Rachel Evans
The Catholic liturgical calendar is a complex system that guides the faithful through the celebration of sacred mysteries and the life of Christ. The liturgical year is divided into two cycles: the Proper of Time and the Proper of Saints, with each cycle consisting of various seasons punctuated by feast days. The Proper of Time includes the entire cycle of celebrations of the mystery of salvation, while the Proper of Saints commemorates the birthdays of saints. The liturgical calendar also includes holy days of obligation, where the faithful must attend Mass and abstain from work, as well as days of prayer and special observances. The liturgical year begins with the first Sunday of Advent, and each season is associated with specific liturgical colours. The Catholic Church adopted the Gregorian calendar in 1582, aligning its holidays with the seasons and establishing January 1 as the start of the year.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Basis of the calendar | The Catholic liturgical calendar is based on the earth's rotation around the sun. |
| Months | The Catholic liturgical calendar has twelve months. |
| Leap year | The Catholic liturgical calendar follows the Gregorian calendar, which revised the formula for determining leap years to only include years divisible by 400. |
| Start of the year | The start of the liturgical year is the First Sunday of Advent, which falls on or closest to November 30. |
| Seasons | The liturgical year consists of a seasonal cycle (Proper of Time) and a sanctoral cycle (Proper of Saints). |
| Holy days | Sundays are holy days of obligation, and six Solemnities are also observed as feasts of precept in the United States. |
| Liturgical colors | The liturgical color of Ordinary Time is green, while the liturgical colors of Lent are violet or purple. |
| Feasts | The feast of the Holy Family is celebrated on the Sunday following Christmas. The Solemnity of the Sacred Heart of Jesus is celebrated on June 27. |
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What You'll Learn
The liturgical year
Christmas marks the birth of Our Lord, and the Sunday following Christmas is the feast of the Holy Family. On January 1st, the faithful celebrate the solemnity of Mary, Mother of God. In the United States, the Sunday following January 1st marks Epiphany, the visit of the Magi. However, according to the universal church calendar, Epiphany is celebrated on January 6th. The Sunday after Epiphany is the Feast of the Baptism of the Lord, which closes the Christmas season and sets the stage for Ordinary Time. Ordinary Time, derived from "ordinalis", meaning "showing order, denoting an order of succession", is a season of counted weeks, focusing on the early life and public ministry of Christ.
Throughout the liturgical year, the Church also observes the birthdays of the Saints, celebrating their feasts and proclaiming the wonderful works of Christ in their lives. These celebrations offer examples of faith and devotion for the faithful to imitate.
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Seasonal and sanctoral cycles
The liturgical calendar of the Catholic Church consists of a seasonal cycle and a sanctoral cycle, also known as the Proper of Time and the Proper of Saints, respectively. The liturgical year begins on the First Sunday of Advent, which falls on or closest to November 30.
The Proper of Time, or the seasonal cycle, follows the course of seasons punctuated by various feast days. The seasons include Advent, which lasts four Sundays; Christmas, which recalls the Nativity of Jesus Christ; Sacred Paschal Triduum, the holiest three days of the Church's year; and Easter, a 50-day celebration of the resurrection. The seasons are also marked by celebrations of the mystery of Christ, including the birth of Our Lord, his first coming, and his return to judge the living and the dead.
The Proper of Saints, or the sanctoral cycle, is an annual cycle of feasts that are not necessarily connected to the seasons. It includes the celebration of saints' days and various events and mysteries of the faith, such as the Transfiguration of Our Lord and the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary. The calendar of saints has been changed throughout history to remove some saints and add others.
The liturgical calendar provides an opportunity for the faithful to celebrate the sacred mysteries of the Catholic faith and to live the mystery of Christ in their own lives. The celebrations and feasts of the liturgical year are integrated into a liturgical calendar, which is governed by the Church.
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Holy days of obligation
The holy days of obligation for Latin Church Catholics are indicated in canon 1246 of the 1983 Code of Canon Law. They are as follows:
- Sunday, on which the paschal mystery is celebrated, is to be observed as the primordial holy day of obligation.
