Housework on Sundays

[coachdennis]

Get off your butt and do what your parents tell you to do, period.

 

[MissRose73]

As I am single, I try to get as much housework related stuff done before Sunday. I will cook meals for myself and perhaps wash the dishes on Sunday so I can do my best to observe it as a day of rest. Unessential housework that wasn’t done prior to Sunday will be done either after sunset on Sunday or wait until Monday.

 

[agnes_therese]

Yes, I did.
I just don’t like committing sins of presumption, but I can’t think of another way out of this.
And I wanna go to Mass tonight, I’d very much like to, but I’m not going to receive the Eucharist unworthily.

Doing housework (especially housework assigned by your parents) does NOT mean you would be receiving the Eucharist unworthily.

 

[Tarpeian_Rock]

Again: when did the Orthodox Jewish interpretation of “no work” on the Sabbath (Google “Shabbas goy”) enter Catholicism? There have been so many questions lately that seem to be coming from a perspective that a faithful Catholic can’t do much more after Sunday Mass than sit in a chair and read the Bible.

 

[turtle18]

I do think that we should try to refrain from unnecessary chores on Sunday. Housework is exhausting and you do need to get some rest. Ideally, Sunday would be a day of increased prayer, silent time, meditation and some family time.

That being said, if you are a minor, you need to obey your parents. Is there some reason why these chores can’t be done on Saturday? Can you go to your parents ahead of time and see what they might want you to do and do them on Saturday instead?

 

[Lamentation]

Uh yeah, there is NO way my parents would let me not clean the house today… I don’t think “explaining it nicely” is going to help.
They don’t even like the fact that I choose not to work a job on Sundays.
I did already receive communion yesterday; I know it’s a sin of presumption, but would it be better to just follow their wishes, not go to church tonight (since I went yesterday evening) and then confess it?
A fast reply would be nice, all.

Exactly what is being presumed here? This is what I really don’t understand.

Further, the Catechism is a guideline, **not **Canon Law (some guys have difficulty at the seminary as well with this concept). If there are things that need to be done on Sunday, then you do them.

The idea behind the Christian Sabbath is that one is to be extra mindful of their faith in the Lord, having witnessed the mystery of His Body and Blood being present in the bread and wine at the Eucharistic Celebration. It is a day that we try to make a special effort to meditate on Him; not to put our life on hold.

 

[otjm]

My parents want me to do some housecleaning today- scrubbing the bathroom and whatnot. I try to make it a point not to work on Sundays (I did all my homework yesterday) but I know you’re supposed to honor your parents, and honestly, I don’t want to deal with that kind of an argument right now. I’m going to Mass tonight; can I obey my parents’ wishes and still receive Communion?

Well, let’s put it this way: If you don’t do the cleaning, you might want to consider not receiving.

And assuming you have lived your life in that family, how about being proactive - the toilets need cleaning on a regular basis - start doing the household chores on Saturday. They need to come before sports, or outings with friends or any other recreational activity. You should know by now what needs doing, and stop waiting for your parents to tell you what to do.

Teenagers want to be treated like adults; surprisingly, that often happens when they act like adults.

Try asking for a list of tasks you need to accomplish each week, then determine when you will do them, and get them done without having to be told to do so, or reminded.

That is acting like an adult.

 

[otjm]

Housework is exhausting and you do need to get some rest.

Unless one is on medical rest, household chores are hardly exhausting.

 

[recentrevert]

Many Catholics hate the law of rest on the Lord’s Day and falsely interpret it to mean that not only can they do anything they feel like on a Sunday, but also that they can interfere with the rest of others (given as a right by the Church) and destroy the public observation of it. They do this by making Sunday into a convenient day for doing the housework, shopping and eating out. Having said that, perhaps your parents genuinely cannot clean the bathroom at any time between Monday and Saturday. You should be more lenient in your interpretation of necessity when your parents have told you to do something than you would be otherwise.

