We often hear the liturgical year described as the year that celebrates and renews the life of Jesus over the course of an entire year.
But are we sure that we have a clear understanding of what the liturgical year is? In this article, we will simply try to discover what the liturgical year is and how to live it.
What is the liturgical year?
The most immediate image for describing the liturgical year is that of a 365-day circle developed annually around Christ, the sun of truth and holiness. In this annual cycle of days, the Church “distributes the whole mystery of Christ, from the Incarnation and Nativity to the Ascension, Pentecost, and the expectation of the blessed hope and the return of the Lord. Thus recalling the mysteries of redemption, she opens to the faithful the riches of the saving actions and merits of her Lord, makes them present to all times, and enables the faithful to come into contact with them and be filled with the grace of salvation” (Sacrosanctum Concilium, 102).
In celebrating this annual cycle of the mysteries of Christ, the holy Church venerates with particular love the blessed Virgin Mary, Mother of God, inseparably united with the saving work of her Son: in Mary she admires and exalts the most sublime fruit of redemption, and in her she joyfully contemplates, as in a most pure image, what she desires and hopes to be in its entirety.
The Church has also included in the course of the year the commemoration of the martyrs and other saints who, having reached perfection with the help of God’s manifold grace and already possessing eternal salvation, sing perfect praise to God in heaven and intercede for us. On the saints’ feast days, in fact, the Church proclaims the paschal mystery fulfilled in them, who suffered with Christ and are glorified with him; she presents their examples to the faithful, drawing everyone to the Father through Christ; and she implores God’s blessings through their merits.
What is the purpose of the liturgical year?
The liturgical year is a true journey of salvation, because the Church makes the mystery of Redemption present in all its fullness of grace. The liturgical year is therefore a year of grace: Christians are called to meditate on the Word and the life of Jesus and to compare their own lives with them, undergoing conversion. Conversion is not an event that happens once and for all; it is a choice that must be renewed every day because we are all called to holiness.
Therefore, we can say that the liturgical year is the year of the Christian, during which we are invited to become increasingly aware each day of the wonders God works among us, making the history of salvation that God accomplished in Christ through the Holy Spirit present in our own time.
What is the foundation of the liturgical year?
The foundation and core of the entire liturgical year is Sunday. We can truly call this day the “Easter of the week”, on which the passion, resurrection, and glory of the Lord Jesus are commemorated, and on which the Lord enters our lives to transform, renew, and recreate them. For this reason, Sunday is the Lord’s Day, the day of the Eucharist, when the Church gathers in assembly around the table of the word and the body and blood of Christ to commemorate and joyfully participate, in thanksgiving, in the victory of her Lord, becoming aware that she is the community of believers and those risen in Christ. Hence the insistence of the Roman Pontiffs on recommending its celebration: “Every Sunday we go to Mass, because it is the day of the Lord’s resurrection. This is why Sunday is so important to us” (Pope Francis, Audience, November 5, 2014).
What is the structure of the liturgical year?
The liturgical year consists of 52 weeks, like the civil year, but with a particular structure, because it is “liturgical,” that is, based on the liturgy, the Church’s official prayer, which, through its various celebrations, makes the saving work of its Lord present and communicates it.
The center of the liturgical year is the Lord’s Paschal Triduum, of the crucified, buried, and risen Lord, which culminates on Easter Sunday. The liturgical year is divided into:
• Advent (purple)
• Christmas Season (white)
• Ordinary Time (green)
• Lent (purple)
• Easter Season (white)
God’s Word throughout the liturgical year
It is not possible to read all the Word of God contained in the 73 books that make up the Bible in the course of one year; therefore, it is distributed across the Sundays in a three-year cycle: Year A, Year B, and Year C. Each cycle begins with the first Sunday of Advent.
For the reading of the Gospel, especially on the Sundays of Ordinary Time, the passages are chosen by reading one Gospel consecutively:
• Year A: the Gospel of Matthew is read,
• Year B: the Gospel of Mark and the last six chapters of John are read (as in the current year),
• Year C: the Gospel of Luke is read.
The Gospel of John is read during the Christmas Season, Lent, and the Easter Season.
On weekdays, the Gospel is the same each year, while the first reading follows a two-year cycle according to even and odd years.
The liturgical calendar
The seasons of the liturgical year and the various liturgical celebrations experienced by Christian communities are guided by a resource called the “Liturgical Calendar”.
Not only priests, but also laypeople, especially those who help prepare celebrations in different churches, will find the Liturgical Calendar a useful resource that accompanies them with all the information needed to live the entire year in the company of God’s Word, for more attentive preparation for the celebration of Holy Mass.
The liturgical-pastoral planner
The 2025 Liturgical-Pastoral Planner also accompanies the faithful throughout the liturgical year, with insights for both daily life and the spiritual journey.
Organized over 13 months, each day includes a wealth of highly useful information: the liturgical calendar of the Roman Rite Church; the readings for Mass and the prefaces; the rank (solemnity, feast, obligatory memorial, optional memorial); the saint of the day; the weekly celebration of the Liturgy of the Hours; the liturgical color; international and national observances; and events from the general calendar of the 2025 Jubilee.
Each month presents: the prayer intention entrusted to the Pope’s Worldwide Prayer Network and the intention of the Italian bishops; insights related to the liturgical seasons, celebrations, and rites, with many practical suggestions and tips for living the liturgical year and the Jubilee journey to the fullest.
