What Is Time?

Kristopher W. Seaman

One of my former professors, in That means, we are always invited anticipation for the next class ses- by our Triune God to enter into the sion, said we would begin to look at depths of the Paschal Mystery. the liturgical calendar — the way the What does the Paschal Mystery Church tells time. The first topic have to do with Ordinary Time? would be Ordinary Time. Then he The Paschal Mystery is so big, said something that would change so deep, so vast, that we journey the way I view, celebrate, and prepare through this mystery for a whole for Ordinary Time. With excitement, year: the . Sundays in he exclaimed, “There is nothing Ordinary Time, as the official doc- ordinary about Ordinary Time!” At ument on the liturgical year the the time, I was quite perplexed. General Norms for the Liturgical What does he mean that Ordinary Year and the Calendar states, “are Time isn’t ordinary? Then why call devoted to the mystery of Christ in it ordinary? This confused under- all its aspects” (43). Other liturgical graduate walked back to his dorm seasons focus on one aspect. For room and began feverishly reading instance, during we focus on for the next class on Ordinary Time. turning away from sin in order for When we hear the word “ordi- our Triune God to transform us nary,” we tend to think, “common,” into more faithful disciples. Feasts everyday, or mundane. In other for saints celebrate the exemplary words, if something is ordinary it life of a saint who witnessed to isn’t special. Ordinary from its Latin root means “order”. Christ’s Paschal Mystery in his or her very life, sometimes When we order something, we arrange in a . That is, unto death. The 33 or 34 weeks in Ordinary Time then cele- it is numbered. It is ordinal. This same professor suggested brate the whole Paschal Mystery on each Sunday. According that Ordinary Time is Ordinal Time. It is counted time. We to the General Norms for the Liturgical Year and the Calendar, now know why it is called Ordinary Time, but how is it dif- “Ordinary Time begins on the Monday after the Sunday fol- ferentiated from other liturgical seasons and feasts? lowing 6 January and continues until Tuesday before Ash The liturgical year is the calendar the Church uses for Wednesday inclusive. It begins again on Monday after seasons, feasts, and . Various calendars are used and ends before evening prayer I of the First Sunday for various reasons: civil, school year, lunar (for example, for of ” (44). Therefore, Ordinary Time is segmented into calculating Chinese New Year or Jewish holy days), etc. The two parts, with Lent---Pentecost being in liturgical year basically celebrates one thing: The Paschal the middle. Mystery. The Paschal Mystery is Jesus Christ’s birth, life, My former professor was indeed right; there is nothing Passion, death, Resurrection, Ascension, and subsequent ordinary about Ordinary Time. Rather, we count the Sundays sending of the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit, promised by Jesus and the weeks as we celebrate the mystery of Jesus Christ who to the apostles, is the One who brings us into relationship — calls us into with himself as he leads us through into communion — with Christ’s death and Resurrection. This the power of the Holy Spirit to the Father. death and Resurrection is the saving event that frees us from sin and death. The Father’s raising of Jesus from the dead transcends all time, because the Spirit — whom Jesus said the Kristopher W. Seaman is the associate director for the Office for Father would send — invites us into this saving Paschal Mystery. Divine Worship in the diocese of Gary, Indiana.

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