[ HOME ]

Treasury of Christian Knowledge

How to Determine What Offices to Read on Any Day

The Christian Year, as organized in The Book of Divine Worship, consists of six seasons:

  • four weeks in Advent (of which the fourth week may be partial) beginning no earlier than November 27th and no later than December 3rd,

  • twelve days in Christmas, from December 25th through January 5th,

  • five to ten weeks in Epiphany (of which the first week may and the last week must be partial), beginning on January 6th (or, in the U.S.A., on the Sunday from January 2nd to January 8th),

  • seven weeks in Lent (of which the first week is partial), beginning no earlier than February 4th and no later than March 10th,

  • seven weeks in Easter, beginning no earlier than March 22nd and no later than April 25th, and

  • 24 to 29 weeks in Pentecost, beginning no earlier than May 10th and no later than June 13th.

Additionally, the Church's calendar contains days of commemoration and instruction classified according to their importance. They are called, in order of precedence:

  1. Solemnities (so marked and printed in boldface in the BDW)

  2. Feasts (so marked and printed in boldface in the BDW)

  3. Memorials (so marked in the BDW)

  4. Optional Memorials (printed in italic in the BDW)

On this website, to find today's readings go the season calendar on the Home Page, click on the current season, then click on the link to the week in the Church Year closest to, but not later than, today's date. A new window will open with links to the offices corresponding to today's position in the Christian Year. The window also displays a listing of days from the Church's calendar falling on or near today. The rules for determining which day has precedence when two or more observances fall on the same day are set forth in the table below. In general, Sundays have precedence over most feasts and memorials, but not over solemnities.

Table of Liturgical Days
(According to Their Order of Precedence)

I

  1. Easter Triduum of the Lord's passion and resurrection.

  2. Christmas, Epiphany, Ascension, and Pentecost.
    Sundays of Advent, Lent, and the Easter season.
    Ash Wednesday.
    Weekdays of Holy Week from Monday to Thursday inclusive.
    Days within the octave of Easter.

  3. Solemnities of the Lord, the Blessed Virgin Mary, and saints listed in the General Calendar.
    All Souls.

  4. Proper solemnities, namely:
      a. solemnity of the principal patron of the place, that is, the city or state;
      b. solemnity of the dedication of a particular church and the anniversary;
      c. solemnity of the title of a particular church;
      d. solemnity of the title or of the founder or of the principal patron of a religious order or congregation.

    II

  5. Feasts of the Lord in the General Calendar.

  6. Sundays of the Christmas season and Sundays in Ordinary Time.

  7. Feasts of the Blessed Virgin Mary and of the saints in the General Calendar.

  8. Proper feasts, namely:
      a. feast of the principal patron of the diocese;
      b. feast of the anniversary of the dedication of the cathedral;
      c. feast of the principal patron of a region or province or a country or of a wider territory;
      d. feast of the title, founder, or principal patron of an order or congregation and of a religious province, without prejudice to the directives in no. 4;
      e. other feasts proper to an individual church;
      f. other feasts listed in the calendar of a diocese or of a religious order or congregation.

  9. Weekdays of Advent from 17 December to 24 December inclusive.
    Days within the octave of Christmas.
    Weekdays of Lent.

  10. Obligatory memorials in the General Calendar.

  11. Proper obligatory memorials, namely:
      a. Memorial of a secondary patron of the place, diocese, region or province, country, or more extensive territory; or of an order, congregation, or religious province;
      b. Obligatory memorials proper to an individual church;
      c. Obligatory memorials listed in the calendar of a diocese, order, or congregation.