Liturgical Calendar

First Fridays and Saturdays: Devotion to the First Fridays and First Saturdays incorporates devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus and the Immaculate Heart of Mary into our monthly routines. In the 17th century, St. Margaret Mary Alacoque, a cloistered nun, began receiving visions in which Christ asked her to foster devotion to His Sacred Heart. One of the devotions received through these visions is the "First Friday devotion," which calls for the faithful to receive the Eucharist on the first Friday of the month for nine consecutive months in honor of and in reparation for Jesus' Sacred Heart. Jesus revealed several promises for those who observed the First Friday devotions, including the reception of the sacraments before death, perseverance in the faith, and consolation of Christ's love at one's death.

The First Saturday Devotion is another way to devote yourself to the Sacred Heart of Jesus and honor our Holy Mother, the Virgin Mary. When the Virgin Mother appeared to the three children at Fatima in 1917, she told the oldest child, Lucia, that she would grant special graces to persons who practiced the First Saturday devotion. On the first Saturday of every month, the faithful should go to Confession, receive Holy Communion, say the Rosary, and meditate on the Mysteries of the Rosary for fifteen minutes.

The Feast of Saint Nicholas: St. Nicholas was born in the 3^rd century AD in the Roman Province of Lycia, modern-day Turkey. He was ordained a priest and later served as the Bishop of Myra, where he led his diocese with humility, dedication, and orthodoxy. Nicholas was famed for his works of charity. Many stories of his acts of kindness and miracles are associated with his good deeds. He is the patron saint of Russia, Greece, and the Italian city of Bari. According to Christian tradition, St. Nicholas continues his acts of kindness by delivering presents to good children in northern Germany on his Saint's Day on December 6^th. Other countries have the same tradition of St. Nicholas bringing gifts to good children on Christmas Eve to honor God's gift of the Christ-child. St. Nicholas is the genuine Santa Claus.

The Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception: On December 8^th, the Church celebrates the Immaculate Conception of the Virgin Mary, a Holy Day of Obligation in the United States, Argentina, Austria, Italy, Portugal, and Spain. This Solemnity is also the patronal feast day of the United States of America. Belief in the Virgin Mary's conception without sin has been a teaching of the Church since its earliest centuries. The Council of Basil declared it an article of faith in 1439. In later centuries, when a challenge arose against belief in the Immaculate Conception of the Virgin Mary without sin, the Church declared it a dogma of faith in 1854 by confirming the election of Mary of Nazareth by God even before her birth. The angel Gabriel affirmed this teaching by addressing Mary with the past perfect participle "has been graced" in the Greek text of Lk 1:28 (kecharitomene), referring to a condition in the past that continues in the present. The Church honors the conception of the Virgin Mary alone of all humans without original sin in preparation for her future destiny as the mother of the sinless Son of God (CCC 490-93, 2177).

The Blessed Virgin of Loreto: On October 7, 2019, Pope Francis ordered the inscription of Our Lady of Loretto into the General Roman Calendar. She is celebrated each year as an optional memorial on December 10^th. The commemoration of the Blessed Virgin of Loreto is a tradition of relocating the home where the Virgin Mary lived in Nazareth to Loreto, Italy. Sometime in the 4^th century AD, several devout Christians from Loreto dismantled the house, packed the pieces on a ship, transported them, and reassembled them in Loreto. The Marian shrine of Loreto is among the oldest Christian holy sites outside the Holy Land and has been a place of Christian pilgrimage for centuries. Over time, people began to embellish the story of the relocation of Mary's Nazareth home, and it became a tradition that angels miraculously transported Mary's house to Loreto. A recent archaeological survey dated the house's wooden beams to the 1^st century BC/AD.

Our Lady of Guadalupe: This feast day, celebrated on December 12, remembers the visitation of the Virgin Mary to a poor Mexican peasant named Juan Diego in 1531. Mary miraculously placed her image on St. Juan Diego's peasant cape as proof of her visitations. Dressed as a pregnant Aztec noblewoman, the Virgin Mary's image brought about the conversion and baptism of millions of Indians in Mexico, the Yucatan Peninsula, and South America. In the Americas, we honor the Virgin Mary as our patron saint because of the conversion of many native American populations through her visitation to St. Juan Diego. The image of the Virgin of Guadalupe continues to receive veneration from the faithful. After many investigations, scientists cannot determine the method of creating the image other than a miracle.

