At what point does it count as missing mass?

[ajecphotos]

Its how i was taught.

 

[Gertabelle]

@Aeden - The Commandment is “Remember to keep holy the Lord’s Day”, instead of “You are required to stay in the church for the mass from the first ring of the bell to the last word of the priest”.
So if you arrived for mass late (Offertory, Consecration), you can always continue to “keep holy the Lord’s Day” by additional prayers and meditations, in the church or at home. You can read from the Bible and/or pray the rosary (these were the old methods recommended by my priest, especially when there was no other mass available); as for the missed part of the mass, you can easily find online the readings, the Pope’s homily, other homilies and texts that discuss these readings.

We should keep every day as holy, and spend time with scripture and prayers. Reading the daily mass readings, and well as spending time in spiritual reading (e.g., homilies) are all excellent practices. But none of these replaces prayerful participation in the holy mass. Only assisting at mass is assisting at mass. Spiritual practices at home DO NOT replace the Sunday obligation to assist at mass.

We had an example of this just yesterday. Saturday, June 29, was the Solemnity of Sts. Peter and Paul. That feast is of a higher rank than the 13th Sunday in Ordinary Time.

No it isn’t. The Sunday mass is always a remembrance of the Lord’s resurrection, and as such “trumps” all other holy days. This is why solemnities that are not Our Lord’s (e.g., Sts. Peter and Paul) are never celebrated on a Sunday.

I think that to receive the Eucharist one should attend the ‘whole’ of the mass.

You wouldn’t mean to go to a dinner and only turn up for the dessert now would you! It would be disrespectful. Jesus should be shown the utmost respect…

It’s how i was taught.

We must be careful to always be seeking and learning the truth of our Catholic faith. I was taught to ignore Church teaching and do whatever my conscious allowed. That is a sure path to hell. Just be careful not to assume that everything you are taught is correct. Read the Catechism of the Catholic Church, ask questions of your parish priests, post questions in “Ask an Apologist” here on CAF.

Remember that Church allows for Communion services under certain circumstances, as well as bringing the Holy Eucharist to those who are in hospital or homebound. Assistance at mass is not required for valid reception of Our Lord in Holy Communion.

Gertie

 

[1ke]

I was always taught that if you arrived after the gospel then that is the same as missing mass completely.

Yes, many people have been told this or other arbitrary points in the Mass. This is, however, not found in Church teaching.

The expectation is that we assist at the Mass, the entire Mass, to fuilfill our obligation.

Any amount of lateness needs to be judged by the late person using a properly formed conscience and the concrete circumstances of the situation.

And, if in doubt, one should ask one’s pastor for guidance or attend another Mass in full if one is available

 

[ajecphotos]

Our priest is always complaining about people arriving late for mass and going too early

 

[theyoungmonk]

No it isn’t. The Sunday mass is always a remembrance of the Lord’s resurrection, and as such “trumps” all other holy days. This is why solemnities that are not Our Lord’s (e.g., Sts. Peter and Paul) are never celebrated on a Sunday.

Sorry that is not at all correct, Sundays in Ordinary Time (After Epiphany or Pentecost) are equivalent to Feasts (2nd Class) which means that any Solemnity (1st Class) will “trump” a Sunday during Ordinary Time, indeed in the UK any time a Holy Day of Obligation falls on a Saturday or Monday it is transferred to the nearest Sunday. So this year in the Ordinary Form the Solemnity of SS. Peter and Paul which would have normally been celebrated on the 29th of June was celebrated last Sunday, as the 29th was a Saturday.

Indeed in my parish this year the Patronal feast of the church will fall on a Sunday this year and as this is a 1st Class feast, in the Parish, the Mass of the Feast will be celebrated instead of the normal Sunday liturgy.