Online shopping on sunday

[John_of_Woking]

Ok in a moment of absent mindedness I brought something online - forgetting it was Sunday. I don’t like Sunday shopping as a rule but It will only get processed Tomorrow in all likelihood. What’s peoples views on this? Is shopping online on a Sunday ever sinful?

 

[Adam1986]

It’s completely fine. You’re not supposed to work on a Sunday. You can shop and have fun though. Sunday is a day of rest and relaxation. And I know shopping is fun and relaxing. At least for me, it is.

 

[Whitacre_Girl]

Ok in a moment of absent mindedness I brought something online - forgetting it was Sunday. I don’t like Sunday shopping as a rule but It will only get processed Tomorrow in all likelihood. What’s peoples views on this? Is shopping online on a Sunday ever sinful?

As someone who has to work on sundays in order to make a living, there’s nothing wrong with it! People who have to work odd hours find time for a sabbath on another day while making sure that they are attending mass!

Besides, you are right, most online companies don’t process orders until the first business day of the week. At most, you made a computer processor work.

 

[svid]

Our priest works on Sundays! And you said you forgot it was Sunday. Was it a chore, like shopping for groceries or insurance, that could have waited til Monday? If not, don’t worry.

 

[jmcrae]

Ok in a moment of absent mindedness I brought something online - forgetting it was Sunday. I don’t like Sunday shopping as a rule but It will only get processed Tomorrow in all likelihood. What’s peoples views on this? Is shopping online on a Sunday ever sinful?

I don’t think so, since computers don’t need to rest on Sundays.

It is only the sort of shopping that forces other people to have to work on Sundays (thus making it difficult for them to attend Mass and spend time with their families) that is discouraged.

The human operator who fulfills your online order will do so most likely during normal business hours during the week - your on-line purchase does not inconvenience them or take them away from their families, or from Mass.

 

[EmeraldWings]

Ok in a moment of absent mindedness I brought something online - forgetting it was Sunday. I don’t like Sunday shopping as a rule but It will only get processed Tomorrow in all likelihood. What’s peoples views on this? Is shopping online on a Sunday ever sinful?

while shopping on Sundays is not aloud, i’ve been told by a very good priest i know, that online shopping is not the same, for one because of what you mentioned, that it would not be processed that day, and also because it is in no way laborious on your part,
and for everyone else, yes shopping on Sunday, even for fun, is a mortal sin, the church has always taught this, and you don’t have to go very far to verify its truth,
While Sunday is a day of rest, it is not only that, it is a day devoted to the holier things, the things of God, and even bodily exertion is aloud on Sunday when it is to help those in need, so it’s really not about what’s “fun” or “restful”, it’s about devoting your time to God, it’s Gods day, and while it’s fine to rest and recreate, that should not be the better part of your day, Sunday is not an excuse to be lazy or to waste your time, there is still alot of work to be done, but it’s just on a more spiritual level.
and of course Sunday is also good spent visiting family and being with your family, but the spiritual should be incorporated into that as well, such as saying the family rosary with your extended family if possible, or taking part in other religious devotions…

but for some really good advice and clear guidelines for keeping Sunday holy, listen to this short but very excellent sermon, and check out the rest to - audiosancto.org/sermon/20070729-Keeping-Sunday-Holy.html

alright, hope this helps, take care.

 

[Whitacre_Girl]

while shopping on Sundays is not aloud, i’ve been told by a very good priest i know, that online shopping is not the same, for one because of what you mentioned, that it would not be processed that day, and also because it is in no way laborious on your part,
and for everyone else, yes shopping on Sunday, even for fun, is a mortal sin, the church has always taught this, and you don’t have to go very far to verify its truth,
While Sunday is a day of rest, it is not only that, it is a day devoted to the holier things, the things of God, and even bodily exertion is aloud on Sunday when it is to help those in need, so it’s really not about what’s “fun” or “restful”, it’s about devoting your time to God, it’s Gods day, and while it’s fine to rest and recreate, that should not be the better part of your day, Sunday is not an excuse to be lazy or to waste your time, there is still alot of work to be done, but it’s just on a more spiritual level.
and of course Sunday is also good spent visiting family and being with your family, but the spiritual should be incorporated into that as well, such as saying the family rosary with your extended family if possible, or taking part in other religious devotions…

