2nd Edition of "Restoring Lost Customs of Christendom" Now Available

"The best advice that I can give you is this: Church traditions - especially when they do not run counter to the faith - are to be observed in the form in which previous generations have handed them down...the traditions which have been handed down should be regarded as apostolic laws" (St. Jerome in Letter 71)

I'm honored to announce the publication of the slightly expanded 2nd edition of the book by Our Lady of Victory Press entitled "Restoring Lost Customs of Christendom." The 2nd edition includes three new chapters not featured in the first edition (i.e. Customs for St. Joseph's Day, St. Anne's Day Customs, The Customs for the Vigil, and Feast of St. John the Baptist) along with a much expanded catch-all chapter on various saint day customs throughout the liturgical year.

Preface

Under the Old Testament laws, God’s people observed annual ceremonies commemorating important events in salvation history which prefigured the completion of the Old Law through Christ. Similarly, Holy Church commemorates important mysteries, events, and persons, using an annual cycle of prayers, Scriptures, hymns, and various spiritual disciplines. In the same way, each of the twelve months has a unique focus, and each day of the week has a unique focus as well. Even in the day, the hours of the day are divided up into canonical hours. In so doing, all time is, in a manner of speaking, consecrated to God since He alone created all time and redeemed all of time.

Unlike the pagan religions which often view time as an endless cycle of death and rebirth, the Christian view of time is linear. While God alone has always existed and has no beginning, time had a beginning. There was a first day on earth. And there will be a last day. There will be a day ultimately when the sun will rise for the last time and when it will set for the last time. Time will end. And God Himself will end it as time belongs to Him. It is our duty to honor God in time. And we can do so by sanctifying the days, weeks, months, and seasons of the year.

The Church’s Liturgical Year is a harmonious interplay of feasts and fasts interwoven in both the temporal and sanctoral cycles that define the rhythm and rhyme of Catholic life. While there are many customs associated with the seasons of the liturgical year and high ranking feast days, the entire year is replete with opportunities to live out our Catholic heritage through the customs our forefathers instituted.

The Church’s annual liturgical calendar is comprised of two different, concurrent annual cycles. First, the Proper of the Seasons, or Temporal Cycle, traces the earthly life of Our Lord Jesus Christ. In the Roman Catholic Church, it consists mainly of Sundays related to the various liturgical seasons – that is, the seven liturgical seasons contained in two cycles of its own: the Christmas Cycle and the Easter Cycle. It starts with Advent then goes through Christmas, Epiphany, Septuagesima, Lent, Easter, and Time after Pentecost. The determination of the date of Easter dictates nearly all the other dates in this cycle. But there is a second cycle: the Proper of the Saints, called the Sanctoral Cycle, which is the annual cycle of feast days not necessarily connected with the seasons.

It’s also important to realize that each rite in the Catholic Church (e.g., Roman, Maronite, Chaldean, etc.) has its own liturgical calendar, and some have multiple uses or forms of the calendar. Even within the same use or form, there are variations according to local customs. For instance, the patron saint of a church or of the cathedral would be ranked higher in the liturgical calendar of that local jurisdiction. Even in the Roman Rite itself, different dioceses, countries, and religious orders would keep some different feastdays. These were listed in the Mass in Some Places (pro aliquibus locis) supplement to the Missal. Beyond the Roman Rite, the Ambrosian, Mozarabic, Lyon, and Bragan Rites are also all part of the Western liturgical tradition. So too are the various Rites for religious orders (e.g., the Carmelite Rite, the Carthusian Rite, the Dominican Rite). These are also part of the Roman Catholic Church.  No one has ever doubted the legitimacy of this liturgical diversity. 

Those who try to discredit the Traditional Latin Mass may try to falsely claim that all Catholics must observe the same calendar of saints. But this is not the case as seen in the liturgical calendar diversity in the different Rites of the Church and in the Roman Rite itself. Even Summorum Pontificium affirmed that the continued use of the older Roman calendar in the traditional Mass and Breviary is permissible. 

Beyond assisting at Mass and praying the Divine Office, we can and should observe the forgotten customs that further underscored authentic Catholic culture. Catholic culture is more than just going to Mass – much more. Catholic culture is built on fasting periods, assisting at Processions, having various items blessed at different parts of the year (e.g. herbs on August 15, grapes on September 8th, wine on December 27th). It features days of festivity like during Martinmas and promotes family time and charitable works like visits to grandparents on Easter Monday. It is replete with food customs to celebrate the end of fasting periods and filled with special devotions during periods of penance. It is our heritage. These traditions are our birthright. They are ours as much as they were our ancestors. We must reclaim them. We must spread them. We must love them and observe them. And this book will show today’s Catholic how.

Ordering Information:

PDF: https://www.patreon.com/acatholiclife/shop/restoring-lost-customs-of-christendom-81175

Kindle: https://amzn.to/41zYx8d

Paperback: https://amzn.to/3TjPqpN

The PDF is free for Patreon supporters at the All-Star Level.

Sample of Endorsements Received:

"In past ages, the lives of Catholics were studded with joyful celebrations of saints and somber calls to penance. The ebb and flow of feasting and fasting gave the Christian religion a distinctive 'thickness' and 'texture': it wasn't a bunch of ideas floating in the clouds but a daily planner filled with concrete actions. In the heady rationalism and hearty optimism that gripped modern reformers, nearly all of this holistic ecosystem was overthrown, and the loss of it meant far more than the loss of parties or Lenten recipes; it meant, for too many, the loss of any relevance of faith to everyday life. What is a Catholic to do in this desert of deprivation? Simple: follow a knowledgeable guide out of it. In this informative book, Matthew Plese, who has devoted himself to studying and living the traditional calendar, takes us step by step through some of the most important 'lost customs of Christendom.' Restoring them, here and there, one by one, we restore ourselves and our families to all that Catholic life can be." 

– Dr. Peter A. Kwasniewski, author of The Once and Future Roman Rite

“Catholics who want to integrate the Catholic customs of ages past will deeply appreciate Restoring Lost Customs of Christendom. Beginning with Advent and continuing through the feasts and seasons of the liturgical year, this complete compendium of Catholic traditions by Matthew Plese will help integrate the ancient traditions of our faith in our families and homes. This treasured volume presents the fasts and feasts, the indulgences and blessings which are the patrimony of our Catholic people.” 

 – Fr. Scott A. Haynes of https://www.mysticaltheologyofthemass.com/

“This compendium is a much-needed help for the family (the domestic church) and parishes and dioceses (the local church) to reclaim Catholic culture. As Catholics, especially those in the United States, we are losing that sense of what set us apart from the world. There should be no difference between our daily calendars and our liturgical calendar. Our lives must daily revolve around the liturgy and this handy book is an excellent guide to reclaim our Catholic ethos.” 

– Fr. John P. Lovell of https://x.com/Fr_Lovell 

Read more >>

Restoring Lost Customs of Christendom

"The best advice that I can give you is this: Church traditions - especially when they do not run counter to the faith - are to be observed in the form in which previous generations have handed them down...the traditions which have been handed down should be regarded as apostolic laws" (St. Jerome in Letter 71)

I'm honored to announce the publication of the latest book by Our Lady of Victory Press entitled "Restoring Lost Customs of Christendom."

Preface

Under the Old Testament laws, God’s people observed annual ceremonies commemorating important events in salvation history which prefigured the completion of the Old Law through Christ. Similarly, Holy Church commemorates important mysteries, events, and persons, using an annual cycle of prayers, Scriptures, hymns, and various spiritual disciplines. In the same way, each of the twelve months has a unique focus, and each day of the week has a unique focus as well. Even in the day, the hours of the day are divided up into canonical hours. In so doing, all time is, in a manner of speaking, consecrated to God since He alone created all time and redeemed all of time.

Unlike the pagan religions which often view time as an endless cycle of death and rebirth, the Christian view of time is linear. While God alone has always existed and has no beginning, time had a beginning. There was a first day on earth. And there will be a last day. There will be a day ultimately when the sun will rise for the last time and when it will set for the last time. Time will end. And God Himself will end it as time belongs to Him. It is our duty to honor God in time. And we can do so by sanctifying the days, weeks, months, and seasons of the year.

The Church’s Liturgical Year is a harmonious interplay of feasts and fasts interwoven in both the temporal and sanctoral cycles that define the rhythm and rhyme of Catholic life. While there are many customs associated with the seasons of the liturgical year and high ranking feast days, the entire year is replete with opportunities to live out our Catholic heritage through the customs our forefathers instituted.

The Church’s annual liturgical calendar is comprised of two different, concurrent annual cycles. First, the Proper of the Seasons, or Temporal Cycle, traces the earthly life of Our Lord Jesus Christ. In the Roman Catholic Church, it consists mainly of Sundays related to the various liturgical seasons – that is, the seven liturgical seasons contained in two cycles of its own: the Christmas Cycle and the Easter Cycle. It starts with Advent then goes through Christmas, Epiphany, Septuagesima, Lent, Easter, and Time after Pentecost. The determination of the date of Easter dictates nearly all the other dates in this cycle. But there is a second cycle: the Proper of the Saints, called the Sanctoral Cycle, which is the annual cycle of feast days not necessarily connected with the seasons.

It’s also important to realize that each rite in the Catholic Church (e.g., Roman, Maronite, Chaldean, etc.) has its own liturgical calendar, and some have multiple uses or forms of the calendar. Even within the same use or form, there are variations according to local customs. For instance, the patron saint of a church or of the cathedral would be ranked higher in the liturgical calendar of that local jurisdiction. Even in the Roman Rite itself, different dioceses, countries, and religious orders would keep some different feastdays. These were listed in the Mass in Some Places (pro aliquibus locis) supplement to the Missal. Beyond the Roman Rite, the Ambrosian, Mozarabic, Lyon, and Bragan Rites are also all part of the Western liturgical tradition. So too are the various Rites for religious orders (e.g., the Carmelite Rite, the Carthusian Rite, the Dominican Rite). These are also part of the Roman Catholic Church.  No one has ever doubted the legitimacy of this liturgical diversity. 

Those who try to discredit the Traditional Latin Mass may try to falsely claim that all Catholics must observe the same calendar of saints. But this is not the case as seen in the liturgical calendar diversity in the different Rites of the Church and in the Roman Rite itself. Even Summorum Pontificium affirmed that the continued use of the older Roman calendar in the traditional Mass and Breviary is permissible. 

Beyond assisting at Mass and praying the Divine Office, we can and should observe the forgotten customs that further underscored authentic Catholic culture. Catholic culture is more than just going to Mass – much more. Catholic culture is built on fasting periods, assisting at Processions, having various items blessed at different parts of the year (e.g. herbs on August 15, grapes on September 8th, wine on December 27th). It features days of festivity like during Martinmas and promotes family time and charitable works like visits to grandparents on Easter Monday. It is replete with food customs to celebrate the end of fasting periods and filled with special devotions during periods of penance. It is our heritage. These traditions are our birthright. They are ours as much as they were our ancestors. We must reclaim them. We must spread them. We must love them and observe them. And this book will show today’s Catholic how.

Ordering Information:

PDF: https://www.patreon.com/acatholiclife/shop/restoring-lost-customs-of-christendom-81175

Kindle: https://amzn.to/41zYx8d

Paperback: https://amzn.to/3TjPqpN

The PDF is free for Patreon supporters at the All-Star Level.

Endorsements

"In past ages, the lives of Catholics were studded with joyful celebrations of saints and somber calls to penance. The ebb and flow of feasting and fasting gave the Christian religion a distinctive 'thickness' and 'texture': it wasn't a bunch of ideas floating in the clouds but a daily planner filled with concrete actions. In the heady rationalism and hearty optimism that gripped modern reformers, nearly all of this holistic ecosystem was overthrown, and the loss of it meant far more than the loss of parties or Lenten recipes; it meant, for too many, the loss of any relevance of faith to everyday life. What is a Catholic to do in this desert of deprivation? Simple: follow a knowledgeable guide out of it. In this informative book, Matthew Plese, who has devoted himself to studying and living the traditional calendar, takes us step by step through some of the most important 'lost customs of Christendom.' Restoring them, here and there, one by one, we restore ourselves and our families to all that Catholic life can be." 

