A Note From Father Rob

The long green season is soon to begin. No, I’m not referring to the season of summer. I’m referring to the season of Pentecost. The Church calendar season that begins with the Day of Pentecost, which is this Sunday. We call it the long green season for good reason.

Like everything in the Church, it all starts with Easter. Easter Sunday is a movable date from year to year. It can appear on the calendar as early as March 22 or as late as April 25. Because of this flexibility, the Church calendar includes seasons before and after Easter (Epiphany and Pentecost). These seasons can be shorter or longer by as much as five weeks. Their lengths are determined by the actual date of Easter in any given year. These seasons of Epiphany and Pentecost are sometimes called Ordinary Time.

Of all the Church seasons, Pentecost is by far and away the longest on the calendar. Last year, Easter was on April 9, so the season of Pentecost was 26 weeks long. This year Easter was earlier, on March 31, so our long green season will be 29 weeks long. The last time Easter was at its earliest, March 22, was in 1818. That won’t happen again until 2285!

At any rate, happy Pentecost, and I hope you enjoy this year’s long green season.

Rob+