but for some really good advice and clear guidelines for keeping Sunday holy, listen to this short but very excellent sermon, and check out the rest to - audiosancto.org/sermon/20070729-Keeping-Sunday-Holy.html

alright, hope this helps, take care.

A sin is not mortal in and of itself - the action of the person is what makes it so. I HATE seeing this misused time and again. Just thought I’d add this for people lurking this thread.

 

[EmeraldWings]

A sin is not mortal in and of itself - the action of the person is what makes it so. I HATE seeing this misused time and again. Just thought I’d add this for people lurking this thread.

did i say it was? sorry if it sounded that way, but that’s not what i said,
but the church does teach that shopping on Sundays is a mortal sin, with the exception of what is necessary, such as medication or whatever else,

but the gist of what i was saying in my last post was, the church teaches that shopping on Sunday is a mortal sin, while there are exceptions, shopping on Sunday without necessity is just not aloud, because, according to the church, servile work is “occupation primarily preformed by corporal powers and for material purposes”
and what we are told specifically about shopping is “Commercial occupations are forbidden - forbidden in themselves are such activities as marketing, buying and selling, public auctions, shopping in stores. etc.
Local customs, however, justify some of these actions.”

i could be more specific, but knowing that actions in and of themselves are not what makes a sin mortal, is something you learn apart from learning about what is sinful, so if someone misunderstands that, it’s not because i’m wrong, but because they are ignorant.
of course i understand that alot of people just don’t have the resources they need to educate themselves in the faith, but all the same, that doesn’t mean i have to explain in greater detail ever time i speak of mortal sin.

anyways, sorry if i misunderstood you at all, take care.

 

[newbie9]

did i say it was? sorry if it sounded that way, but that’s not what i said,
but the church does teach that shopping on Sundays is a mortal sin, with the exception of what is necessary, such as medication or whatever else,

but the gist of what i was saying in my last post was, the church teaches that shopping on Sunday is a mortal sin, while there are exceptions, shopping on Sunday without necessity is just not aloud, because, according to the church, servile work is “occupation primarily preformed by corporal powers and for material purposes”
and what we are told specifically about shopping is “Commercial occupations are forbidden - forbidden in themselves are such activities as marketing, buying and selling, public auctions, shopping in stores. etc.
Local customs, however, justify some of these actions.”

Ummmm…where does the Church teach this??? You speak it with such moral fact as if you are talking about murder (which is very rarely not a mortal sin). I have read things that discourage errands or shopping on Sunday, but even then I only really see them as being discouraged and possibly sinful. Kind of like how you’re encouraged to go to Mass on Ash Wednesday. I don’t think doing one (shopping) or not doing the other (going to Mass on Ash Wednesday) would be a mortal sin. Definitely not even a venial sin with Ash Wednesday and possibly not with shopping. Now if you intentionally choose shopping over Mass or over spending time with your family or other such activities without a valid reason of necessity then we have a different story.