– Dr. Peter A. Kwasniewski, author of The Once and Future Roman Rite

“As a patriarch of a veritable battalion of nine offspring, navigating the tumultuous seas of modernity while striving to anchor them in the resolute harbor of the rich tradition of Catholicism, I recently encountered a literary beacon: ‘Restoring Lost Customs of Christendom’ by Matthew R. Plese. This tome, akin to a cartographer's detailed map, guides the wayward traveler back to the almost-forgotten lands of Catholic tradition and custom.

“The author, acting as a sagacious chronicler, delves into the labyrinthine depths of the liturgical calendar, illuminating each corner with historical acumen and practical sagacity. From the expectant quietude of Advent to the jubilant alleluias of Easter, the book resurrects these sacred temporal landmarks, imbuing them with a vividness that resonates profoundly within the familial sanctum.

“In the grand tapestry of Catholic tradition, Plese weaves a narrative that is both grandiloquent and approachable, making the monumental task of integrating these customs into the bustling life of a large family seem not only possible but imperative. The book transcends mere observation of rites; it is an exhortation to breathe life into them, to ensconce them in the everyday, thus fortifying the bulwarks of faith against the relentless siege of secularism.

“The tome's exploration of penance, prayer, and liturgical understanding is nothing short of an intellectual banquet, offering a sumptuous feast of theological and spiritual insight. As a father, tasked with the arduous challenge of instilling unshakeable faith in my progeny, I found in these pages a clarion call to elevate our daily practices from the mundane to the celestial.

“In conclusion, ‘Restoring Lost Customs of Christendom’ is not merely a book; it is a clarion call to arms for those of us who dare to combat the insidious creep of modernity with the sword and shield of tradition. It is a lantern in the dark, guiding families like mine to not only remember but to relive and reinvigorate the glorious traditions of our faith. For those intrepid souls seeking to traverse the narrow path of tradition in a world enamored with the broad highways of modernism, this tome is an indispensable companion.” 

– Keith Jones, Director and Producer of “Foundations Restored: A Catholic Perspective on Origins”

“Catholics who want to integrate the Catholic customs of ages past will deeply appreciate Restoring Lost Customs of Christendom. Beginning with Advent and continuing through the feasts and seasons of the liturgical year, this complete compendium of Catholic traditions by Matthew Plese will help integrate the ancient traditions of our faith in our families and homes. This treasured volume presents the fasts and feasts, the indulgences and blessings which are the patrimony of our Catholic people.” 

 – Fr. Scott A. Haynes of https://www.mysticaltheologyofthemass.com/

Read more >>

Angelus Press 2013 Calendar

A few days ago my 2013 calendar arrived in the mail.  I opted to again go with the Angelus Press Liturgical Calendar for a 2nd year in a row, after finding such great value and beauty in their 2012 calendar.  The 2013 calendar is again a work of beauty.

The 2013 Catholic Liturgical Calendar from Angelus Press features 13 of the most striking and important events in the history of the Papacy. From the humble Galilean fisherman through the glories of the medieval papacy, and into the glorious popes of the late 19th and early 20th centuries, this calendar will help you to meditate upon the institution established by Christ to govern His Church.

In addition to a brief history of each of the pictures, the liturgical calendar includes the rank and liturgical color of each day of the year according to the 1962 Roman Missal, as well as current disciplinary law and recommended traditional discipline for all days of fast and abstinence.

Read more >>

2012 Angelus Press Catholic Calendar - Highly Recommended

For the year 2011, I posted a review of the Saints Calendar and Daily Planner and a few months afterwords I posted a link to some free online 2011 liturgical calendar.

This year, though, I decided to try a different calendar in order to review it and see if there were even better options on the marketplace. My search led me to Angelus Press' Calendar for 2012 which features an overall theme on the 15 mysteries of the Rosary.  Images from the calendar are featured above.

When I received my calendar in the mail I was astonished by its quality. The images on each page are not only beautiful but they are extraordinary images that by and large I have not seen before. From a blogger and a professional catechist, it can be hard to find new images of these central moments in salvation history but this calendar delivered just that - beautiful and inspiring new images that raise the heart and mind to God.

The calendar itself is beautifully typeset and features symbols to denote which dates are days of mandatory fasting, mandatory abstinence, traditional fasting, traditional abstinence, or combinations thereof. I have hung this calendar next to my home altar and eagerly look forward to next month when I can start using it.

My overall recommendation is an A+ for Angelus Press' liturgical year calendar. In fact, they might have just found a life-long calendar customer in me.

Read more >>

How to Live a Liturgical Life

Part 1: The Sacredness of Time

Under the Old Law that we study in the Old Testament, God’s people observed annual ceremonies commemorating important events in salvation history which prefigured the completion of the Old Law through Christ. Similarly, Holy Church commemorates important mysteries, events, and persons, using an annual cycle of prayers, scriptures, hymns, and various spiritual disciplines. In the same way, each of the 12 months has a unique focus and each day of the week has a unique focus as well. Even in the day, the hours of the day are divided up into the canonical hours. In so doing, all time is devoted to God since He alone created all time and redeemed all of time.

Unlike the pagan religions which often view time as an endless cycle of death and rebirth, the Christian view of time is linear. While God alone has always existed and has no beginning, time had a beginning. There was a first day on earth. And there will be a last day. There will be a day ultimately when the sun will rise for the last time and when it will set for the last time. Time will end. And God Himself will end it as time belongs to Him. It is our duty to honor God in time.

The Catholic Day

Each day is comprised of the Canonical Hours during which priests, religious sisters and brothers, and any laypeople who want to pray the set prayers for those hours. Called the Divine Office, or the Breviary, these 7 prayers throughout the day are a primary means by which we sanctify time. We will discuss the breviary at a much greater extent later in this talk.

Furthermore, the day is further consecrated to God by the Angelus Prayers. Traditionally said at 6AM, Noon, and 6PM the Angelus is a means by which we consecrate time to God, invoke the Blessed Mother, and honor the Incarnation. For this reason, church bells will often ring at noon and at 6 PM as a call to prayer for the Angelus. 6am is usually too early for bells to ring so most parishes don’t ring them then, nevertheless 6 am is the first time for the Angelus each day.

In fact, Mother Teresa and other missionary nuns have remarked that the sight of seeing Catholics fall to their knees to pray the Angelus when the Angelus bell sounded brought about many conversions. One former Hindu who converted and became a nun remarked that the sight of seeing Catholics instantly fall to their knees to offer those prayers even in the market at noon left such an impact on her that it brought about her conversion. We can have a similar impact by keeping the sacredness of the Catholic Liturgical Day.

The Angelus is traditionally prayed kneeling on everyday of the week except Sundays and except during Pascaltide (that is the 50 days of the Easter Season). On Sundays and during Easter time, you instead make a genuflection on your right knee at the mention of the Incarnation. If you are not familiar with the Angelus prayers, I would direct you to go online and find those prayers, save them, and start saying them daily. Even if you are not up at 6 AM or you are busy at precisely noon, you may still say them. In that case, you can pray the Angelus Prayers before your breakfast and likewise offer the next two prayers before lunch and before dinner respectively.

Some Catholics might also pray a Morning Offering Prayer upon awaking and make a Nightly Examination of Conscience just before bed. If you are not familiar with these practices look them up as well. In such a way, we can consecrate the day and time to God, the author of time.

The Catholic Week

All time belongs to God Himself as He has redeemed all time, and we see the sacredness of time chiefly on Sunday.  Just as we are to pay a tithe, a share of our earnings, for the poor and for the Church’s needs, so too we are required to pay a tithe of our time to God in the form of Sunday Mass.

We read in the Baltimore Catechism the clear teaching of the Church on the sacredness of Sunday time:

“By the third Commandment we are commanded to keep holy the Lord's day and the holy days of obligation, on which we are to give our time to the service and worship of God. Holy days of obligation are special feasts of the Church on which we are bound, under pain of mortal sin, to hear Mass and to keep from servile or bodily labors when it can be done without great loss or inconvenience. Whoever, on account of their circumstances, cannot give up work on holydays of obligation should make every effort to hear Mass and should also explain in confession the necessity of working on holy days.”

The Third Commandment explicitly forbids servile work on Sundays. We cannot mow the lawn, we cannot move to a new apartment on Sunday, we cannot paint, we cannot perform physical work that is servile – that is work that would have been done by a servant in past eras. Yet, the Church further commands that all Sundays — and all other Holy Days of Obligation — are mandatory days of Mass attendance. The Sacredness of Sunday requires not only abstaining from certain actions but also the doing of other ones. Missing Mass on one of these days without a grave reason — such as grave illness or the inability to reasonably obtain transportation— is a mortal sin. If you were not able to attend the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass for a good reason, you should still read the Missal for that day and pray the prayers from the Missal or watch an online broadcast of the Mass. There are several sites which broadcast daily the Traditional Mass. These activities though do not fulfill your obligation. If you are not able to make it to Mass for a legitimate reason, the obligation to attend Mass is lifted for you that day. But these pious activities can still help our own spiritual edification.

Sunday is also a day in which to participate in communal Rosary, Vespers, and Benediction services. Sunday is the day on which the Faithful should be most willing to read Catholic newspapers, books, and magazines. Listen to Catholic podcasts or You-Tube videos. Study catechism and supplemental religious education lessons. It is a day of rest from physical work so that we can give this tithe of our time to God.

And it should also be underscored that only attendance at the Catholic Mass fulfills our Sunday obligation. Attending a protestant service does not. In fact, attending a non-Catholic form of worship is sinful. If you were to go with a friend to say a Lutheran service on Sunday instead of Mass, you would have two mortal condemning your soul – first the missing of Sunday Mass and second, the taking part in false worship of other religions. The Church’s teachings on this are clear.

Likewise, only the Catholic religion rightfully understands that not only Sunday but the entire week is devoted to God.

Let’s take for instance Fridays. Fridays are penitential days in remembrance of our Lord’s brutal torture, crucifixion, and death on Friday. And we are required to perform penance on all Fridays of the year.

One of the most common caricatures of Catholics is our frequent eating of fish on Fridays. Yet, few non-Catholics understand this practice at all. And the sad truth is that many Catholics nowadays fails to properly observe these practices since abstinence from meat is actually required all year long - NOT just during Lent.

Let's take a few minutes to understand this practice.

Let me summarize these requirements. Catholics are required without exception to abstain from meat on Fridays in Lent. And Catholics are also required to abstain from meat on all Fridays of the year unless the Bishops Conference of that area allows an alternative penance to be performed. This is a novelty though. Many faithful Catholics however choose just to honor the tradition of abstaining from all meat on Fridays year-round instead of substituting an alternative. That is what I do and what I encourage you to do as well. Due note, in Lent there is no substituting allowed.

Back when I was in college, I had a roommate who one Friday in Lent said he was going to a party that Friday so he would just abstain from meat on Thursday instead.  You can’t do that. It’s Friday. Christ died on Friday. And having to eat a salad and not a burger is a small sacrifice. If you can’t do that, how can you resist the tempting sins of the flesh? The same is true for Sundays. You can’t say, I’m really busy on Sunday so I’ll just go to Mass before class on Monday morning to fulfill my obligation. It doesn’t work that way.

The Church had over the past several hundred years lessened the discipline of Lent significantly little by little over the centuries. We would do well to return to forty days of abstinence from meat and animal products while also observing them as days of fast. Returning simply to the fast as practiced in 1917 is still a shadow of the fast as formerly practiced by our ancestors and forefathers in the Faith.

So, we can live a Catholic liturgical life in part by 1. Going to Mass on Sundays and Holy Days, 2. Refraining from all servile work (manual work, cleaning, physical labor) on Sundays and Holy Days, and 3. Abstaining from meat on all Fridays of the year unless a dispensation is offered.

But these are the minimums. These are the requirements. To truly live a liturgical life, we cannot be satisfied with only not sinning against these laws. We have to want to enter deeper into the liturgical life. And we can do that by honoring each day of the week. Sunday is devoted to the Resurrection and Friday is dedicated to the Passion of Christ, but there are still 5 other days in the week.

Mondays are devoted to the Holy Ghost and the Souls in Purgatory. Do you pray to the Holy Ghost for guidance especially on Mondays? Do you pray for the souls in purgatory on Mondays? Have you made it a custom to visit a nearby cemetery on Mondays to pray for the dead there?

