Season of Ordinary Time
Photo: Just a dream, just an ordinary dream by Wade Brooks / CC BY-NC 2.0
The season of Ordinary Time is the liturgical season when we are not celebrating a particular festival time (e.g., Christmas and Easter) or a time of preparation or penance (e.g., Advent and Lent). The Season is named Ordinary because the Sundays are numbered. The season is named after Latin word for numbers in a series, which is ordinalis.
However, this is not meant to be a time that is ordinary, meaning nothing special. This is the time when instead of simply celebrating the festal mysteries, we live into them. The feasts are reminders of who God is and what God is doing. We rejoice in knowing that our God lives among us, has overcome the stigma of death, and has sent the Spirit into our lives. But in Ordinary time we are striving to find that same God in the everyday moments of our lives. It is a time of lived hope and growth as evidenced by the green color of the vestments.
Richard Rohr notes that “We cannot not live in the presence of God. We are totally surrounded and infused by God.” Becoming alert and aware of our God within and among us is a sacred venture into love. And there is nothing ordinary about a life lived in love. So, let us enter this Ordinary season, praying with openness and gratitude for the God who blesses and graces every moment of our lives.
Karen Rossman
Reflections celebrated on Sundays and special feasts during this holy Season of Ordinary Time will be found under Scriptural Reflections. https://www.dominicancenter.org/spirituality/scriptural-reflections/