The early Church’s annual calendar began and ended with the celebration of Pascha (Easter)—the "Big Sunday." Easter celebrates the central event in our salvation. It is the highest of Church feasts. Easter is the oldest Christian festival.

For seven weeks—a week of Sundays—we observe and celebrate the resurrection of Christ by the power of God. Pentecost (the 50th day) concludes the Easter Season. On Pentecost, we celebrate God’s gift of the Spirit (the breath, the unseenness of God).

The inseparable relationship between cross and resurrection in Christian faith declares the unity of this cycle. We observe [the 40 days of] Lent in anticipation of the resurrection and we celebrate the Easter weeks remembering the cost of the victory of the cross. Finally, Pentecost recalls the outpouring of the Spirit—God’s gift that empowers us to be impassioned witnesses to the crucified and risen Christ.

This gift draws us together as a people, helps us comprehend what God is doing in our world and commissions us to proclaim—in word and deed—God’s plan of reconciling all people in the name of the risen Christ.

Adapted from the Catholic Update article "The Liturgical Year: How Christians Celebrate Time."

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