Tuesdays are devoted to the Holy Angels. Do you make sure you pray to your guardian angel on Tuesdays? We can also pray the Chapel of St. Michael the Archangel on Tuesdays. If you not familiar with that, look it up online. The Chapel of St. Michael is a devotion that few Catholics are aware of anymore. Tuesdays are also dedicated to the Holy Face and also to St. Anthony of Padua and St. Dominic.

Wednesdays are devoted to St. Joseph. What devotions can you do on Wednesday to honor St. Joseph? After all, after the Blessed Virgin Mary, he is given the highest veneration among all the saints.

Thursdays are devoted to the Blessed Sacrament. Can you visit your local church, chapel, or Shrine for Adoration? Even if the Sacred Host is in the Tabernacle, God is still there, and we can and should make an effort to honor Him on Thursdays in the Adorable Sacrament of the Altar. This of course is on Thursday since our Lord instituted the Sacrament on Thursday. And what’s interesting, is that traditionally seminaries were closed not only on Sundays but also on Thursdays. Thursdays in honor of the institution of the Blessed Sacrament and of the priesthood. That is a custom that has also fallen by the wayside.

And lastly Saturdays are devoted to the Blessed Virgin Mary. Do we invoke her in a special way on Saturdays? Do we especially make sure we pray the Rosary then? Do we honor the First Saturday devotion?

These are real questions that I ask you to consider. How can you better live out the Catholic Liturgical Week?

The Catholic Month

And just as we considered the Catholic Day and the Catholic Week, each month of the year has a specific focus as well:

January is devoted to the Holy Name and the Childhood of our Lord
February is devoted to the Holy Family
March is devoted to St. Joseph
April is dedicated to the Blessed Sacrament
May is in honor of the Blessed Virgin Mary
June is devoted to the Sacred Heart of our Lord
July is dedicated to His Precious Blood
August is in honor of the Immaculate Heart
September is dedicated to the Seven Sorrows of Mary
October is in honor of both the Holy Rosary and the Holy Angels
November is dedicated to praying for the Poor Souls in Purgatory
And December is dedicated to the Immaculate Conception

In regard to these months, how often do we give these any thought? Do you pray the Litany of Loreto in May or the Litany of the Sacred Heart in June? Do we make special devotions to the Precious Blood in July? Do we honor the dead and make special satisfaction for souls in November? If you are truly serious about living a Catholic liturgical life, I ask you to look up these monthly devotions and live them out.

Part 2: An Overview of the Catholic Liturgical Year

After considering the liturgical day, week, and month, we come now to the second part of this talk: The Catholic Liturgical Year. Running concurrently with the weekly and monthly devotions is the annual liturgical calendar.

Through the liturgical year, we re-live the life of Christ each year starting with His coming and ending with the end of time. The Church runs on a special schedule all year long, with special days focused on different events in the life of Christ. In fact, many protestants are shocked to learn that Catholics have Mass daily – not just on Sundays. And they are even more shocked when they learn about the hundreds of feast days we have throughout the year. Whereas many of them will celebrate Christmas and Easter, a Catholic sees nearly every day of the year dedicated in some way to a unique saint or mystery of the Faith.

Every year the Catholic Church remembers certain key events — the birth of Christ, the death of Christ, His Resurrection and Ascension. The birth and death of Christ are preceded by a time of preparation — Advent and Lent respectively.

Advent is the beginning of the liturgical year and is an approximate four week long time of preparation for the birth of Christ. It begins around the end of November. Advent ends with Christmas.

Christmas is always celebrated on December 25th. The Reverend Dom Prosper Gueranger, an abbot who lived until 1875, wrote a long series of reflections on the different seasons of the year in fifteen volumes (although he did not live to complete his monumental work). Father Gueranger’s Liturgical Year volumes are the gold-standard in knowledge on the liturgical year. If you could buy just one set of books on the Liturgical Year, save up and buy his volumes. They are incredible.  For instance, Father Gueranger wrote about the characteristics of Christmas when he wrote:

“It is twofold: it is joy, which the whole Church feels at the coming of the divine Word in the Flesh; and it is admiration of that glorious Virgin, who was made the Mother of God. There is scarcely a prayer, or a rite, in the Liturgy of this glad Season, which does not imply these two grand Mysteries: - an Infant-God, and a Virgin-Mother” (Gueranger, 4)

And Father Gueranger has lengthy reflections for every single traditional feast day in the year. Now, Christmas itself is not only a single day but an entire season. And after it we have, the third season: time after epiphany.

After the Christmas and Epiphany seasons, the Church enters Lent, a time of repentance. Lent is actually preceded by a period of pre-Lent called Septuagesima and then Lent officially begins on Ash Wednesday. This observance is on the Wednesday forty-six days before Easter and features the imposition of blessed ashes. The priest traces the sign of the cross on each person’s forehead (though he does so on the head at the place of tonsure for clerics not their foreheads) while saying “Remember man that you are dust, and unto dust you shall return”. It is a day of mandatory fasting and abstinence. This sets the tone for the entire Lenten season. As the Saint Joseph Sunday Missal urges us:

“The ashes on your forehead have only as much meaning as you are giving them. Make this symbolism a meaningful beginning of a time of penance, preparing to celebrate the paschal mystery of our Lord’s death and resurrection” (Saint Joseph Sunday Missal, 233).

The Lenten season is penitential, so we are asked to devote time to spiritual and corporal acts of mercy as well as prayer, fasting, and the giving of alms. In all of these ways, we can make satisfaction for sins if we are in the state of grace. Catholics often give up something for Lent such as candy or watching television although, as we will discuss later, much greater sacrifices are needed and asked for. The notion that Catholics are only asked to give up chocolate for Lent is scandalous. The sacrifices of our forefathers in the Faith puts the modern Catholic to shame.

Catholics should also participate in additional prayers such as attending extra Masses during the week or making the Stations of the Cross on Fridays. This is also a particularly important time to confess our sins to a priest and receive God’s mercy in the Sacrament of Confession. Lent is traditionally forty days of fasting and forty days without meat.

The final two weeks of Lent are traditionally called Passiontide, and Lent culminates in the second week of Passiontide, called Holy Week, which commemorates the final days of our Lord’s life on earth before His Crucifixion. Palm Sunday starts Holy Week and on that day, we commemorate Christ’s triumphant entry into Jerusalem. Many of the crowd who shouted “Hosanna” and placed palms before His path only a few days later demanded His death. The Liturgy for Palm Sunday shows us the great immutability of human beings. How fast we are to forget.

On Holy Thursday we remember the Institution of the Holy Eucharist and on Good Friday, God Himself is crucified. Good Friday is also a day of required fasting and abstinence and is the most somber day in the entire year. The day after, Holy Saturday, is a day of mourning and quiet. God has died and sleeps in the tomb. We then arrive at the most joyous celebration of the entire year, the crowning joy of the liturgical life: Easter Sunday!

Easter bursts forth as we hear of the Lord’s rising from the dead, the greatest proof of His own divinity. Astonished, His Apostles and disciples first hear of His resurrection and then see His risen body. The Easter Season is a period of joy for us as well and lasts for fifty days, eclipsing the long forty days of fasting and penance during Lent.

Jesus would not stay with His Apostles for long but ascended to heaven. We celebrate this forty day after Easter Sunday on Ascension Thursday. However, our Lord promised not to leave us as orphans but to send the Holy Ghost. The Apostles gathered in Jerusalem, waiting for the Holy Ghost. And we celebrate the coming of the Holy Ghost on Pentecost Sunday, 50 days after Easter Sunday. Trinity Sunday occurs the Sunday after Pentecost to honor the Blessed Trinity and begins the period called Time after Pentecost. And that season will run until we begin it all over again with Advent.

Thus, to summarize, there are traditionally 2 Liturgical Cycles and 7 Liturgical Seasons: The first cycle is the Christmas Cycle and includes Advent, Christmastide, and the time after the Epiphany.  The second cycle is the Easter Cycle and includes Septuagesima, Lent, Pascaltide (also called Eastertide), and the Time after Pentecost.

It’s also important to realize that each rite in the Church (Roman, Maronite, Chaldean, etc.) has its own calendar, and some have multiple uses or forms (e.g. within the Roman rite are the Traditional Roman Calendar of 1962, the Traditional Catholic Calendar in place in 1954, the modern Roman Calendar of 1969 that your typical parish down the road would use, and the Anglican Use Calendar). Even within the same use or form, there are variations according to local customs. For instance, the patron saint of a church or of the cathedral would be ranked higher in that calendar for that local jurisdiction.

It’s also important to define some important aspects of the liturgical year before we can do more a deep dive into it. And for those definitions, I’m relying on a good summary presented by TraditionalMass.info, a website that I’d encourage all of you to get to know well.

The Liturgical Year

Whereas civil calendars presently start on January 1st (even though that was not always the case), Church calendars begin four Sundays before Christmas (not counting Christmas itself), so that the date of the Church’s “new year” varies from late November to early December. There is also a lunar element to how celebrations in our liturgical year are determined. The lunar element is in the method of calculating the date of Easter, from which the other variable feastdays follow. Easter Sunday is calculated as the first Sunday after the First Full Moon after the Vernal Equinox.

Holy Days and Feasts

It’s a very common term when we are discussing the liturgical life. But what exactly do they mean? Although the terms “holy day” and “feast” are sometimes used interchangeably, they have distinct meanings.

In fact, our English word “holiday” is based on the concept of a “holy day”. A holy day in the general sense, is any day the Church has set apart for a regularly recurring public ceremonial observance. It finds expression primarily in the Mass and Divine Office, which have special prayers, and sometimes special ceremonies (such the distribution of candles on February 2nd) or special disciplines (such as fasting in Lent), for each holy day. In this sense, every feast day is a holy day.

Sunday is the primary holy day; its weekly ceremonial observance replaces that of the Jewish Sabbath.

However, sometimes “holy day” is short for “holy day of obligation,” as in the expression “Sundays and holy days.”

A feast, in the general sense, can also mean a holy day or set of holy days commemorating a particular person, event, or mystery of the Catholic Religion. Feast, when we are discussing the liturgical year, does not mean a large dinner gathering.

A feast may fall on a Sunday, either regularly (e.g. Easter Sunday) or coincidentally (in which case either the Sunday or the feast takes precedence depending on their liturgical ranks). For example, what happens when St. James’ feastday falls on a Sunday? Which takes precedence? Does that change if your parish is the Church of St. James or if the Cathedral in our Diocese is the Cathedral of St. James? These are questions that someone who wants to live a liturgical life should keep in mind.

On the modern (1969) calendar in the Novus Ordo, a “feast” in a narrower sense is a holy day of lesser rank than a “solemnity” and greater than a “memorial.”

Ranks have changed over the past several decades. In the modern Church, they will use the terms solemnity, feast, memorial, or optional memorial. In the 1962 Missal, we have First, Second, Third, or Fourth Class feastdays. But before the 1962 Missal up until the changes made by Pope Pius XII in 1955, there were from least to most important: Simples, Semidoubles, Lesser Doubles or also known as Doubles, Greater Doubles, Doubles of the second class, and lastly Doubles of the first class.

Temporal and Sanctoral Cycles

Feasts are listed in liturgical books according to two different, concurrent annual cycles.

The Proper of Seasons, or Temporal Cycle traces the earthly life of Our Lord Jesus Christ. It consists mainly of Sundays related to the various liturgical seasons. This maps onto the 7 liturgical seasons contained in the two cycles we previously discussed: the Christmas Cycle and the Easter Cycle. It starts with Advent then goes through Christmas, Epiphany, Septuagesima, Lent, Easter, and Time after Pentecost.

There is also the Proper of Saints, called the Sanctoral Cycle, which is the annual cycle of feasts not necessarily connected with the seasons. We commemorate and ask the intercession of those holy men and women who set a marvelous example that we should all strive to imitate. We also commemorate various events and mysteries of the faith in the Sanctoral Cycle.

Fixed and Moveable Feasts

Besides Sundays, holy days are generally associated with a liturgical calendar in one of two ways:

• We have Fixed Feasts which generally fall on the same date each year, e.g. Christmas on Dec 25th. (Though as an exception in some cases, a fixed feast, in spite of its name, can be moved if it coincides with a moveable feast of greater rank.)
• Moveable Feasts may shift a few days forward or backward from year to year, mainly depending on the date of Easter for that year. (Pentecost, for example, is 49 days after Easter.)

