On Ordinary Time

Some brief thoughts on the season of Ordinary Time:

Despite the fact that there's no big holiday associated with it, there's nothing "ordinary" about it. Nor is it merely marking time while we wait for Advent to begin or Easter to arrive or some such. Ordinary Time is a remarkable and beautiful season in its own right, and in some ways it is perhaps the most sublime liturgical season of all.

During Advent and Lent we prepare ourselves for the celebrations of Christmas and Easter. We celebrate the great mysteries that define our faith: the Incarnation, the Crucifixion, and the Resurrection. We celebrate the greatness of God as it is made manifest in those mysteries. But in Ordinary Time, we celebrate the greatness of God because He is God. We need no other reason.

It is indeed a time to focus on the ordinary, on things to which we would normally not give a second thought. When we begin to contemplate the ordinary, we quickly arrive at the realization that there is nothing "ordinary" about it. The simplest things -- a daisy, a robin, the smile of a person that you see every day -- they are all, in their way, exquisite. They are all ordinary, yet they are all extraordinary. They are all the gifts of God's wisdom and grace. They can all be powerful and awe-inspiring reminders of the majesty and the unbounded love of Father, Son and Holy Spirit.

So take a moment today to think about something ordinary. On closer inspection, you may just find that it's not so commonplace after all. For sometimes the most routine things -- like Ordinary Time -- may just be the most extraordinary.

Peace and God bless!