God wants full-time believers

What you need to know:
- Green is a sign of life in nature and as such it represents growth, life and hope. It symbolizes the graces that draw people into the life of God. The last Sunday of Ordinary Time is the Solemnity of Christ the King.
Faith is not seasonal. Here are some insights about the continuity of our faith, beyond the major seasons of Lent, Easter, Advent and Christmas, of the liturgical calendar.
Transition to the first day back at work after a holiday may be difficult. It is in this sense that I wish to share some insights about the continuity of our faith, beyond the major seasons of Lent, Easter, Advent and Christmas, of the liturgical calendar.
With the Baptism of Jesus, the Church, observes what is known as the Ordinary Time of the liturgical year. It is called "ordinary" not because it is common, but simply because its Sundays are numbered consecutively/ordinarily.
Because the term ordinary most often means something that is not special or distinctive, many people think that Ordinary Time refers to parts of the calendar of the Catholic Church that are unimportant. The numbered weeks of Ordinary Time, in fact, represent the ordered life of the Church.
God is not seasonal
Ordinary Time is, therefore, not a time of spiritual dormancy but a season rich with opportunities for renewal and transformation. We acknowledge God not to be seasonal, but found in our ordinary happenings of life. So the Church provides for our continued relationship with God and His goodness, even beyond the great seasons of the year.
During the ordinary time, Christians are invited to journey through the ordinary weeks with open hearts, seeking to encounter God’s goodness in the ordinary moments of their lives, and emerge with a faith that is stronger and more deeply rooted in Christ.
The early Christians knew themselves as Followers of the Way, because they endeavoured to live their faith as a new way of living, a new way of being human, characterszed by Jesus’ resurrection (Acts 9:2). Their Christianity was not about 'me and Jesus' but 'me in Jesus'. They knew that as members of His Body, they were called to continue His ongoing work of saving the world. No wonder, the people of Antioch called them Christians (Acts 11:26).
The Gospel readings during Ordinary Time primarily focus on the public ministry of Jesus. This includes His miracles, parables, and teachings, as well as His interactions with the disciples and the people He encountered.
The liturgical color assigned to Ordinary Time is green. Green is a sign of life in nature and as such it represents growth, life and hope. It symbolizes the graces that draw people into the life of God. The last Sunday of Ordinary Time is the Solemnity of Christ the King.
Rhythm and security
Pastorally speaking, the liturgical year is interwoven into our individual, family and societal interaction. It regularly invites us to look inward and choose repentance, purge sin from our lives, focus on spiritual growth and service. It provides rhythm and security, whose practice stretches back into the ages and ties us to those who practiced it long ago. For parents, the Ordinary time of the Liturgical year, is a simple way to teach Christian/gospel principles to children, guided by the change of colours, hymns, readings, and reflections on the lives of the saints.
The ordinary time of the liturgical year guides our faith daily. It helps us feel connected and more fully engaged in the life of the Universal Church. Reading the daily Mass readings and prayers one is comforted to see that spiritual ups and downs on the journey are the common experience of all believers.
Getting to know the saints throughout the year inspires Christians and reminds them they are not alone on the journey. When Pope Benedict XVI launched the Holy Year of Faith in 2012, he called a propitious occasion for the faithful to understand more profoundly that the foundation of Christian faith is the encounter with an event, a person, which gives life a new horizon and a decisive direction.
Pope Francis has proclaimed 2025 as a Jubilee Year, under the theme: Pilgrims of Hope, calling it a sacred time of renewal, reflection and grace, celebrated every 25 years. It opens up a love for Jesus Christ and His dear Mother Mary, and the church that has carried us through many trials.
Hence, both the seasons and ordinary time of the liturgical calendar, are intended to make us full-time believers.