Easter Sunday is “moveable” only insofar as its date varies somewhat depending on the lunar cycle; otherwise it cannot be moved, as it is the highest feast and the basis for many others.

Vigils 

We also have vigils. The term “vigil” is used in several ways. It may refer to an entire day before a major feast day (e.g. the Vigil of Christmas is all day on Dec 24th). This kind of vigil is a feast day in itself. Before the changes to the Roman calendar in 1955, nearly all feasts of the apostles were preceded by a Vigil Day (some of which were days of required fasting but those requirements generally disappeared in the 1700s).

Finally, a Sunday Mass anticipated on a Saturday evening is sometimes, though incorrectly, called a vigil. This practice though is a novelty and not part of Catholic Tradition, so I always encourage Catholics to never attend such “vigil masses” on Saturday evenings.

Ferias

Lastly, we have ferias. A weekday with no feast associated with it is called a feria or ferial day (from the Latin feria meaning “free day”). On such a day, in the traditional rite, the priest generally offers the Mass of the previous Sunday or a Votive Mass of his choice. He may choose to honor the mystery of that day (for instance, on a ferial Wednesday he may be offering a Votive Mass of St. Joseph) but he may offer a Votive Mass for any saint. He may also generally, exceptions aside, offer a Requiem Mass.

So now that we have some essential definitions down, I’d like to walk through a guided meditation on the Liturgical Year in our time left. Again, this material will come from the Liturgical Year Course offered on CatechismClass.com and is just the tip of the iceberg. There are so many insightful meditations in the liturgical year for us to consider that this is just a small piece of that.

Part 3: Details of the Catholic Liturgical Year 

Note: Much of this section is taken from the affordable and extensive online course on the Liturgical Year offered by CatechismClass.com.

Advent

To many in our world today, Advent is extinct. Christmas starts around Thanksgiving with in-store sales and Christmas carols and ends on December 26th. To a Catholic, this borders on blasphemy.

With the First Sunday of Advent, the Church now begins anew the liturgical year.  In the words of Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen, it is in one liturgical year that the Church re-lives the 33 years of Christ’s life – thirty years obeying, three years teaching, and three hours redeeming.  Advent is a unique season of its own, not an extension of Christmas. It is neither an appropriate time to sing Christmas carols, nor is it a time for Christmas parties.

Advent is a time of penance in anticipation for the Nativity of Our Blessed Lord.  But it is also a time to help us remember that we must always be prepared for the Final Judgment and the Second Coming of Christ.

Advent as a season is quite ancient. The season itself went through slow development, taking form back in the 4th century and reaching a definite form in Rome by 6th century. Advent starts on the Sunday nearest Nov 30th (Saint Andrew’s feastday) and formed the beginning of the liturgical year by the 10th century. It started earlier at one time (as early as Nov 11th) because it was fashioned after Lent, so it had forty days originally in some areas, and even earlier in other areas (starting in September) which forms the basis of the monastic fast. However, by the 6th to 7th centuries the number is set as a span of four Sundays. And the 1962 Missal preserves most of the ancient Masses of this season even though they are not in the Novus Ordo.

And while the modern Catholic will be generally familiar with Advent, the main part of Advent that they will be largely ignorant of is the Advent Embertide Fast. Ember days (in Latin the Quatuor Tempora, meaning four times) are the days at the beginning of the seasons ordered by the Church as days of fast and abstinence.

Although Ember Days are no longer considered required in mainstream Catholicism following Vatican II, they can - and should - still be observed by the Faithful. In fact, many Traditional priests encourage the Faithful to observe the days. Ember Days are set aside to pray and offer thanksgiving for a good harvest and God's blessings. If you are in good health, fast during these three days and pray the additional prayers prescribed in the Breviary. Remember the words from the Gospel: "Unless you do penance, you shall likewise perish" (Luke 13:5). We are called to do penance throughout the year, and we can do that by uniting to the traditional times of penance which have nearly all been forgotten.

I now with some slight modifications quote from the New Advent encyclopedia:

“They were definitely arranged and prescribed for the entire Church by Pope Gregory VII (who reigned from 1073-1085) for the Wednesday, Friday, and Saturday after December 13th (St Lucia), after Ash Wednesday, after Whitsunday (another name for Pentecost Sunday), and after September 14th (The Exaltation of the Cross).  

“The purpose of their introduction, besides the general one intended by all prayer and fasting, was to thank God for the gifts of nature, to teach men to make use of them in moderation, and to assist the needy.  The "Liber Pontificalis" ascribes to Pope Callistus (who reigned from 217-222) a law ordering the fast, but probably it is older. Pope Leo the Great considers it an Apostolic institution. When the fourth season was added cannot be ascertained, but Gelasius (around 495) speaks of all four. This pope also permitted the conferring of priesthood and deaconship on the Saturdays of ember week--these were formerly given only at Easter.” 

By observing these Ember Days in Advent, we truly live a more liturgical life. Not a single day of the year should pass when we do not feel a connection with the Liturgical Calendar. To do so, to neglect the feast days and fast days before us, is to live as orphans. Just as we keep these holy days, so too in Heaven there are holy days. It is our purpose in life to make it to Heaven, and Heaven will have feast days. If we do not feel within ourselves a desire to unite with the Church and honor and praise Almighty God through the Liturgical Year, we are not living truly Catholic lives.

Lent

Lent is a period of 40 days of penance (excluding the Sundays of Lent in the number) in preparation for the solemn celebration of the Lord's Resurrection on Easter Sunday. Our Lord, before beginning His earthly public ministry, fasted and prayed for 40 days and 40 nights. As the Gospel continually reaffirms, penance is an important part of repentance. And the Lord gave us the example of fasting for 40 days and nights. The concept of 40 days existing as preparation was seen by the Prophet Elijah, who fasted and journeyed to Horeb for 40 days (1 Kings 19:8). There are dozens of other references to the number 40 in the Old Testament.

For those Catholics who wish to more closely follow the ancient customs of the Church, Lent is a time of austere penance undertaken to make reparation to God for sin (our own sins and those of others), to grow in virtue and good works, and to comfort the heart of our Savior much offended by the proliferation of sin and filth increasing by the day.

Yet, there are very few Catholics who undertake the true discipline of prayer, fasting, and almsgiving. You, the remnant of the Catholic Faith, must observe the strictest of Lents. If you don’t, who will?

How many of us observe all 40 days as true fast days and not just Ash Wednesday and Good Friday?  Yet our ancestors did.  In fact, it was forbidden to eat meat or any animal products (e.g., eggs, dairy, cheese, butter, olive oil, or even fish) through all of Lent, even on Sundays!  How many of us are making this kind of intense sacrifice?  How many of us are finding the time during Lent to pray the Rosary every day or go to Daily Mass more often or at least pray the Stations of the Cross each Friday?

We live in sad, pitiful times when few souls even care to observe Lent.  The prophetic words of Pope Benedict XIV are coming true when he said:

“The observance of Lent is the very badge of Christian warfare. By it we prove ourselves not to be enemies of Christ. By it we avert the scourges of divine justice. By it we gain strength against the princes of darkness, for it shields us with heavenly help. Should men grow remiss in their observance of Lent, it would be a detriment to God’s glory, a disgrace to the Catholic religion, and a danger to Christian souls. Neither can it be doubted that such negligence would become the source of misery to the world, of public calamity, and of private woe.” 

And yet, how many people indulge in public sin, lust, and gluttony on Fat Tuesday in a mockery of our ancestors?  Nowadays, few Catholics fast for all forty days.  Yet, people are engaging in eating on Shrove Tuesday like they were.  It is a mockery of the Faith!  How many people are fasting by "light eating" on Ash Wednesday and then indulging on cheeseburgers on the Thursday after Ash Wednesday on a Lenten feria day!

Even the great liturgist Father Dom Guaranger wrote of the excesses and sinfulness of Mardi Gras in his own time.  And how much worse it is in our own times than his back in the 1800s! He said in part:

“How far from being true children of Abraham are those so-called Christians who spend Quinquagesima (The Sunday before Ash Wednesday) and the two following days in intemperance and dissipation, because Lent is soon to be upon us!...”

It is a shame.   It is a public scandal.  And our Lord Himself has asked for reparation. In an approved apparition of our Blessed Lord to Mother Pierina in 1938, the Lord said:

“See how I suffer. Nevertheless, I am understood by so few. What gratitude on the part of those who say they love Me. I have given My Heart as a sensible object of My great love for man and I give My Face as a sensible object of My Sorrow for the sins of man. I desire that it be honoured by a special feast on Tuesday in Quinquagesima (Shrove Tuesday – the Tuesday before Ash Wednesday). The feast will be preceded by novena in which the faithful make reparation with Me uniting themselves with my sorrow.”

Thus, our Lord wished for us to make amends on the Tuesday before Ash Wednesday, the last day of the period of Septuagesima, and yet so few people know of this. Living a liturgical life necessitates that we live true Lents. 40 Days of Fasting and abstinence from meat. And that we care enough to learn of these traditions. So when next Lent comes, I ask you – how can you observe a truly Catholic Lent? And what will you be able to do on the Tuesday before Ash Wednesday in reparation for the sins of those who give in to carnal lusts on Mardi Gras?

The great Fr. Gueranger provides hundreds of meditations for Lent. Regarding the true uniqueness of the Lenten season, Fr. Gueranger writes:

“Each feria of Lent has a proper Mass; whereas, in Advent, the Mass of the preceding Sunday is repeated during the week. This richness of the lenten liturgy is a powerful means for our entering into the Church's spirit, since she hereby brings before us, under so many forms, the sentiments suited to this holy time... All this will provide us with most solid instruction; and as the selections from the Bible, which are each day brought before us, are not only some of the finest of the sacred volume, but are, moreover, singularly appropriate to Lent, their attentive perusal will be productive of a twofold advantage.”

After having given consideration to Advent, Lent, and Ember Days, I wish to share a final reflection on Rogation Days, another element of our liturgical life that has fallen by the wayside.

Rogation Days are the four days set apart to bless the fields and to invoke God's mercy on all of creation. The 4 days are April 25th, which is called the Major Rogation (and is only coincidentally the same day as the Feast of St. Mark); and the three days preceding Ascension Thursday, which are called the Minor Rogations days (i.e., the Lesser Litanies). Traditionally, on these days, the congregation marches the boundaries of a parish, blessing every tree and stone, while chanting or reciting a Litany of Mercy, usually the Litany of the Saints.

These were long before the 1962 Missal, days of fasting and abstinence from meat. The requirement for abstinence was universally kept for some time but the fasting was kept only in some locations (e.g. the Churches in Gaul where the Rogations days originated from as well as by St. Charles Borromeo in Milan). The Church Universal did not mandate days of fasting in the Easter Season so these days were often observed by abstinence from meat. Of course, keeping them as fast days is certainly in the proper spirit of penance, as St. Charles Borromeo's example shows us.

Besides keeping these days of penance, we can join in these processions. We can also pray special Rogation Days prayers. I personally try to go to a field of crops on April 25th where I pray the Litany of Saints in keeping with the liturgical spirit for the Major Rogation and say some additional prayers appropriate for the day.

Father Christopher Smith, a priest of the Diocese of Charleston, South Carolina has put together a beautifully illustrated guide explaining both the Rogations and Ember Days, with a number of very useful quotes from various liturgical sources.

Part 4: Living a Liturgical Life through the Mass & the Office

The entire year helps us to commemorate Jesus’ life and the work of the Holy Trinity. Through the Mass, meditation, prayers, acts of mercy, and devotions, we become closer to God. The Mass and all prayers are ultimately for the sole purpose of the worship of the Trinity. Our purpose in life is ultimately orientated to the worship of the Holy Trinity. The Mass, the greatest act of Catholic worship, at its core is the greatest worship that can be given to the Trinity because the Mass is the re-presentation of Jesus Christ on the Cross to God the Father. And we know from our attendance at Mass that the Mass is the chief way we come into contact with the liturgical life.

Mass is not a mere obligation. It is a privilege. It is the ability to worship God in the manner He wishes to be worshiped. It is the most perfect prayer and we have the unique privilege if we are in the state of grace to unite our prayers and sacrifices with the One Sacrifice of Christ on the Cross at the altar during Mass. There is no prayer more in line with a Catholic liturgical life.

