Page:Goffinesdevoutin00goffuoft.djvu/30

 be our mediator. This holy season begins with Septuagesima Sunday, and ends at the vigil of Pentecost.

What does the Church commemorate at Pentecost?

The infinite love of God the Holy Ghost, Who imparts to the faithful the fruits of the redemption purchased for them by Christ. This holy season begins with Pentecost Sunday, and ends with the last Sunday after Pentecost.

How is the ecclesiastical year divided?

The ecclesiastical year is divided into :

1. The fifty-two Sundays. 2. The week-days. 3. The feasts. 4. The fast-days.

hat is Sunday?

Sunday, also called the Lord s Day, is the first day of the week.

Why has God reserved to Himself one day in each week?

In order that man should rest from work at least one day out of the seven, and dedicate it to the special service of God, and to the salvation of his own soul.

Why do we Christians keep Sunday as a holy- day instead of Saturday, which was the day observed under the Old Law?

The apostles kept Sunday, the first day of the week, as a holy-day for these reasons: 1. As the Sabbath was a memorial of the consummation of the work of the creation, so the Sunday was to remind us of the consummation of the redemption. 2. On that day Our Lord arose from the dead. 3. On that day the Holy Ghost descended on the apostles. 4. To intimate that a new dispensation took the place of the old; and the diver sity of the time of divine worship drew a line of distinction between Christians and Jews.

How should we spend Sunday?

As the design of its institution requires; that is, holily.

How is Sunday kept holy?

Sunday is kept holy by abstaining from servile labor, and by works of piety, such as hearing Mass with devotion, listening to a sermon, receiving Christian instruction, reading good books, visiting the sick, or other works of spiritual or corporal mercy.