Which is More Important?

As Catholics we all know that the liturgical year begins in Advent. From what I have seen from most Catholics today, however, the liturgical year is viewed mostly like a quaint "Church thing" that is really just for priests, and does not have much bearing on the average person. Laity can just show up at Mass and let the priests figure out those "other things". Yet, what if all Catholics just decided one day to make the liturgical calendar their primary determination of dates and times, and then just checked the civic calendar once in a while? Would that not be an interesting development in society?

Interestingly, I have heard Catholics be able to tell me the exact date for Labor Day, President's Day, and Memorial Day (among others), but not be able to give me the date for the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin (which is the same every year). What does this say about our priorities? Which calendar are we putting more weight in? If we put more effort into observing July 4th than November 1st (All Saints), then which one are we saying matters more?

Maybe it is time for a radical change. Maybe it is time for us to give the Church her due respect and actually live out our faith. What kind of Catholics would we be if consistently practiced all the aspects of our faith, and gave them full authority in our lives? Do you know what would happen? We would end up with more Saints! Oh no!