But I am also a strong proponent of the Divine Office. Through the Divine Office we can sanctify our day and live in uniformity with the liturgical year. Now, I’m not suggesting that all of you are called to the priesthood and religious life, but I suspect that among us here are souls that God has called to this life. And to you, those chosen by God to consecrate your entire lives to His service, you will have the awesome privilege to pray the Divine Office 7 times a day. Traditional Orders will start the divine office in the night – I’ve seen schedules for it to begin at 3 AM.

Why do we pray the Divine Office 7 times a day? This is in part from the words of King David in the Psalms: “Seven times a day I rose to sing thy praises.” And we can do so likewise.

But for those of you called to married life or single life, you too can and should, according to your abilities, pray the Divine Office. Now, there are several versions of the Divine Office. We have the modern Liturgy of the Hours used by the Novus Ordo and which uses the new calendar. That is one that I do not recommend. There is also the 1962 Breviary. Or there is the Office as said in 1955, when Pope Pius XII made a number of changes to the rankings of the feastdays and changed the number of octaves drastically. There is also the version that I pray, the pre-1955 version that is the version promulgated by Pope St. Pius X in Divino Afflatu in 1911.

In the modern Liturgy of the Hours, they removed some of the hours and changed some of the naming. Traditionally, the hours were:

• Matins and Lauds: Technically they can be said at different times but are usually said together very early in the morning (even before sunrise)
• Prime: This office is said usually around sunrise
• Then we have the daytime hours of Terce, Sext, and None
• Then we come to evening and have Vespers
• Then we conclude the day with Compline at night before bed

Nowadays, Matins has been replaced by the Office of Readings which is said at anytime of the day. Lauds is usually just known as morning prayer. Vespers is called evening prayer. Compline is known as night prayer. But the actual prayers in these hours has been changed significantly, in addition to using the New Calendar.

So what I encourage all of you – even those who are not called to the consecrated religious life – is to pray a few of those offices a day. Start the day with the readings from Matins. That will only take a few minutes if you read the last nocturn’s readings on the saint whose feastday is that day. Then pray Lauds or Prime. That can take around 10 – 15 minutes.  If you can, take time in your day to pray the Angelus and/or the Sext prayer at Noon.  Before dinner, say the Angelus again and spend 10 – 15 minutes praying Vespers and thanking God for the great blessings of the day. And finally, end your day before bed by praying Compline, which includes in it a short examination of conscience.

What I really recommend to those starting out with incorporating the Divine Office into their life is to use the online website: divinum officium.  In that site you can choose for instance Divino Afflatu or the 1960 rubrics and then click on the hour you want to pray. All of the prayers will be on that page and there is no guesswork. The site is well-formatted for using it on a desktop, laptop, tablet, or even a mobile phone. They even have an app. I would recommend this as an easy way to start living a liturgical life.

And lastly, familiarize yourself with the liturgical year. If you go to Google and search: a catholic life feastdays. The top listing should be a listing that I have put together and updated throughout the years. It is the traditional pre-1955 Catholic calendar with various meditations for the sanctoral cycle and some days in the temporal cycle. Study. Learn.  Care about our Catholic heritage.  Learn about the devotions to St. Nicholas on December 6th, learn about the feast of St. Martin on November 11th which is known as Martinmas. What’s interesting is that Martinmas used to be one of the last times in the year we would have outdoor processions before winter.  And that is one reason the anti-Catholic President Woodrow Wilson put Armistice Day (Veterans Day) there so that it could help block out that Catholic feastday.

I’m shocked when I learn of Catholics who are not aware that February 2nd is the feast of Candlemas and the last day of the Christmas season, or that on February 3rd we get our throats blessed in honor of St. Blasé, or that wine is traditionally blessed by our priests for us on December 27th, the feast of St. John. These are just a few of the hundreds of ways we can live out the liturgical year. So spend time and immerse yourself into the Traditional Catholic liturgical year’s customs.  Learn about the unique indulged prayers that occur on select days throughout the liturgical year.

It is no coincidence that the Feast of the Immaculate Heart of Mary is on the Octave Day of the Assumption. It is no coincidence that the Transfiguration celebrated on August 6th is 40 days before the Feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross. And it is no coincidence that there are 40 days between the Assumption and St. Michael’s feastday – a time known as St. Michael's Lent. It was during this time that St. Francis of Assisi observed a second Lenten fast of 40 days in honor of St. Michael and for his protection. Part of this ancient tradition even remains today in the form of the monastic fast.

I would also direct you to fisheaters.com and click on “Being Catholic” at the top. And from there, you will find dozens of articles on practical tips of living out the liturgical life.

A truly Catholic life is a liturgical life.  Make time now to help the Church uncover what so few Catholics keep anymore. And through our collective keeping of the Catholic liturgical life (the Angelus, feastdays, the divine Office, Ember Days, Rogation Days, Sunday rest, Friday penance, and more) we truly give honor to Almighty God who is worthy of all liturgical worship and honor per omni secula seculorum.

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Our Lady Mediatrix of All Graces (Mass in Some Places)

The Feast of Our Lady, Mediatrix of All Graces

According to Father Reginald Garrigou-Lagrange, “Our Holy Mother the Church-approved during the pontificate of Pope Benedict XV the proper Mass and Office of Mary, Mediatrix of all Graces.” The Saint Andrew’s Daily Missal (1945) lists it as May 31.  

The Angelus Press missal says, “May 31 was the usual date for this Mass until the institution of the Feast of Our Lady Queen; since 1956 the day will probably vary with the Diocese.” Fr. Rock, FSSP notes the following due to the Feast of the Queenship of Mary added in 1956: "In the 1962 Roman Missal, the Mass of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Queen of All Saints and Mother of Fair Love and the Mass of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Mediatrix of All Graces are listed under May 8th along with the Mass of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Our Lady of the Sacred Heart of Jesus (Beatae Mariae Virginis D. N. a S. Corde lesu)."

While not yet a dogma of the Faith, Mary has "Mediatrix of All Graces" is widely held by the Church.

Concerning this feastday in the Dominican Rite:

Interestingly, this feast never made its way into the liturgical calendar of the Roman Rite.  It is included in the 1962 Roman Missal as an optional feast, for use in certain places and diocese.  As best as I can tell, it first appeared on the Dominican liturgical calendar in the 1940's, and it moved around a bit until it finally landed on May 8 in the 1961 calendar.  The 1949 Completotori Libellus has the feast on May 31.  The 1955 English translation of the Dominican Martyrology has the feast on May 31.  The 1959 St. Dominic Missal has it on June 7.  [In the Post Vatican II Dominican Calendar], it has been removed from the calendar of the Order, which now celebrates the Patronage of the Blessed Virgin Mary on May 8. Source: Brevarium SOP

Christ as the One Meditator 

Concerning the title of Mediatrix, Fr. Reginald Garrigou‑Lagrange, O.P. discusses the office of mediator:

"The office of mediator belongs fully only to Jesus, the Man‑God, Who alone could reconcile us with God by offering Him, on behalf of men, the infinite sacrifice of the Cross, which is perpetuated in Holy Mass. He alone, as Head of mankind, could merit for us in justice the grace of salvation and apply it to those who do not reject His saving action. It is as man that He is mediator, but as a Man in Whom humanity is united hypostatically to the Word and endowed with the fullness of grace, the grace of Headship, which overflows on men. As St. Paul puts it: 'For there is one God, and one mediator of God and men, the man Christ Jesus: Who gave Himself for a redemption for all, a testimony in due times' (I Tim. ii, 56). \

"But, St. Thomas adds: 'there is no reason why there should not be, after Christ, other secondary mediators between God and men, who co‑operate in uniting them in a ministerial and dispositive manner.’ Such mediators dispose men for the action of the principal Mediator, or transmit it, but always in dependence on His merits.”

Our Lady as the Mediator with the Mediator

Why, though, is our Lady the Mediatrix of All Graces? Why her specifically? St. Pius X stated why: "By the communion of sorrows and of will between Christ and Mary she merited to become the dispenser of all the benefits which Jesus acquired for us by shedding His Blood" (Ad Diem Illium). This resonates with what Pope Leo XIII had previously affirmed: "It may be affirmed that, according to God's will, nothing comes to us without going through Mary's hands. Just as no one can approach the Almighty Father except through the Son, so no one can approach the Almighty Father except through the Son, so no one can approach Christ except through His Mother" (Octobri Mense)

St. John Vianney's words from a few centuries before these holy pontiffs bear similar testimony: "All the saints have a great devotion to Our Lady: no grace comes from Heaven without passing through her hands. We cannot go into a house without speaking to the doorkeeper. Well, the Holy Virgin is the doorkeeper of Heaven.”

For more information see Is There a Mediator with the "One Mediator Between God and Man"? based on the writings of St. Louis de Montfort

Litany to Our Lady Mediatrix of all Graces

Lord, have mercy on us. Christ, have mercy on us.
Lord, have mercy on us. Christ, hear us. Christ, graciously hear us.
God the Father of Heaven, Have mercy on us.
God the Son, Redeemer of the world, Have mercy on us.
God the Holy Ghost, Have mercy on us.
Holy Trinity, One God, Have mercy on us.

Holy Mary, pray for us!
Mother of God, and our Mother, pray for us!
True Mother of the living, pray for us!
Mother regenerating men in Christ unto God, pray for us!
Mother of piety and of grace, pray for us!
Mother of pardon and remission, pray for us!
Partner in human redemption, pray for us!
Recoverer of a lost world, pray for us!
Recoverer of the ages, pray for us!
Petitioner of all graces, pray for us!
Suppliant all-powerful, pray for us!
Advocate with thy Son for thy sons, pray for us!
Obtainer of the divine mercy, pray for us!
Dispenser of heavenly treasures, pray for us!
Handmaid of divine blessings, pray for us!
Fullness of grace to overflow upon all, pray for us!
Succor of the Church Militant, pray for us!
Ready helper of those in peril, pray for us!
Devoted consoler of the sorrowful, pray for us!
Conqueress of all error, pray for us!
Protectress of the world, pray for us!
Impregnable protection, pray for us!
Propitiation of the divine wrath, pray for us!
Refuge of all the unhappy, pray for us!
Shelter of orphans, pray for us!
Assured safety of the faithful, pray for us!
Hope of all who despair, pray for us!
Stay of the falling, pray for us!
Uplifter of the fallen, pray for us!
Cheer and comfort of the dying, pray for us!
Peace and joy of mankind, pray for us!
Our life, our sweetness and our hope, pray for us!
Gate of Paradise, pray for us!
Mystical stair of Jacob, pray for us!
Key of the heavenly kingdom, pray for us!
Channel of divine graces, pray for us!
Throne of divine clemency, pray for us!
Fountain of living waters, pray for us!
Fountain sealed by the Holy Spirit, pray for us!
Unfailing stream of mercy, pray for us!
Asylum of the erring, pray for us!
Haven of the shipwrecked, pray for us!
Shining star of the sea, pray for us!
Light of those who sit in darkness, pray for us!
Chamber of spiritual nuptials, pray for us!
Mediatrix of men with God, pray for us!
Mediatrix after the Mediator, pray for us!
Mediatrix reconciling us to the Son, pray for us!
Mediatrix of sinners, staunch and true, pray for us!
Mediatrix of all beneath the sky, pray for us!
Mediatrix ever pleading for us, pray for us!
Mediatrix set between Christ and His Church, pray for us!
Mediatrix who hast found favor with God, pray for us!
Mediatrix to win salvation for the world, pray for us!
Mediatrix of the mysteries of God, pray for us!
Mediatrix of all graces, pray for us!

Lamb of God, Who takest away the sins of the world, Spare us, O Lord.
Lamb of God, Who takest away the sins of the world, Graciously hear us, O Lord.
Lamb of God, Who takest away the sins of the world, Have mercy on us.
V. Pray for us, our powerful Mediatrix,
R. That we may be made worthy of the promises of Christ!

Let us Pray.

O Lord Jesus Christ, our Mediator with the Father, Who hast deigned to appoint the Blessed Virgin, Thy Mother, to be our Mother also and our Mediatrix with Thee, graciously grant that whosoever goes to Thee in quest of blessings may be gladdened by obtaining them all through her, Thou Who livest and reignest with the Father and the Holy Ghost, ever one God, world without end. R. Amen.

