Sunday (and Holy Days of) Obligation
Sunday obligation
refers to the requirement to attend Mass on Sundays (and Holy Days)
and to avoid servile work on those days. References in Scripture,
and additional Church teaching are listed below:
References
in Scripture:
-
"Remember that thou keep holy the sabbath day. Six days
shalt thou labor, and shalt do all thy works. But on the
seventh day is the sabbath of the Lord thy God: thou shalt
do no work on it, thou nor thy son, nor thy daughter, nor
thy manservant, nor thy maidservant, nor thy beast, nor the
stranger that is within thy gates. For in six days the Lord
made heaven and earth, and the sea, and all things that are
in them, and rested on the seventh day: therefore the Lord
blessed the seventh day, and sanctified it." Exodus
20:8-11
- "And he
said to them: The sabbath was made for man, and not man for
the sabbath. Therefore the Son of man is Lord of the sabbath
also." Mark 2:27-28
Catholic Church Teaching on
the Third Commandment:
- "The
pastor should also not omit carefully to teach what works
and actions Christians should perform on festival days.
These are: to go to church, and there, with heartfelt piety
and devotion, to assist at the celebration of the Holy
Sacrifice of the Mass; and to approach frequently the
Sacraments of the Church, instituted for our salvation in
order to obtain a remedy for the wounds of the soul." The
Catechism of Council of Trent, The Third Commandment
- "Thou
shalt do no work on it, says the Lord, thou, nor thy son,
nor thy daughter, nor thy manservant, nor thy maidservant,
nor thy beast, nor the stranger that is within thy gates.
These words teach us, in the first place, to avoid whatever
may interfere with the worship of God. Hence it is not
difficult to perceive that all servile works are forbidden,
not because they are improper or evil in themselves, but
because they withdraw the attention from the worship of God,
which is the great end of the Commandment." The Catechism
of Council of Trent, The Third Commandment
- "to keep
the Sundays and Holy Days of obligation holy, by hearing
Mass and resting from servile work" 1917 Catholic
Encyclopedia, Commandments of the Church
- "It is
obvious, of course -- as We declared a few years ago -- that
to watch a Mass on television is not the same as being
actually present at the Divine sacrifice, as is required on
Sundays and holy days" Encyclical On The Communications Field: Motion
Pictures, Radio, Television, by Pope Pius XII, 1957
Summary
The Catechism of the
Council of Trent on the Third Commandment, summarizes this requirement
well:
"We should, it is true, be prepared to undergo the severest labor for
the sake of God; but in this Commandment He imposes on us no labor; He
only commands us to rest and disengage ourselves from worldly cares on
those days which are to be kept holy. To refuse obedience to this
Commandment is, therefore, a proof of extreme boldness; and the
punishments with which its infraction has been visited by God, as we
learn from the Book of Numbers,' should be a warning to us".
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