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RETREAT

Directed Retreat

Reflect upon God’s presence in your life.

June 14-21, 2008

Click here for more information.

Sacred Time: Liturgical Seasons

Liturgical Year

Woven into our everyday lives as Catholic Christians is a sense that all time is sacred. In the rhythm of the liturgical year, we move with the Church. We make our own the anticipation of Advent, the joy of Christmas, the regular days of Ordinary Time. We feel for ourselves the recollection of Lent, the time outside of time in Triduum, the breakthrough and wonder of the Easter Season. We journey with saints and sinners through more Ordinary Time.

Activities and Prayers for Different Seasons

Sabbath Time

Each Sunday of the year, we celebrate a little Easter, that moment that gives Christians our very identity. We remember the death and resurrection of Jesus, and the life he continues to offer to us. We remember that we are the Body of Christ. We remember that God continues to breathe through us in the Holy Spirit. Sunday is punctuation in our otherwise go-go-go lives, a sacred sabbath time to stop, remember, and celebrate. We do it because God did. After six days of creating, the Genesis story tells us, God rested. God made a day of rest holy.

In the Jewish tradition, out of which Christianity was born, Sabbath begins on the eve of the feast. Here at the monastery, Sabbath begins with statio. Statio means "standing," "stopping." Every Saturday evening just before Evening Prayer, the sisters gather in the Blessed Virgin Room. This is a time we gather quietly to collect our thoughts and spirits before beginning a new week. We stop one thing before we start another. At the call to prayer, the prioress blesses the reader, prayer leader, and intoner of the week. We process into church for Evening Prayer, and a new week begins.

Does your time have regular punctuation? How do you observe Sabbath time? What do you do to remember the gifts that God continues to give us? How do you celebrate with community? How do you rest? Sundays are a wonderful time to gather with family and friends, to experience good ritual, to share meals. Rejuvenate on your Sabbath, and the rest of your "ordinary time" will be more meaningful.