents joy. We also light a pink Advent candle on the third Sunday of Advent.
Gold is sometimes used at Christmas and Easter Masses to stress the special nature of this celebration.
The Catholic Liturgical Calendar for 2021-22 in Canada – Year C. The new Liturgical Year begins on the first Sunday of Advent, November 28, 2021.
From CCCB Publications:
The ORDO, or Liturgical Calendar, is an essential tool for bishops, priests, deacons, religious, parish staff and volunteers, liturgy committees, and school staff.
The ORDO provides detailed information and explanatory notes for each day of the Liturgical Year which begins the First Sunday of Advent and ends with the 34th Week in Ordinary time. In addition to the references to the Roman Missal, the Lectionary (for Sundays, Solemnities and Weekdays) and Liturgy of the Hours, references to the Book of Gospels and the Lectionary: Ritual Masses, Masses for Various Needs and Occasions, Votive Masses, Masses for the Dead are also included.
The ORDO is filled with Pastoral Notes indexed alphabetically by subject. The Pastoral Notes offer positive, practical and pastoral ideas and suggestions for the liturgy. Subjects include:
Reflections on the “Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy” Sacrosanctum Concilium
Catechesis and suggestions for celebrating Mass well on Sundays and in a variety of circumstances
Pastoral Notes for the celebration of Sacraments, including updated notes on the celebration of Matrimony, and Funerals
Rubrics and details governing Ritual Masses, Masses for Various Needs and Occasions and Masses for the Dead
Explanations of the National Collections, the Proper Calendar for the Dioceses of Canada, special dates for planning in 2022 and a Table of Moveable Dates are also included.
429 pages, 15 x 19 cm, wire-bound
Year of Grace Liturgical Posters and other calendars are available from Joseph’s Inspirational.
CARFLEO Liturgical Resources Resources
Description of the Liturgical Year from the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops