Skip to main content
Main Menu Toggle
Miscellaneous » Liturgical Seasons & Events » Liturgical Seasons and Events

Liturgical Seasons and Events

Throughout the year, we celebrate liturgical seasons and events together at St. Josaphat. Click any of the pages listed to the right for more information.

Holy Days of Obligation

  • January 1: The solemnity of Mary, Mother of God*

  • Thursday of the Sixth Week of Easter: The solemnity of the Ascension

  • August 15: The solemnity of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary*

  • November 1: The solemnity of All Saints*

  • December 8: The solemnity of the Immaculate Conception

  • December 25: The solemnity of the Nativity of Our Lord Jesus Christ

*Whenever January 1, the solemnity of Mary, Mother of God, or August 15, the solemnity of the Assumption, or November 1, the solemnity of All Saints, falls on a Saturday or on a Monday, the precept to attend Mass is abrogated.

Liturgical Year

The liturgical year is made up of six seasons:

  • Advent - four weeks of preparation before the celebration of Jesus' birth

  • Christmas - recalling the Nativity of Jesus Christ and his manifestation to the peoples of the world

  • Lent - a six-week period of penance before Easter

  • Sacred Paschal Triduum - the holiest "Three Days" of the Church's year, where the Christian people recall the suffering, death, and resurrection of Jesus

  • Easter - 50 days of joyful celebration of the Lord's resurrection from the dead and his sending forth of the Holy Spirit

  • Ordinary Time - divided into two sections (one span of 4-8 weeks after Christmas Time and another lasting about six months after Easter Time), wherein the faithful consider the fullness of Jesus' teachings and works among his people

The mystery of Christ, unfolded through the cycle of the year, calls us to live his mystery in our own lives. This call is best illustrated in the lives of Mary and the saints, celebrated by the Church throughout the year. There is no tension between the mystery of Christ and the celebration of the saints, but rather a marvelous harmony. The Blessed Virgin Mary is joined by an inseparable bond to the saving work of her Son, and the feasts of all the saints proclaim the wonderful works of Christ in his servants and offer the faithful fitting examples for their imitation.

Each liturgical year begins on the First Sunday of Advent during the preceding calendar year (i.e., the First Sunday of Advent in 2019 began the 2020 liturgical year).