DD’s info from CCD: “Missing mass on Sun. is a mortal sin”

[kmmb_68]

Anyone else experience this? And if so, what do you reply to your DC if you don’t exactly go to mass every 7 days?

Does God really keep tabs on whether we are keeping an exact seven day schedule?

[This topic may have come up before, but since this forum is soooo huge and has been around for so long it’s very hard to find specifically relevant past posts.]

Time, in God’s universe, is not constant (ie: 7 days in Genesis biblical times may have covered a very large amount of “geological earth” time). We, as Catholics, understand that there is only one truth—God’s truth, and science works toward that.

Is not, as Catholic beliefs go, the whole point of the creation of the world in Genesis that it was done by God, and that it was good? And NOT that it was done in the “now, with time as we currently perceive it” 7 days of time?

So are we in a state of mortal sin by not going to mass exactly every 7 days, or is it more of an importance to, after a time of work and distraction by our material world, return to our Lord and reconnect with him/attend mass and receive communion for a “day of rest” to “keep the Lord’s day holy” as per his commandment?

 

[agnes_therese]

IMO, you should be grateful that your daughter is being taught the Catholic faith as it is, and not a watered-down version. I am, frankly, amazed that you seem not to have known this basic teaching/requirement of the Church?

Yes, it is mortal sin to miss Mass on Sunday (you can attend Saturday evening vigil instead), without a very good reason, such as serious illness, complete lack of transportation, etc. Having had a busy week is not such a reason; in fact, that makes it even more necessary to attend Mass and take your mind from the pressures of secular life into worshipping God.

 

[St_Francis]

Anyone else experience this? And if so, what do you reply to your DC if you don’t exactly go to mass every 7 days?

If one learns that something one has been doing is a mortal sin, one goes to Confession and refrains from committing that sin any more.

Does God really keep tabs on whether we are keeping an exact seven day schedule?

He doesn’t have to. Like a child with cookie crumbs around his mouth, God can nust look at your soul and see.

[This topic may have come up before, but since this forum is soooo huge and has been around for so long it’s very hard to find specifically relevant past posts.]

I have the same problem sometimes!

Time, in God’s universe, is not constant (ie: 7 days in Genesis biblical times may have covered a very large amount of “geological earth” time). We, as Catholics, understand that there is only one truth—God’s truth, and science works toward that.

The rule is not made according to God’s time but ours.

Is not, as Catholic beliefs go, the whole point of the creation of the world in Genesis that it was done by God, and that it was good? And NOT that it was done in the “now, with time as we currently perceive it” 7 days of time?

If God were to say to go to Mass once every 7days according to His timeframe, then most of us would never even hit a 7th day, would we?

So are we in a state of mortal sin by not going to mass exactly every 7 days, or is it more of an importance to, after a time of work and distraction by our material world, return to our Lord and reconnect with him/attend mass and receive communion for a “day of rest” to “keep the Lord’s day holy” as per his commandment?

Missing Mass for a bad reason is objectively a mortal sin. A particular individual may not have the guilt of mortal sin on his or her soul due to mitigating factors, but we don’t know that, only God can judge the state of a person’s soul.

AND yes, it is important to after a week of distractions, etc, to reconnect with the Lord and receive our spiritual Food.

It is also good to reconnect with God frequently during the week, to pray a few times each day, if only short prayers, and to avoid sin and increase virtue throughout the week. That way, we will be well-prepared to receive Our Lord.

Think of it this way: suppose your husband started your marriage by only talking to you once a week, and after a while, sometimes didn’t talk to you then. Would you not feel that he was neglecting you and placing you at too-low a priority in his life?

Would you not think a healthy marital relationship would be for him to talk to you frequently, even if only for a moment? And to live as if you were a very high priority in his life as opposed to paying attention to other women 6 days a week without even talking to you?

Welcome to CAF

Annie

 

[Brendan]

Does God really keep tabs on whether we are keeping an exact seven day schedule??

Yes, actually He does.

Or more specifically, He expects Obedience to the Church, to which He gave the power to bind and to lose.

If you cannot attend Mass on Sunday due to illness, lack of Mass being said within a reasonable commute, or work obligations, the Church relieves you of the obligation ( again the power to lose)

If you are not thus restricted, you ARE obligated to attend Mass on Sunday, or an approved vigil Mass. That is the power to bind that God gave to the Church.

What your daughter learned in CCD was the Truth. You DO have an obligation to go to Mass each, and every, Sunday, plus any Holy Days of Obligation that have been set by the Church.