 

[recentrevert]

Yes it does. Unnecessary servile work is not permitted on Sundays. It is a day of rest. Obviously dishes have to be done after eating, but unless there is a good reason why cleaning the bathroom floor can’t wait until Monday (ie: toilet backed up, someone vomited on it before they got to the toilet) servile work like that is a sin against the third commandment.

There is a hierarchy that puts honoring God above honoring our neighbors including parents. If we are asked to do something sinful (which unnecesry servile work on Sundays is), we are not to obey.

I would tell my parents respectfully and kindly that I would be happy to scrub the bathroom floors on Monday, but today is Sunday, the Lord’s Day, which we are commanded to keep this day holy and spend it honoring God and rest from unnecessary servile work.

They might get mad the first time, but you must stand your ground. I would suggest doing an extra household chore that’s particularly unpleasant or demanding that your parents would do, so they also benefit from you not doing servile work on Sunday. Then you also do a greater act of charity towards your parents.

Thank you for giving this person a sincere answer to a sincere question. Some people seem to think that now the law has been re-phrased we can basically do what we like on a Sunday and force others to work under specious pretexts, but it seems to me that the new law forbids work that is not servile if that is what the person has been doing all week, in addition to forbidding servile work. Do you know where any trustworthy/authoritative explanations of what this law means in practice can be found?

 

[recentrevert]

Get off your butt and do what your parents tell you to do, period.

Very rude and condescending. That attitude is scandalous.

We do not worship our parents, we worship God. Parents are beneath the laws of God, Church and State, not above them. The question is ‘is it against the law of the Church to do unnecessary housework on a Sunday, and is cleaning the bathroom unnecessary, as it does not need doing every day and could easily be done on another?’

If the answer to this question is ‘yes’, then the parents are commanding sin, and ought to be disobeyed, no matter how much they might unjustly resent it.

 

[otjm]

Very rude and condescending. That attitude is scandalous.

We do not worship our parents, we worship God. Parents are beneath the laws of God, Church and State, not above them. The question is ‘is it against the law of the Church to do unnecessary housework on a Sunday, and is cleaning the bathroom unnecessary, as it does not need doing every day and could easily be done on another?’

If the answer to this question is ‘yes’, then the parents are commanding sin, and ought to be disobeyed, no matter how much they might unjustly resent it.

Having spoken with far too many priests about this question, your sense of moral theology is more than just a little bit off track. The parents are not commanding sin, and telling a teenager that before one has had the complete story (and by that, I mean not only the teenager’s side but also the parent’s side) is completely out of line.

You might be scandalized by the matter, but that is exactly what I would have told the teenager, were they mine and they came back with “It’s Sunday” routine.

And to top that off, there would have been some consequences not of their liking, for failure to get moving and get the job done.

From the Catholic Catechism: 2185 On Sundays and other holy days of obligation, the faithful are to refrain from engaging in work or activities that hinder the worship owed to God, the joy proper to the Lord’s Day, the performance of the works of mercy, and the appropriate relaxation of mind and body. Family needs or important social service can legitimately excuse from the obligation of Sunday rest. The faithful should see to it that legitimate excuses do not lead to habits prejudicial to religion, family life, and health.

Emphasis mine.

I would not accuse the OP of telling a skewed story; but having raised teenagers (and actually having been one myself (even thought that is ancient history), I would not be shocked out of my mind to find out that there was a whole lot to this story that we have not heard.

Could the bathroom been cleaned on a different day? Absolutely. The question then is, why wasn’t it? Oh, there is more to this story. Ohhhhhhhhh.

But parents sinning? Not according to the CCC. Nor, according to any priest I have ever spoken with.

 

[pensmama87]

turtle18;12660214:

Housework is exhausting

and you do need to get some rest.

Unless one is on medical rest, household chores are hardly exhausting.

Boring? Oh yeah…

Seemingly needless? Yep.

Join the Army and clean out a latrine with a toothbrush, and you will achieve a different perspective on the “chores” your parents made you do

That depends.

