Mass day after wedding

[hg1976]

Here is my question… Even though I can not think of any good reason not to miss mass, is it a requirement or sin to miss mass the day after your wedding?

 

[puzzleannie]

don’t understand the question
every Catholic is obliged to attend Mass on all Sundays and Holy Days of obligation unless prevented by serious reasons (illness, necessary work, travel in an area where no Mass is offered etc).

it should be no great difficulty to plan your time accordingly. DD and her new husband spent their first night in a downtown hotel, walked to Mass at the Cathedral, and caught the hotel limo to the airport, because they planned it that way. why would this present a problem for anyone?

 

[Deacon_Ed]

Here is my question… Even though I can not think of any good reason not to miss mass, is it a requirement or sin to miss mass the day after your wedding?

Assuming the wedding was on Saturday then, yes, it is a requirement to attend Mass on the Sunday following the wedding. The only exception would be if the wedding took place at the Saturday vigil Mass and the Mass was that of Sunday (a very rare event, I’ve seen it happen once).

Deacon Ed

 

[homewardangel]

I vote for the Saturday vigil mass for a wedding. I don’t think too many churches offer them because of usual Saturday evening mass schedules. I had never even heard of one until last year when my cousin got married. It is a wonderful thing. Because then not only yourself - but everyone who attends your wedding has their Sunday mass obligation fulfilled. I didn’t have to worry about missing mass the next day - I had to travel to another state to attend the wedding.

Terry

 

[stbruno]

Rarely do people choose to celebrate their nuptial mass at a regularly scheduled mass because there are many parishioners who would not be invited, attending…and it causes distraction.

But if the parish even has provision for it, the scheduled Sunday readings are used…not special readings usually used for a typical wedding mass.

Not only that, the homily will not be geared toward the newlyweds as well.

So yes, the newly married couple like everyone who attends their wedding, must attend a regularly Sunday mass as well.

 

[Digitonomy]

Having a wedding in no way relieves you of your holy day (including Sunday) obligation to attend mass on the holy day or the evening before. Now, if your wedding includes a mass, and takes place on a holy day or the evening before, then it fulfills your canon law obligation for that day.

It would be quite fitting to have the wedding at a regular mass for the parish, or to attend a regular mass the night of the wedding or the next day, as you are part of the Church community, and the ties between family and parish are important (for this reason, it is normally a requirement that a wedding be held in a parish church). It would also be quite fitting for you to attend mass with the scriptures designated for that week and thus follow the liturgical calendar. However, notwithstanding what Deacon Ed and stbruno have implied, I do not think this is required, and I have certainly never seen an authoritative document to support it. Canon law seems to suggest exactly what I stated in the first paragraph.

 

[stbruno]

I have never known for a Catholic wedding i.e. in a church to be celebrated on a holyday like Christmas, All Saint’s day etc. I have known of secular weddings being held on any day of the year.

 

[benedictgal]

Assuming the wedding was on Saturday then, yes, it is a requirement to attend Mass on the Sunday following the wedding. The only exception would be if the wedding took place at the Saturday vigil Mass and the Mass was that of Sunday (a very rare event, I’ve seen it happen once).

Deacon Ed

Deacon Ed, this was a frequent practice at my Cathedral under its first rector. Any Nuptial Masses celebrated from the anticipated Sunday Vigil on had to have the Sunday Mass readings and a collection. Therefore, if the couple chose to get married from the vigil on, they had to use the Sunday readings and their ushers had to take up a collection.

It actually worked out pretty nicely and everyone got their Sunday obligation satisfied. Believe me, it was much better this way, considering the fact that our Cathedral used to have over 80 weddings a year, and many of them occured at the anticnipated Sunday Vigil Mass or later.

 

[1ke]

Deacon Ed, this was a frequent practice at my Cathedral under its first rector. Any Nuptial Masses celebrated from the anticipated Sunday Vigil on had to have the Sunday Mass readings and a collection. Therefore, if the couple chose to get married from the vigil on, they had to use the Sunday readings and their ushers had to take up a collection.

