In theliturgical calendar of theRoman Rite, asolemnity is afeast day of thehighest rank celebrating amystery of faith such as theTrinity, an event in the life ofJesus, his motherMary, his legal fatherJoseph, or another importantsaint. The observance begins with thevigil on the evening before the actual date of the feast. Unlike feast days of the rank of feast (other than feasts of the Lord) or those of the rank of memorial, solemnities replace the celebration ofSundays outside Advent, Lent, and Easter (those inOrdinary Time).[1]
The word comes from postclassicalLatinsollemnitas, meaning a solemnity, festival, celebration of a day.[2]
The solemnities ofNativity of the Lord, theEpiphany, theAscension, andPentecost are outranked only by thePaschal Triduum.
Other solemnities inscribed in theGeneral Roman Calendar give way also to the following celebrations:
Solemnities inscribed in particular calendars yield not only to these, but also to theCommemoration of All the Faithful Departed.[1]
With the exceptions noted in the table below regarding the solemnities of Saint Joseph and the Annunciation of the Lord, a solemnity that falls on the same day as a celebration of higher rank is transferred to the next day not occupied by a solemnity, a Sunday or a feast.[3]
Among solemnities inscribed in the General Roman Calendar, those of the Lord have precedence over those of the Blessed Virgin and these latter over solemnities of other saints. Thus if, for instance, the Solemnity of the Sacred Heart of Jesus coincides with that of the Nativity of Saint John the Baptist or that of Saints Peter and Paul, it is these that are transferred to the next free day.[citation needed]
Among solemnities inscribed in particular calendars (proper solemnities) the order of precedence is:
The solemnities inscribed in theGeneral Roman Calendar and which are therefore observed throughout theLatin Church are indicated in the following list.
| Date | Solemnity | Notes about date |
|---|---|---|
| 1 January | The Blessed Virgin Mary, the Holy Mother of God | Octave of Christmas, Circumcision of the Lord, New Year's Day |
| 6 January | Epiphany of the Lord | Where not aholy day of obligation, transferred to the Sunday between 2 and 8 January, inclusive |
| 19 March | Saint Joseph, spouse of the Blessed Virgin Mary | If the Solemnity of Saint Joseph, where observed as a holy day of obligation, coincides withPalm Sunday, it is, by exception to the general rule, anticipated to Saturday, 18 March; where not observed as a holy day of obligation, theepiscopal conference may transfer it to a date outside Lent.[4] |
| 25 March | Annunciation of the Lord | If the Solemnity of the Annunciation of the Lord falls on any day of Holy Week, it is always transferred to the Monday after the Second Sunday of Easter (30 March to 9 April),[3] rather than, in accordance with the general rule, to the next day not occupied by a celebration with at least the rank of feast |
| (22 March to 25 April) | Resurrection of the Lord (Easter) | Concludes thePaschal Triduum that commemorates also the last supper, passion, death, burial and resurrection of Christ. SeeComputus for date computation. BeginsOctave of Easter, eight consecutive days celebrated as one continuous solemnity, ending 29 March to 2 May. See alsoResurrection of Jesus. |
| Thursday after the Sixth Sunday of Easter (40th day of Eastertide – 30 April to 3 June) | Ascension of the Lord | If not a holy day of obligation, transferred to replace the Seventh Sunday of Easter (3 May to 6 June) |
| 50th day of Eastertide (10 May to 13 June) | Pentecost | (Whitsunday); always on a Sunday |
| Sunday after Pentecost (17 May to 20 June) | Trinity Sunday | |
| Thursday after Trinity Sunday (21 May to 24 June) | Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ (Corpus Christi) | If not a holy day of obligation, transferred to the following Sunday (24 May to 27 June). |
| Friday (8 days after Corpus Christi Thursday, 5 days after Corpus Christi Sunday) (29 May to 2 July) | Most Sacred Heart of Jesus | |
| 24 June | Nativity of Saint John the Baptist | |
| 29 June | Saints Peter and Paul | |
| 15 August | Assumption of Mary | |
| 1 November | All Saints' Day | |
| Last Sunday before Advent (20–26 November) | Our Lord Jesus Christ, King of the Universe | Replaces 34th Sunday in Ordinary Time |
| 8 December | Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary | |
| 25 December | Nativity of the Lord (Christmas) | everywhere a holy day of obligation; see alsoNativity of Jesus |
There are also solemnities not inscribed in the General Roman Calendar, which are observed in particular places, regions, churches orreligious institutes. The optional memorial ofSaint Patrick on 17 March is a solemnity in Ireland, the memorial of SaintJosemaría Escrivá on 26 June is a solemnity within the prelature ofOpus Dei, and the optional memorial ofOur Lady of Mount Carmel on 16 July is a solemnity for theCarmelites.
