Many of us like to recognize special events in our lives and the lives of others. We will have parties for birthdays, anniversaries and graduations. We will celebrate promotions, retirements and many other things just too numerous to mention. One event that many people celebrate is New Year’s Eve. People will attend parties to “ring-in” the New Year. Others may enjoy a quiet evening by watching television with their family or friends. Regardless of how you bring in the New Year, you are probably with someone that is special to you.
Just as there is a calendar year that mark events in our life, the Church has a liturgical year that will mark events of both the life of Jesus and the Church. These many events deserve recognition and celebration. By use of the liturgical calendar we are able to revisit the events annually. This gives us the opportunity to rediscover them as we grow in maturity and spirituality. Some yearly celebrations include the birth of Christ, his baptism, passion and resurrection. The calendar also includes the feast days of men and women who have played important roles in the growth of our faith. Through the use of Holy Days, the Church will call our attention to special events in the history of our faith that should be celebrated, remembered and prayed upon.
The liturgical year of the Catholic Church begins with the first Sunday of Advent. There are many things you will immediately notice on the first Sunday of a new liturgical year. The clergy will be wearing violet vestments and not the green color that has been worn since the end of the Easter season. The Church will begin a new cycle of readings. For many churches the most obvious change will be the displaying of an Advent wreath. The Advent wreath is used during the Advent season and will remain out until the beginning of the Christmas season.
The official end of the liturgical year is the last Saturday before the beginning of the Advent season. To properly celebrate the end of the liturgical year we must first consider what has happened during this concluding year. We used the liturgical year to recall the life of Christ here on earth. We heard readings at the Mass that are only read every three years. We celebrated important events in Church history. The Church ends each year in Ordinary time; giving us the opportunity to grow as we contemplated the teachings of Jesus anew.
The last Sunday of the liturgical year is the Solemnity of our Lord Jesus Christ, King of the Universe. To “ring-out” the end of the liturgical year the Solemnity will mark the culmination of our spiritual growth and understanding for the ending year. Do not wait until the end of the calendar year to review your spiritual life. Review and resolve to make the changes that will bring you closer to God. Let us “ring-in” the new year proclaiming that Christ is our King.
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