Not able to attend Mass on Sundays

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Mrs_V

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Long ago my husband and I decided I would work weekends and take care of the kids/house during the week while he would work a traditional M-F job.

I work as an in home caretaker for a young adult on weekends. The hours are very long from early, early morning until late evening. Because of this I am never able to attend evening Sat services or Sun services at all. I do attend Mass during the week, often M-F. I check masstimes.org from time to time hoping for a later mass on either Sat or Sun but haven’t had any luck.

I was under the impression that since I am working in the medical field it was acceptable. But I have come across some threads here that are leading me to believe that I may be in error. I do attend the church of the person I care for with them on Sunday mornings, which is a non-denominational church. I am hoping for insight and resources. Thank you.
 
Hi there. Medical work is important and necessary on Sundays. If I were in your position, I’d speak with my pastor. It is too bad that there isn’t someone who could stay with the person you care for just so you could attend Mass- perhaps your pastor may know someone who could help?

God bless you. 🙂
 
I wouldn’t rely totally on masstimes.org. Are there any universities, seminaries, hospitals etc. in your area? There may be a priest who does a Mass for people in your exact situation, but it is so small it slips under the radar of the website.

My guess is your ok anyway, This is probably temporary only until the kids are older?
 
Mrs_V said:
But I have come across some threads here that are leading me to believe that I may be in error.
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You are under the pastoral care of your pastor, not posters on CAF. Talk to your pastor if you are troubled
 
Thank you for the quick and thoughtful replies. I thought of speaking to our pastor but, honestly am a quiet and shy person by nature in my daily life, so wanted to make sure this wasn’t a silly question in the first place. It will take a lot for me to call or stop him after a morning mass. Thank you again.
 
Mrs_V said:
Thank you for the quick and thoughtful replies. I thought of speaking to our pastor but, honestly am a quiet and shy person by nature in my daily life, so wanted to make sure this wasn’t a silly question in the first place. It will take a lot for me to call or stop him after a morning mass. Thank you again.
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It’s not a silly question at all. Talk to him and he will give you a good answer. 😉
 
Op you are fine. I also for different reasons cannot attend mass and I did not see my Parish Priest about this either.

You have tried conscientiously and your work means you cannot attend. “With good reason” is the phrase in th Catechism.

Please be at peace.
 
This is one of those situations that makes me love the 4th Beatitude so much.

Peace and All Good!
 
Mrs_V said:
Long ago my husband and I decided I would work weekends and take care of the kids/house during the week while he would work a traditional M-F job.

I work as an in home caretaker for a young adult on weekends. The hours are very long from early, early morning until late evening. Because of this I am never able to attend evening Sat services or Sun services at all. I do attend Mass during the week, often M-F. I check masstimes.org from time to time hoping for a later mass on either Sat or Sun but haven’t had any luck.

I was under the impression that since I am working in the medical field it was acceptable. But I have come across some threads here that are leading me to believe that I may be in error. I do attend the church of the person I care for with them on Sunday mornings, which is a non-denominational church. I am hoping for insight and resources. Thank you.
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just a random idea but would the person you care for be open to attending mass with you?

if not, talk to your pastor, this may well be a situation that warrants a dispensation.

it’s not a silly question, don’t worry. that’s his job, to care for souls at his parish
 
Here is the crux of the matter: We are commended by Christ to celebrate the liturgy, and the Church has always done this on weekends, either the Saturday vigil mass or the various Sunday masses. To knowingly and by plan choose to miss even a single mass is telling God that one prefers to ignore (or avoid) His command, and that work and monetary gain mean more than He does. Even though a person may not be trying to say this, that is the message that God receives.

It occurred to me that if you are a convert, you may still be thinking as if still in your former denomination - where missing a “service” is no big deal. Christ said that we love Him if we keep His commands. To rationalize mass attendance away does not alter the fact that it is objectively sinful.

You can change jobs. You can resign. Someone else may work the weekends. You can schedule some sort of arrangement to attend mass. Any number of creative things may be done to ensure that your love of God is expressed by your attending mass.

You are caring for this needy person out of love. This person did not create you, and will not judge you at the end of time. Consider how you can love and serve the One who did, and Who will.