A partial list of proper solemnities follows below:
| Date | Solemnity | Country or religious order |
|---|---|---|
| 19 January | SaintHenry (bishop of Finland) | Finland |
| 31 January | Don Bosco (Saint John Bosco) | Salesians of Don Bosco |
| 22 February | Chair of Saint Peter | Personal Ordinariate of the Chair of Saint Peter |
| 1 March | Saint David | Wales |
| 17 March | Saint Patrick | Ireland (holy day of obligation) and Australia |
| 23 April | Saint George | England |
| 23 April | SaintAdalbert of Prague | Poland |
| 3 May | Our Lady, Queen of Poland | Poland |
| 6 May (formerly 9 March) | SaintDominic Savio | Salesians of Don Bosco |
| 8 May | SaintStanislaus of Szczepanów | Poland |
| 8 May | Our Lady of Luján (Nuestra Señora de Luján) | Argentina |
| 24 May | Mary Help of Christians | Australia, Salesians of Don Bosco |
| 24 May | Transfer of remains ofSaint Dominic | Dominican Order (where 8 August is not a solemnity) |
| 26 June | SaintJosemaría Escrivá | prelature ofOpus Dei |
| 3 July | SaintThomas the Apostle | India andSyro-Malabar Catholic Church (holy day of obligation in some Middle Eastern countries) |
| 5 July | Saints Cyril and Methodius | Slovakia, Czech Republic |
| 11 July | SaintBenedict of Nursia | Order of Saint Benedict |
| 16 July | Our Lady of Mount Carmel | Carmelites,Discalced Carmelites, Bolivia, and Chile |
| 20 July | SaintElijah the Prophet | Carmelites (not discalced) |
| 25 July | SaintJames, son of Zebedee, the Apostle (Santiago el Mayor) | Spain (holy day of obligation) |
| 29 July | King SaintOlaf II of Norway | Norway |
| 31 July | SaintIgnatius of Loyola | Society of Jesus |
| 8 August | SaintMary MacKillop of the Cross | Australia |
| 8 August | Saint Dominic | Dominican Order (where 24 May is not a solemnity) |
| 11 August | SaintClare of Assisi | Poor Clares and some other Franciscans |
| 20 August | King SaintStephen I of Hungary | Hungary |
| 26 August | Black Madonna of Częstochowa | Poland |
| 28 August | SaintAugustine of Hippo | Augustinians |
| 30 August | SaintRose of Lima | Peru |
| 4 September (?) | Our Lady of Consolation | Augustinians |
| 8 September | Nativity of Mary | Lithuania andSyro-Malankara Catholic Church (holy day of obligation in some Middle Eastern countries) |
| 15 September | Our Lady of Sorrows | Slovakia |
| 20 September | SaintsAndrew Kim Taegon, the priest, andPaul Chong Hasang, and companions, martyrs | South Korea |
| 28 September | SaintWenceslaus I, Duke of Bohemia | Czech Republic |
| 1 October | SaintTherese of Lisieux | Discalced Carmelites andFrance and some European Countries |
| 4 October | SaintFrancis of Assisi | Franciscan |
| 12 October | Our Lady of Aparecida | Brazil |
| 15 October | Teresa of Ávila | Discalced Carmelites |
| 19 October (20 October in the United States) | SaintPaul of the Cross | Passionists |
| 24 October | SaintAnthony Mary Claret | Claretians |
| 3 November | SaintMartin de Porres | Peru |
| 16 November | Our Lady of the Gate of Dawn (Mother of Mercy) | Lithuania |
| 19 November | Our Lady of Providence | Puerto Rico |
| 24 November | SaintAndrew Trần An Dũng-Lạc and Companions, Martyrs | Vietnam |
| 27 November | Our Lady of theMiraculous Medal | Vincentian Family |
| 30 November | Andrew the Apostle | Russia and Scotland |
| 3 December | SaintFrancis Xavier | India |
| 12 December | Our Lady of Guadalupe | Mexico (holy day of obligation) |
| 14 December | SaintJohn of the Cross | Discalced Carmelites |
Even if it is a weekday or withinAdvent andLenten season, if the day is a Solemnity, then the Gloria is said or sung (exceptGood Friday which is the second day of the Paschal Triduum), as well as the saying of theCreed at Mass, and there are twoscriptural readings, not one, before theGospel. Also, there will sometimes beprocessional and recessional hymns, and use ofincense.[citation needed]
Some but not all solemnities are alsoholy days of obligation, on which, as on Sundays, Catholics are required to attendMass and to avoid work and business that hinder divine worship or suitable relaxation of mind and body.[5] All holy days of obligation have the rank of solemnity at least at local level, though not necessarily holding that rank in the General Roman Calendar. With the exception of the solemnities of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, the Annunciation of the Lord and the Birth of John the Baptist, all the solemnities inscribed in the General Roman Calendar are mentioned as holy days of obligation incanon 1246 of the Code of Canon Law, but are not necessarily all observed in a particular country.
When a solemnity falls on a Friday, the obligation toabstain from meat or some other food as determined by the episcopal conference does not apply.[6]