 

[seagal]

It might help you to have some context about why the Catholic Church says we are obligated to attend Mass weekly, and why it must be Sunday and not just some arbitrary day. These are the relevant passages from the Catechism.
vatican.va/archive/ENG0015/__P7O.HTM

This article might also help
8 Reasons to Go to Mass

As to your question about whether God keeps tabs on us, Yes, he keeps tabs on us about everything we do. He has given us specific commandments and he expects us to follow them, the same way you give your children commandments and expect them to follow them.

 

[hazcompat]

What a privilege Holy Mass. How does one bear separation from Jesus in the Holy Sacrament for 7 days? Lord grant me the grace of daily mass.

Peace

 

[Gordon_Sims]

This very thing led to a big argument at a family party several months ago. My nephew came home saying the same thing and my brother-in-law mentioned it as a joke while we were eating dessert. When I told him his son was right, he got rather flustered and said he’d never heard such a thing and didn’t believe it was a sin. I told him that, after twelve years of Catholic school, helping his wife through RCIA, going through pre-Cana, then their Baptism course for their son and his First Communion classes, plus all the times I’d mentioned it to him, if he truly had somehow not heard that it was a sin and had no sinful intentions those hundreds of times he’d skipped Mass on Sunday to sleep in, nurse a hangover or drink himself blind watching football, then no mortal sin had been committed. However, I reminded him that the third commandment was the reason this was a sin and, being the third thing mentioned right there in the commandments, it was obviously pretty important so there was no way he could really say that God didn’t consider it to be a big deal. I then pointed out that since he’d clearly had it explained to him not just by his son but now, for the 30th or 40th time, by me, he completely understood that it was a mortal sin and to continue forsaking his Sunday obligation would very obviously put him in a state of mortal sin. It didn’t get him to change his habits but it did lead to his son nagging them a bit more about going to Mass regularly. The bottom line, though, is that it really is a mortal sin and you are expected to go to Mass not just on every Sunday but every Holy Day of Obligation as well.

 

[agnes_therese]

What a privilege Holy Mass.

And think of how many people don’t have that privilege. They live in an area with a shortage of priests, or in a country where Christianity is persecuted.

And then we complain about giving God one hour out of the 168 in a week.

 

[PolarGuy]

As usual, most all of the posters are incorrect.

Missing mass has never been declared by the church to be a mortal sin, because no so. As been so defined. Mortal sin requires that an act be done with full consent of the will, which is entirely subjective.

There is no “official list of mortal sins.” If my child was taught this, I’d ask the teacher to show me the list (right after I sent a strongly worded letter to the pastor about the whole incident).

 

[PaulinVA]

As usual, most all of the posters are incorrect.

Missing mass has never been declared by the church to be a mortal sin, because no so. As been so defined. Mortal sin requires that an act be done with full consent of the will, which is entirely subjective.

There is no “official list of mortal sins.” If my child was taught this, I’d ask the teacher to show me the list (right after I sent a strongly worded letter to the pastor about the whole incident).

ewtn.com/expert/answers/sunday_mass.htm

Canon 1247
On Sundays and other holy days of obligation the faithful are bound to participate in the Mass; they are also to abstain from those labors and business concerns which impede the worship to be rendered to God, the joy which is proper to the Lord’s Day, or the proper relaxation of mind and body.

Canon 1248

1. The precept of participating in the Mass is satisfied by assistance at a Mass which is celebrated anywhere in a Catholic rite either on the holy day or on the evening of the preceding day.
2. If because of lack of a sacred minister or for other grave cause participation in the celebration of the Eucharist is impossible, it is specially recommended that the faithful take part in the liturgy of the word if it is celebrated in the parish church or in another sacred place according to the prescriptions of the diocesan bishop, or engage in prayer for an appropriate amount of time personally or in a family or, as occasion offers, in groups of families.

Since a “grave cause” is needed to excuse one from this obligation it would be a serious or mortal sin to willfully skip Mass on Sunday or a Holy Day of Obligation, as the Church has always taught. Reasons such as the necessity to work to support one’s family, child care, personal sickness or the care of the sick, necessary travel etc. would excuse a person on a particular occasions. Those who have continuing reason to be excused should consult their pastor.

---

The Catechism of the Catholic Church states that teaching clearly in No. 2181: “The Sunday Eucharist is the foundation and confirmation of all Christian practice. For this reason the faithful are obliged to participate in the Eucharist on days of obligation, unless excused for a serious reason (for example, illness, the care of infants). Those who deliberately fail in this obligation commit a grave sin.”