Prayer of Petition
 
O Ever-Virgin Mother of God and Mediatrix of Grace who art the House of Gold within which dwells thy Son, our Mediator, Jesus Christ, we humbly beseech thee to grant our requests for our salvation and the salvation of the entire world. (Here pause and make your requests) Keep us close to the Vicar of thy Son in the unity of the One, Holy, Catholic, Apostolic and Roman Church. Hear our prayer and grant the requests we make to thee.

St. Joseph, Intercede for us.
St. Jude Thaddeus, Pray for us.
St. Mary of Cleophas, Pray for us.
St. Philip Neri, Pray for us.
St. Louis Grignion de Montfort, Pray for us.
St. Maximillian Kolbe, Pray for us.

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The 5 Best Daily Meditation Resources for the Traditional Catholic Liturgical Year

Divine Intimacy by Fr. Gabriel of Saint Mary Magdalen provides deeply enriching spiritual commentary in line with the Carmelite spirituality. It is organized based on the Traditional readings for the Sunday Gospels and around the seasonal themes in the liturgical year. Yet the meditations often are appropriate for any day as they center on true spiritual progress. Divine Intimacy has received great accolades from people who I personally know read from it. The Liturgy Guy provides a very good review of Divine Intimacy where he says in part: "The brilliance of Divine Intimacy comes from Fr. Gabriel’s unique ability to balance spiritual depth with literary brevity: each daily entry typically is no more than three pages long. However, within those few pages, the reader is invited to seek God through the direction of Fr. Gabriel."

 As stated on the product listing at Baronius Press: "This Book of Meditations is a classic and is seeped in Carmelite spirituality. For every day it offers two meditations, in liturgical arrangement, that enable the soul to enter the conscious presence of God and to reflect on the theme of the day. These are followed by a ‘Colloquy’ that helps the person at prayer to start a friendly conversation with God where acts of praise and love, petition, and thanksgiving are made, together with good resolutions for the future. Here we are at the very heart of prayer, which is a heart-to-heart encounter in faith with the living God. Divine Intimacy is the highest state attainable on earth. In this union of love, the soul produces acts of love which have an immense apostolic influence on a multitude of souls. This knowledge of the ways that lead to God, according to the teaching of the renowned Spanish mystics, is distilled into the pages of this book."

Daily Breviary Meditations by Bishop Angrisani are a 4 volume set that follows the Traditional (pre-1955 Catholic liturgical year). These daily meditations tend to follow the cycle of readings in Matins and are heavily geared toward the clergy. However, the meditations here are certainly still worthwhile for even lay Catholics, especially those who pray the Divine Office. 

This reprint from Refuge of Sinners Publishing states: "The extremely important aim of this work, which is the sanctification of the Clergy and laity alike, increases its value and suitableness to the needs of our times. For never before, as in our day, in this period of general disorientation of minds and of most grave threats to the Faith and moral life of the people, has there been felt the necessity of holy priests and laity who for the salvation of Christian civilization must constitute an impenetrable barrier to the onslaughts of impiety and evil customs. This is a rare work that will be a valuable asset to any library." A sample image from a page of the meditations may be viewed here.

The Church's Year by Fr. Leonard Goffine is also worth mentioning. While not a "daily" source of meditations, Fr. Goffine's work includes explanations on the Epistles and Gospel readings for all Sundays and holy days. He includes other explanations of Church doctrine and ecclesiastical customs throughout as well. The meditations can certainly serve worthwhile to be read throughout the year - not just on the particular Sunday he has assigned them. The website for the SSPX Asia has the work available to read freely online.

Dom Gueranger's Liturgical Year is the gold standard when it comes to insights, spiritual enrichment, and historical information on the Traditional Liturgical Year. In fact, his "Liturgical Year" would influence Fr. Pius Parsch who is mentioned further down this list with a work of his own. 

This 15 volume set is described as follows on the product page: "This monumental liturgical work, comprising fifteen volumes, was the life-long labor of Benedictine Abbot Dom Guéranger. Written with the heart of a seraphic contemplative, the holy abbot takes the reader on a daily spiritual pilgrimage through the liturgies of both the East and the West as he immerses the soul into the very life of the ecclesia orans et adorans (the church praying and adoring). The author achieves this by providing daily entries corresponding to the yearly cycle of the Church's worship in both her divine seasonal feasts and those of her saints. Each day begins with a rich and provocative meditation on the mystery of faith to be celebrated together with the ecclesial history of the same; this is followed by excerpts from the Roman Missal's Mass of the day (complete with Propers, i.e., Introits, Collects, Offertory prayers, etc ) as well a host of exquisite hymns from the divine office which are coupled with varied and sundry sequences garnered from other ancient Catholic rites."

The FSSP Apostolate in Atlanta has a free email subscription to Dom Gueranger's liturgical year. Sign up to receive the daily meditation using the pre-1955 calendar that was in place at the time of Dom Gueranger's writing. In fact, his writings precede even the liturgical changes of Pope St. Pius X. While the volume does include the feasts added to the liturgical calendar in the early 1900s, it is still a true gem and one that I read through every morning.

Also worth mentioning are the Sermons on the liturgy for Sundays and feast days by Fr. Pius Parsch. Fr. Parsch was a leading figure in the Liturgical Movement in the early 1900s and his works "The Liturgy of the Mass" (1940) and "The Breviary Explained" (1952) are still read. Fr. Parsch was unfortunately a promoter of the liturgical trend to celebrating Mass on a table while facing the people away from the tabernacle. He died in 1954. 

While these are not "daily meditations" Fr. Parsch provides really insightful and meaningful commentary on the Mass texts. No modernism here in the five Sunday entries I have read thus far. More than merely discussing the Gospel reading, he provides holistic commentary on the Mass texts as a whole, often providing historical context and going much deeper and on different topics than discussed in most other commentaries. I've personally been using it every Sunday and highly recommend it. For a sample, see my Facebook post where I shared pictures of his meditation for the 14th Sunday after Pentecost.

And lastly, I highly recommend the CatechismClass.com course on the Liturgical Year. With various lessons on the feast days and fast days throughout the liturgical year, it is a great resource. The lessons combined Scripture, traditional catechism passages, prayers, devotions, activities, saintly writing, and other sources in a way that other commentaries cannot do. Again, while they do not have lessons for every single day in the year - or all Sundays - they do have a wide range of lessons, covering saints for instance like St. Jeanne Jugan, who are not covered in any other work mentioned on this list.

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Catholic Feast Days

Introduction:

Catholic Feastdays are days set aside to remember important people and events through the course of the Faith from the time of Mary's birth all the way through today honoring the saints. The calendar of saints has been changed throughout Church history to remove some saints in order that others may be celebrated too. One of these changes occurred in 1969, which greatly altered (arguably in a very bad way), the calendar.

Today, some Traditional Catholics like to follow the pre-1955 Calendar, some prefer the 1955 Calendar, and some prefer the 1962 Calendar.  These three calendars are very similar. The exceptions are noted below

The following calendar lists the General Roman Catholic Calendar.  Many saints are not on the General Calendar and some are only on specific calendars of specific orders or for specific areas of the world.  Yet, all saints have a feast day in the year, even if it is not universally celebrated on the General Calendar.

Temporal vs. Sanctoral Cycle:

This page concerns the Proper of Saints, called the Sanctoral Cycle, which is the annual cycle of feasts not necessarily connected with the seasons. We commemorate and ask the intercession of those holy men and women who set a marvelous example that we should all strive to imitate. We also commemorate various events and mysteries of the faith in the Sanctoral Cycle.

There is also the Proper of Seasons, called the Temporal Cycle, traces the earthly life of Our Lord Jesus Christ. It consists mainly of Sundays related to the various liturgical seasons. This maps onto the 7 liturgical seasons contained in the two cycles we previously discussed: the Christmas Cycle and the Easter Cycle. It starts with Advent then goes through Christmas, Epiphany, Septuagesima, Lent, Easter, and Time after Pentecost. For that reason, when you go to Mass on Sundays you likely will not hear the readings for the saints mentioned here. You should refer to the Traditional Sunday Propers for the Sunday readings since in most cases, the temporal cycle takes precedence over the Sanctoral Cycle.

Recommended Volumes of Meditation on the Catholic Liturgical Year:

The Liturgical Year (15 Volume Set) by Father Dom Gueranger (A MUST READ!)

Pre-1954 vs 1962 Calendar:

The following list by month indicates the Liturgical Year according to the General Roman Catholic Calendar as of 1954.  In 1954, Pope Pius XII instituted the feast of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Queen on May 31, and to make room for it, he moved the feast of St. Angela Merici to June 1. That was the final change before significant changes occurred in 1955. Besides the drastic changes and alterations to the Holy Week Liturgies in 1955 as part of the temporal cycle, there were a few other noteworthy changes. With the advent of the 1955 Calendar, Pope Pius XII instituted the feast of "St. Joseph the Worker" on May 1 (moving the feast of "Saints Philip and James" from May 1, where it had been since the sixth century, to May 11th, and suppressing the Patronage of St. Joseph that, since Pope Pius IX's decree of September 10, 1847, had been celebrated on the second Wednesday after the Octave of Easter).  

Additional changes that occurred in 1960 under John XXIII include the removal of most saints who were on the calendar twice. For instance, the Feast of the Finding of the Holy Cross, the 2nd feast of St. Agnes commemorating her apparition to her parents, and the Feast of St. John before the Latin Gate were all removed. These changes were incorporated in the 1962 Missal, however, a priest may still choose to offer a votive Mass for those saints on those traditional feastdays.

Some of the Movable Feasts (Some are part of the Temporal Cycle but included here for easy reference):

• The Holy Name of Jesus
• The Holy Family of Our Lord
• Ash Wednesday
• Our Lady of Sorrows in Lent (Friday after Passion Sunday)
• Lazarus Saturday
• Palm Sunday
• Holy Thursday
• Good Friday
• Easter Sunday 
• Patronage of St. Joseph (Eastertide Feast of St. Joseph)
• Ascension Thursday
• Octave Day of the Ascension
• Vigil of Pentecost
• Pentecost
• Trinity Sunday
• Corpus Christi
• Octave Day of Corpus Christi
• Sacred Heart
• Octave Day of the Sacred Heart
• Christ the King

Movable Masses in Some Places (Relating more to the temporal cycle but included here for easy reference):

• The Prayer of Christ (Tuesday after Septuagesima. This was kept by the Dominicans, who had separate feasts for most of the Mysteries of the Rosary not already on the general calendar.)
• Commemoration of the Passion of Christ (Tuesday after Sexagesima. This was a Passionist Feast)
• Feast of Reparation of Insults Offered to the Most Holy Sacrament (Thursday after Sexagesima)
• Votive Feast of the Holy Face of Our Lord Jesus Christ Deformed in the Passion (Tuesday after Quinquagesima. Mass said in reparation for the sins of Marti Gras)
• The Sacred Crown of Thorns (Friday after Ash Wednesday. This was kept at Notre Dame in Paris and also at St Peter's, which has two of the thorns)
• The Sacred Lance and Nails (Friday after the First Sunday in Lent. This was very popular in late medieval Germany and the Low Countries, under the title "Arma Domini", but usually kept in Eastertide, on the Friday after Low Sunday)
• The Holy Shroud (Friday after the Second Sunday in Lent. This was kept in Turin, Italy)
• The Five Holy Wounds (Friday after the Third Sunday in Lent)
• The Precious Blood (Friday after the Fourth Sunday in Lent. This was the original date for the Precious Blood Fathers and also for Westminster Cathedral.)
• Our Lady Queen of the Apostles (Saturday after the Ascension)
• The Eucharistic Heart of Jesus (Thursday the Sacred Heart)
• The Most Pure Heart of Our Lady (Second Saturday after Corpus Christi)
• Our Lady Mother of Mercy (Saturday after the 4th Sunday of July)
• Our Lady of Consolation (Saturday after the Feast of St. Augustine)
• Our Lady Help of the Sick (Saturday before the last Sunday in August)
• Our Lady Mother of Divine Providence (Saturday before the 3rd Sunday in November)

Traditional Calendar (1954)

Differences related to different calendars are noted in italics.  Some Masses that were only celebrated in certain places at this time and were not on the Universal Calendar are noted as "Mass in Some Places". In the Month of November, various locations or orders keep special feasts of their own saints. Those are noted as well.

