Is Fri. Jan 1 a HDO?

[Tantum_ergo]

Yes, Susan, you’re all set!

 

[Susan_Calvin]

OK cool thanks!

 

[tweetymom]

Except Honolulu.
Unless the USCCB is being imprecise in its wording – A possibility that I am all too willing (unfortunately) to allow.

tee

Except in Northern California. Bishop Sotosays it despensated.

 

[Tantum_ergo]

The diocese of Honolulu is a special case. While certain dioceses (including Sacramento and those of Northern California) have ‘dispensed’ the obligation (meaning that the day is still considered a holy day, and only the obligation is ‘abrogated or remitted’, Honolulu alone of all U.S. dioceses, because of an indult from the Holy See in 1992, established the Feast of the Immaculate Conception and Christmas as the **only Holy Days of Obligation to be observed in the state.
**

 

[tee_eff_em]

The diocese of Honolulu is a special case. While certain dioceses (including Sacramento and those of Northern California) have ‘dispensed’ the obligation (meaning that the day is still considered a holy day, and only the obligation is ‘abrogated or remitted’, Honolulu alone of all U.S. dioceses, because of an indult from the Holy See in 1992, established the Feast of the Immaculate Conception and Christmas as the **only Holy Days of Obligation to be observed in the state.
**

That is my understanding. That is why I said *Except Honolulu *to *all dioceses of the United States *(and did not mention noCal).

tee

 

[Tantum_ergo]

I know you did, tee, but another poster mentioned the No. Cal ‘dispensation’ (perhaps not having seen the earlier posts).

 

[SMHW]

Except in Northern California. Bishop Sotosays it despensated.

In the case of the diocese of Honolulu the Solemnity of Mary Mother of God is not a Holy Day of Obligation to begin with.

In the case of the dioceses of California and that of Reno (Provinces of Los Angeles and San Francisco) the solemnity is a Holy Day of Obligation for which each of the individual diocesan bishops grant an ongoing annual dispensation.

The distinction probably doesn’t mean much to the average Catholic (and in fact most dioceses and parishes in California put out misguided documentation saying the day is not a “Holy Day of Obligation”). But from logical, legal, philosophical, and mathematical points of view the situations in Hawaii and California are entirely different.

 

[Ignatius]

People need to understand that it is a Holy Day of Obligation in all the dioceses of the United States.

It is a Holy Day of Obligation in every diocese of California.

The bishop of a diocese can dispense from the obligation, but he cannot change the fact that the day itself is still a Holy Day of Obligation.

I sympathize with pnewton’s post–things that we see happening can often cause a lot of confusion (and I’ll leave it at that).

But the reason I keep making the point is that it is important for Catholics to understand that these days are still Holy Days of Obligation. The Solemnity of Mary, Mother of God, is just as important in other dioceses as it is in the dioceses of California (or anywhere else where a dispensation has been granted). Unfortunately, we as Catholics have become so accustomed to certain dispensations and other extra-ordinary relaxations of not only the Church’s laws, but in some cases matter of faith, that many have lost sight of their true value. The confusion we now have with regard to the HDOs is but one expression of how we have lost the value of so much of our faith in recent years.

It would be nice to have some UNITY in this so that every time I tell my college age son that there is a HDO coming up, he doesn’t come back and say, “no, our priest says we don’t have to go”. This is not very helpful in ongoing encouragement for him in the faith.

 

[Ignatius]

You could make a tradition to start your New Year’s Eve with the Vigil Mass and dinner.

I generally go to daily mass, see my previous post.

 

[5Loaves]

I went to the Vigil Mass tonight… does that count as fulfilling my obligation to attend on January 1st, the same as a Saturday vigil mass fulfills the Sunday obligation?

Sorry, slightly off topic… didn’t want to start a whole new thread though.

You can tell if the Holy Mass you went to tonight was Dec 31 or Jan 1 by which readings there were at that Mass. The 5:00pm Mass half a mile from my house was Jan 1 “Mass of Anticipation” (“The shepherds went in haste to Bethlehem and found Mary and Joseph, and the infant lying in the manger.”), and the 5:30pm Mass around the corner was Dec 31 (“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God…” One would expect the homily in a Latin Church addressed the Solemnity of the Blessed Virgin Mary, the Mother of God if it was a Mass of Anticipation for Jan. 1, satisfying the obligation.

