Topic
The Liturgical Year
The rhythm of the Catholic year — Advent, Christmas, Lent, Easter and the holy days of obligation — and how to live each season.
Questions about the liturgical year
All in Q&A
What is Lent, and why do Catholics fast?
Lent is the forty-day season of preparation for Easter, beginning on Ash Wednesday. Catholics follow Jesus' forty days in the desert through prayer, fasting and almsgiving. Ash Wednesday and Good Friday are days of fasting and abstinence, and Fridays in Lent are days of abstinence from meat.
What is Advent?
Advent is the season of about four weeks before Christmas that begins the Church's liturgical year. It prepares for Christ's coming in two ways — remembering his birth in Bethlehem and awaiting his return in glory. It is a season of hopeful, joyful preparation.
What are holy days of obligation?
Holy days of obligation are feast days on which Catholics are required to attend Mass, as on Sundays. Every Sunday is one. Others vary by country; in the United States they include the Solemnity of Mary (Jan 1), the Ascension, the Assumption (Aug 15), All Saints (Nov 1), the Immaculate Conception (Dec 8) and Christmas (Dec 25).
Did Jesus really rise from the dead?
Yes. The Resurrection is the central truth of Christian faith: Jesus truly died and rose bodily on the third day. The empty tomb, the many appearances to his disciples, and the transformation of frightened followers into martyrs are powerful historical evidence for it.
When does Lent end?
Lent ends when the evening Mass of the Lord's Supper begins on Holy Thursday, which opens the Easter Triduum. Personal Lenten penances are voluntary and may be set aside on Sundays, though the Sundays of Lent are part of the season.
Is nocturnal adoration from Holy Thursday into Good Friday permitted?
Yes. After the Mass of the Lord's Supper, the faithful are encouraged to spend time in adoration before the reserved Blessed Sacrament. From midnight on, the adoration should continue without external solemnity, because the day of the Lord's Passion has begun.
Does abstinence from meat include animal byproducts?
Not for Latin-rite Catholics today. In the past, Lenten abstinence included meat byproducts like milk, eggs and butter — the origin of Fat Tuesday and Shrove Tuesday pancakes. It is still required in the Eastern Catholic Churches.
Isn't it wrong for a Catholic hospital cafeteria to serve meat on Lenten Fridays?
No. These cafeterias serve the general public, and non-Catholics are free to eat meat on Lenten Fridays. It would be a courtesy, though, to post a sign reminding Catholic patrons that it is a Lenten Friday and they must abstain.
Why is rose used in Advent, in the wreath and the vestments?
Advent is a season of penance, so its color is violet. On the Third Sunday, Gaudete ("Rejoice") Sunday, the color brightens to rose to mark the joyful anticipation of Christmas.
How did the Church determine that September 8 is Mary's birthday?
The Church usually assigns feast dates. September 8 falls nine months after December 8, when the Church celebrates Mary's Immaculate Conception.
Is it liturgically correct to put boulders and dried plants near the altar during Lent?
The *General Instruction of the Roman Missal* asks for moderation in decorating the altar and forbids flowers on it during Lent, except on Laetare Sunday, solemnities and feasts.
May our baby be baptized at Easter?
Yes. Baptism may be celebrated on any day, but Easter is especially fitting (canon 856). Pope Benedict XVI treasured having been baptized the day he was born, Holy Saturday 1927, with the newly blessed waters.
How should elderly Catholics observe fasting and abstinence during Lent?
Abstinence binds Latin Catholics from age 14 with no upper age limit, though those who medically need meat may be dispensed. Fasting binds from 18 until the beginning of one's 60th year; after that one is excused but may still fast if health permits.
Can parishioners give each other ashes on Ash Wednesday?
Lay ministers may help a priest or deacon distribute ashes, but only a priest or deacon may bless them. Leaving ashes unattended on the altar for people to give one another is not provided for and should not be allowed.
Why do we celebrate Jesus' birth on December 25?
We do not know the exact date, so December 25 may have been chosen somewhat arbitrarily. It may have suited because it falls near the winter solstice, when days begin to lengthen: the start of a season of light coming into the world.
What should I do about my sister's refusal to celebrate birthdays and holidays?
Point out that the Lord celebrated holidays (cf. Luke 2:41-43; John 6:3-5; 7:1-10; 10:22-23). Holidays are not worship of days or people but time set apart to focus on loving God and neighbor, the two great commandments.
May laymen take part in a dramatic reading of the Gospel during Lent?
Ordinarily only a deacon, priest or bishop proclaims the Gospel at Mass. The exception is the Passion in Holy Week, when the laity may join in, though a priest must read Christ's words. Dramatizing the Gospel on the Sundays of Lent has no support in Church documents.
How do we sanctify the Lord's Day (Sundays and holy days)?
It takes a common effort: not making unnecessary demands on others, ensuring time for rest and worship, taking part in the Eucharist, avoiding work and activities incompatible with the day's joy and rest, and using the day for spiritual enrichment and works of mercy.