 January:

• Jan 1st Feast of the Circumcision of Jesus
• Jan 2nd Feast of the Holy Name of Jesus;(**) Octave Day of St. Stephen Protomartyr
• Jan 3rd Octave Day of St. John (Change in the 1962 Calendar: Feria)
• Jan 4th Octave Day of the Holy Innocents (Change in the 1962 Calendar: Feria)
• Jan 5th Vigil of the Epiphany; Com. of St. Telesphorus (Change in the 1962 Calendar: Feria)
• Jan 6th The Epiphany of Our Lord
• Jan 7th Within the Octave of the Epiphany (Change in the 1962 Calendar: Feria)
• Jan 8th Within the Octave of the Epiphany (Change in the 1962 Calendar: Feria)
• Jan 9th Within the Octave of the Epiphany (Change in the 1962 Calendar: Feria)
• Jan 10th Within the Octave of the Epiphany (Change in the 1962 Calendar: Feria)
• Jan 11th Within the Octave of the Epiphany; Com. of St. Hyginus
• Jan 12th Within the Octave of the Epiphany (Change in the 1962 Calendar: Feria)
• Jan 13th Octave Day of the Epiphany (Change in the 1962 Calendar: Commemoration of the Baptism of our Lord Jesus Christ)
• Jan 14th St. Hilary of Poitiers; Com. of St. Felix of Nola
• Jan 15th St. Paul the first Hermit; Com. of St. Maurus
• Jan 16th St. Marcellus I
• Jan 17th St. Anthony of Egypt
• Jan 18th St. Peter's Chair at Rome and Com. of St. Paul; Com. of Prisca [Begin Octave of Unity Prayers]
• Jan 19th Sts. Marius, Martha, Audifax, and Abachum; Com. of St Canute
• Jan 20th St. Fabian; St. Sebastian
• Jan 21st St. Agnes
• Jan 22nd Sts. Vincent and Anastasius; [Day of Penance for Violations Against Human Life in the United States]
• Jan 23rd St. Raymond of Peñafort; Com. of St. Emerentiana; Betrothal of the Virgin Mary with St. Joseph (Mass in Some Places); St. Ildephonsus (Mass in Some Places)
• Jan 24th St. Timothy
• Jan 25th Conversion of St. Paul
• Jan 26th St. Polycarp
• Jan 27th St. John Chrysostom
• Jan 28th St. Peter Nolasco; Com. of St. Agnes
• Jan 29th St. Francis De Sales
• Jan 30th St. Martina
• Jan 31st St. John Bosco

** Feast of the Holy Name: Sunday between the Circumcision and Epiphany [or January 2, when no such Sunday occurs]

February

• Feb 1st St. Ignatius of Antioch
• Feb 2nd Purification of the Blessed Virgin Mary
• Feb 3rd St. Blase
• Feb 4th St. Andrew Corsini
• Feb 5th St. Agatha
• Feb 6th St. Titus; Com. of St. Dorothy
• Feb 7th St. Romuald
• Feb 8th St. John of Matha
• Feb 9th St. Cyril of Alexandria; Com. of St. Apollonia
• Feb 10th St. Scholastica
• Feb 11th Apparition of Our Lady at Lourdes
  
• Feb 12th Seven Founders of the Servite Order
• Feb 13th Feria
• Feb 14th St. Valentine
• Feb 15th Sts. Faustinus and Jovita
• Feb 16th Feria
• Feb 17th Feria; Flight into Egypt (Mass in Some Places)
• Feb 18th St. Simeon
• Feb 19th Feria
• Feb 20th Feria
• Feb 21st Feria
• Feb 22nd Saint Peter's Chair at Antioch; Com. of St. Paul
• Feb 23rd St. Peter Damian; Com. of the Vigil of St. Matthias
• Feb 24th St. Matthias
• Feb 25th Feria
• Feb 26th Feria; St. Margaret of Cortona (Mass in Some Places)
• Feb 27th St. Gabriel of Our Lady of Sorrows
• Feb 28th Feria

Note: In a leap year, the Vigil of St. Matthias is kept on February 24, and any Feasts usually occurring from February 24 through 28 are kept one day later.

March

• Mar 1st Feria
• Mar 2nd Feria
• Mar 3rd Feria
• Mar 4th St. Casimir of Poland; Com. of Saint Lucius I
• Mar 5th Feria
• Mar 6th Ss. Perpetua and Felicity
• Mar 7th St. Thomas Aquinas
• Mar 8th St. John of God
• Mar 9th St. Frances of Rome
• Mar 10th The Forty Holy Martyrs of Sebaste
• Mar 11th Feria
• Mar 12th St. Gregory the Great
• Mar 13th Feria
• Mar 14th Feria
• Mar 15th Feria
• Mar 16th Feria
• Mar 17th St. Patrick of Ireland
• Mar 18th St. Cyril of Jerusalem
• Mar 19th St. Joseph, Spouse of the Blessed Virgin Mary
• Mar 20th Feria
• Mar 21st St. Benedict
• Mar 22nd Feria; St. Catherine of Genoa (Mass in Some Places); St. Isidore the Farmer (Mass in Some Places)
• Mar 23rd Feria
• Mar 24th St. Gabriel the Archangel
• Mar 25th The Annunciation of the Lord
• Mar 26th Feria
• Mar 27th St. John Damascene
• Mar 28th St. John of Capistrano
• Mar 29th Feria
• Mar 30th Feria
• Mar 31st Feria

April

• Apr 1st Feria
• Apr 2nd St. Francis of Paola
• Apr 3rd Feria
• Apr 4th St. Isidore of Seville
• Apr 5th St. Vincent Ferrer
• Apr 6th Feria
• Apr 7th Feria
• Apr 8th Feria
• Apr 9th Feria
• Apr 10th Feria
• Apr 11th St. Leo the Great
• Apr 12th Feria
• Apr 13th St. Hermenegild
• Apr 14th St. Justin; Com. of Sts. Tiburtius, Valerian, and Maximus
• Apr 15th Feria
• Apr 16th Feria; St. Benedict Joseph Labre (Mass in Some Places)
• Apr 17th St. Anicetus
• Apr 18th Feria
• Apr 19th Feria
• Apr 20th Feria
• Apr 21st St. Anselm
• Apr 22nd Sts. Soter and Caius
• Apr 23rd St. George
• Apr 24th St. Fidelis of Sigmaringen
• Apr 25th St. Mark the Evangelist; Greater Litanies (Major Rogation Day)
• Apr 26th Sts. Cletus and Marcellinus; Our Lady of Good Counsel (Mass in Some Places)
• Apr 27th St. Peter Canisius
• Apr 28th St. Paul of the Cross; Com. of St. Vitalis
• Apr 29th St. Peter of Verona
• Apr 30th St. Catherine of Siena

Wednesday after the II Sunday after Easter: Solemnity of St. Joseph, C - Double of the I Class
Wednesday after the III Sunday after Easter: Octave Day of St. Joseph, C - Greater Double

May

• May 1st Sts. Philip and James; (Change in the 1962 Calendar: St. Joseph, the Worker)
• May 2nd St. Athanasius
• May 3rd Finding of the Holy Cross; Com. of St. Alexander I, Sts. Eventius and Theodulus, and St. Juvenal (Change in the 1962 Calendar: Feria; Com. of St. Alexander I and Companions)
• May 4th St. Monica
• May 5th St. Pius V
• May 6th St. John before the Latin Gate (Change in the 1962 Calendar: Feria)
• May 7th St. Stanislaus
• May 8th Apparition of St. Michael the Archangel (Change in the 1962 Calendar: Feria)
• May 9th St. Gregory Nazianzen
• May 10th St. Antoninus; Com. of Sts. Gordian and Epimachus
• May 11th Feria; (Change in the 1962 Calendar: Sts. Philip and James)
• May 12th Sts. Nereus, Achilleus, Domitilla and Pancras
• May 13th St. Robert Bellarmine
• May 14th St Boniface of Tarsus 
  
• May 15th St. John Baptist de la Salle; (Change in the 1962 Calendar: St. Isidore the Farmer (Mass in Some Places)
• May 16th St. Ubaldus; St. John Nepomucene (Mass in Some Places)
• May 17th St. Paschal Baylon
• May 18th St. Venantius of Camerino
• May 19th St. Peter Celestine; Com. of St. Pudentiana
• May 20th St. Bernardine of Siena
• May 21st Feria
• May 22nd Feria; St. Rita of Cascia (Mass in Some Places)
• May 23rd Feria; St. John Baptist de Rossi (Mass in Some Places)
• May 24th Feria; Our Lady Help of Christians (Mass in Some Places)
• May 25th St. Gregory VII; Com. of St. Urban I
• May 26th St. Phillip Neri; Com. of St. Eleutherius
• May 27th St. Bede the Venerable; Com. of Saint John I
• May 28th St. Augustine of Canterbury
• May 29th St. Mary Magdalene de Pazzi
• May 30th St. Felix I; St. Ferdinand III (Mass in Some Places); St. Joan of Arc (Mass in Some Places)
• May 31st Queenship of Mary; Com. of St. Petronilla; Our Lady Queen of All Saints and Mother of Fair Love (Mass in Some Places); Our Lady Mediatrix of All Graces (Mass in Some Places)

June

• June 1st St. Angela Merici
• June 2nd Sts. Marcellinus, Peter, and Erasmus
• June 3rd Feria
• June 4th St. Francis Caracciolo
• June 5th St. Boniface, Bishop and Martyr
• June 6th St. Norbert
• June 7th Feria
• June 8th Feria
• June 9th Sts. Primus and Felician; Our Lady Mother of Grace (Mass in Some Places)
• June 10th St. Margaret
• June 11th St. Barnabas
• June 12th St. John of San Facondo; Com. of Sts. Basilides, Cyrinus, Nabor, and Nazarius
• June 13th St. Anthony of Padua
• June 14th St. Basil the Great
• June 15th Sts. Vitus, Modestus, and Crescentia
• June 16th Feria; St. John Francis Regis (Mass in Some Places)
• June 17th Feria; (Change in 1962 Calendar: Gregory Barbarigo)
• June 18th St. Ephrem; Com. of Sts. Mark and Marcellianus
• June 19th St. Juliana Falconieri; Com. of Sts. Gervase and Protase
• June 20th St. Silverius
• June 21st St. Aloysius Gonzaga
• June 22nd St. Paulinus
• June 23rd Vigil of the Nativity of St. John the Baptist
• June 24th Nativity of St. John the Baptist
• June 25th St. William; Com. of Octave of St. John the Baptist
• June 26th Sts. John and Paul; Com. of Octave of St. John the Baptist
• June 27th Within the Octave of St. John the Baptist; Our Lady of Perpetual Help (Mass in Some Places)
• June 28th St. Irenaeus of Lyons; Com. of Octave of St. John the Baptist; Com. of Vigil of Sts. Peter and Paul; (Change in 1962 Calendar: Vigil of Sts. Peter and Paul)
• June 29th Sts. Peter and Paul
• June 30th Commemoration of Saint Paul; Com. of Saint Peter; Com of Octave of Saint John the Baptist

