ordinary - as in, ordinal - as in, numerical order/sequence - as in, this is how the Church proceeds to tell of Jesus' public ministry and miracles through the numbered Sundays (e.g. "The Second Sunday of Ordinary Time") and the respective daily/weekend readings.
Mind blown.
One of my teachers must have covered that at some point in my 13 years of Catholic education, right? Must not have meant much at the time.
The trap I (and probably a lot of other people) get into during Ordinary Time is reverting to the thinking that it is plain and ordinary, that nothing special is celebrated in the Church and that we need to wait in expectation of the next BIG thing.
WRONG!
Ordinary?! Jesus' public ministry was ORDINARY?? No! It was far from it. But, again, without the special songs, beautiful lights, or difference in liturgical colors, it's easy to fall into the humdrum pattern of daily life. It's easy to go with the flow, taking each week as it comes, thinking "Oh yes, I've heard this story before," and then moving right along to the next week/thing.
But we've got it all wrong.
EVERY day - ordinary time and special liturgical seasons alike - is miraculous. Each reading from the Bible has a message for us, whether we've heard it one time or ten thousand times.
So, during this next (albeit short - Lent comes early this year!) season in our Church, I challenge myself and you to look for the extraordinary in the Ordinary (ordinal/sequential) Time. God enters into our lives each day, and we find Him when we open our eyes and hearts to the beauty around us.
Remember, this Ordinary Time is only ordinary in the sense that it tells of Jesus in order. Other than that, there's nothing ordinary about it.
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