Looking for a fun way to incorporate more of our Catholic faith into your daily living? Each month center your activities around one word as your theme.
We’ve pulled one word relating in some way to the liturgical calendar for each month of 2023 along with five feast days. (Feasts denoted with an asterisk are holy days of obligation.) Use this word as a reference to inspire you as you plan out each month this year, and you’ll be that much closer to a liturgically centered new year.
JANUARY - HOME Start the new year focused on creating a faith-filled home. Begin by celebrating
the Christmas season all the way through Epiphany to reinforce that Christmas is so much more than a day of presents. Do a traditional Epiphany home blessing or set up a family prayer altar in your home featuring a crucifix, religious statues or images, rosaries, etc. and use it as a way of setting apart family prayer time.
Traditionally, Epiphany was celebrated on Jan. 6, but in the United States it’s celebrated on the Sunday between Jan. 2 and 8. This year it is Jan. 8. You can do this special blessing on January 6 or 8. Using blessed chalk (often available at your parish following Christmas Masses, or you can bring some and ask your priest to bless it for you), you will mark your door with a special blessing. This tradition harkens back to the Book of Exodus when Moses asked the Israelites to mark their doors with the blood of a lamb or goat. There are several versions of the full blessing online you can find and read together as a family. Then you mark the lintel of your front door (and your inside doors if you wish) with 20+C+M+B+23.
There are two traditional explanations for what this marking means. Both say the numbers are for the new year. One says the letters are the first initial of each of the wise kings: Caspar, Melchior and Balthasar. The other tradition says the
letters represent the Latin blessing Christius Mansionem Benedicat, or “May Christ Bless this House”.
FEASTS:
1 – Mary, Mother of God*
6 – Epiphany
10 – Baptism of the Lord
28 – St. Thomas Aquinas
31 – St. John Bosco
FEBRUARY - SACRIFICE
February is dedicated to the Holy Family, and one word that comes to mind when contemplating Our Blessed Mother, St. Joseph and Jesus is “sacrifice.” Because February is also the month we begin our observance of the Lenten season, sacrifice is also a fitting word-of-the-month.
Throughout this month, spend time thinking of the worthy sacrifices you already make and consider places you have room to grow. Go out of your way to sacrifice for others and offer it up for the souls in purgatory. Just don’t forget to take a break from sacrificing to celebrate Mardi Gras or Fat Tuesday on Feb. 21. And don’t forget that Ash Wednesday is one of two days of fasting and abstinence.
FEASTS
2 – Presentation of the Lord
3 – St. Blaise
11 – Our Lady of Lourdes
14 – St. Valentine
22 – Ash Wednesday
MARCH - ST. JOSEPH
While St. Patrick may be the first saint you think of for a March feast day, this blustery month also boasts the feast of St. Joseph, husband of Mary, on March 19. The Catholic Church honors St. Joseph in a special way for the entire month of March. Not as widely celebrated in the United States, St. Joseph’s feast is a large celebration in many other countries, such as Italy, Spain and Poland. A St. Joseph’s table or altar is often set up featuring a feast of food as well as religious tokens like statues and images of St. Joseph and the Holy Family. Tradition tells a story of famine in Sicily during the Middle Ages. The city prayed to St. Joseph for his intercession which led them to eat fava beans, which was the only crop that could grow during the harsh drought conditions. They grew so well the famine ended, and the town celebrated by throwing a feast in St. Joseph’s honor, inviting the poor of the city to come and join in.
To adapt the St. Joseph altar celebration to your home, create a three-level table using stacked boxes on your dining table. These three steps symbolize the Holy Trinity and the Holy Family. Place a picture or statue of St. Joseph or the Holy Family on the top step. (Don’t forget about your nativity set if you can’t find a statue of St. Joseph around your house.) Then set the table with a feast for your family. Common items include special breads topped with sesame seeds, pastries, fish, lilies and roses, candles, wine, fruit, fava beans, and reminders of St. Joseph like sawdust, carving tools, etc.
