Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

With the end of the Christmas season, the Church begins a brief period of weeks which will lead us into the holy and penitential season of Lent. This brief period has a counterpart that stretches from the end of the Easter season until the beginning of Advent and goes by the name Ordinary Time. As you will recall, though, there is nothing ordinary about this time, at least not in the way that we…well…ordinarily use the word.

By “ordinary” we do not mean “normal” or “routine.” Rather, the Church indicates that our lives must follow a certain order—a right organization, a proper direction. When our days are rightly ordered, we are better equipped to follow God’s plan, to live in and to foster awareness of the presence of God in our world. While seasons like Advent and Lent help us give special attention to preparation, to penance, and to conversion—and the high seasons of Christmas and Easter help us to celebrate the joy of God’s graces—these weeks of Ordinary Time help us to rightly order our lives.

The Scriptures we will hear during the next five Sundays introduce us to Jesus. His ministry of teaching begins, and we will see that His teaching is supported by His miracles. The Lord’s signs and wonders lend authority to the words that He speaks, though the way that He speaks carries a gravitas all its own. As the identity of Jesus becomes clearer, the urgency of our own discipleship will also become more evident. We cannot ignore the teachings of Jesus – they must be part of our lives. In the Gospels we will hear in this season, Jesus makes a claim on us, though not as a conquest. His claim is that all who hear Him are loved by God and capable of receiving mercy and grace. His claim is that the invitation to God’s kingdom is not limited to a select group but is rather extended to all. We may face different challenges in accepting that invitation, and some of us will wrestle with those challenges more than others. But Jesus makes the invitation, nevertheless. Jesus calls us to follow Him, to listen to Him, to learn from Him, so that we can share life with Him.

This season of Ordinary Time should not be misunderstood. There is nothing ordinary about it. This is the time for us to rightly order our lives, to put Christ at the center of everything we do, to remember the call and the invitation extended to us and so enter into the challenge of following Jesus every day.

Peace,

Fr. Sam