Catholic obligation to attend Mass -- question

[Tommy999]

I really like what you’ve said here.

I can pray by myself or with one or two other people, and it’s a wonderful thing. But there’s something different about coming together with a large group of people to pray. Even ignoring everything else – the readings, the Eucharist – just being part of a worshiping group is huge!

And we have an obligation to each other that goes beyond any obligation that’s imposed on us. There are times when I’m the strong one in the group but there are also times that I’m the weak one. I need those other people to prop me up and support me, and I’m so grateful that they’re there. But I also need to be there when they need me to prop them up. And I don’t know if that will be this week or next week or two months from now. But whenever it is, I hope that I’m there for them as they have been there for me.

And zz912, you’re trying to derail this thread.

I agree wholeheartedy with your comments, SuscipeMeDomine. Christians need one another. There’s much more to it than an obligation and Christians who look at it just from that standpoint are missing the bigger point, in my opinion.

 

[GoldenSeal]

As a Protestant, I encountered legalism more than once. The Mass obligation does not feel legalistic to me. When I decided to become Catholic, I was aware there would be some discipline involved.

There are plenty of “rules” in Protestant churches. It’s just that most of them are unspoken. You might miss a Sunday now and then without any problem, but if you started missing more than that, people would start talking (assuming people know you, and especially if you’re in church leadership). You would know soon enough that missing X Sundays is not acceptable. And there are definite expectations about worship style in any church. No one tells you, and they certainly aren’t written down–but you know what to do and what not to do. If you don’t get with the program, you’re out. Maybe not physically, but in the way it counts.

As a Catholic, I appreciate the diversity of the people in my parish. I appreciate not having expectations thrust upon me about what my gifts “ought” to be and how I “should” use them. In the Protestant churches I attended, the current pastor decided what gifts were useful and how they should be used. All this could (and usually would) change when a new pastor came to the church.

The Eucharist is front and center in the Catholic Church. Not the minister, not the praise team, not anyone or anything else. It’s all about Jesus, not the priest’s charisma or personality. And, again, the Grace that comes to us through the Body and the Blood can’t be adequately explained. It has to become a part of you. I was skeptical, I admit, and I discussed this in RCIA. Fortunately, I didn’t have to be clear on everything, feel that I understood everything, in order to be received into the Church.

 

[Robyn_p]

In all due respect, I’m not dodging anything. I fully understand that Catholics are bound to follow the teachings of the Catholic Church, which are based on the authority passed down through the ages from pope to pope. The Catholic Church says it is an obligation to attend Sunday Mass and to miss it is a sin. Since I respect Catholicisn, I respect that position.

I am not a Catholic so I am not bound in a legalistic sense by Catholic Church rules.

However, I am a Christian and am bound to Chirst. Do I think a Christian should attend worship service every week if at all possible? Absolutely yes, and maybe during the week, also, if one feels so led.

My church has Wednesday night church service in addition to Sundays and I attend sometimes when I am able. ***However, I don’t keep track of my church attendance in some legalistic bookkeeping sense as if to earn brownie points with God by attending more than once a week. I go because I want to draw closer to God and His people, not to punch my spiritual clock like a factory worker at his place of employment.

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I don’t know if you meant it this way, but that kind of hurt, Tommy. Sounds like you’re saying that’s the only reason we go to Mass.

Some Catholics I know indeed have that attitude, but frankly, so do some protestants I know as well. Are you telling me protestantism doesn’t have the same problem of believers only clocking in one hour a week to get their “good believer” card?

It’s really not the obligation that causes that attitude, it’s a lack of evangelization. remember, all the obligation is is The Church teaching us the importance of worshiping God. A lot of people, Catholic and Protestant alike, simply go out of habit without ever having experiencing Christ. That’s terrible, but getting rid of the obligation won’t change that. If anything, it will make it less likely for them to experience Him. At least when they go to Mass they are hearing the word of God and participating in the sacraments. Seeds are being planted.

Sometimes people have legitimate reasons for missing church. As I mentioned previously, I miss maybe 3 or 4 Sundays a year. I heard on Catholic radio today that less than 30% of all US Catholics attend church regularly, even with the Sunday obligation in place.

Theoretical question: Would church attendance at Mass be more or less without the mandate?

Honestly, I think it would change nothing. Those who don’t go are already ignoring God and the Church, so they wouldn’t care. Perhaps there might be more who stopped going because of it. But the majority that do attend are doing it because they want to be there.