The Solemnity of the Nativity of Jesus Christ: Historical evidence of the celebration of the birth of Jesus on December 25^th in the Latin rite of the Catholic Church dates to Pope Liberius in AD 354. This solemn feast was probably celebrated earlier in the Church's history, but the oldest written description dates to this period. December 25^th is the beginning of the Christmas season in the Liturgical Calendar. Christmastime is the season to remember the First Advent of Christ and to look forward to His return in glory in His Second Advent. It is a time when Christians live with one foot in eternity! Christmastime is also a time to celebrate several special feast days in honor of Christ in the Liturgical Calendar. The first Sunday of this season is the Feast of the Holy Family (unless Christmas Day falls on a Sunday, then the feast is kept on December 30^th). It is a feast when we remember the role of the Holy Family in salvation history, and it is a time to celebrate our families and hold family reunions. The Christmas Season ends on January the 1^st, eight days after the birth of Jesus, as the ancients counted without a concept of a zero place-value when Jesus was named and circumcised as a member of the Sinai Covenant. The season of Christmastime ends by celebrating a feast in honor of Jesus's mother on the Feast of Mary, Mother of God, the new Eve, and the first Christian. In Heaven, she continues her role as an intercessor for her Son's people as the Queen Mother of the eternal Davidic King. See the article "Dating the Birth of Jesus" and "The Virgin Mary's Role in Salvation History."

The Feast of St Stephen: St Stephen was one of seven deacons chosen by the Apostles in Acts 6:1-6, and he was the first Christian martyr. Stephen was a Greek-speaking Jew whose mission was to distribute funds to needy community members. When the Jewish Sanhedrin arrested Stephen and charged him with blasphemy, he fearlessly preached the Gospel of Jesus Christ and suffered martyrdom by stoning (Acts 6:8-7:7:60).

The Feast of St John, Apostle: St. John the Apostle was a Galilean fisherman and the brother of St. James Zebedee. He was one of the original twelve Apostles selected by Jesus among His seventy disciples. St. John was also the inspired writer of the fourth Gospel, the Epistles of John, and the Book of Revelation. Fervent followers of Jesus, John, and his brother sometimes misunderstood their mission. Once, Jesus gently teased the brothers with the nickname "Sons of Thunder" when they wanted to call down God's wrath on a Samaritan town that refused to receive Jesus. Sometimes Jesus selected the Zebedee brother along with St Peter to witness certain events in His ministry that the other Apostles did not observe, like raising Jarius' daughter from death (Mk 5:21-24, 37-43), the Transfiguration (Mt 17:1-2), and His prayer in the Garden of Gethsemane (Mt 26:36-37). It was to John, the beloved disciple, that Jesus gave the care of His mother from the Cross (Jn 19:25-27). In Acts of Apostles, we learn that John had an essential role in the early Church. He was with Peter when he performed the first miracle in Jesus's name (Acts 3:1-8), and St Paul refers to Saints Peter, John, and James, Bishop of Jerusalem, as "pillars of the Church" (Gal 2:9). According to tradition, John became the Bishop of Ephesus in Asia Minor. While in prison on the nearby island of Patmos, John wrote his Gospel and later wrote about his visions in the Book of Revelation. He was the only Apostle not to suffer martyrdom.

The Feast of the Holy Innocents: The Gospel of Matthew records the story of the Gentile Magi, who came searching for the Christ-child and the murder of the children the Church calls "the Holy Innocents" (Mt 2:1-18). Wise men from the east followed a celestial phenomenon they believed announced the birth of a great king. The star led them to Jerusalem, where they consulted Herod, King of the Jews. Herod was a descendant of Esau, the brother of Jacob-Israel. The Romans appointed Herod as king of the Roman Province of Judea. He was a bloodthirsty man, having murdered several members of his family. When the Magi told him about the star announcing the birth of a new king, Herod called the chief priests and the scholars of the Law to tell him where the prophets wrote the promised Messiah was to be born. When they told him it was Bethlehem, the city of David, he ordered the death of all male babies under two years old in Bethlehem and the surrounding villages. A few days after celebrating one of the happiest days in the Christian calendar, we remember one of the most tragic events told in Scripture. In every generation, there will be innocent victims, including babies like those murdered in abortion clinics. Our heavenly Father lovingly welcomes all these martyred innocents who will receive justice in the Last Judgment.

The Feast of the Holy Family: The Christmas Octave is from Christmas Day to New Year's Day. Octaves are eight-day weeks. In Christian symbolism, eight days represent salvation, rebirth, and eternity. An eight-day week begins and ends on the same day of the week, and at Christmas time, we are called to remember that we live with one foot in eternity! We celebrate the Sunday within the octave of Christmas, recalling Jesus's human family, the mother and foster father who loved and cared for Him. The Feast of the Holy Family is a favorite time for family reunions, with children home from school and other family members having days off from work. As you enjoy family activities on this day, remember Jesus's family, their struggles, and the love and support they gave the child, who is the King of kings and the world's Savior.

At this time of the year, we remember Jesus's birth in a stable and that His first dwelling place was a humble manger, a feeding troth for animals. If we focus our lives on prayer, Scripture study, obedience to the commands of God, and our obligation to help the poor and needy, our souls can also become the humble dwelling place of Jesus, the Redeemer-Messiah, who feeds His faithful with His life in the miracle of the Eucharist.

Michal Hunt, Copyright © 2024 Agape Bible Study. Permissions All Rights Reserved.