ELI5: Explain Like I'm 5

Ranking of liturgical days in the Roman Rite

Okay kiddo, so you know how we celebrate different days for different things? Like birthdays or holidays? Well, the Roman Catholic Church does that too, but for special religious events called liturgical days.

Now, liturgical days are ranked according to their importance. The most important ones are called solemnities, like Christmas and Easter. These days celebrate really significant events in the Church's history.

Then there are feast days, which are also important but not quite as big a deal as solemnities. These days celebrate the lives of important saints or religious figures.

Next, there are memorials, which are days that remember saints or other important religious figures, but they are not as big a deal as feast days.

Finally, there are optional memorials, which are days that some people might want to celebrate, like a saint who is important to their family or community, but they're not important to the whole Church.

So, when we talk about the ranking of liturgical days in the Roman Rite, we're talking about how important they are in the Catholic Church's calendar. The more important they are, the fancier the celebration can be.