- The Nativity of our Lord Jesus Christ (Christmas)
- The Epiphany
- The Ascension
- The Body and Blood of Christ
- Holy Mary the Mother of God
- Her Immaculate Conception
- Her Assumption
- Saint Joseph
- Saint Peter and Saint Paul the Apostles
- All Saints
However, the conference of bishops can suppress some of these holy days or transfer them to a Sunday with the prior approval of the Apostolic See. For example, in the Diocese of Macau, the holy days of obligation are the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Christmas, and the Solemnity of Mary, Mother of God. In the United States, the Epiphany has been permanently transferred to the first Sunday after January 1.
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Liturgical colours
White (or gold) is a festive, joyful colour used during the Christmas and Easter seasons and on major feast days, such as the celebrations of the Lord (except for his Passion), of the Blessed Virgin Mary, of the Holy Angels, and of Saints who were not martyrs. White is also used for funerals because it symbolises the Resurrection.
Purple (or violet) symbolises repentance and penance. Vestments of purple or violet are used during the seasons of Advent and Lent. The colour reminds us of the violet flower that bows its head and is a symbol of humility.
Green is the colour worn most often during liturgies in Ordinary Time. It is a sign of life in nature and, as such, represents growth, life, and hope. It symbolises the graces that draw people into the life of God.
Red symbolises both blood and fire. It is the colour used on Palm Sunday, Pentecost Sunday, and for celebrations of the Sacrament of Confirmation. It is also the colour traditionally associated with martyrs and is worn on the feast days of martyrs.
Rose pink is an optional colour that may be used on the Third Sunday of Advent and the Fourth Sunday of Lent. On both of these days, the Entrance Antiphon calls us to rejoice, so the pink vestments mark a softening of the penitential tone of the season.
It is important to note that the colours used in the liturgical calendar may vary from tradition to tradition and even from church to church. For example, the Byzantine Rite, used by the Eastern Orthodox Church, the Byzantine Lutheran Churches, and the Eastern Catholic Churches of Byzantine Rite, does not have a universal system of colours.
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The Gregorian calendar
In 1582, seasonal equinoxes were occurring 10 days earlier than they should have according to the Julian calendar, and some church holidays, such as Easter, were falling outside of their proper seasons. Pope Gregory XIII's reform of the calendar involved dropping 10 days from the month of October and revising the formula for determining leap years.
Under the Gregorian calendar, only years divisible by 400 (e.g., 1600, 2000) at the end of a century are considered leap years. This calendar also established January 1 as the first day of the new year, although this change was not universally accepted at first. Protestant countries, including England and its colonies, continued to use the Julian calendar and did not recognize January 1 as New Year's Day until 1752.
The transition period between 1582 and 1752, when two different calendars and two different new year start dates were in use in Europe and its colonies, created a "double dating" system in English and colonial records. Dates falling between January 1 and March 25 (the former legal start of the year) were often written with both the "Old Style" and "New Style" years, separated by a slash or hyphen, to avoid misinterpretation.
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Frequently asked questions
The Catholic liturgical calendar is a calendar that dictates the liturgical year, which follows the same course of seasons punctuated by various feast days. The liturgical year consists of a seasonal cycle and a sanctoral cycle, called the Proper of Time and the Proper of Saints, respectively.
The liturgical year begins on the First Sunday of Advent, which is the Sunday that falls on or closest to November 30. The liturgical year includes holy days of obligation, which are days when the faithful are obliged to participate in Mass and abstain from unnecessary work or other activities. Each Sunday is a holy day of obligation, and six Solemnities are also observed as holy days in the United States.
The Gregorian calendar is a calendar that was authorized by Pope Gregory XIII in 1582 and adopted by most Roman Catholic countries. It revised the formula for determining leap years so that only years divisible by 400 at the end of a century would be leap years. The Gregorian calendar also established January 1 as the first day of the new year.
