November's Liturgical Highlights

November begins with the Feast of All Saints followed by the Feast of All Souls on which we remember those who have died and are in Purgatory. Although we may pray for the poor souls throughout the year, the month of November is especially dedicated to praying on their behalf. The solemn Feast of Christ the King is also celebrated, marking the end of one liturgical year and the beginning of another.

During November, as in all of Ordinary Time (Time After Pentecost), the Liturgy signifies and expresses the regenerated life from the coming of the Holy Spirit, which is to be spent on the model of Christ's Life and under the direction of His Spirit. As we come to the end of the Church year we are asked to consider the end times, our own as well as the world's. The culmination of the liturgical year is the Feast of Christ the King. "This feast asserts the supreme authority of Christ over human beings and their institutions.... Beyond it we see Advent dawning with its perspective of the Lord's coming in glory." [The Liturgy and Time (The Church at Prayer: An Introduction to the Liturgy, Volume IV, A. G. Martimort]

This month the main feasts observed by the Church include the Solemnity of All Saints (November 1), All Souls (November 2), St. Martin de Porres (November 3), St. Charles Borromeo, (November 4), Lateran Basilica (November 9), St. Leo the Great (November 10), St. Martin of Tours, (November 11), St. Frances Xavier Cabrini (November 13), St. Albert the Great (November 15), Sts. Margaret of Scotland and Gertrude (November 16), St. Elizabeth of Hungary (November 17), Presentation of Mary (November 21), St. Cecilia (November 22), Sts. Clement I and St. Columban (November 23), St. Andrew Dung-Lac and Companions (November 24), St. Catherine of Alexandria (November 25), the Solemnity of Christ the King (November 26) and St. Andrew (November 30).

The feast of St. Josaphat (November 12) is superseded by the Sunday Liturgy.