Australian Holy Days of Obligation; very light on!

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Nun_ofthe_Above

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**Hi everyone 🙂 **
I was just looking at another thread on HDoO and decided to see exactly what days Australia was expected to observe. I did expect a few variations to the US, but was dumbfounded when I found a site which stated we only had to observe Christmas day, the Feast of the Assumption (15thof August) and all Sunday’s! WHAT??? What about Easter, etc???
Can anyone from Australia tell me if this decision by the Bishops, has since been changed?
This is the site I found the information on.

cathtelecom.com/news/108/103.php
 
Nun_ofthe_Above said:
**Hi everyone 🙂 **
I was just looking at another thread on HDoO and decided to see exactly what days Australia was expected to observe. I did expect a few variations to the US, but was dumbfounded when I found a site which stated we only had to observe Christmas day, the Feast of the Assumption (15thof August) and all Sunday’s! WHAT??? What about Easter, etc???
Can anyone from Australia tell me if this decision by the Bishops, has since been changed?
This is the site I found the information on.

cathtelecom.com/news/108/103.php
Click to expand...
Yeah, the article’s got it right. What ‘other’ days are you talking about though? Easter always has been a Sunday 😛 So has Pentecost. Pointless declaring something a Holy Day of Obligation when everyone will be and should be attending Mass anyways!

There are others, the feast of the Ascension being one as I recall, that as far as I am aware are technically HDOs but are always moved to the Sunday nearest the day they actually fall. Bit daft to do that to the feast of the Ascension if you ask me. It SHOULD be exactly 40 days after Easter, as it really happened.

Most of the rest I can take or leave, and I’m fine with them being celebrated on the nearest Sunday or not being obligatory. Immaculate Conception isn’t an HDO and should be :yup: and All Saints and/or All Souls as well.

Now truth is we’ve only ever had a handful of HDOs, and a pretty relaxed (not to say lax) attitude to them as well. Stems from our former status as an extremely sparsely populated and bush-centred country.

Remember your Church history as well - prior to the 1830s Australia didn’t even have its own Bishop!!! And then only one for the whole country!

Imagine how few priests there must have been, and how difficult it must have been for people to ever attend Mass. No point in setting a large number of HDOs that few if any people would be able to get to Mass for.
 
LilyM said:
Yeah, the article’s got it right. What ‘other’ days are you talking about though? Easter always has been a Sunday 😛 So has Pentecost. Pointless declaring something a Holy Day of Obligation when everyone will be and should be attending Mass anyways!

There are others, the feast of the Ascension being one as I recall, that as far as I am aware are technically HDOs but are always moved to the Sunday nearest the day they actually fall. Bit daft if you ask me - Ascenscion SHOULD be exactly 40 days after Easter, as it really happened.

Most of the rest I can take or leave, except Immaculate Conception isn’t an HDO and should be :yup: and All Saints and/or All Souls as well.

Hi LilyM,
**I guess I was thinking along the lines of Ash Wednesday and Good Friday, and the others you mentioned. I don’t know; it may be the lateness of the hour (almost 2 am); but when I think of the US HDO’s, they always seem to be going into one, or just coming out of one! Maybe I have imagined the quantity. **
**Guess you learn something new every day. **
God bless.

I seem to remember at the very least All Saints being one when I was a young’un thirty odd years ago.
Click to expand...
cathtelecom.com/news/108/103.php

(Oops, I accidentally posted my reply in your quote…:o )
 
Hi

I edited my last post after you responded - there are historical reasons why we never have had a lot of HDOs. And you’re right, Good Friday certainly should be one, since it’s a public holiday anyways.
 
LilyM said:
Hi

I edited my last post after you responded - there are historical reasons why we never have had a lot of HDOs. And you’re right, Good Friday certainly should be one, since it’s a public holiday anyways.
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Reading your additions, I see your point. Even now, our parish is fairly light on; we don’t even have an RCIA program anymore! When I first became interested in the Catholic Church, I went to see our Priest, and he gave me a book of texts called “At Home With God’s People.” and a little wallet with a selection of pamphlets; that was it! I guess I shouldn’t get too upset when they miss a few HDO’s just because I think we should be observing them.:o
 
Nun_ofthe_Above said:
Reading your additions, I see your point. Even now, our parish is fairly light on; we don’t even have an RCIA program anymore! When I first became interested in the Catholic Church, I went to see our Priest, and he gave me a book of texts called “At Home With God’s People.” and a little wallet with a selection of pamphlets; that was it! I guess I shouldn’t get too upset when they miss a few HDO’s just because I think we should be observing them.:o
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That does sound horrendous. I hope you don’t live in a well-populated area or anything 😦 There are some fairly good resources on the internet, I should imagine.

And nothing to stop you going to Mass anyways to celebrate days that are significant to you, if it’s possible. I certainly do.
 
LilyM said:
I edited my last post after you responded - there are historical reasons why we never have had a lot of HDOs. And you’re right, Good Friday certainly should be one, since it’s a public holiday anyways.
Click to expand...
But would it not be cruel to oblige the faithful to assist at Mass on a day on which Mass may not be celebrated!? :tsktsk:

😉
tee
 
tee_eff_em said:
But would it not be cruel to oblige the faithful to assist at Mass on a day on which Mass may not be celebrated!? :tsktsk:

😉
tee
Click to expand...
Aah, whatever - force 'em to go to the 3pm service anyways. After all, Christ only died horribly to save us from our sin, it’s the least we can do.
 
