Is The Sat. Vigil Mass Just Convenience To You?

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I like to go Sat. B/C it’s right after Penance and I can be almost sure that I’m receiving Eucharist with a clean soul.
 
Saturday Mass/service just feels better. It makes Saturday feel like a Sunday, Sunday feel like a Monday, and Monday feel like a Tuesday. Believe me, making Monday feel like anything other than a Monday is no mean feat.😃
 
One thought: Sunday Mass can become fully integrated into one’s life. Making it available on Saturday simply makes it easier to integrate the Sunday Mass obligation into one’s life.

Just as, if there is a Catholic church available, making daily Mass a part of one’s daily life… perhaps at lunch time… or getting to work early and going to Mass before work.
 
Al_Masetti said:
One thought: Sunday Mass can become fully integrated into one’s life. Making it available on Saturday simply makes it easier to integrate the Sunday Mass obligation into one’s life.

Just as, if there is a Catholic church available, making daily Mass a part of one’s daily life… perhaps at lunch time… or getting to work early and going to Mass before work.
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My parish has a Mass at 12 p.m. on Holy Days, so people who work the second shift are still able to go to Mass for the Holy Day. I think this particular “convenience” is great. There are many people who would be unable to attend Mass otherwise.
 
1ke said:
Well, let me clue you in on “why”.

Your original post was not worded as an information-seeking post. It started “I am not pleased…” THAT is not an informational statement, that is a judgmental statement. You personally are unpleased with relatives who choose to go to Saturday Mass out of convenience. THAT is why it struck a nerve.

You have no right to make such a judgment and be “displeased” with *anyone *because it’s none of your business. And, since the *Church *does not require any reason at all to choose that Mass over another so where do you get off making such a statement?
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Well said.
 
🙂 🙂
Al_Masetti said:
One thought: Sunday Mass can become fully integrated into one’s life. Making it available on Saturday simply makes it easier to integrate the Sunday Mass obligation into one’s life.

Just as, if there is a Catholic church available, making daily Mass a part of one’s daily life… perhaps at lunch time… or getting to work early and going to Mass before work./QU

There is no mass during my lunch hour and my hours vary so I can’t go before work. Have to make living. 🙂
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lak611 said:
My parish has a Mass at 12 p.m. on Holy Days, so people who work the second shift are still able to go to Mass for the Holy Day. I think this particular “convenience” is great. There are many people who would be unable to attend Mass otherwise.
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Sometimes one can detect different “attitudes” toward The Holy Sacrifice of the Mass by priests/pastors.

Some pastors coordinated their noon Masses, so that the starting times vary by about five minutes from one another, so that regardless of your exact lunch time hours, a Mass may be available.

Some pastors relocated their daily Masses from a chapel to the main church to accommodate the demand.

In areas with lots of nearby businesses, some churches have added extra mid-day Masses and some have added hours of confessions, as well.

One religious order rented a store front and “installed” their retired priests there and they say Masses and have “office hours” all day.

One retired priest got permission to say a 7pm daily Mass … because he loves ending the day that way.

Another pastor added a late Sunday Mass which everyone loves.

While not a Mass, another pastor added Perpetual Eucharistic Adoration … with fabulous parish support. Visitors from all over stop by for a visit at all hours. Everyone loves it.

Priest-friends have reported success whenever they added Masses or devotions.
 
I am wondering why it is the concern of the OP when people choose to attend Mass? The concept of the Saturday Vigil goes back to Jewish roots-- the Jewish Sabbath is from sundown on Friday to sundown on Saturday. That is why at Easter we have the stricter rule that the vigil Mass cannot begin before sundown.

The Church has said, in its ultimate wisdom, that we can fill our weekly obligation by attending any Sunday Mass or the vigil for the Sunday Mass. It certainly has the authority to do so, so where there is a Saturday Vigil available, people are free to attend it instead. That’s that.
 
Debra_C said:
I am wondering why it is the concern of the OP when people choose to attend Mass? The concept of the Saturday Vigil goes back to Jewish roots-- the Jewish Sabbath is from sundown on Friday to sundown on Saturday. That is why at Easter we have the stricter rule that the vigil Mass cannot begin before sundown.