But does that mean, therefore, that we shouldn’t have an obligation to go to Mass under pain of sin? No, I don’t think so.

I really liked Annabelle Marie’s marriage analogy: even though we should be faithful and love our spouse because we are in love, sometimes life brings us down, and we do it out of obligation. But the obligation itself to love and be faithful is a good thing, though it’s not the most ideal reason to be faithful.

To take that one step further, even though a lot of marriages are dry and lifeless, and some people only stay in it out of obligation, we shouldn’t blame that fact on the marriage obligation itself. And we certainly shouldn’t eliminate it altogether! (Though sadly I have a family member who thinks that way. Please pray for him.) The obligation is there as a minimum, to remind us of the seriousness of marriage. Same thing with Mass.

I will not cast stones because I assume the attendance rate at Catholic parishes is similar to that of protestant churches, although I haven’t heard the exact numbers. All I know is that I see some parishoners just at Christmas and Easter which is sad, because they are missing out on so much during the year.

When I was a baby Christian, I used to attend church and serve God because I wanted to avoid hell. I still want to avoid hell, although now I attend out of love for God and His ways – not out of a sense of legalistic obligation. people must be careful because legalistic rule keeping for the sale of rule keeping can lead to Scupulosity, which is another form of bondage that is not from God. That is my opinion on the subject for whatever it is worth.

I absolutely agree. But like I said above, just because some people can focus too much on externals or rules doesn’t mean we should eliminate them. Rather, we should work more on helping them see the spirit if the law and introducing them into a relationship with Christ, who is who the laws are meant point us toward.

 

[Robyn_p]

[edited]

When the Bible talks about “Do not forsake the gathering of yourselves together”, I don’t interpret that to be calling non-attendance a sin. However, it is good advice meant for our spiritual welfare and for the well-being of our fellow Christian brothers and sisters.

Once again, I think we arrive at the same place (church) but get there from different perspectives.

I wanted to address this point in a separate post, because I think I’m seeing where our confusion and differences lies. I think it is stemming from how we view our respective Sunday gatherings.

Correct me if I’m wrong, but it seems you and your denomination view church as simply a gathering of believers to worship and hear the word of God, correct? It’s a good and praiseworthy way to worship, but maybe not necessarily the best or only option, right? (Again, correct me if I misinterpreted anything)

See, Catholics don’t look at Mass that way. We see Mass as our highest form of worship. We believe it was established by Jesus himself at the Last Supper and that it is our participation in the Sacrifice of Calvary. The Catechism says the Eucharist is the source and summit of our faith. It IS our worship.

As a result, Mass is pivotal to our spiritual lives, not just good or beneficial. If the Church eliminated the obligation, what she would be doing essentially is saying Mass doesn’t matter, the Eucharist doesn’t matter, worshiping God doesn’t matter. Or at the very least it would send the message all those things are optional. And if she were to do that, she would be leading us astray.

So I really think all the confusion is here because we are almost discussing two different things. Your type of church services are mainly about fellowship, which we agree is not a sin to miss. (not meaning that in any derogatory manner, fellowship is necessary. We need it to strengthen us.) But ours are about participating in the heavenly liturgy.

I realize I probably didn’t explain that well, and maybe caused more confusion. But if you want to dive deeper and get a better explanation of how Catholics view the Mass, I highly recommend these three books.

adoremusbooks.com/consumingthewordscotthahn-hardcover.aspx

amazon.com/The-Lambs-Supper-Heaven-Earth/dp/0385496591

amazon.com/Signs-Life-Catholic-Customs-Biblical/dp/0385519494/ref=pd_sim_b_3?ie=UTF8&refRID=1ZYSXD1NMPKQF4JG8WQG

This author, Scott Hahn, can explain it better than I can. Hope you check those out!

 

[nickajack]

Catholics have a big advantage here, in two ways. First in traveling in Europe for instance there are not a whole lot of Baptist churches but there are tons of Catholic churches. Secondly, even though I am English speaking, I can attend mass anywhere and generally follow along because it is a liturgical service. I won’t get the homily but everything else will be clear to me. And if I plan ahead I can take my missal from home and follow right along.

 

[Tommy999]

I wanted to address this point in a separate post, because I think I’m seeing where our confusion and differences lies. I think it is stemming from how we view our respective Sunday gatherings.

