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Celebrating the New Liturgical Year 

By Nancy Belmont, Director of Faith Formation

Happy New Liturgical Year! How are you celebrating? For the first time, I am planning a liturgical year scavenger hunt for my parish in cooperation with my Director of Religious Education. Celebrating annual Catholic milestones can and SHOULD be fun. What’s the best part about the liturgical year? There’s always a reason to celebrate.

What is the liturgical year?

Our secular year is made up of seasons and holidays that make each month unique. Similarly, the Church’s liturgical year is made up of six seasons, which are Advent, Christmas, Ordinary Time, Lent, Triduum, and Easter. It begins on the first Sunday of Advent and ends with the Feast of Christ the King.

Fun facts about the liturgical year

Triduum, composed of Holy Thursday, Good Friday, and Holy Saturday, is the shortest liturgical season.  

Ordinary Time, which is divided into two parts: Ordinary Time I after Christmas and before Lent, and Ordinary Time II after Easter, is the longest. The first part of Ordinary Time lasts 4-8 weeks, and the second part lasts about six months. This year, Ordinary Time I lasts for seven full weeks. After Easter, we pick up where we left off with our winter Ordinary Time. In 2020, after 12 Sundays of Lent and Easter celebrations, we will make a sudden return to Ordinary Time on June 1, the ninth Sunday of Ordinary Time. 

Our readings go in a three-year cycle. This liturgical year, we’ll return to Cycle A and the Gospel readings for Sunday will principally be taken from Matthew.

Resources to learn more

  • To explore the “nuts and bolts” of the liturgical year, including the readings of each day, holy days for certain dioceses, and American feast days, consult “The Liturgical Calendar for the Dioceses of the United States of America 2020,” which is published by the Committee on Divine Worship of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops. This guide also has a section entitled “Liturgical Titles in Spanish” for feast days and seasons.

 

  • Six-week Bible studies for your CWOC group:

 

Familiarize yourself with the words of Matthew, gain context for the scripture, and discuss the Bible in groups with these four studies, which explore the infancy narrative, the Sermon on the Mount, discipleship, and Jesus’ passion, death and resurrection.

 

  • Celebrating the Liturgical Year with the Family:

 

Did you know that each month of the year is devoted to something specific, such as the Sacred Heart of Jesus or the Eucharist? Learn more about these Catholic traditions and how to integrate them into the life of your family by exploring the blog “Shower of Roses.” It also contains plans for Advent and Lent, printable activities, and party ideas for major feasts.

  • A spin-off of “Shower of Roses” is the culinary blog, “Catholic Cuisine.” Make every day a culinary celebration by adopting these recipes which range from simple to more involved.

For example, take this basic hot chocolate recipe and customize it to make German hot chocolate to commemorate St. Nicholas, Mexican hot chocolate to celebrate St. Juan Diego and Our Lady of Guadalupe, or Scandinavian orange hot chocolate in memory of St. Lucia.

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