Can my kids be suspended from CCD because we missed Mass?

[GodisGreat8]

Yesterday, after taking dropping off my three children at catechism class, I went home and checked the mail. There was a letter from our church which basically said our children were suspended from religious education classes because of some missed Masses, including some holy days of obligation. I went to pick up the kids and went into the Director of Religious Education’s office to speak with her. To make a long story short, we went back and forth on how I, on one hand, take responsibility for any missed Masses, but how I don’t think it is right to suspend the children. She disagreed. What can I do?

 

[Michelle_Arnold]

I recommend making an appointment with the pastor and taking with you this canon from the Code of Canon Law:

The obligation of assisting at Mass is satisfied wherever Mass is celebrated in a Catholic rite either on a holy day itself or on the evening of the previous day (canon 1248 §1).

What this means is that there is no obligation for your family to attend Mass on Sundays or holy days at this particular parish. For all that your DRE knew at the time of your children’s suspension, you could have been taking your family to Mass at another parish on Sundays and holy days. In any event, the parish should not be withholding the sacraments from your children so long as you are enabling the children to receive the religious education necessary for a properly prepared reception of the sacraments (as is the case, since you do take them to CCD class). If the pastor will not overrule the DRE and reinstate your children in CCD, I recommend calling the diocese. If necessary, you can also receive assistance from the St. Joseph Foundation, a Catholic apostolate that specializes in questions of canon law.

With all that said, I now have a couple of questions for you: Why are you not taking your children to Mass? If you have just reason why you cannot attend Mass on Sundays and holy days (e.g., work, illness), why have you not arranged for your children to attend in some other way, perhaps by sending them with a trusted friend or relative, or in a parish carpool? If it is important to you that your children be raised Catholic, then it should be important to you to allow them to practice their Catholic faith.