Bulletin Q&A Article; Published 5-19-24:
Father mentioned during his homily that after Pentecost we will be in Ordinary Time. Why is it called Ordinary Time?
In the liturgical year we have two seasons of preparation, Advent and Lent (Tempus Adventus and Tempus Quadragesimae), and two seasons of celebration, Christmas and Easter (Tempus Nativitatis and Tempus Paschale). Filling in the rest of the year we have what the Church calls Ordinary Time. In Latin it is called Tempus Per Annum, or literally time throughout the year.
The reason for using our English word ordinary to describe this time throughout the year is not exactly clear. Some suggest it is because we number the weeks through this long season using ordinal numbers. Remember the difference between cardinal numbers and ordinal numbers from your math classes; the cardinal numbers are the counting numbers, 1, 2, 3, etc., and the ordinal numbers indicate position such as first, second, third, etc.. Others suggest it comes from the Latin ordo and simply has a connotation of time and order. Regardless, it is important to remember that it is not ordinary according to the word’s common usage. It should not be common, or boring, or deficient in quality.
Each time we come to Mass, we should try to comprehend how extraordinary and miraculous our liturgy is. Each Sunday throughout the year we should celebrate the paschal mystery with the same focus as we celebrate it on Easter Sunday, the culmination of the year. In fact, in some ways, we can allow ourselves to become even more focused during Ordinary Time because we do not have as many external celebrations to distract us. When we attend Mass every Sunday throughout the year, it should be a glorious celebration. We need to pay attention, participate, and be involved with the liturgy so that it can be the source and summit of our lives as Christians; so that we can draw closer to the Lord and learn what He wants to teach us. I encourage you to pay attention to the words of all the prayers, of all the readings including the responsorial psalm, and also of the hymns we sing—Hillary does not choose them at random. God is trying to speak to us and we need to pay attention all year long.