FEASTS:
3 – St. Katherine Drexel
7 – Sts. Perpetua and Felicity
17 – St. Patrick
19 – St. Joseph
25 – Annunciation
APRIL - EASTERTIDE
The end of Lent leading to the Easter season is such a beautiful time to celebrate. If you journey through Lent focusing on prayer, fasting and almsgiving, then the stark contrast of celebrating Eastertide (the 50 days after Easter) can be exciting. Keep Holy Week solemn and centered on the Passion and then bring out the brightly colored decorations and the flowers to start celebrating our Risen Lord Jesus on Easter Sunday. And remember, we celebrate Christ’s resurrection for the full 50 days of Eastertide. Regardless of where in the month of April Easter falls, make those 50 days of Eastertide times of joy and celebration, full of the new life and beauty of spring.
FEASTS:
9 – Easter
16 – St. Bernadette
23 – St. George
25 – St. Mark
28 – St. Gianna
MAY - MARY
During a month when we traditionally celebrate our mothers, it seems very appropriate we also honor our Holy Mother, Mary, in a special way for the entire month. Take time this month to contemplate what it must have been like to be the Mother of God and consider how you can draw closer to her in your own vocation.
One project to try this May is a Mary Garden. A beautiful way to honor Mary, and also celebrate the beautiful spring season, a Mary Garden can be as simple or elaborate as you choose. Pick a space in your yard that will be easy to see and provide the right balance of sun and shade that your flowers will need (and that is easy to water). Place a Mary statue or image, if possible, in the center of the garden or another prominent spot. Begin to fill the garden with flowers. Consider researching different meanings of flowers and choose those that best represent your personal relationship with Mary. Flowers often tied to Mary Gardens include roses, marigolds, lilies and any blue flowers.
FEASTS:
1 – St. Joseph the Worker
13 – Our Lady of Fatima
18 – Ascension*
30 – St. Joan of Arc
31 – Visitation
JUNE - LEARN
Why not spend some time this summer to learn more about our Catholic faith? Get together with other families at your parish or school and try a fun, faith-centered summer reading program. Consider reading about a particular time in Church history, read the writings of a particular saint, or come up with categories like a book written by a doctor of the Church, a novel written by a Catholic, a book about the liturgy or a book written by a pope.
FEASTS:
13 – St. Anthony of Padua
22 – St. Thomas More
25 – Immaculate Heart of Mary
28 – Pentecost
29 – Sts. Peter and Paul
JULY - PILGRIMAGE
Now in the height of summer and vacation season, consider going on a family pilgrimage. Not only do family vacations help create long-lasting memories, but incorporating your faith into your vacation helps to see how our faith is a part of everything. There are lots of places to visit within a few hours of the diocese. Consider visiting Our Lady of the Woods Shrine in Mio, Mich., about four hours northeast of St. Augustine Cathedral, which features five Marian apparitions, three grottos, various saint statues, relics, gardens and several places to pray. You can even catch outdoor Mass during the summer months.
FEASTS
12 – Sts. Zelie and Louis Martin
13 – St. Kateri Tekawitha
22 – St. Mary Magdalene
29 – Sts. Martha, Mary and Lazarus
31 – St. Ignatius of Loyola
AUGUST - PREPARE
August can be a tough month. It’s not quite the school year yet but it’s not summer anymore either. Take some time during this month of transition to focus on preparation. In addition to preparing for the upcoming school year, the new liturgical year that begins on the first Sunday of Advent, and anything else that may be coming up for you, take some time also to remember the ultimate preparation — preparing our souls for Heaven. If it has been a while, consider finding time for Confession this month. Prepare your home for the upcoming Advent season by clearing out any unnecessary clutter, finally donating that bag of outgrown clothes or beginning those new daily prayer habits you’ve been meaning to incorporate all year.
Prepare
FEASTS
6 – Transfiguration
14 – St. Maximilian Kolbe
15 – Assumption*
28 – St. Augustine
29 – St. John the Baptist
SEPTEMEBER - ANGELS
At the end of September, we celebrate the Feast of the Archangels, also called Michaelmas (pronounced “Mickle”-mas). While originally this feast day specifically celebrated the Archangel Michael’s victory over Lucifer in the war
between the angels, it was revised in 1969 to include the other archangels, Raphael and Gabriel. We also celebrate the Feast of the Guardian Angels on Oct. 2.
