Seasonal & Weekly Resources

We have entered the season in our Church called "ordinary time." This is when you see a LOT of green in the church - the priests and deacons will wear green, the banners tend to have green, and we have a lot of green plants around. A lot of you may think that we call this time "ordinary" because it's just plain and we aren't preparing for something (like Advent or Lent) or celebrating something (like Christmas or Easter). While this time may be "ordinary" in that sense, this is the time we really focus on loving each other and making sure we have God with us in our "ordinary" lives. 
 
That being said, this time isn't really called "ordinary time" because it's plain. It's actually named "ordinary time" after the numerical system we use to keep track of the weeks. An "ordinal" number is a number that is used to indicate a place: first, second, third, fourth, etc. They're the numbers you see with the little subscript letters after them: 1st, 2nd, 3rd, etc. These numbers tell you order (see that "ordinal" root in the word there??). So, while we may just be ordering the weeks away until Advent comes after the 34th Sunday in Ordinary Time on November 21st, remember that we should be keeping these weeks anything other than "ordinary!" While we attempt to find new order to our lives and while we may be ordering away online, we should also be reordering our lives toward and with God. And remember, we do have several special celebrations mixed in there like Trinity Sunday which we celebrate this coming Sunday!
 
Here is a short, 4-minute video about Ordinary Time.

The Feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Corss, celebrated every year on September 14th, recalls three events:

• The finding of the True Cross by St. Helena.
• The dedication of churches built by Constantine on the site of the Holy Sepulchre and Mount Calvary.
• The restoration of the True Cross to Jerusalem in AD 629 by the Byzantine emperor Heraclius after it had fallen into the hands of the Persian Emperor Chosroes II in the AD 614 Sasanian conquest of Jerusalem.

We celebrate the Feast of Saint Francis of Assisi on October 4th. Watch the short, 3-minute video below to learn more about him.

Saint Francis is the patron saint of animals, merchants, the environment, and ecology.

The Prayer of St. Francis

Lord, make me an instrument of Thy peace;
Where there is hatred, let me sow love;
Where there is injury, pardon;
Where there is error, the truth;
Where there is doubt, the faith;
Where there is despair, hope;
Where there is darkness, light;
And where there is sadness, joy.

O Divine Master,
Grant that I may not so much seek
To be consoled, as to console;
To be understood, as to understand;
To be loved as to love.

For it is in giving that we receive;
It is in pardoning that we are pardoned;
And it is in dying that we are born to eternal life. Amen.

On October 7th, we celebrate the Feast of the Most Holy Rosary. Watch the 2-minute video below to hear the story of how this feast came about.

Here is a great video for kids on how to pray the rosary: https://watch.formed.org/videos/the-rosary-a-special-way-to-pray

We celebrate the Feast of St. Vincent de Paul on September 27th. Watch the short, 3-minute video below to learn more about this inspiring saint.

St. Vincent de Paul is the patron of charities, horses, hospitals, leprosy, lost article, prisoners, spiritual help, St. Vincent de Paul Societies, and volunteers.

On September 30th, we celebrate the Feast of St. Jerome. Here is a 3-minute video about his legacy.

St. Jerome is the patron saint of archaeologists, Biblical scholars, librarians, students, and translators.

The Feast of the Archangels celebrates the gifts of the angels and how we can pray to them for intercession. We celebrate this feast on September 29th. Watch the 3-minute video below to learn more about this feast and why it's important to us.

St. Michael the Archangel is the patron saint of grocers, mariners, paratroopers, police officers, and military personnel.

St. Gabriel the Archangel is the patron saint of messenters, those who work for broadcasting and telecommunications, postal workers, clerics, diplomats, and stamp collectors.

St. Raphael the Archangel is the patron saint of the blind, happy meetings, nurses, physicians, and travelers.

October 1st is the Feast of St. Therese of the Child Jesus also called St. Therese of Lisieux. Below is a 3-minute video about her life.

St. Therese is the patron saint of florists, foreign missions, loss of parents, priests, and the sick (particularly those with tuberculosis).