On Ordinary Time

The season of Ordinary Time has arrived. Nowadays though many liturgical cycles call this time of the Church Year “the time after Pentecost” since that sounds more lively and less, well, ordinary. My personal preference is for the old, boring phrase though, and let me explain why.

First, the work that God is doing in our midst is often done in ordinary, inconspicuous acts. Miracles happen every day and rarely in over-the-top showy ways. The miracles of ingenuity, invention, medicine, construction, humanity, and nature are all around us and we often take them for granted. These are plain examples of God miraculously at work through the big miracles that are creation and humankind.

Now, for those that follow the Lord Jesus, we believe that the work of God is most revealed through works done in Jesus’ name and in accompaniment with the Holy Spirit. These works too should also be ordinary, daily acts. The Holy Spirit is not only working through us while at church, in time of prayer, when we read scripture, or while we are with other Christ followers. The Holy Spirit is with us at work, at play, when we are alone, and when we are on the go all the time. The Holy Spirit is indeed ordinarily present and working through us, even when we don’t fully sense it.

Secondly, the title Ordinary Time can remind us that we cannot live in “festival mode” nonstop. The first half of the Church Year takes us through many states of spiritual enlightenment and euphoria, giving us goosebumps and tears. Now, we must return to earth and be grounded in our time and reality.

Many churches try to live in festival-mode all year long; and this is a particularly easy temptation for churches that do not follow the Church Calendar, since there is no period like Ordinary Time. When congregations strive for a spiritual high year-round, the faith of these churchgoers often becomes one that revolves around a building and a group of likeminded individuals. In practice, God is left in the building at the conclusion of each worship service. The world becomes completely separate from spirituality.

As much as the festival seasons of the Church Calendar were just that—festive, fun, memorable, formative, impressive, and revelatory—we must keep our faith relevantly connected to the here and now, in every aspect of our lives.

During this Ordinary Time, may we become more attuned to the daily, common presence of the Holy Spirit in our lives. May we more often see how God is at work in our world today through daily seemingly mundane miracles. And may we follow in the way of our Lord Jesus at all times.