Help! Going to store on Sunday?

[Kathrin]

I wonder if I am scrupulous again or if this is a real problem.

First of all, how wrong is it to go to a store on Sunday? I usually try to only go when really necessary. But say (this has happened to me several times) it is Saturday evening and I am already home and I remember I forgot something. Do I have to go back out and get it? Even if the store is kind of far and I know I’ll pass by there tomorrow anyway?

Now today’s a doubly complicated situation. My Mom just asked me if I was going by an open store tomorrow (I probably am) and if I could get them some coffee.
It is Saturady evening.
I even mentioned to my Mom that I believed in only buying necessary things on Sunday. But if I go out tonight and go to a still open store and see if they have that kind of coffee there, then that would look so scrupulous in my parents’ eyes (I am an adult but live upstairs in my parents’ house) that it would probably shed a wrong light on Catholicism (that is, may make them like it less. They don’t go to church. I want to be a good Christian example, but not an overly scrupulous one).

So what do I do.
Am I exaggerating?
Is it ok to go to the store on Sunday even if with an extra effort I could go back out tonight?
Am I exaggerating? This is causing anxiety.
But I like for Sunday to be special. So I feel for the people who work in the stores. That’s my main concern. However, on the other hand, they need to be open for emergencies, right…)

Kathrin

 

[baltobetsy]

Scrupulous again. Relax. Get the coffee on Sunday. Those people will be keeping the store open whether you pop in and purchase one item or not.

And some people do consider coffee an emergency!

Stay light about small things, and your parents will be more likely to respect your faith. There’s a saying among parents - “Pick your battles” - which means sometimes you let things go in order to be more effective when something really important comes along. In dealing with your parents about matters of faith, you, too, need to pick your battles.

Betsy

 

[Kathrin]

Thanks, Betsy. That is what my intuition told me too. But I wasn’t sure.

Actually the part about needing coffee I do understand.

Kathrin

 

[CarrieH]

Here’s another thought: if you make a special trip to the store just to buy coffee, you are wasting gas. It’s better for the environment (and your wallet) to combine trips, and the Holy Father is encouraging us to make environmental protection a high priority. So stop by the store when you are out tomorrow, and don’t get scrupulous about this. And go relax with a cup of the coffee you bought! :coffeeread:

Anyone here old enough to remember when none of the stores were open on Sunday? We had to plan ahead, and if we ran short of something or had an emergency, we had to borrow from a neighbor!

 

[Kathrin]

Well I don’t drive so that excuse wouldn’t count.

Sometimes I do wonder how much stress a person should take upon themselves in order to keep the Sabbath. (We do call it that too, don’t we?)
Because the Sabbath was made for man, and not man for the Sabbath.
So if I remember I have to get, or do, something on a Saturday evening (example: I am lying on bed already and I remember I have to water the plants sometime this weekend. Something small like this.) Do I rush and do it? Or can it wait and be done on Sunday?
It probably depends on how much stress it causes. Let’s say I forgot something and I’d have to take the train back to another town to get it (and on Sunday I would be there anyway).

Kathrin

 

[Allen537]

Well I don’t drive so that excuse wouldn’t count.

Sometimes I do wonder how much stress a person should take upon themselves in order to keep the Sabbath. (We do call it that too, don’t we?)
Because the Sabbath was made for man, and not man for the Sabbath.
So if I remember I have to get, or do, something on a Saturday evening (example: I am lying on bed already and I remember I have to water the plants sometime this weekend. Something small like this.) Do I rush and do it? Or can it wait and be done on Sunday?
It probably depends on how much stress it causes. Let’s say I forgot something and I’d have to take the train back to another town to get it (and on Sunday I would be there anyway).

Kathrin

Always remember that Christ said that the Sabbath was created for Man, not Man for the Sabbath. While it is a day given to us by God for our rest from the busy week and should be taken advantage of when possible, it is not a sin to go do something on a Sunday.

 

[Kathrin]

Thanks again, everybody.
As I said, I want to be a good Christian example for my family, and not give the impression of the faith being something that is more of a burden than a blessing. So I think I made the right decision now.
I hope I’ll get somebody from my family to come to church with me sometime soon again.
))

Kathrin