THANK YOU THANK YOU! Last week I was trying to get a list of HDoO in Australia and came up with NADA! I CANT BELIEVE GOOD FRIDAY is not a HDoO :confused: :confused: I heard it once, and thought That cant be right!

I also heard that New Years day is a HDoO, is this correct???

Lily is right, attend mass on the days that mean something to you.

So, let me get this straight, the only HDoO in Australia are:
  • Christmas day
  • The Feast of the Assumption (15thof August)
  • All Sunday’s
 
Here in Norway HDoO’s are Sundays plus Christmas Day plus Ascenscion day (NOT Assumption!).

In Norway’s dominant Lutheran Church, anything Marian obviously went out 500 years ago, so there is no public holiday on August 15.

I think I’ve learned an Australian expression now: Light on!

In Norway, New year’s day ALWAYS falls on January 1st. 😃
 
If you want Australian catholics to start looking or wanting NO…demanding easter be a HDO. get the goverment to take away friday and monday as public holidays. The Number of “devout Catholics” would increase ten fold.
 
latin_rite said:
If you want Australian catholics to start looking or wanting NO…demanding easter be a HDO. get the goverment to take away friday and monday as public holidays. The Number of “devout Catholics” would increase ten fold.
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I don’t understand this post at all. Easter has never been declared as a separate HDO because it is already covered by the reference to Sundays - it always falls on a Sunday, remember.

And I think having Good Friday as a public holiday in fact makes it easier for people to attend - remember there aren’t Masses at various times of day on Good Friday, instead simply the service at 3pm. How would working people get to this? Not like they could attend a substitute service before or after work - there never are any.
 
LilyM said:
I don’t understand this post at all. Easter has never been declared as a separate HDO because it is already covered by the reference to Sundays - it always falls on a Sunday, remember.

And I think having Good Friday as a public holiday in fact makes it easier for people to attend - remember there aren’t Masses at various times of day on Good Friday, instead simply the service at 3pm. How would working people get to this? Not like they could attend a substitute service before or after work - there never are any.
Click to expand...
IN Australia Good friday is not a hdo. But it is a public holiday. And like it or not many Australian Catholics dont go to church on these days, so if the goverment said ok since many of you Catholics dont think its important to go to church we’re going to make good firday just another working day. many Australians would all of a sudden say that it IS a hdo and its against their beliefs to work on that day or that its of the uttmost importance that we go to church on these days.
After all there is popular opinion that Many Australians voted against becoming a republic out of fear of losing the queens birthday as a public holiday. If only all of britains “colonies” were like us their empire would still be huge.Yup i can just see it now Australian revolutionary forces lined up against the british for a huge battle. only for the british commander to inform the Australian soldiers that if they win this battle they will lose a public holiday. ya could bet ya house that with in a hour all the Australians would have packed up and gone home.
 
Nun_ofthe_Above said:
**Hi everyone 🙂 **
I was just looking at another thread on HDoO and decided to see exactly what days Australia was expected to observe. I did expect a few variations to the US, but was dumbfounded when I found a site which stated we only had to observe Christmas day, the Feast of the Assumption (15thof August) and all Sunday’s! WHAT??? What about Easter, etc???
Can anyone from Australia tell me if this decision by the Bishops, has since been changed?

This is the site I found the information on.

cathtelecom.com/news/108/103.php
Click to expand...
All true.
This is from the Melbourne Archdiocese

The Precepts of the Church

  1. *]To worship at Mass on Sundays and to observe Sunday as a day of rest.
    *]To confess one’s grave sins at least once a year in the Sacrament of Penance.
    *]To receive Holy Communion at least once a year during the Easter Season (between Ash Wednesday and Trinity Sunday).
    *]To attend Mass on Holy Days of Obligation. (Holy Days of Obligation in Australia are Christmas Day and the Assumption of Our Lady, August 15)
    *]To do penance by prayer, works of piety and charity, and fast and abstinence on the days commanded. The days of penance are each Friday of the whole year, and the season of Lent.
    The days of fasting and abstinence from meat are Ash Wednesday and Good Friday. The Church also requires all her members to contribute, as best they can, to the support of their priests, parishes, schools and the Church’s works of charity, and to observe the laws of the Church about the sacrament of Marriage.
 
latin_rite said:
IN Australia Good friday is not a hdo. But it is a public holiday. And like it or not many Australian Catholics dont go to church on these days, so if the goverment said ok since many of you Catholics dont think its important to go to church we’re going to make good firday just another working day. many Australians would all of a sudden say that it IS a hdo and its against their beliefs to work on that day or that its of the uttmost importance that we go to church on these days.
Click to expand...
Oh I get you now - people would CLAIM they needed Good Friday off so they could attend church. Sadly, you’re probably right. We’re too used to having the day off.

Mind you, compared to some places we’re fairly light on - NSW has nothing between June and October.

As for the referendum - of course the Republicans would’ve given us a Republic Day holiday to replace Queen’s Birthday 😉
 
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