 

[_Virtus]

As usual, most all of the posters are incorrect.

Missing mass has never been declared by the church to be a mortal sin, because no so. As been so defined. Mortal sin requires that an act be done with full consent of the will, which is entirely subjective.

There is no “official list of mortal sins.” If my child was taught this, I’d ask the teacher to show me the list (right after I sent a strongly worded letter to the pastor about the whole incident).

I wanted to point it out in the catechism, too.

2043 The fourth precept (“You shall keep holy the holy days of obligation.") completes the Sunday observance by participation in the principal liturgical feasts which honor the mysteries of the Lord, the Virgin Mary, and the saints.

 

[St_Francis]

As usual, most all of the posters are incorrect.

Missing mass has never been declared by the church to be a mortal sin, because no so. As been so defined. Mortal sin requires that an act be done with full consent of the will, which is entirely subjective.

There is no “official list of mortal sins.” If my child was taught this, I’d ask the teacher to show me the list (right after I sent a strongly worded letter to the pastor about the whole incident).

There are, however, certain things which obligate under pain of mortal sin. We do not have a complete list of mortal sins, but certain actions are known to be mortal sins, like murder.

When we say this action is a mortal sin, we mean it objectively. Objectively, taking the Lord’s Name in vain is a mortal sin. However, when God considers a person’s soul, He may see that the person’s culpability (personal guilt) for having committed the sin is reduced for some reason*, so that person was not mortally guilty of the sin. The problem is that we can not know the precise measure of a specific person’s guilt because we are not God.

*say the person is a recent convert raised in a family which took the Lord’s Name in vain a lot and it just slipped out due to his previous lifelong habit. That could reduce his fuilt sufficiently, so he personally would not have the full guilt of what is objectively a mortal sin on his soul.

 

[seagal]

As usual, most all of the posters are incorrect.

Missing mass has never been declared by the church to be a mortal sin, because no so. As been so defined. Mortal sin requires that an act be done with full consent of the will, which is entirely subjective.

There is no “official list of mortal sins.” If my child was taught this, I’d ask the teacher to show me the list (right after I sent a strongly worded letter to the pastor about the whole incident).

PaulinVA already pointed to Canon 1248 which clearly states that it is a mortal sin to miss our Sunday obligation. If you didn’t know that before now, then you aren’t guilty of sin. But now you do know, and if you miss Mass from this point forward without grave reason then you are doing so with full consent of the will.

There may not be a full “official” list of mortal sins, but you can be sure the 10 commandments are certainly on it.

 

[EasterJoy]

The obligation to attend Mass and rest from servile work on Sundays and holy days of obligation (yes, we’re obliged on those days, too) is among the precepts of the Church, which are the laws morally binding on the faithful as taken from canon law.

When the Church declares something to be morally binding, then yes, God does expect us to do it. If the Church declares the obligation to be grave, then yes, it is a mortal sin to willfully refuse to do it when there is no extenuating circumstance excusing us.

There was a time when the precepts of the Church weren’t really taught as a part of grade school catechesis. This is a shame, because many parents are now caught in a state of ignorance with regards to what their children are being taught in religious classes. There were people in earlier generations who chose to ignore what the Church taught, but one has to wonder if they’ve been so ignorant of it at any time since the Counter Reformation.

Even now, the precepts of the Church are sometimes taught without including the reminder that a Catholic is bound to observe the laws of the Church regarding marriage…

 

[Marysann]

You need to send a note to your daughter’s CCD teacher and thank her for teaching the truth. You don’t know how difficult it is for CCD teachers who actually teach what the Church teachers these days. As a CCD teacher I could never understand why parents would sent their children to CCD if they didn’t want them to learn the truths taught by the Catholic Church. Our parish is very adamant about this, and makes sure that the teachers are adequately trained in the knowledge of the faith. The Church has always taught that missing Mass on Sundays and Holy Days of Obligation is mortally sinful. As it has been pointed out by other posters, an action, including missing Mass on required days, is not mortally sinful if the individual did not have knowledge of this. However, now that you have this knowledge, you must act upon it. Thank the teacher for pointing this out to you since you did not have the advantage of being taught this truth yourself when you were young. Now make a special effort to be at Mass with your family every Sunday. If you want your children to be Catholic, you must live the Faith. Make Sunday morning joyful for your family. Attend Mass and then go out for doughnuts or something else fun.

