What is Ordinary
Time?
The Latin Tempus Per
Annum ("time throughout the year") is rendered into English as "Ordinary
Time." Many sources, online and in print, suggest that Ordinary Time
gets its name from the word ordinal, meaning "numbered," since the
Sundays of Ordinary Time, as in other seasons, are expressed
numerically. However, others suggest the etymology of "Ordinary Time" is
related to our word "ordinary" (which itself has a connotation of time
and order, derived from the Latin word ordo). Ordinary Time occurs
outside of other liturgical time periods, periods in which specific
aspects of the mystery of Christ are celebrated. According to The
General Norms for the Liturgical Year and the Calendar, the days of
Ordinary Time, especially the Sundays, "are devoted to the mystery of
Christ in all its aspects."
Ordinary Time,
depending on the year, runs either 33 or 34 weeks. When it runs 33
weeks, one of the numbered weeks is omitted. The number that gets
omitted is the one that would normally be scheduled to be observed after
Pentecost Sunday. For example, in 2010, there were 9 weeks of winter
Ordinary Time, so logically, the 10th Week of Ordinary Time should be
scheduled after Pentecost. However, because there are only 33 weeks of
Ordinary Time in 2010, the 10th week is skipped, and actual numbered
week observed is the 11th week of Ordinary Time.
Basically, Ordinary
Time encompasses that part of the Christian year that does not fall
within the seasons of Advent, Christmas, Lent, or Easter. The Catholic
Church celebrates two periods of the year as Ordinary Time. The first
period begins after the Feast Baptism of the Lord (the Sunday after The
Epiphany) has ended. Some interpret this to mean that Ordinary Time
begins on Sunday night, while others, including The General Norms for
the Liturgical Year and the Calendar, specifically mention the first
period of Ordinary Time beginning on the Monday after the Baptism of the
Lord. Either way, the point is the same. The next Sunday is still
reckoned "The Second Sunday in Ordinary Time," because it is the Sunday
of the second week in Ordinary Time. The reckoning can be confusing, and
has many asking "what happened to the first Sunday in Ordinary Time?"
This first period of Ordinary Time runs until the Tuesday evening before
Ash Wednesday. The Second period of Ordinary Time runs from the Monday
after Pentecost until Evening Prayer is said the night before Advent
begins. This includes Christ the King Sunday, the final Sunday of
Ordinary Time. In some denominations, the Sundays of the second period
of Ordinary Time are numbered "Sundays after Pentecost."
Ordinary time does
not need to be "ordinary," and is not meant to mean that somehow we get
a break from the Liturgical Year. The opposite is true: Ordinary Time
celebrates "the mystery of Christ in all its aspects." Many important
liturgical celebrations fall during Ordinary Time, including, Trinity,
Corpus Christi, All Saints, the Assumption of Mary, and Christ the King.
In addition, the Church continues to celebrate Saints days and other
events such as The Octave of Christian Unity. The major feasts, when
occurring on a Sunday, trump the regular Ordinary Time Sunday lessons
and liturgy. In the American Catholic Church, Corpus Christi is usually
transferred to a Sunday, so often there are fewer than the 33 or 34
Sundays labeled "Sundays of Ordinary Time," although these Sundays still
fall within Ordinary Time. We also may remember and celebrate the parts
of Jesus' life that were ordinary, much like our own lives. The color of
green is appropriate because it is the most ordinary color in our
natural environment.
A Prayer for Ordinary Time
Lord Jesus
I know that all human relations take time
if they are to grow and deepen.
This is also true of my relations
with You, the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit,
which must grow over the course of my life.
However, this growth is not automatic;
time alone means nothing
unless I add earnest efforts to it.
You have inspired Your Church to set aside special times
when this growth can develop more intensely -
the special seasons of the Church Year.
If I fail to move toward You during these times,
I waste precious opportunities
and endanger my spiritual life.
Help me to take them seriously
and make a real attempt to use them well,
so that I may grow into the person
You want me to be. Amen!
New Saint Joseph People's Prayer Book
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