All of which fairly demands that you speak with your Priest about this - sooner than later. The medical nature of your work “may” have a moderating influence. And, it may not, since another with your qualifications could accept the same work in your place.

You have made weekend work a habit. Consider making Jesus a habit.
 
Mrs_V said:
Long ago my husband and I decided I would work weekends and take care of the kids/house during the week while he would work a traditional M-F job.

I work as an in home caretaker for a young adult on weekends. The hours are very long from early, early morning until late evening. Because of this I am never able to attend evening Sat services or Sun services at all. I do attend Mass during the week, often M-F. I check masstimes.org from time to time hoping for a later mass on either Sat or Sun but haven’t had any luck.

I was under the impression that since I am working in the medical field it was acceptable. But I have come across some threads here that are leading me to believe that I may be in error. I do attend the church of the person I care for with them on Sunday mornings, which is a non-denominational church. I am hoping for insight and resources. Thank you.
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One of my pastoral duties, once upon a time, was to celebrate a Sunday evening Mass in the hospital chapel for those who otherwise would not attend Mass because of the length of the shifts.

Assuredly, as a medical worker working long shifts, you would be excused from the obligation because the nature of the work you provide is essential and needs to be provided. I have not met a brother priest who doesn’t understand that…because we are all, to some degree, involved in pastoral care to the sick. Plus, if we live long enough, we eventually find ourselves under care in or out of hospital and know that, 24 hours per day, people who need round the clock care must receive it…whether in hospital or elsewhere.

Of course, this is no less true for the round the clock need for firemen, policemen, and military as well as healthcare providers. Emergency responders must make sacrifices for the welfare of others.

If you are attending Mass during the week, it is a simple matter of asking your pastor to commute your obligation to a day during the week when you have no responsibility for a patient.

As 1ke said, this a matter to talk through with your pastor. Also, many dioceses now have a priest specifically designated as the bishop’s vicar for health care issues. As a diocesan official, he also could resolve the matter easily for you.

It is very unfortunate that one can encounter people on websites who have neither the education nor the office to provide advice…but do so anyway, while giving advice that is wrong. Beware of this phenomenon.

God bless you and your work.
 
po18guy –

I commend your zeal for attending Mass. But Don Ruggero is correct here.

Even though Mass is extremely important, the Church has always been extremely understanding of people in difficult circumstances or who are doing caregiving for long shifts.

For example, it used to be extremely common for women with children to get really long dispensations from attending Sunday Mass – often until the kids were four or five years old. Logistics are a bit easier in these days of good roads and automobiles, so this has become less common.

But these types of long dispensations are still common for people who have jobs on ocean freighters or in remote land locations, or who have nobody else to help them get to Mass, or who have any other serious obligation. (In the OP’s case, somebody has to care for this person on weekends.) Catholics can’t just shove all this vital long-term work onto atheists or Jews or Muslims. Some people have always had to work weird schedules to do “necessary work,” and they are Catholic too.

The same Church that goes to Mass on Sundays knowing every member of the congregation could or will be martyred, is the same Mother Church who permits her children to miss Mass for good reasons! The Church is strict and the Church is generous, just like Her Bridegroom Who gave her the power to bind and loose.

That said, we should pray for vocations and especially for more priests, so that Mass will become more available at weird times to people on weird schedules. 🙂
 
It applies to men, also.

If you work for the railroad or an airline and work weekends, then what do you do?

There was a story about an airline pilot, whose briefcase was filled with Mass schedules from every city he traveled to. Interesting thing: eventually he became a Catholic priest.

Seems to me that back in the day of the Baltimore Catechism, you would attend Mass on a weekday.
 
po18guy said:
Here is the crux of the matter: We are commended by Christ to celebrate the liturgy, and the Church has always done this on weekends, either the Saturday vigil mass or the various Sunday masses. To knowingly and by plan choose to miss even a single mass is telling God that one prefers to ignore (or avoid) His command, and that work and monetary gain mean more than He does. Even though a person may not be trying to say this, that is the message that God receives.

It occurred to me that if you are a convert, you may still be thinking as if still in your former denomination - where missing a “service” is no big deal. Christ said that we love Him if we keep His commands. To rationalize mass attendance away does not alter the fact that it is objectively sinful.