Take some time this month to learn more about what we as Catholics really believe regarding angels. Read the verses in the Bible where they’re mentioned,
learn the Guardian Angel prayer or celebrate Michaelmas. Traditionally, goose would be served for dinner, though you could substitute chicken or Cornish hens. The story says St. Michael threw Lucifer down from Heaven, and he landed in a blackberry bush before being banished to Hell, so blackberry desserts are often served, as well as asparagus spears or carrots to represent the angels’ spears, along with devil’s and/or angel food cake or deviled eggs. You could have even more fun by creating a devil pinata to reenact the war between the angels.
There are several books written about the angels you can read throughout the
month. This would also be a great month to work on memorizing the St. Michael
Prayer or incorporating it into your daily prayer routine if you haven’t done so already.
FEASTS
5 – St. Teresa of Calcutta
8 – Nativity of Mary
23 – St. Padre Pio
27 – St. Vincent de Paul
29 – Archangels
OCTOBER - ROSARY
The Church dedicates the entire month of October to the holy rosary. Through this prayer tool, of which so many saints recommend a daily practice, we contemplate moments in the life of our Lord Jesus Christ and his Blessed Mother through the 20 mysteries. Try to increase whatever your regular rosary prayer practice is currently. If you currently say it once a month, try to say it weekly. If you say it once a week, try daily. As a fun treat, make a rosary out of candies or cupcakes on the feast of Our Lady of the Rosary, Oct. 7. Holy Heroes has CDs for kids to help them learn about and listen to the rosary. You can also find recordings on most prayer apps and even on YouTube. Looking for some easy ways to incorporate a daily recitation? Try listening to it on your daily commute or as a family as part of your bedtime routine.
FEASTS
1 – St. Therese of Lisieux
2 – Guardian Angels
4 – St. Francis of Assisi
7 – Our Lady of the Rosary
22 – St. Pope John Paul II
NOVEMBER - THANKS
While November is well known as the month of Thanksgiving, spread the thanks out for the entire month instead of just one day. Try to think of something new and specific to be thankful for each morning and have your family members do the same. Then talk about those things during a family meal or bedtime. Start with the feast of All Saints Day on Nov. 1 by giving thanks for your personal and family patron saints. Consider learning more about the Sacraments and Mass and why we should be so thankful to have them in our lives. Try also giving thanks for the things you have by being extra generous — volunteer as a family, donate gently used household items or adopt a family for Thanksgiving dinner.
Hispanic Catholics in the United States, Mexico and South America celebrate the Day of the Dead (Dia de Los Muertos/Difuntos), or All Souls’ Day, in a special way by honoring, remembering and praying for loved ones who have gone before them. Together with all Catholics, they begin the month of November by remembering the great cloud of witnesses in the saints who now share the glory of heaven with God, and praying for the souls of their loved ones who have died. On Nov. 2, the tradition is to celebrate the Day of the Dead by building little altars (ofrendas) in homes or parishes that include pictures of their loved ones. Usually included in the ofrenda is a crucifix, flowers, candles and the favorite food and/or drink of the deceased. It may also include a favorite souvenir and a sugar candy calaverita (skull).
FEASTS
1 – All Saints Day*
2 – All Souls Day
11 – St. Martin of Tours
13 – St. Frances Cabrini
21 – Presentation of Mary
DECEMEBER - WAIT
Advent is such a beautiful season of waiting. Waiting to start decorating for Christmas. Waiting for Christmas vacation. Waiting to exchange Christmas gifts. This year, really dig into the Advent season by saving Christmas for Christmastide, which doesn’t begin until Christmas Eve. Instead of counting down the days until Christmas, filling the days of Advent with busyness, slow down and enjoy the wait. Consider waiting to decorate your tree with anything beyond lights until Christmas Eve. Or wait to listen to the joyful Christmas hymns. Spend some time contemplating what it must have been like to be one of the groups represented in the hymn “O Come, O Come, Emmanuel,” longingly waiting for the Messiah. Also, spend some time considering the second coming of the Lord and what you are doing to wait faithfully. In this world of instant gratification, remind yourself and your family it’s OK to wait.
FEASTS
6 – St. Nicholas
8 – Immaculate Conception*
12 – Our Lady of Guadalupe
13 – St. Lucy
25 – Christmas*