The Catholic Home: Celebrations and Traditions for Holidays, Feast Days, and Every Day

by Meredith Gould

For centuries, the Catholic Church has offered an abundance of splendid traditions that extend religious and spiritual practice into daily life. Now, Meredith Gould reintroduces these customs and rituals to modern Roman Catholics.

Using the liturgical calendar, The Catholic Home provides familiar and new ways to celebrate each season and its special days. Gould reviews major holy days, select saints’ days, familiar prayers, and suggests meaningful ways to prepare as a family for such sacraments as Baptism, Confirmation, First Eucharist, and Matrimony.

This book includes a concise history of each ritual and clarifies the meaning behind it by highlighting celebrations of Catholic holidays from different parts of the globe. Your family will learn to make Advent wreaths, Jesse trees, St. Lucy’s crowns, King’s cakes, All Souls altars, traditional foods, and participate in family devotions.

Throughout The Catholic Home , Gould’s down-to-earth practicality and sense of humor give the activities she describes modern relevance no matter how ancient their origins. Excerpts from the official Catechism of the Catholic Church are included to illuminate Church doctrine on matters of faith and ritual. This indispensable guide will appeal to Catholics young and old and inspire beloved family traditions to be handed down from one generation to the next.

Genres: Catholic, Religion, Nonfiction, Faith, Christian, Spirituality, Parenting

272 pages, Paperback

First published January 2, 1998

About the author

I'm a sociologist, culture critic, longtime spiritual seeker, and award-winning author of 11 published books with one always in the works. I write about what I've studied, experienced, and personally need to understand in more depth; sowing seeds for the next book in the fertile ground of the one I'm currently writing.

BIG GOALS: making complex concepts easier to understand; encouraging readers to think a bit differently about, oh, everything; and providing actionable tips to build community and enhance spiritual life--while getting readers to laugh-snort at least once while reading. Reader email always welcomed, as are positive (and kind) reviews.

Day job? Consultant since 1989, providing digital communications services as well as crisis communications counsel to local churches and judicatories across denominations. I also serve the healthcare industry.

Reviews

[Lisa Ewing · Rating 5 out of 5]

Awesome book for new converts or those in RCIA. This book explains the sacraments in an easy to understand and enjoyable style. I appreciated the way in which the author described Catholic homes of the past. I am a convert, but I can picture those traditions and images.
I will keep this book on my desk as a handy reference as each new season approaches. It is a “one stop shop” for all I need to know, including prayers for each season.

[Sarah · Rating 5 out of 5]

I justified purchasing this book because of some research I was doing for a manuscript of my own. I only wish I hadn't waited so long to buy it: it is full of fabulous insight, inspiring ideas, and plenty of catechesis. One of my favorite resources and one that I plan to reference often throughout the year. I feel like I should write the author a thank you.

[Patricia · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book outlines different Catholic feast days and the traditions that have arisen out of them, because of them and along them. Feast foods, prayers, and other rituals are outlined presented in an easily understandable manner. Also, included are basic tenets and prayers of Catholicism.

[Rhyan · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is a great primer and introduction to the Catholic liturgical year for newbies to the faith, a decent guide to making your home more routinely and physically Catholic, and a beautiful introduction ti living out the sacramental life of the church.

What I loved most about this book is it’s set up. It started in Advent and went all the way chronologically to the end of ordinary time with the Feast day of St. Andrew the first apostle. The author starts each section with what the time of year is, what is the color associated, etc. and then goes into how to celebrate at home. If you are feeling confused on when to decorate for Christmas or what meals to make during Lent or how can I encourage spirituality in my home for myself and my family, this is a great book to pick up.

As a revert, I knew the seasons of advent, Christmas, lent, Easter, and ordinary time and I knew there were days of holy obligation, but this introduced me to the catholic cultural around the world and how people actually lived out these seasons and days. Did you know on the assumption of Mary on august 15th people historically went to beach? Did you know that Mother’s Day in many countries is celebrated on the day of the immaculate conception? I hadn’t!