Correct me if I’m wrong, but it seems you and your denomination view church as simply a gathering of believers to worship and hear the word of God, correct? It’s a good and praiseworthy way to worship, but maybe not necessarily the best or only option, right? (Again, correct me if I misinterpreted anything)

See, Catholics don’t look at Mass that way. We see Mass as our highest form of worship. We believe it was established by Jesus himself at the Last Supper and that it is our participation in the Sacrifice of Calvary. The Catechism says the Eucharist is the source and summit of our faith. It IS our worship.

As a result, Mass is pivotal to our spiritual lives, not just good or beneficial. If the Church eliminated the obligation, what she would be doing essentially is saying Mass doesn’t matter, the Eucharist doesn’t matter, worshiping God doesn’t matter. Or at the very least it would send the message all those things are optional. And if she were to do that, she would be leading us astray.

So I really think all the confusion is here because we are almost discussing two different things. Your type of church services are mainly about fellowship, which we agree is not a sin to miss. (not meaning that in any derogatory manner, fellowship is necessary. We need it to strengthen us.) But ours are about participating in the heavenly liturgy.

I realize I probably didn’t explain that well, and maybe caused more confusion. But if you want to dive deeper and get a better explanation of how Catholics view the Mass, I highly recommend these three books.

adoremusbooks.com/consumingthewordscotthahn-hardcover.aspx

amazon.com/The-Lambs-Supper-Heaven-Earth/dp/0385496591

amazon.com/Signs-Life-Catholic-Customs-Biblical/dp/0385519494/ref=pd_sim_b_3?ie=UTF8&refRID=1ZYSXD1NMPKQF4JG8WQG

This author, Scott Hahn, can explain it better than I can. Hope you check those out!

Hi Robynp,
Sorry if I said anything to offend anyone. I didn’t mean it that way. I just wanted to express my opinion about attending out of obligation versus attending out of love for God and for being with His people.

I’ve met many wonderful Catholics on CAF. I’m sure all of them attend Mass out of love for God and love for their fellow man and are great people in every respect.

I was addressing those few who (in my opinion) turn almost any issue into what I perceive to be a spiritual bookkeeping exercise of some sort or one in which the Catholic way of looking at things is the best and only good way to look at things. That is the point i was trying to convey (parhaps not as well as I would’ve liked).

For me, church is about much more than fellowship, although that is a part of it. It is a deeply spiritual place to go and worship and encounter God, learn and grow in the faith, to serve, and to help and be helped in the faith by other believers.

I hope that better clarifies what I was trying to convey.

 

[nickajack]

My understanding is that missing Sunday mass without cause is a mortal sin. Furthermore if you die with an unconfessed mortal sin on your soul you are lost and will
go to hell. This seems harsh, not like Jesus.

Have I misinterpreted my catechism? I am not a cradle Catholic and still have a lot to learn.

 

[Vico]

My understanding is that missing Sunday mass without cause is a mortal sin. Furthermore if you die with an unconfessed mortal sin on your soul you are lost and will
go to hell. This seems harsh, not like Jesus.

Have I misinterpreted my catechism? I am not a cradle Catholic and still have a lot to learn.

Baltimore Catechism No. 3, Lesson 35Q. 1329. Is it a mortal sin not to hear Mass on a Sunday or a holyday of obligation?

A. It is a mortal sin not to hear Mass on a Sunday or a holyday of obligation, unless we are excused for a serious reason. They also commit a mortal sin who, having others under their charge, hinder them from hearing Mass, without a sufficient reason.
Q. 1330. What is a “serious reason” excusing one from the obligation of hearing Mass?
A. A “serious reason” excusing one from the obligation of hearing Mass is any reason that makes it impossible or very difficult to attend Mass, such as severe illness, great distance from the Church, or the need of certain works that cannot be neglected or postponed.
Q. 1331. Are children obliged, under pain of mortal sin, the same as grown persons, to hear Mass on Sundays and holydays of obligation?
A. Children who have reached the use of reason are obliged under pain of mortal sin, the same as grown persons, to hear Mass on Sundays and holydays of obligation; but if they are prevented from so doing by parents, or others, then the sin falls on those who prevent them.

baltimore-catechism.com/lesson35.htm

 

[Tommy999]

Thanks to all who responded to this thread. I’ve learned a lot from your responses. My favorite response was to treat the obligation like a marriage vow – to do it whether you feel like it or not, although hopefully the faithful’s primary motivation most of the time will be to attend church out of love for God and to strengthen their walk with Christ and to be there to support and help their fellow believers. Take care and God bless you all.