An Overview of the Liturgical Year

Liturgical Year

• The calendar year we observe in our daily lives starts with January.
• The Church's liturgical year begins with Advent and follows a three-year cycle: Year A, Year B, and Year C.
• On December 1, 2024 we moved into Year C.

Season of Advent 
Advent is a time of watchful, joyful, and hopeful preparation for the Coming of the Lord, both the “first coming” of Jesus (Christmas) and his “second coming” (Parousia). 

• Advent begins four Sundays before Christmas; thus it is between three and four weeks long, but only rarely four full weeks

Season of Christmas 
Christmas marks the Incarnation and birth of Jesus Christ. The Church celebrates it not as a one day event, but as a season lasting several weeks. The exact length of the Christmas Season varies from year to year. 

• Christmas Day: always on Dec. 25 (technically beginning on the evening of Dec. 24), so it can occur on any day of the week.
• Christmas Octave: intensive celebration for eight days, up to and including Jan. 1.
• Christmas Season: celebration continues through the Epiphany, up to the Baptism of the Lord.

Season of Ordinary Time – Part 1
This liturgical season can also be called “Ordered Time”. 

• The first part of “Ordinary Time” begins after the Christmas season (the day after the Baptism of the Lord) and runs up until Ash Wednesday, when Lent begins.

Season of Lent 
Lent is a season of preparation for Easter, marked by fasting, prayer, and almsgiving. For those preparing to be baptized at Easter, the “Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults” (R.C.I.A.) includes a “Rite of Election” (usually done early in Lent) and three “Scrutinies” (done on the 3rd, 4th, and 5th Sundays of Lent). 

• Lent begins on Ash Wednesday and ends on Holy Thursday afternoon.
• Ash Wednesday is a day of fasting and abstinence. Catholics attend Mass and have their foreheads marked with an ash cross, a tangible sign of our mortality and repentance.
• Palm Sunday is the Sunday before Easter, commemorating the entry of Jesus into Jerusalem. The congregation takes part in reading the Passion Narratives at Mass.
• Holy Week is the week before Easter. It includes Palm Sunday, Holy Thursday, Good Friday, Holy Saturday, and Easter Sunday.
• The Easter Triduum refers to Good Friday, Holy Saturday, and Easter Sunday.

Season of Easter 
The Season of Easter celebrates the Death & Resurrection of Jesus Christ (called the Paschal Mystery).

• The date of Easter falls on the first Sunday after the first full moon after the vernal equinox.
• Easter Triduum: “three holy days” from Holy Thursday evening to Easter Sunday evening:
• Holy Thursday commemorates the Last Supper of Jesus with his disciples on the night he was betrayed. This Mass includes Washing of the Feet, followed by a Eucharistic procession and adoration of the Blessed Sacrament.
• Good Friday marks the Passion, Death, and Burial of Jesus. There is no Mass on this day, only a service that includes veneration of the cross, intercessory prayers, and Communion (with hosts consecrated on Holy Thursday). The church and altar are bare and holy water has been removed.
• Holy Saturday commemorates the time when Jesus was in the tomb. No Masses celebrated until sundown.
• Easter Vigil is considered the most holy and important Mass of the year. It begins after sunset and includes lighting of the Easter Fire and Easter Candle, proclamation of the Easter Exsultet, extensive readings from the Old Testament, and the Baptism of new Christians.
• Easter Sunday celebrates the day of Jesus’ Resurrection; the the renewal of Baptismal Promises for all the faithful at Mass.
• Easter Octave is eight days of intensive celebration, from Easter Sunday to the 2nd Sunday of Easter (now also known as “Divine Mercy Sunday”.
• Easter Season lasts a full fifty days (seven weeks) up to and including the Feast of Pentecost.
• Pentecost Sunday occurs seven weeks or fifty days after Easter. It is called the birthday of the church because that is when the Holy Spirit descended on the disciples, compelling them to go forth and preach the Good News.

Season of Ordinary Time – Part II 
The second Season of Ordinary Time begins the Monday after Pentecost Sunday until the First Sunday of Advent, which begins the next liturgical year.

Liturgical Colors

Each liturgical season has its own color which is seen on the priest's vestments, the altar server's cincture (rope belt), and the altar and ambo cloths. 

• Advent – Purple (on Third Sunday of Advent, Rose)
• Christmas – White
• Lent – Purple (on the Fourth Sunday of Lent, Rose)
• Easter Season – White
• Ordinary Time – Green
• Special Colors for Particular Celebrations within any Liturgical Season:
• White – Solemnities; Memorials; Feasts; Funerals
• Red – Feasts of Apostles, Evangelists, and Martyrs