Ranking of Liturgical Days in The Roman Rite

Ranking of liturgical days in the Roman Rite serves two purposes. The rank indicates some particular points about the manner of celebrating the day: for instance, the Mass of a Solemnity will include recitation of Gloria in Excelsis and Creed, that of what is now called in a specific technical sense a Feast will have Gloria but not Creed. and a Memorial will have neither. The other purpose is to determine which Mass is to be said when two feasts coincide (or "occur") on the one day, as well as when a feast falls on a Sunday or certain other privileged days.

Each day in the Catholic liturgical calendar has a rank. The five basic ranks are as follows:

  • Solemnity—the highest ranking feast day. It commemorates an event in the life of Jesus or Mary or celebrates a saint important for the Church as a whole or for the local community. The Mass of a solemnity has proper readings, and the Gloria and Creed are recited. Outside of Advent, Lent and Eastertide, if a solemnity falls on a Sunday, it is celebrated in place of the Sunday.
  • Feast—the rank of secondary liturgical days including lesser events in the life of Jesus, Mary or an Apostle (theologically speaking) or for major saints.
  • Memorial—the commemoration of a saint of lesser importance. Many memorials are optional or only observed in specific dioceses, regions or nations.
  • Seasonal Weekday—a weekday in a "strong" liturgical season (Advent, Christmas Season, Lent, Easter Season) on which no solemnity, feast, or memorial is observed.
  • Feria or Ferial Weekday—a weekday in ordinary time on which no solemnity, feast or memorial is observed.

Read more about Ranking Of Liturgical Days In The Roman Rite:  Feast Days, Sundays, Ferias, Vigils, Octaves

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