 

[5Loaves]

Re Hawaii see page 6, #6 LITURGICAL CALENDAR 2009 FOR THE DIOCESES OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA.
Only Christmas and the Immaculate Conception… I do wonder what the background on that is…

 

[pnewton]

OOh that’s good! “Father, can I be dispensed from Mass on Friday? I’ll be sleeping.”
Response: “Sure, I’ll dispense the whole parish, then I can sleep-in myself on Friday morning!”

Why did I not think of that one myself before last week’s bulletin went to print?

Yes, of course I know what you mean. I just couldn’t resist that one.

It sounds strange to be sure. When I was younger, I might could have gone to Mass and forgone sleep. Now I find that if I do not manage my sleep well, I may not make it the next night at work and often fall ill. Let me put this in terms non-shift workers can understand. Say you had to work from 5 a.m. until 6 p.m. When you get home, you have to face a second day of this. Now before you turn in so you can wake up at four in the morning, you have to set your alarm to wake up and 1 a.m. to make your Mass obligation. That’s kinda what it is like.

The Catechism gives certain reasons to dispense with one’s obligation. I think it is best in any unusual case to discuss the matter with your priest. He can grant such a dispensation if he sees the need in matters not covered already in the Catechism. Besides have the knowledge that you are not committing sin, it instills a sense of the importance of our Mass oblilgation to take it seriously. Deliberately missing Mass, after all, can be a mortal sin.

 

[tee_eff_em]

You can tell if the Holy Mass you went to tonight was Dec 31 or Jan 1 by which readings there were at that Mass. The 5:00pm Mass half a mile from my house was Jan 1 “Mass of Anticipation” (“The shepherds went in haste to Bethlehem and found Mary and Joseph, and the infant lying in the manger.”), and the 5:30pm Mass around the corner was Dec 31 (“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God…”

NB In such case, assistance at either of those Masses would have fulfilled the obligation for today.

Happy New Year,
tee

 

[FrDavid96]

Re Hawaii see page 6, #6 LITURGICAL CALENDAR 2009 FOR THE DIOCESES OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA.
Only Christmas and the Immaculate Conception… I do wonder what the background on that is…

The reasoning behind the different calendar for Hawaii is because Hawaii actually does not follow the calendar for the United States. Because of their location, Hawaii (by special indult from the Holy See) follows the calendar established by the Conference of Bishops for the Pacific Islands, and “ignores” the calendar from the USCCB. It might sound odd at first for a US state not to follow the USCCB calendar, but given the location, it makes perfect sense.

 

[5Loaves]

Bless, Father

The reasoning behind the different calendar for Hawaii is because Hawaii actually does not follow the calendar for the United States. Because of their location, Hawaii (by special indult from the Holy See) follows the calendar established by the Conference of Bishops for the Pacific Islands, and “ignores” the calendar from the USCCB. It might sound odd at first for a US state not to follow the USCCB calendar, but given the location, it makes perfect sense.

I think my post was not clear. That doesn’t explain why their bishops has seen fit that they have only two days of obligation in the year, Christmas and the Immaculate Conception, apart from Sundays which I assume are still days of obligation there

 

[SMHW]

Bless, Father

I think my post was not clear. That doesn’t explain why their bishops has seen fit that they have only two days of obligation in the year, Christmas and the Immaculate Conception, apart from Sundays which I assume are still days of obligation there

Are you speaking about the bishops for the Conference of Bishops for the Pacific Islanders or just for the bishops of the Diocese of Honolulu? Hawaii’s location (as mentioned by Fr. David) and it’s cultural ties to other Pacific Islands is the reason why it follows that liturgical calendar rather than the USCCB calendar.

I mean we could ask why the United States conference chooses not to observe all ten possible Holy Days of Obligation.

