Ordinary Time!

Besides the times of the year that have their own distinctive character with special celebrations, there remains in the yearly cycle thirty three or thirty four weeks in which no particular aspect of the mystery of Christ is celebrated, but rather the mystery of Christ is honored, lived, and practiced in its fullness especially on our Sundays celebrations. This period is known as Ordinary Time.

The Ordinary Time begins on the day after the Baptism of the Lord and continues through the day before Ash Wednesday, which begins the Lenten season. This portion of Ordinary Time focuses on the childhood of Jesus and then on his public ministry. It will resume again when the Easter season ends after the feast of Pentecost until the last day before Advent. Because this portion of Ordinary Time occurs after the celebrations of Jesus’ Passion and Resurrection, this segment of Ordinary Time is focused on the love of God for us in Jesus Christ, the life and mission of the Church, and the preparation for Christ’s second and last coming. And the Feast of Christ the King, in which we celebrate Jesus as King of kings, caps off the season of Ordinary Time as the final Sunday before Advent begins.

The weeks of the Ordinary Time represent the ordered life of the Church; the period in which we live our lives neither in feasting nor in more severe penance, but always and especially in watchfulness with urgency for the expected Second Coming of Christ.

For us Catholics, Ordinary Time is the part of the year in which Christ, the Lamb of God, walks among us and transforms our lives. It is also a time that we set aside for reflecting on and celebrating our call to follow Jesus day by day.

As we enter this time of spiritual growth, let us try until the last breath of our lives to be open to meet the Lord everywhere that He may be found and to love and serve Him in everyone that we meet.

May God bless you all!

Fr. Anthonio Jean