Why follow the liturgical calendar?

[jax8686]

my girlfriend has been asking me lots of questions about the Catholic faith, and as she is pentacostal, this is quite a challenge… although i have found almost all of my answers on the forums, i have one i am having trouble finding answers to: why do we observe seasons like lent, and adent(and pretty much the entire liturgical calendar), as well as specific feast days, etc. and how does this correspond to Romans 14 that says do or dont do, as long as its in the name of the Lord?

thanx in advance
James

 

[puzzleannie]

Catholics make their journey in Christ together, in a community, because that is the way Jesus set it up. He made no provision for a do-it-yourself option. To be Catholic is to participate in the liturgical life of the Church, that is, its public worship which is the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass and the Liturgy of the Hours, which sanctify and make Christ present each day, and the liturgical year with its seasons and celebrations, which sanctify the year. You are either in our your’re out. Read the last chapter of John’s gospel, as well as the Last Supper discourse, where Jesus pleads for unity among his followers.

 

[JustSomeGuy]

along with what puzzleannie said (especially noting the liturgical calendar as sanctifying each day to God and being a sign of unity in the universal Church) there are a few other things to note that are instructive to people who are new to the Church.

the liturgical calendar has its origins in the Jewish roots of Christianity. the Jews observed a detailed calendar much the same way we do. this is illustrated throughout Scripture, including the Gospels. there was yearly observance of Passover, the Day of Atonement, Feast of Booths, etc.

early in Christian history, significant celebrations were added into that calendar by the first generations of Christians, sundays, Easter, etc. as the Christians separated themselves from Judaism, the feasts and solemnities also became decidedly Christian. only those that signified Christ and the New Covenant remain. many of our solemnities are the Christian version of days significant to the Jews (Holy Thursday, Pentacost, et al.)

over time, the calendar developed. special days were added in order to deepen the understanding of the Christian faithful. whatever proved to be a benefit to faith eventually became ratified for the universal Church by councils and the popes. many of these came out of the pious practices of local Churches. some were just introduced as a new practice. as far as i know, the seasons of the calendar are so ancient that they are from the undocumented development of the Church in the era of the apostles and the church fathers.

 

[Br.Rich_SFO]

JustSomeGuy:

along with what puzzleannie said (especially noting the liturgical calendar as sanctifying each day to God and being a sign of unity in the universal Church) there are a few other things to note that are instructive to people who are new to the Church.

the liturgical calendar has its origins in the Jewish roots of Christianity. the Jews observed a detailed calendar much the same way we do. this is illustrated throughout Scripture, including the Gospels. there was yearly observance of Passover, the Day of Atonement, Feast of Booths, etc.

early in Christian history, significant celebrations were added into that calendar by the first generations of Christians, sundays, Easter, etc. as the Christians separated themselves from Judaism, the feasts and solemnities also became decidedly Christian. only those that signified Christ and the New Covenant remain. many of our solemnities are the Christian version of days significant to the Jews (Holy Thursday, Pentacost, et al.)

over time, the calendar developed. special days were added in order to deepen the understanding of the Christian faithful. whatever proved to be a benefit to faith eventually became ratified for the universal Church by councils and the popes. many of these came out of the pious practices of local Churches. some were just introduced as a new practice. as far as i know, the seasons of the calendar are so ancient that they are from the undocumented development of the Church in the era of the apostles and the church fathers.

I would answer it in two ways. As humans we are creatures of time. We do things at certain hours of the day, certain days of the week, certain months of the year. In addition God’s creation is also ordered and follows a certain pattern like planting in the spring and harvesting in the fall.

 

[SeekerJen]

We all adhere very strictly to a secular calendar, why not use a religious calendar as well? No one would dream of saying “Do or don’t do, whatever you want in the name of the Lord” about, say, their work week or class schedule or children’s mealtimes. Why would we give our faith and worship any less consideration?

 

[tradcatmel]

Rather than getting answers on the forum - I would rather talk to the priest about the questions that your girlfriend asks you.

I go to the latin rite, so I would feel very comfortable talking to a priest of that rite…

Maybe make a note of all the questions and have a meeting with the priest and get him to answer them…then you know that it is not just heresay…it comes from Christ’s representative himself.