July

• July 1st The Most Precious Blood of Our Lord Jesus Christ, Com. of the Octave day of St. John the Baptist.
• July 2nd Visitation of the Blessed Virgin Mary; Com. of Ss Processus and Martinian
• July 3rd St. Leo II; Commemoration of Octave of Sts. Peter and Paul; (Change in 1962 Calendar: St. Irenaeus of Lyons)
• July 4th Within the Octave of Sts. Peter and Paul; All Holy Popes (Mass in Some Places) 
• July 5th St. Anthony Mary Zaccaria; Commemoration of Octave of Sts. Peter and Paul
• July 6th Octave Day of Ss Peter and Paul
• July 7th Sts. Cyril and Methodius; St. Lawrence of Brindisi (Mass in Some Places)
• July 8th St. Elizabeth of Portugal
• July 9th Feria; St. Veronica of Giuliani (Mass in Some Places)
• July 10th Seven Holy Brothers; Sts. Rufina and Secunda
• July 11th St. Pius I
• July 12th St. John Gualbert; Com. of Sts. Nabor and Felix
• July 13th St. Anacletus (Change in the 1962 Calendar: Feria)
• July 14th St. Bonaventure
• July 15th St. Henry II
• July 16th Our Lady of Mount Carmel
• July 17th St. Alexius; Humility of the Blessed Virgin Mary (Mass in Some Places)
• July 18th St. Camillus of Lellis; Com. of Sts. Symphorosa and Companions
• July 19th St. Vincent de Paul
• July 20th St. Jerome Emiliani; Com. of St. Margaret
• July 21st St. Praxedes; (Change in 1962 Calendar: St. Lawrence of Brindisi, Comm. of St. Praxedes)
• July 22nd St. Mary Magdalene
• July 23rd St. Apollinaris; Com. of St. Liborius
• July 24th Vigil of St. James the Greater; Com. of St. Christina
• July 25th St. James the Greater; Com. of St. Christopher
• July 26th St. Anne
• July 27th St. Pantaleon
• July 28th Sts. Nazarius and Celsus; St. Victor I; St. Innocentius I
• July 29th St. Martha; Com. of Sts. Felix II and Companions
• July 30th Sts. Abdon and Sennen
• July 31st St. Ignatius of Loyola

August

• Aug 1st St. Peter's Chains; Com. of St. Paul and the Holy Maccabees  (Change in 1962 Calendar: Feria; Com. of Holy Maccabees)
• Aug 2nd St. Alphonsus Liguori; Com. of Saint Stephen I
• Aug 3rd Finding of St. Stephen (Change in 1962 Calendar: Feria)
• Aug 4th St. Dominic
• Aug 5th Dedication of Our Lady of the Snows (St. Mary Major)
• Aug 6th Transfiguration of Our Lord Jesus Christ; Com. of Sts. Xystus II, Felicissimus, and Agapitus
• Aug 7th St. Cajetan; Com. of St. Donatus
• Aug 8th Sts. Cyriacus, Largus, and Smaragdus; (Change in 1962 Calendar: St. John Vianney)
• Aug 9th St. John Vianney; Com. of the Vigil of Saint Laurence & St. Romanus; St. Emygdius (Mass in Some Places); (Change in 1962 Calendar: Vigil of Saint Laurence & Comm. of St. Romanus)
• Aug 10th St. Laurence
• Aug 11th Sts. Tiburtius and Susanna; St. Philomena (Mass in Some Places)
• Aug 12th St. Clare of Assisi
• Aug 13th Sts. Hippolytus and Cassian; Our Lady Refuge of Sinners (Mass in Some Places); St. John Berchmans (Mass in Some Places)
• Aug 14th Vigil of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary; Com. of St. Eusebius
• Aug 15th Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary
• Aug 16th St. Joachim; Within the of Octave of the Assumption; St. Roch (Mass in Some Places)
• Aug 17th St. Hyacinth of Poland; Com. of Octave of the Assumption; Octave Day of Saint Laurance
• Aug 18th Within the Octave of the Assumption; Com. of St. Agapitus; Empress Helena (Mass in Some Places)
• Aug 19th St. John Eudes; Com. of Octave of the Assumption
• Aug 20th St. Bernard of Clairvaux; Com. of Octave of the Assumption
• Aug 21st St. Jane Frances de Chantal; Com. of Octave of the Assumption
• Aug 22nd Immaculate Heart of the Blessed Virgin Mary; (Octave Day of the Assumption) Com. of Sts. Timothy, Hippolytus and Symphorian
• Aug 23rd St. Philip Benizi; Com. of the Vigil of St. Bartholomew
• Aug 24th St. Bartholomew
• Aug 25th St. Louis IX
• Aug 26th St. Zephyrinus
• Aug 27th St. Joseph Calasanctius
• Aug 28th St. Augustine of Hippo; Com. of Saint Hermes
• Aug 29th Martyrdom of St. John the Baptist; Com. of Saint Sabina
• Aug 30th St. Rose of Lima; Com. of Sts. Felix and Adauctus
• Aug 31st St. Raymond Nonnatus

September

• Sep 1st St. Giles; Com. of Holy Twelve Brothers
• Sep 2nd St. Stephen, King of Hungary
• Sep 3rd St. Pius X
• Sep 4th Feria; St. Rose of Viterbo (Mass in Some Places)
• Sep 5th St. Laurence Justinian
• Sep 6th Feria
• Sep 7th Feria
• Sep 8th Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary; Com. of St. Adrian
• Sep 9th St. Gorgonius; St. Peter Claver (Mass in Some Places)
• Sep 10th St. Nicholas of Tolentino
• Sep 11th Sts. Protus and Hyacinth
• Sep 12th Holy Name of Mary
• Sep 13th Feria
• Sep 14th Exaltation of the Holy Cross
• Sep 15th Our Lady of Sorrows; Com. of St. Nicomedes
• Sep 16th Sts. Cornelius and Cyprian; Com. of Ss Euphemia, Lucy, and Geminianus
• Sep 17th Holy Stigmata of Saint Francis
• Sep 18th St. Joseph of Cupertino
• Sep 19th St. Januarius; Our Lady of La Salette Reconciliatrix of Sinners (Mass in Some Places)
• Sep 20th St. Eustace and Companions; Com. of Vigil of St. Matthew
• Sep 21st St. Matthew
• Sep 22nd St. Thomas of Villanova; Com. of Sts. Maurice and Companions
• Sep 23rd St. Linus; Com. of St. Thecla
• Sep 24th Our Lady of Ransom
• Sep 25th Feria
• Sep 26th Sts. Cyprian and Justina; North American Martyrs (Mass in Some Places)
• Sep 27th Sts. Cosmas and Damian
• Sep 28th St. Wenceslaus
• Sep 29th Dedication of Saint Michael the Archangel
• Sep 30th St. Jerome

October

• Oct 1st St. Remigius; St. Gregory the Illuminator (Mass in Some Places)
• Oct 2nd Holy Guardian Angels
• Oct 3rd St. Therese of Lisieux
• Oct 4th St. Francis of Assisi
• Oct 5th St. Placid and Companions
• Oct 6th St. Bruno
• Oct 7th Holy Rosary of the Blessed Virgin Mary; Com. of St. Mark, Sts. Sergius and Bacchus, Sts. Marcellus and Apuleius
• Oct 8th St Bridget of Sweden
• Oct 9th St. John Leonard, Com. of St. Denis
• Oct 10th St. Francis Borgia
• Oct 11th The Maternity of the Blessed Virgin Mary
• Oct 12th Feria; Our Lady of the Pillar (Mass in Some Places)
• Oct 13th St. Edward, King of England
• Oct 14th St. Callistus I
• Oct 15th St. Teresa of Avila
• Oct 16th St. Hedwig; Purity of the Blessed Virgin Mary (Mass in Some Places)
• Oct 17th St. Margaret Mary Alacoque
• Oct 18th St. Luke the Evangelist
• Oct 19th St. Peter of Alcantara
• Oct 20th St. John of Kanty (i.e. St. John Cantius)
• Oct 21st St. Hilarion; Com. of St. Ursula and Companions
• Oct 22nd Feria
• Oct 23rd Feria; Feast of the Most Holy Redeemer (Mass in Some Places); Change in 1962 Calendar: St. Anthony Mary Claret)
• Oct 24th St. Raphael the Archangel
• Oct 25th Sts. Chrysanthus and Daria
• Oct 26th St. Evaristus
• Oct 27th Vigil of Sts. Simon and Jude
• Oct 28th Sts. Jude and Simon
• Oct 29th Feria
• Oct 30th Feria; St. Alphonsus Rodriguez (Mass in Some Places)
• Oct 31st Vigil of All Saints

November

• Nov. 1st All Saints
• Nov. 2nd Commemoration of all the Faithful Departed (All Souls)
• Nov. 3rd Within the Octave of All Saints
• Nov. 4th St. Charles Borromeo; Com. of Octave of All Saints; Com. of Sts. Vitalis and Agricola
• Nov. 5th Within the Octave of All Saints; (All Saints of the Society of Jesus); The Sacred Relics (Mass in Some Places);
• Nov. 6th Within the Octave of All Saints; (All Saints of Ireland)
• Nov. 7th Within the Octave of All Saints
• Nov. 8th Octave Day of All Saints; Com. of the Holy Four Crowned Martyrs; (All Saints of England)
• Nov. 9th Dedication of the Basilica of our Saviour (St. John Lateran), Com. of St. Theodore
• Nov. 10th St. Andrew Avellino, Com. of Sts. Tryphon, Respicius, and Nympha
• Nov. 11th St. Martin of Tours; Com. of St. Mennas
• Nov. 12th St. Martin I;  (All Saints of the Dominican Order)
• Nov. 13th St. Didacus; (Change in the 1962 Calendar for the USA: St. Frances Xavier Cabrini with a Comm. of St. Didacus); (Feast of All Saints of the Benedictine Order); (All Dominican Souls); (All Saints of the Augustinian Order); (All Norbertine Saints)
• Nov. 14th St. Josaphat; (All Saints of the Carmelite Order); (All Benedictine Souls)
• Nov. 15th St. Albert the Great; (All Carmelite Souls)
• Nov. 16th St. Gertrude the Great; (All Saints of the Servite Order)
• Nov. 17th St. Gregory Thaumaturgus; (All Souls of the Servite Order)
• Nov. 18th Dedication of the Basilicas of Sts. Peter and Paul
• Nov. 19th St. Elizabeth of Hungary; Com. of St. Pontianus; (All Saints of the Order of Malta)
• Nov. 20th St. Felix of Valois
• Nov. 21th Presentation of the Blessed Virgin Mary
• Nov. 22th St. Cecilia
• Nov. 23th St. Clement; Com. of St. Felicitas
• Nov. 24th St. John of the Cross; Com. St. Chrysogonus
• Nov. 25th St. Catherine of Alexandria
• Nov. 26th Saint Sylvester; Com. of St. Peter of Alexandria; St. Leonard of Port Maurice (Mass in Some Places)
• Nov. 27th Feria; Our Lady of the Miraculous Medal (Mass in Some Places)
• Nov. 28th Feria
• Nov. 29th Vigil of St. Andrew; Com. of St. Saturninus; (Feast of All Saints of the Franciscan Order)
• Nov. 30th St. Andrew

December

• Dec. 1st Feria
• Dec. 2nd St. Bibiana
• Dec. 3rd St. Francis Xavier
• Dec. 4th St. Peter Chrysologus; Com of St. Barbara
• Dec. 5th Com. of St. Sabbas
• Dec. 6th St. Nicholas of Myra
• Dec. 7th St. Ambrose; Com. of the Vigil of the Immaculate Conception
• Dec. 8th Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary
• Dec. 9th Within the Octave of the Immaculate Conception
• Dec. 10th Within the Octave of the Immaculate Conception; St. Melchiades; Holy House of Loreta (Mass in Some Places)
• Dec. 11th St. Damasus I; Com. of the Octave of the Immaculate Conception
• Dec. 12th Within the Octave of the Immaculate Conception; Our Lady of Guadalupe (Mass in Some Places)
• Dec. 13th St. Lucy; Com of the Octave of the Immaculate Conception
• Dec. 14th Within the Octave of the Immaculate Conception
• Dec. 15th Octave Day of the Immaculate Conception
• Dec. 16th St. Eusebius
• Dec. 17th Feria
• Dec. 18th Feria; Expectation of the Blessed Virgin Mary (Mass in Some Places)
• Dec. 19th Feria
• Dec. 20th Vigil of St. Thomas the Apostle
• Dec. 21st St. Thomas the Apostle
• Dec. 22nd Feria; St. Frances Xavier Cabrini (Mass in Some Places); (Change in the 1962 Calendar for the USA: Feria)
• Dec. 23rd Feria
• Dec. 24th Vigil of the Nativity of Our Lord (Christmas Eve) 
• Dec. 25th Nativity of Our Lord Jesus Christ (Christmas Day); Com of St. Anastasia
• Dec 26th St. Stephen the First Martyr; Com. of the Octave of the Nativity
• Dec 27th St. John the Apostle; Com. of the Octave of the Nativity
• Dec. 28th Holy Innocents; Com. of the Octave of the Nativity
• Dec. 29th St. Thomas Becket
• Dec. 30th Within the Octave of the Nativity
• Dec. 31st St. Sylvester I; Com. of the Octave of the Nativity

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