I am very inspired by this book to decorate my home seasonally and liturgically, and also to live more within the spirit of the liturgical year as to experience the multiplicity of feelings in the Christian life (a time for repentance, a time for forgiveness, a time to think about mortality, a time to think about eternal life, a time to wait for Christ’s birth, a time to celebrate his birth, etc.).

I took so many notes on this book in my notebook to refer to throughout the year. And I definitely want to live out the faith in my routines and material world way more now because this book has helped me learn ways those aspects of life can be set apart from the world.

[Anita · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read this book to fulfil the goal read a book from a theology veiwpoint you disagree with. this was a hard catagory for me to fill. our church teaches that we should glean all the good we can from other religions. so i'm always looking for ways to enchance my own christian living with ohter peoples traditions. that said. i'm glad i'm not catholic. while i didn't see anything wrong with celebrating those all those saints birthday's etc, it got to be a little overwhelming for me. i think i'll stick with christmas thanksgiving easter, and maybe pioneer day.

[Elisabeth · Rating 5 out of 5]

I do not confess Catholic Christianity, I confess Lutheran Christianity, but there truly are so many similarities (Martin Luther didn’t intend a schism, after all). This book was a great read. As a convert to Christianity from Judaism, Meredith Gould has a unique perspective on the physical trappings of the faith.

Of course I disagree on certain things (how many sacraments there are, for example), but overall this was a wonderful read that cemented my personal striving to create a home that really shows Jesus.

[Willa Guadalupe Grant · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love this little book! It is written in a very modern way & gives good ideas for celebrating holidays & sacraments at home in a non-cheesy manner. Gould's ideas are acceptably Catholic but good for a more modern way of life. She covers the liturgical year & all the sacraments. As a convert, I was thrilled to find that we could do our own Ash Wednesday imposition of ashes. I got this book at the library & liked it well enough to buy myself a copy to have on hand.

[Melanie Rigney · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was surprised to see that I hadn't already reviewed this lovely book! I've given this title as a housewarming or other gift so very often, and just picked it up again to refer to it for a book I'm writing. Meredith's voice is so clear and engaging, it would be worth a read even if you're not Catholic. For those of us who are, she provides accessible explanations of the Church's seasons, feasts, and more, along with marvelous ideas for bringing the faith into your home.

[Shannon · Rating 5 out of 5]

I’m so glad this book exists and that I found it! I was yearning to grow in meaningful traditions with my family and this has been the perfect resource. The author blends very basic Catholic teaching and catechism references, with different cultural practices, with her own suggestions, with recommendations what to avoid (pagan origins) and with some very wild practices from decades past. The only thing I wish is that the author delved more into specific Saint feast days and traditions.

[K Aust · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars. A lot of nice ideas for seasons and feast days. A couple of glaring errors (e.g., wrong days for the mysteries; RCIA people do NOT confess before their baptism). Often veers into boomer/praise for V2 territory, which is not attractive to younger trads like myself.

Also docking a full star for the author’s extremely grating habit of referring to him as “Jesus THE Christ.” Ew.

[Min · Rating 3 out of 5]

The book delivers on the title. The first two-thirds of the book discuss the major feasts of the Liturgical Calendar, and what small, yet significant ways, believers (and the whole family) can revive previous held customs, create new practices inspired by other Christian nations of the world, and deepen the faith in the process.
The last third of the book explores points of popular piety in the practices of daily devotions, the sacraments, and sacramentals with encouragements to develop a home altar. The appendixes share prayers of the Church, and resources for recipes, supplies, and information of what is mentioned throughout the book.
The text is sprinkled with quotes from the Cathechism of the Catholic Church, the Bible, and saints. The author's cheery, and encouraging tone inspires one to try what may feel like a daunting new effort.

[Emilia P · Rating 3 out of 5]

I am 100 percent writing this review while listening to a podcast about liturgical living ahhhh who I am. My parents kid. This book was sort of a downer, and I think it lost something by not being family-oriented, like, at all. Feast days are social. Feasts are social. Alas.

[DW Rowlands · Rating 4 out of 5]

Although I'm not Christian, and am only Catholic by ancestry, I found this quite interesting, and it got me thinking about some ideas for my pagan/polytheistic practice, though I imagine the author wouldn't approve of that.

