Truth & Beauty

Q: What do we mean by “Ordinary Time?”

After the Solemnity of the Baptism of the Lord last Sunday, we left the Christmas season behind and once again entered what the Church calls Ordinary Time. But what does that mean? 

Ordinary Time is the period on the Church calendar outside of Advent, Christmas, Lent, and Easter. It is broken into two blocks: the days between Christmas and Lent, and the days between Easter and Advent. Before the 1969 reforms, these periods were called Time after Epiphany and Time after Pentecost, respectively (in some traditions, time was counted after Trinity Sunday). For various reasons—including the complexity of the older calendar—the Church opted to combine these periods under a single heading.Here, we might note that the term “Ordinary Time” does not appear in the Latin typical editions of the liturgical books. The original term used is Tempus per Annum, or “time through the year.” Even the first vernacular edition labeled the period “Season of the Year.” In fact, it’s not entirely clear how “Ordinary Time” came to be used. ¹

Today, we tend to define “ordinary” as meaning “plain” or “dull,” but this is not what the Church intends. Rather, “ordinary” here means “as expected” or “customary,” as opposed to “extraordinary.” The Sundays and weekdays of Ordinary Time are not marked by a focus on a single aspect of Christ’s life but are meant to encompass the whole mystery of His life. We are no longer in an extraordinary season of fasting or celebration, but have returned to our regular spiritual rhythms.²

So while we may miss the joy and festivity of the Christmas season, we are reminded that in our daily walk with Christ there need be no dull moments. He longs to meet us every day of the year.

Endnotes:

1. Michael P. Foley, “The Mysterious Meaning of Ordinary Time,” New Liturgical Movement, February 20, 2020.
   https://www.newliturgicalmovement.org/2020/02/the-mysterious-meaning-of-ordinary-time.html
2. Catholic Culture, “Our Ordinary Walk of Life: Understanding Tempus per Annum.”
   https://www.catholicculture.org/commentary/our-ordinary-walk-life-understanding-tempus-per-annum/