Mass Dispensation Question

[fermat]

I will be traveling with the family for the 4th of July. We will be in a little town in rural California and the nearest parish is over an hour away. Is this something that I would need to seek a dispensation for, or is this situation pre-covered in canon law?

Thanks!

 

[FrDavid96]

I will be traveling with the family for the 4th of July. We will be in a little town in rural California and the nearest parish is over an hour away. Is this something that I would need to seek a dispensation for, or is this situation pre-covered in canon law?

Thanks!

That depends. If it’s a situation where it is truly impossible for you to get to Mass, the obligation is not there. What constitutes “impossible?” No one here can really answer that, but I can say that to put it into perspective, if you’re already travelling, one hour isn’t all that long to make it “impossible” to get to Mass–many people travel an hour or more every Sunday to get to Mass. There might be a reason why it’s impossible in your case–I don’t know, but since you did ask…If it would be appropriate, your own pastor can dispense you from the Sunday obligation (c 1245).

 

[musicality]

I will be traveling with the family for the 4th of July. We will be in a little town in rural California and the nearest parish is over an hour away. Is this something that I would need to seek a dispensation for, or is this situation pre-covered in canon law?

Thanks!

Can you go to a vigil Mass on Saturday?

 

[corsair]

Heck, we travel 2 1/2 hours each way tp Mass on at least two weekends a month. and an hour and a half the other two weekends. So it can be done. Also, the poster who suggested a Saturday Mass. This is acceptable for your Sunday obligation.

 

[OraLabora]

Heck, we travel 2 1/2 hours each way tp Mass on at least two weekends a month. and an hour and a half the other two weekends. So it can be done. Also, the poster who suggested a Saturday Mass. This is acceptable for your Sunday obligation.

Well “it can be done” doesn’t make it obligatory for someone else to match this level of dedication. That’s a lot of travel. I assume you drive. I would have busted the mileage limit on my car lease a long time ago if I had to drive that far for Mass. I don’t think it’s reasonable to expect the same level of effort from everyone.

You have to put things in the context of the person’s means, availability of transport, etc.

In the case of the OP, only he can determine the impact of 3 hours total time to attend Mass. For example if s/he is traveling with small children, that may make the trek very difficult and tiring for everyone. Also, if it is a 1-day trip as the OP suggests, taking 3 hours out of that day may make the entire trip pointless.

 

[fermat]

God is good.

The trip in question (which we just returned from) involved a five-hour car ride each way with my wife and four kids. Had we made the drive to the nearest church listed on Masstimes.org, we would have missed most of the celebrations. We could have caught dinner and fireworks, but that would have been essentially it.

I was not able to find time during the week to visit my pastor and request a dispensation, so when we left on Friday, I just put it all into Jesus’s hands to help us find a place to celebrate the Eucharist.

When we got into town, we asked the inn keepers if there was a Catholic church around, and wouldn’t you know it…

The church was about a mile out of town and it is called Our Lady of Prague. It fit about 30 people and the pastor is celebrating his 80th birthday today. The altar was in front a full-sized crucifix that showed Christ still alive. Behind the crucifix was a large window with the Sierras in background.

I often forget that even though the place changes, the celebration stays the same. I stood next to people I had never met and shared an hour of brotherly love. God is good.

 

[Moscati]

Oh, that’s wonderful!

 

[MarkThompson]

LOL, when I read the beginning of the update I read it as though it was the excursion to Mass that wound up being five hours each way, and I was waiting for a catalogue of all the calamities that had taken place!