[Sara · Rating 4 out of 5]

Meh. It has a lot of good prayers and some good instruction. It certainly isn’t a bad book. It may be very helpful to some. That said, I have found other books to be a much better investment of time and money, Catholic All Year Compendium by Kendra Tierney as an example.

[Arielle Harms · Rating 2 out of 5]

Poorly researched in regard to liturgy and sacraments. While I enjoyed learning about the different traditional celebrations, the poor research in other areas (with statements that were outright wrong) made me wonder if the traditions were just as poorly researched.

[Beth S · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of my favorite resources for bringing liturgical life into the home. Meredith Gould presents a beautiful variety of ways in which feast days can be celebrated, and there are many different ways you can improvise to bring her ideas into your own home. I highly recommend this book.

[Taryn · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great as a reference book for liturgical prayers and family traditions. This is not a book of preschool crafts, but ideas to truly integrate the liturgical seasons into your home life.

[Lynda · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book contains many Inspiring suggestions.

[Gato Negro · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book will be close at hand year round for an easy to read and implement reference guide. I'm so glad I picked it up!

[Dana Pomante · Rating 5 out of 5]

Love this book!

This book has helped me return to my faith. There is so much wonderful information here to help every person in their individual situation.

[Megan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great resource! And entertaining commentary :)

[Julie · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars.

[Emily · Rating 4 out of 5]

Hundreds of great ideas. Find lots of new thi gs to care about. :)

[Stephanie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting historical info, but not much in the way of practical tips for a Catholic home.

[Hope · Rating 2 out of 5]

This is a very quick read. I enjoyed reminiscing about spending time at my Grandparent's house when I was growing up and being fascinated by all the decorations and items around the whole house. Now as an adult, I can see how beautifully crafted there home is to reflect their deep devotion to the Catholic faith, and the importance of creating practices for daily life that support and nurture faith. This book had many fantastic little ideas of ways to transform your home as well as your life using the liturgical calendar as a guide to deepen your connection to our profoundly rich traditions. I found the author's writing style to be a little over-simple and over-casual, and her occasional attempts at humor miss the mark. It reads more like a bunch of little articles hacked together rather quickly. But this did not deter me from reading the whole thing. There are little nuggets worth excavating for and those more than made up for the disappointment in the overall style. Worth a skim at the very least.

[Christina · Rating 4 out of 5]

If you are interested in your Catholic heritage or interested in traditions of other faiths, this is a great book to read. Ms. Gould breaks down the liturgical year and offers suggestions on how families can celebrate in their own home. All suggestions are grounded in church traditions or traditions of other countries. One of my favorites was her suggestion to buy bird feed or visit an animal shelter on the feast day of St. Francis of Assissi. This was a fun read and has given me a lot of ideas to use throughout the year.

[Jeff · Rating 3 out of 5]

As a non-Catholic Christian, this book not only helped me understand my Catholic brothers and sisters better, but helped me evaluate my own understanding of general Christian events as well as my level of commitment to practicing my own religion. A short, concise book, it is to the point and easy to understand. It certainly helped me think of some ways to deepen the sacred nature of how some holidays are celebrated in my own home.

[Rebekah Leland · Rating 3 out of 5]

i loved the content of this book-- the whys and hows of traditions surrounding the church holy days-- but the format i found to be extremely poorly laid-out. the flow of the chapters were constantly interrupted by little boxes, and it was hard to find where the traditions were and where the author was simply discussing her own ideas. but, the content is a good resource for modern families desiring tradition in their home.

[julia · Rating 5 out of 5]

I "met" Meredith via a friend's blog, and she was kind enough to send along this book. It is an excellent collection of ideas for celebrating Catholic traditions.

It arrives at a time when I am really interested in maintaining traditions in our home and creating sacred space in meaningful way. I am really happy to have her input and share her ideas with my family.

[Meredith Henning]

This is a great overview of the Liturgical Year from many perspectives, mainly Catholic but from Jewish heritage as well. Meredith Gould is hysterical and real, she writes beautifully and this is a good book for any Catholic or wanna be to have on their shelf!