It actually worked out pretty nicely and everyone got their Sunday obligation satisfied. Believe me, it was much better this way, considering the fact that our Cathedral used to have over 80 weddings a year, and many of them occured at the anticnipated Sunday Vigil Mass or later.

Although that may have beenthe practice, it is not a canon law requirement.

 

[1ke]

Here is my question… Even though I can not think of any good reason not to miss mass, is it a requirement or sin to miss mass the day after your wedding?

It is a requirement to attend Mass on Sunday unless your pastor dispenses you from it. Many pastors do dispense from Mass for newlyweds if they have an early flight or some reason to ask for the dispensation.

Otherwise-- go to mass.

 

[benedictgal]

Although that may have beenthe practice, it is not a canon law requirement.

Although, you are right about that, during an FDLC conference I attended a few years ago, I brought this up to the point man on liturgy for the USCCB and he agreed with the rector’s decision. He chuckled about the collection and said that it wasn’t a bad idea.

 

[jmcrae]

Here is my question… Even though I can not think of any good reason not to miss mass, is it a requirement or sin to miss mass the day after your wedding?

I can think of no more fitting way to begin your married life than by going to Mass together on the first full day of your marriage.

 

[Phemie]

Deacon Ed, this was a frequent practice at my Cathedral under its first rector. Any Nuptial Masses celebrated from the anticipated Sunday Vigil on had to have the Sunday Mass readings and a collection. Therefore, if the couple chose to get married from the vigil on, they had to use the Sunday readings and their ushers had to take up a collection.

It actually worked out pretty nicely and everyone got their Sunday obligation satisfied. Believe me, it was much better this way, considering the fact that our Cathedral used to have over 80 weddings a year, and many of them occured at the anticnipated Sunday Vigil Mass or later.

I suspect that if the anticipated Sunday Mass were being celebrated then the opening prayer and prayer after communion would also be ‘of the day’ not just the readings.

Nuptial Masses, like Funeral Masses, cannot be celebrated on Sunday – at least in Canada, as per the CCCB. Weddings are also discouraged at Sunday Masses because the focus becomes the wedding rather than parish’s gathering to celebrate the Lord’s Day. It is recommended that any wedding taking place on Saturday take place well before the anticipated Mass.

One pastor I read about allowed a couple to wed on Sunday morning because they were faithful parishioners, were both involved in ministry in some fashion, didn’t have a “show wedding” and their wedding was treated the way a baptism would be when celebrated during Mass. IOW, for this bride it was the Lord’s Day and she just happened to be getting married rather than it being “HER DAY”.

 

[THurifer2]

One pastor I read about allowed a couple to wed on Sunday morning because they were faithful parishioners, were both involved in ministry in some fashion, didn’t have a “show wedding” and their wedding was treated the way a baptism would be when celebrated during Mass. IOW, for this bride it was the Lord’s Day and she just happened to be getting married rather than it being “HER DAY”.

If I am not mistaken it was not unheard of to have a nuptial mass during regular Mass times. Of course that was long before the BALONEY that happens nowadays.

 

[Phemie]

If I am not mistaken it was not unheard of to have a nuptial mass during regular Mass times. Of course that was long before the BALONEY that happens nowadays.

I found a letter from the USCCB re. 1998. It looks as though, in the US that year, Nuptial Masses were allowed on Sundays of Ordinary Time as long as they are not the regular parish Masses. They were forbidden during Sundays of Easter, Advent, Christmas & Lent. I would expect that the same rules apply each year.

usccb.org/liturgy/q&a/general/liturgycalendar.shtml

 

[Br.Rich_SFO]

Here is my question… Even though I can not think of any good reason not to miss mass, is it a requirement or sin to miss mass the day after your wedding?

If it’s a Sunday. You need to either attend Mass Saturday evening or Sunday morning or evening. So make sure it’s in your plans.