The Liturgical Calendar

LIKE MANY CHURCHES AND TRADITIONS, We follow the liturgical calendar and preach from the lectionary text. THESE SEASONS SHAPE OUR WORSHIP INDIVIDUALLY AND IN COMMUNITY.

In the season of Advent, we remember the many years – centuries, really – the people of God waited for the long-prophesied Messiah who eventually arrived through the birth of Jesus. The word Advent, in fact, means “coming” or “arrival.” It marks the beginning of the liturgical year because it is where the story begins.

During this season, we assume a posture of waiting. We choose to enter the story as it happened for those who came before us: with anticipation, with groaning, with longing, with hope.

It is no new practice for us to wait in the dark. We, too, live in a world of shadows. We, too, trust in a future victorious day. We, too, cling with a stubborn hope to what God has promised: the return of our coming King. Advent is a time for us to practice the “already but not yet” kind of waiting.

Liturgical colour is typically purple or blue.

Lent

In the season of Lent, we enter into the forty-day fast that Jesus undertook in the wilderness. Through this dedicated period of self-examination, we allow God to further shape us into the image of Jesus. We also align our hearts with the suffering of Jesus as we move ever closer toward Holy Week and the event of the crucifixion.

The season begins with Ash Wednesday, in which we receive the imposition of the ashes and are reminded we are but dust and to dust we shall return. During this season, we observe chosen forms of fasting, prayer, and service or charity for forty days but break the fast on Sundays, which are considered feast days of celebration throughout the church year.

Liturgical colour is typically purple or scarlet.

Holy Week

While the whole of Lent is a journey toward the cross with Jesus, Holy Week is where we experience this journey with the greatest intensity. On these pages, you’re invited to step into that intensity with intention through the lectionary passages that accompany each of the days of this week and through the suggested practices that allow you to embody the significance of each day.

Liturgical colour is typically red.

Easter

Easter is the pinnacle of the liturgical year. On this day, we celebrate the resurrection of Christ from the grave. This event that forms the foundation of our faith invites us to deepen our belief in the mysterious paradox that life follows death. In theological terms, this is called the paschal mystery.

The broader season of Easter, or Eastertide, lasts fifty days. During that time, we also observe Jesus’ ascension into heaven and the giving of the Holy Spirit to the church on the Day of Pentecost, which marks the end of the season.

Liturgical colour is typically white or gold.

Ordinary Time

The Season after Pentecost

The season after Pentecost is both the longest and last season in the liturgical year and is the second of the two seasons known as Ordinary Time. Here, we celebrate our role as the church in the ongoing life of Christ in the world, guided by the companionship and inspiration of the Holy Spirit.

The word ordinary here has two meanings. First, it connects to the word ordinal, which has to do with counted time. We are marking out the weeks between the high season of the church year and the Sunday lectionary texts serve as more prominent guides for our week-by-week devotional growth here than they do in the focused seasons of Advent, Christmas, Epiphany, Lent, and Easter.

The second meaning of ordinary relates to the contrast between the ordinary flavour of this season with the extraordinary life of the other seasons in the church year – seasons that are pinned to the lived experience of Jesus coming into and living through his time on earth before his return to heaven. Here in Ordinary Time, the life of Christ is lived through us, the church, as we give faithful attention to our formation, devotion, ministry and mission on a daily basis.

Liturgical colour is typically green.