If one generally keeps a tidy house, no, most household chores aren’t bad.

But there are some chores that need doing every now and then that are very hard. Moving furniture to clean behind/under it comes to mind. Or scrubbing out your oven, or your kitchen floor, which generally does need to be done from time to time even if regular cleaning is done.

Just the constant up and down of picking up toys and putting them back where they belong can tire me out, and I’m young and ablebodied, with children who I am constantly teaching to put away their own things!

I do try to limit what I do on Sundays, but I find it hard to “take a break” even though I know I need one. Some things just need doing, like laundry and dishes, but otherwise I try to just be with my family and spend time in prayer. I like to avoid the “busy-ness” that accompanies the other days of the week.

But if I had to do something on Sunday, yes, I would do it. But usually, I don’t “have to,” and I try to plan on not having to too often.

 

[turtle18]

turtle18;12660214:

Housework is exhausting

and you do need to get some rest.

Unless one is on medical rest, household chores are hardly exhausting.

Boring? Oh yeah…

Seemingly needless? Yep.

Join the Army and clean out a latrine with a toothbrush, and you will achieve a different perspective on the “chores” your parents made you do

I am a grown woman. I can do a cardio workout for 60 minutes and feel good and be energized the rest of the day. I can do 60 minutes of housework and be non-functional and completely wiped out the rest of the day.

 

[Timothysis]

Obviously dishes have to be done after eating, but unless there is a good reason why cleaning the bathroom floor can’t wait until Monday… servile work like that is a sin against the third commandment.

So, cleaning the dishes after eating is ok but cleaning the bathroom is not? If the bathroom can wait, then why can’t the dishes?

 

[OneSmallFlower]

Wow. This got out of hand fast.

To those of you who got offended (and yeah, I’m looking at the guy who called me lazy and told me to “get off my butt,” as well as the other one who said I’d called him a desecrator), you need to calm down, 'kay? Do you think I’d be asking this question if I were trying to be disrespectful to my parents? Or if I were being lazy? And do you think that I think I have any right to judge you? That line of reasoning sounds pretty judgmental to me.

So I told them I couldn’t do it on Sundays, ‘cause frankly I wasn’t sure if it were a mortal sin or not, and offered to get up at 5:30 Monday morning. They got mad, but did the right thing and told me to ask my confessor, which really I should have done in the first place because clearly none of you are any help. I was super helpful all the rest of the week to make up for it, did my folks’ laundry, dusted the whole house, and helped with the rest of the housework. So no, I’m not lazy, I love my parents, and I’m not accusing anyone else of ANYTHING- that’s your job, not mine.

Goodness gracious.

 

[Crown_of_Stars]

So, cleaning the dishes after eating is ok but cleaning the bathroom is not? If the bathroom can wait, then why can’t the dishes?

This is a good point. Of course I do the dishes on Sundays. And I cook. And do laundry. All of this is definitely housework. I see nothing wrong with taking a feather duster to a table on the Lord’s Day. He would want it clean.

 

[recentrevert]

Today, (Sunday) My wife and I have:
1 Changed 4 Diapers.
2 Folded 2 loads of laundry.
3 Done 2 loads of Dishes Breakfast and Lunch for the 6 people who are in our family.
4 Wiped 2 bottoms (separate from the diapers)
5 Bought dinner and Lunch from the store after Mass.
6 Picked up the floor (toys ad trash and such)
7 Took the trash to the curb (early monday morning pickup)
8 Watching 2 football games
9 Day aint over yet, we still have dinner and baths and Family Adoration and Benediction.

Now, here is where scrupulosity just does not make sense to me. By asking your question you are condemning others, including myself as committing grave matter and being unworthy of the Eucharist. You are calling me a desecrator.

