Welcome to Ordinary Time

This Sunday, we entered a new liturgical season: Ordinary Time.

And yet, there is nothing “ordinary” about it.

After the great feasts and celebrations of Eastertide and Pentecost, the Church now invites us into a long green season of growth, a season not marked by spectacle, but by steady faithfulness. Ordinary Time, sometimes called the season after Pentecost or Trinitytide, is where the Christian life takes root and begins to flourish in the daily rhythms of ordinary life.

The word “ordinary” comes from the Latin ordinalis, meaning ordered or numbered time. It is the ordered unfolding of the life of Christ within us. This is the season where we learn what it means not only to celebrate the mysteries of the faith, but to live them.

And perhaps this is why Ordinary Time is such a gift.

Because most of life is not lived in mountaintop moments. Most of life is lived in kitchens and carpools, at dinner tables and in quiet prayers before bed, in daily work, hidden sacrifices, acts of mercy, repentance, forgiveness, and perseverance. It is here, in the steady and often unseen places of life, that God forms his people.

Throughout Scripture, we see that God works not only through miraculous moments but through long seasons of faithfulness. Israel wandered in the wilderness. The disciples learned to follow Christ day by day. The early Church was built through ordinary believers living lives of quiet devotion in the midst of the world.

This is the invitation of Ordinary Time: to become faithful disciples in the everyday.

The liturgical color for this season is green, symbolizing life, growth, and fruitfulness. Just as the earth flourishes under the warmth of the sun, so too our souls are meant to flourish in the light of Christ. Week by week, we hear the teachings of Jesus proclaimed in the Gospels, his parables, miracles, commands, and call to discipleship, and we are gradually shaped into his likeness.

Ordinary Time teaches us that holiness is not found only in extraordinary moments, but in the continual offering of our lives to God.

In a culture constantly seeking distraction, novelty, and excitement, this season reminds us of something deeply countercultural: spiritual growth is often quiet, slow, and hidden. The Christian life is not sustained by emotional highs alone, but by abiding in Christ day after day.

St. Augustine once wrote:

“You have made us for yourself, O Lord, and our hearts are restless until they rest in You.”

Ordinary Time is where we learn that rest, not only in moments of celebration, but in the faithful rhythms of daily prayer, worship, repentance, and love.

So as we begin this long green season together, let us embrace its beauty. Let us reclaim the sacredness of ordinary life. Let us seek Christ not only in feast days and celebrations, but also in the quiet moments that make up our days.

For even here, especially here, God is at work.

And so with the Church throughout the ages, we pray:

“Bless the Lord, O my soul, and all that is within me, bless his holy name!”

— Psalm 103:1

May this season be one of deep growth, renewed faith, and abiding joy as we walk faithfully with Christ in the everyday moments of life.

Ways to Celebrate

Read Acts 1 and 2 about the early church flourishing after the baptism of the Holy Spirit. Pray for the Holy Spirit to fill you anew and help you to flourish and grow.

Buy my latest liturgical guidebook, The Liturgical Home: Ordinary Time! It gives you everything you need to celebrate the season of Ordinary Time in your home. All of the feast days, their significance and meaning, traditional recipes and ways to celebrate from around the world, and devotions for the special days. You are going to love it!

Decorate your home with all things green! I love this beautiful, muted green tablecloth with cream flowers. These adorable striped napkins, or linen napkins. You could also add a throw pillow like this.

Fill a jar or vase with green herbs or branches from the backyard.

May God bless you and your family during this season of Ordinary Time!