You can change jobs. You can resign. Someone else may work the weekends. You can schedule some sort of arrangement to attend mass. Any number of creative things may be done to ensure that your love of God is expressed by your attending mass.

You are caring for this needy person out of love. This person did not create you, and will not judge you at the end of time. Consider how you can love and serve the One who did, and Who will.

All of which fairly demands that you speak with your Priest about this - sooner than later. The medical nature of your work “may” have a moderating influence. And, it may not, since another with your qualifications could accept the same work in your place.

You have made weekend work a habit. Consider making Jesus a habit.
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You didn’t read her first few sentences, did you?
 
po18guy said:
Here is the crux of the matter: We are commended by Christ to celebrate the liturgy, and the Church has always done this on weekends, either the Saturday vigil mass or the various Sunday masses. To knowingly and by plan choose to miss even a single mass is telling God that one prefers to ignore (or avoid) His command, and that work and monetary gain mean more than He does. Even though a person may not be trying to say this, that is the message that God receives.

It occurred to me that if you are a convert, you may still be thinking as if still in your former denomination - where missing a “service” is no big deal. Christ said that we love Him if we keep His commands. To rationalize mass attendance away does not alter the fact that it is objectively sinful.

You can change jobs. You can resign. Someone else may work the weekends. You can schedule some sort of arrangement to attend mass. Any number of creative things may be done to ensure that your love of God is expressed by your attending mass.

You are caring for this needy person out of love. This person did not create you, and will not judge you at the end of time. Consider how you can love and serve the One who did, and Who will.

All of which fairly demands that you speak with your Priest about this - sooner than later. The medical nature of your work “may” have a moderating influence. And, it may not, since another with your qualifications could accept the same work in your place.

You have made weekend work a habit. Consider making Jesus a habit.
Click to expand...
forums.catholic-questions.org/showpost.php?p=14142229&postcount=12
 
Don_Ruggero said:
One of my pastoral duties, once upon a time, was to celebrate a Sunday evening Mass in the hospital chapel for those who otherwise would not attend Mass because of the length of the shifts.

Assuredly, as a medical worker working long shifts, you would be excused from the obligation because the nature of the work you provide is essential and needs to be provided. I have not met a brother priest who doesn’t understand that…because we are all, to some degree, involved in pastoral care to the sick. Plus, if we live long enough, we eventually find ourselves under care in or out of hospital and know that, 24 hours per day, people who need round the clock care must receive it…whether in hospital or elsewhere.

Of course, this is no less true for the round the clock need for firemen, policemen, and military as well as healthcare providers. Emergency responders must make sacrifices for the welfare of others.

**If you are attending Mass during the week, it is a simple matter of asking your pastor to commute your obligation to a day during the week when you have no responsibility for a patient.

As 1ke said, this a matter to talk through with your pastor. Also, many dioceses now have a priest specifically designated as the bishop’s vicar for health care issues. As a diocesan official, he also could resolve the matter easily for you.

It is very unfortunate that one can encounter people on websites who have neither the education nor the office to provide advice…but do so anyway, while giving advice that is wrong. Beware of this phenomenon.**

God bless you and your work.
Click to expand...
 
Thank you very much again. My mind has been eased quite a lot. I still haven’t spoken to my priest but will soon, probably by e-mail. Also, I’ve already been told that I’ll be off for Christmas day so I’m excited to go to Christmas mass on a Sunday. If you have the luxury of going to mass every Sunday with your family, treasure it!
 
Mrs_V said:
Thank you very much again. My mind has been eased quite a lot. I still haven’t spoken to my priest but will soon, probably by e-mail. Also, I’ve already been told that I’ll be off for Christmas day so I’m excited to go to Christmas mass on a Sunday. If you have the luxury of going to mass every Sunday with your family, treasure it!
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There you go then and Happy Christmas!
 
po18guy said:
You are caring for this needy person out of love. This person did not create you, and will not judge you at the end of time. Consider how you can love and serve the One who did, and Who will.
.
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For I was hungry and you gave me no food, I was thirsty and you gave me no drink, a stranger and you gave me no welcome, naked and you gave me no clothing, ill and in prison, and you did not care for me.’

Then they will answer and say, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or ill or in prison, and not minister to your needs?’

He will answer them, ‘Amen, I say to you, what you did not do for one of these least ones, you did not do for me.’
 
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