It is my belief that many times scrupulocity is on par with OCD. But it can also be a form of pridefulness and boasting.
And like OCD many times employing logic can help with the problem. Do you think the God of our faith. Jesus Christ Himself would condemn you to hell for helping the household when your parents ask? Man, that makes absolutely no sense, and rather than breaking the command of keeping Sunday a Holy day, you are dangerously close to breaking the command to honor your parents…

Of the things you have listed, buying food on a Sunday was almost certainly a sin, unless you genuinely couldn’t get to the shops or get someone else to go for you on another day. The reason for this is that we must make a good effort to encourage the Lord’s Day to be kept holy by society in general, and to avoid causing others to work. Watching two football matches is debatable.

It is not scrupulosity to enquire as to the correct interpretation of a law - that is good - and often obligatory. When you say that to ask this question is to condemn others, you are using the reasoning of all sinners e.g. ‘How dare you ask if it is wrong to use contraception/break the law/vote for evil politicians for selfish purposes, I do those things!’
Just because you do something, it doesn’t make it right; why should it?

 

[Butaperson]

Wow. This got out of hand fast.

To those of you who got offended (and yeah, I’m looking at the guy who called me lazy and told me to “get off my butt,” as well as the other one who said I’d called him a desecrator), you need to calm down, 'kay? Do you think I’d be asking this question if I were trying to be disrespectful to my parents? Or if I were being lazy? And do you think that I think I have any right to judge you? That line of reasoning sounds pretty judgmental to me.

So I told them I couldn’t do it on Sundays, ‘cause frankly I wasn’t sure if it were a mortal sin or not, and offered to get up at 5:30 Monday morning. They got mad, but did the right thing and told me to ask my confessor, which really I should have done in the first place because clearly none of you are any help. I was super helpful all the rest of the week to make up for it, did my folks’ laundry, dusted the whole house, and helped with the rest of the housework. So no, I’m not lazy, I love my parents, and I’m not accusing anyone else of ANYTHING- that’s your job, not mine.

Goodness gracious.

I feel you so hard

 

[recentrevert]

Having spoken with far too many priests about this question, your sense of moral theology is more than just a little bit off track. The parents are not commanding sin, and telling a teenager that before one has had the complete story (and by that, I mean not only the teenager’s side but also the parent’s side) is completely out of line.

You might be scandalized by the matter, but that is exactly what I would have told the teenager, were they mine and they came back with “It’s Sunday” routine.

And to top that off, there would have been some consequences not of their liking, for failure to get moving and get the job done.

From the Catholic Catechism: 2185 On Sundays and other holy days of obligation, the faithful are to refrain from engaging in work or activities that hinder the worship owed to God, the joy proper to the Lord’s Day, the performance of the works of mercy, and the appropriate relaxation of mind and body. Family needs or important social service can legitimately excuse from the obligation of Sunday rest. The faithful should see to it that legitimate excuses do not lead to habits prejudicial to religion, family life, and health.

Emphasis mine.

I would not accuse the OP of telling a skewed story; but having raised teenagers (and actually having been one myself (even thought that is ancient history), I would not be shocked out of my mind to find out that there was a whole lot to this story that we have not heard.

Could the bathroom been cleaned on a different day? Absolutely. The question then is, why wasn’t it? Oh, there is more to this story. Ohhhhhhhhh.

But parents sinning? Not according to the CCC. Nor, according to any priest I have ever spoken with.

You seem to have rashly judged all ‘teenagers’ as being of ill-will, and to believe that good will is something that is acquired with age. Perhaps ‘the teenager’ was being sincere? You do know that children have been canonized?

‘Family needs’ can indeed be a legitimate excuse from rest, but it is generally not necessary to do cleaning on a Sunday.
You are actually forbidden by the Church from requiring your children to do unnecessary work on a Sunday, so you would break the fourth (and, of course, the third) commandment yourself if you did so. That would be bad example, a violation of the fifth. Also, rashly judging your children as being lazy for wanting to obey their obligation (and right) to Sunday rest, and telling them to ‘get of their butts’, would be a provocation to anger, another sin against the fifth commandment.

Please consider that you may be wrong about this. It all depends on whether the law means something, or practically nothing at all.