Liturgical Year

The birth of the Messiah

6-7 weeks.

• Advent: Four Sundays prior to Christmas day.
• Christmas: December 25 to Baptism of the Lord.

Following Jesus as a disciple

30-34 weeks.

• Ordinary Time: varies.

The death and resurrection of Jesus

14 weeks.

• Lent: 7 weeks.
• Easter: 7 weeks.

The Liturgical Year also contains Holy Days of Obligation; the number varies by rite and region.

Dynamic Seasons

• The Advent season leads to Christmas day.
• The Christmas season ends with the Baptism of the Lord, the beginning of Jesus' public ministry (i.e., the time that He spent in the company of His disciples).
• Lent leads to Easter Sunday.
• The Easter season culminates on the day of Pentecost.
• Ordinary Time ends with the Feast of Christ, the King. Unlike all of the other feasts of the Church year, the Feast of Christ, the King is concerned with a future event: the end of everything.

Links

• "Liturgical year" (Wikipedia).
• United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, 2012 Liturgical Calendar.