 

[MatthewBerkeley]

It would be nice to have some UNITY in this

I completely agree.
This whole Holy Day of Obligation thing is confusing me. It seems like an awful lot of red tape. I’m living in Ireland and the first I heard of the first of January being a Holy Day was on EWTN yesterday. But there was no mention of it in my diocese at all. I went to Mass this morning anyway, at the same time as normal morning Mass and though we celebrated the Solemnity of Mary and the layout was that of a feast day (ie two readings and the creed included) there was no mention of Obligation.
So why is there this discrepancy between states? Surely if a feast is held to be important enough for one state, it should be no different for any other country?
Also I looked up the Holy Days of Obligation and one source calls the 1st Jan the feast of the Circumsion of Jesus instead of the Solemnity of Mary. Can someone please explain this?

 

[tee_eff_em]

So why is there this discrepancy between states? Surely if a feast is held to be important enough for one state, it should be no different for any other country?

The base list of holy days is enumerated in Canon Law (NB §2):

Can. 1246 §1. Sunday, on which by apostolic tradition the paschal mystery is celebrated, must be observed in the universal Church as the primordial holy day of obligation. The following days must also be observed: the Nativity of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Epiphany, the Ascension, the Body and Blood of Christ, Holy Mary the Mother of God, her Immaculate Conception, her Assumption, Saint Joseph, Saint Peter and Saint Paul the Apostles, and All Saints.
§2. With the prior approval of the Apostolic See, however, the conference of bishops can suppress some of the holy days of obligation or transfer them to a Sunday.

Also I looked up the Holy Days of Obligation and one source calls the 1st Jan the feast of the Circumsion of Jesus instead of the Solemnity of Mary. Can someone please explain this?

I believe that is according to the pre-1962 calendar. The obligation for the Solemnity of Mary, Mother of God on 1 January was legislated by Paul VI in 1974-ish.

tee

 

[SMHW]

I completely agree.
This whole Holy Day of Obligation thing is confusing me. It seems like an awful lot of red tape. I’m living in Ireland and the first I heard of the first of January being a Holy Day was on EWTN yesterday. But there was no mention of it in my diocese at all. I went to Mass this morning anyway, at the same time as normal morning Mass and though we celebrated the Solemnity of Mary and the layout was that of a feast day (ie two readings and the creed included) there was no mention of Obligation.
So why is there this discrepancy between states? Surely if a feast is held to be important enough for one state, it should be no different for any other country?
Also I looked up the Holy Days of Obligation and one source calls the 1st Jan the feast of the Circumsion of Jesus instead of the Solemnity of Mary. Can someone please explain this?

Well, there’s a LONG history of different countries having different Holy Days of Obligation. And in North America, many of our states/provinces are the size of nations in other parts of the world. The differences usually have to do with local patron saints and such. The Blessed Mother is the patroness of the United States and also of North America so we tend to place more emphasis on her feast days. We don’t celebrate the solemnities of Sts. Peter and Paul and St. Joseph as days of obligation. Nations that have those saints as patrons would likely celebrate those days as days of obligation.

I think what’s changed is that the internet (far more so than radio or television did) has exposed different parts of the world to liturgical rules and regulations that had long been locally binding. That, in and of itself, is a difficult idea for many Catholics to understand. This particular thread is specifically concerned with local differences within the United States. That gets even more confusing.

 

[FrDavid96]

I completely agree.
This whole Holy Day of Obligation thing is confusing me. It seems like an awful lot of red tape. I’m living in Ireland and the first I heard of the first of January being a Holy Day was on EWTN yesterday. But there was no mention of it in my diocese at all. I went to Mass this morning anyway, at the same time as normal morning Mass and though we celebrated the Solemnity of Mary and the layout was that of a feast day (ie two readings and the creed included) there was no mention of Obligation.
So why is there this discrepancy between states? Surely if a feast is held to be important enough for one state, it should be no different for any other country?
Also I looked up the Holy Days of Obligation and one source calls the 1st Jan the feast of the Circumsion of Jesus instead of the Solemnity of Mary. Can someone please explain this?

Even though canon law defines 10 “standard” Holy Days of Obligation, these have always varied from one country/region to another–that’s why each conference of bishops can change these days with prior approval of the Holy See.

Within the United States (yes, with the exception of Hawaii, which we all understand by now), all the states have the same HDO’s, so there aren’t any variations.

The older feast day is the Circumcision (Jan 1 is after all the 8th day after Christmas)–and in fact, that’s still the gospel for the Solemnity of Mary, even though it’s only the last few lines at the end. In the 1964 Missal, it was/still is the Circumcision.