The Church has said, in its ultimate wisdom, that we can fill our weekly obligation by attending any Sunday Mass or the vigil for the Sunday Mass. It certainly has the authority to do so, so where there is a Saturday Vigil available, people are free to attend it instead. That’s that.
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When I said this, I was accused of not looking to Catholic Tradition. 🤷 Still, nicely said.👍
 
Debra_C said:
That is why at Easter we have the stricter rule that the vigil Mass cannot begin before sundown.
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You said this, and then our friend from Chicago made a comment about referencing tradition accusations. This then brings to my mind a question…

For how long has attending the Easter Vigil counted as attending Easter? Is this concurrent with the rules about Sunday vigils in general, or does it go any older?
 
An old and conservative/traditional priest once admonished me to quit trying to be holier than the Church.
 
Pug said:
You said this, and then our friend from Chicago made a comment about referencing tradition accusations. This then brings to my mind a question…

For how long has attending the Easter Vigil counted as attending Easter? Is this concurrent with the rules about Sunday vigils in general, or does it go any older?
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I can’t answer that question. It is beyond my learning at this point. However, I was told that the Easter Vigil has always been of high importance in the Church as it is the Mass where new members are traditionally brought in, as I was almost 3 years ago. I should also add it was pointed out to me that the Easter Vigil Mass and the Easter Masses the following day, which may include a special sunrise Mass, are not the same and we were encouraged (though not required) to attend both. The same happens at Christmas where there is a different set of readings for the Vigil, the Midnight and the Christmas Day Masses.
 
Pug said:
You said this, and then our friend from Chicago made a comment about referencing tradition accusations. This then brings to my mind a question…

For how long has attending the Easter Vigil counted as attending Easter? Is this concurrent with the rules about Sunday vigils in general, or does it go any older?
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The Easter Vigil counting for Easter is older than the Saturday Evening Vigil Mass counting for Sunday. I have a 1962 Missal. It says this:
The Solemn Easter Vigil service, for which Pope Pius XII gave permission in 1951 and made obligatory in 1956 . . . The hour for beginning this solemn service should be selected so that the Mass of the Resurrection may begin about midnight; but the Bishop of the Diocese may judge it better for special reasons to begin earlier; nevertheless, this earlier start should preferably be later than twilight, and on no account before sunset.
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Al_Masetti said:
It was in private. Our discussion of what I was attempting to do was in confession. No one knew about it except me and God.
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something must be missing here because for example, prostrating yourself in private is perfectly acceptable and no priest should ever tell you to stop doing that because “you’re trying to be holier than the Church.” it doesn’t resist any Church teaching.

the Saturday vigil is something that is actually prescribed and shouldn’t be resisted.

so perhaps whatever it is that you suggested is in resistance to Church teaching…
 
Bibbit said:
But the misuse spoken of here is when somebody uses the Saturday Vigil as simply a way of not ruining the weekend. Surely that is not the Church’s intent for Saturday Vigil, or Sunday Mass.
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If by ruining the weekend you mean failing to keep Sunday holy how is that related to the Saturday mass? One could go to Sunday mass and also not keep the day holy. The problem is not attending Saturday mass.
Again, for the Church Sunday is not simply another part of the weekend, it is more (see quote in an earlier post). Now folks do also misuse Sunday Mass, but the point is that it is not unreasonable to say folks do it to a higher degree at the Saturday Vigil.
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Maybe or maybe not. In any case the Saturday mass is the not the problem. The problem lies within one’s own conscience.
We are saying that because the vigil can be more easily misused people should be made aware of its proper use and meaning, and the proper understanding of Sunday in general.
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I think I disagree the Saturday mass can be more misused. Again, the availablity of mass is not the cause of any problem. The problem is us.
 
johnnydigit said:
something must be missing here because for example, prostrating yourself in private is perfectly acceptable and no priest should ever tell you to stop doing that because “you’re trying to be holier than the Church.” it doesn’t resist any Church teaching.

the Saturday vigil is something that is actually prescribed and shouldn’t be resisted.

so perhaps whatever it is that you suggested is in resistance to Church teaching…
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Since you have no idea what the point of the discussion was (only the priest and me), and since I’m not going to tell you, then I don’t understand what the purpose of your remark was.
 
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