 

[seagal]

You need to send a note to your daughter’s CCD teacher and thank her for teaching the truth. You don’t know how difficult it is for CCD teachers who actually teach what the Church teachers these days. As a CCD teacher I could never understand why parents would sent their children to CCD if they didn’t want them to learn the truths taught by the Catholic Church. Our parish is very adamant about this, and makes sure that the teachers are adequately trained in the knowledge of the faith. The Church has always taught that missing Mass on Sundays and Holy Days of Obligation is mortally sinful. As it has been pointed out by other posters, an action, including missing Mass on required days, is not mortally sinful if the individual did not have knowledge of this. However, now that you have this knowledge, you must act upon it. Thank the teacher for pointing this out to you since you did not have the advantage of being taught this truth yourself when you were young. Now make a special effort to be at Mass with your family every Sunday. If you want your children to be Catholic, you must live the Faith. Make Sunday morning joyful for your family. Attend Mass and then go out for doughnuts or something else fun.

 

[henpecked]

here’s my take on the missing mass thing…

through the Mass many graces are made available to the faithful in attendance. The Mass is a great prayer all in itself. The most important part of the Mass is reception of the Eucharist. When we say no to Mass, we are turning away these graces God makes available to us. Saying no to God is sin by definition. An no, God doesn’t give us a pass because the playoffs are on tv or junior has boy scout camp.

If one isn’t able to make it to Mass due to illness or whatever, that’s different.

 

[TheDoctor]

As usual, most all of the posters are incorrect.

Missing mass has never been declared by the church to be a mortal sin, because no so. As been so defined. Mortal sin requires that an act be done with full consent of the will, which is entirely subjective.

There is no "official list of mortal sins.

With respect most of the posters are correct. Your difficulty is that you don’t have a complete understanding of what a mortal sin is and consequently why there is no “official list”.

For a sin to be mortal, there must be three things:

• Grave Matter
• Full Knowledge
• Consent of the Will

There is a sense of the subjective in all of these however Church teaching since the time of Christ has taught that not keeping the Sabbath Holy, (i.e. missing Mass), is grave matter, so the first requirement is fulfilled. You can find a “list” of these grave matters by looking at the 10 commandments section of the Catechism.

Whether or not you knew it was a grave matter at the time you missed, or if did it with willful consent is between you and your confessor, however in most cases since it should have been taught in CCD or RCIA (full knowledge), a Catholic who misses Mass without a valid reason commits a mortal sin.

If my child was taught this, I’d ask the teacher to show me the list (right after I sent a strongly worded letter to the pastor about the whole incident).

I would not, since it would make me look foolish and uneducated about my faith, but that is just me.

 

[PolarGuy]

People can quote the catechism all they want, but the reality is that there is a difference between what’s grave matter and what’s mortally sinful. Posters here are adopting the position that what’s grave matter is categorically mortal sinful. They are not.

Moreover, even the 10 commandments are not always categorical: killing of others in numerous instances is not sinful.

Ok, TheDoctor, go ahead and hold your tongue… But while you’re at it, could you please forward me that list of church-approved mortal sins? No one seems able to get me that (because it doesn’t exist, and hence the teacher was wrong and needlessly harsh too).

 

[1ke]

Anyone else experience this?

Of course. It’s a commandment.

And if so, what do you reply to your DC if you don’t exactly go to mass every 7 days?

Well, I suggest, we have failed in the past and we will make a firm amendment of purpose to go to Mass every Sunday and Holy Day as we are supposed to.

Does God really keep tabs on whether we are keeping an exact seven day schedule?

God certainly knows whether or not we keep his commandments.

So are we in a state of mortal sin by not going to mass exactly every 7 days

Yes it really is a mortal sin if you fail to go to Mass on Sundays and Holy Days purposely. Of course, the Church does not expect the impossible, so if one is sick then one is excused. You should talk to your priest if you are unsure whether the reasons you have failed in your obligation are grave matter.

or is it more of an importance to, after a time of work and distraction by our material world, return to our Lord and reconnect with him/attend mass and receive communion for a “day of rest” to “keep the Lord’s day holy” as per his commandment?

It is per his commandment that we are obliged to attend Mass on Sundays and Holy Days.

Make the commitment as a family to attend Mass and honor God as the first and foremost obligation your family has.

Of course, you can always go to daily masses in addition to Sunday and Holy Days, which would be even MORE awesome!