Editing Solemnity (section)

{{Short description|Highest-ranking feast day of the Roman Rite}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=July 2022}}

In the [[liturgical calendar]] of the [[Roman Rite]], a '''solemnity''' is a [[feast day]] of the [[Ranking of liturgical days in the Roman Rite|highest rank]] celebrating a [[mystery of faith]] such as the [[Trinity]], an event in the life of [[Jesus]], his mother [[Blessed Virgin Mary|Mary]], his legal father [[Saint Joseph|Joseph]], or another important [[saint]]. The observance begins with the [[Vigil (liturgy)|vigil]] 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 of [[Sunday]]s outside Advent, Lent, and Easter (those in [[Ordinary Time]]).<ref name=UN59>[http://www.liturgyoffice.org.uk/Calendar/Info/GNLY.pdf Universal Norms on the Liturgical Year and the Calendar], 59</ref>

The word comes from postclassical [[Latin]] {{Lang|la|sollemnitas}}, meaning a solemnity, festival, celebration of a day.<ref>[https://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Perseus%3Atext%3A1999.04.0059%3Aalphabetic+letter%3DS%3Aentry+group%3D51%3Aentry%3Dsollemnitas Lewis and Short, ''sollemnitas'']</ref>