So, what are the Rogation Days? These are the three days leading up to the Feast of the Ascension (always Thursday in the 6th Week of Easter). The name comes from the Latin rogate (long o, short a, short e) which means, "ask ye" or in contemporary English, "y'all ask." Traditionally these are days of prayer and even fasting making supplication to God for seasonable weather, rain and a bountiful harvest during the Spring season of planting.
That these days remain a part of our liturgical calendar (despite the fact that a good number of us no longer live our lives tied to the agrarian cycles of planting and harvest) is a reminder that the Church still takes very seriously the mission of all believers as a Kingdom of Priests unto God. To pray for planting and harvest reminds us that it is our priestly duty to make intercession for all spheres of society. Often we can get caught up in focusing our prayers narrowly on our own needs and the needs of those immediately around us. But through myriad ways, the Rogation Days being only one example, the Church calls us to participate with Christ in making intercession for every aspect of our society and our world.
We'll talk about the Ember Days some other time.
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