 

[EmeraldWings]

Ummmm…where does the Church teach this??? You speak it with such moral fact as if you are talking about murder (which is very rarely not a mortal sin). I have read things that discourage errands or shopping on Sunday, but even then I only really see them as being discouraged and possibly sinful. Kind of like how you’re encouraged to go to Mass on Ash Wednesday. I don’t think doing one (shopping) or not doing the other (going to Mass on Ash Wednesday) would be a mortal sin. Definitely not even a venial sin with Ash Wednesday and possibly not with shopping. Now if you intentionally choose shopping over Mass or over spending time with your family or other such activities without a valid reason of necessity then we have a different story.

i’m not saying that shopping, like murder, is rarely *not *a mortal sin, but as we are told in the catechism, we are to avoid all *unnecessary *servile labor, so as i said previously, there are exceptions, but what i am referring to is what would be considered unnecessary.
“On Sundays and other holy days of obligation the faithful are bound . . . to abstain from those labors and business concerns which impede the worship to be rendered to God, the joy which is proper to the Lord’s Day, or the proper relaxation of mind and body” (CIC, can. 1247). "
what makes it a sin to shop on Sunday is not only the act of buying or selling of goods, but also the example you give to others, the importance(or lack thereof) of keeping the day holy and avoiding all unnecessary servile labor, and also the putting of unnecessary work on others,
while i’ll admit it’s hard finding any kind of list in the CCC of mortal sins, it is still easily found in other catechisms, or examination of conscience,
the distinction between what is necessary or not is not always easy, but some things are more easily distinguishable than others, such as “shopping for fun”, which is unnecessary work for both you and those you put the work on,
if someone has absolutely no other day to shop, then perhaps that is an exception, but it’s decisions such as those that we go to our priest for, because it is not a decision to be made or taken lightly.
i’m sorry if there is a misunderstanding here, but this is what i’ve always been taught or read, and most other Catholics i know have been taught the same thing, and i don’t know why the church doesn’t make things like this more clear, but i dunno, maybe they do and i just haven’t found it.
anyways, whether i am right or wrong, i will pray to God for better clearer answers regarding this, and i will research it more, because it does tend to come up often.
ok, take care.

 

[faithinyou_123]

yes it is…if you commit this act you will burn…

on-line shopping is committed only by and to:

1. God
2. Jesus
3. Superman

 

[Mike_tn]

would it be a sin to eat out then? like at restaurants etc?

I don’t think so. The service industry is unquestionably exempt. What if hospitals and gas stations closed, where would the sick go to or the traveling not go to? Or this; some people are in the habit of eating out all the time. God forbid they attempt to cook only to burn up in their polyester top on Sunday.

“On Sundays and other holy days of obligation the faithful are bound . . . to abstain from those labors and business concerns which impede the worship to be rendered to God, the joy which is proper to the Lord’s Day, or the proper relaxation of mind and body” (CIC, can. 1247). "

One has to decide for oneself if something done does impede.

Referring to this and other posts in the thread, I cannot imagine why online shopping is always acceptable but brick and mortar shopping always impedes worship, joy & relaxation. Sometimes I think the people in my church can be a hazard to me due to the formation of human attachments which I encounter much less at home alone or on my job or when out around town. So high tailing it to my car and maybe go to a fave store for an hour as soon as mass ends could be better on some Sundays than lingering afterward with Mrs. Jones who always sits near me during mass.

I’m single and live alone in a small apartment, and am maybe Fifty percent hermit by nature. And some Sundays after mass, and after the Divine Office, there is not enough coming to mind to “do” that is “picture book moral” to fill the rest of the day off. Most Sundays I’m fine. I may Photoshop and get on flickr. Or hang with a Catholic family that invites me over often. Or I go hiking with my camera. Lots of overtly good things on my list most Sundays.

But if I’m at a loss or in a certain mood, and maybe a hobby has me running to the store periodically, and it’s Sunday afternoon, it does not seem sinful to go to a store for part of the day, and I do not mean a grocery store. Such as shopping for DVDs or CD music at the used media store? Or there is a new camera store I’ve been wanting to wander and it’s close to my church and I rarely drive to that part of town, and it saves gas to stop in for a brief visit after church…even if I spend. If this is not a habit Sunday after Sunday it could be OK.

This is my opinion.

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(“I’m Fifty percent Collie! Fifty percent setter, Irish Setter! Fifty Percent Boxer! Fifty percent Doberman Pincher! Fifty percent pointer—there it is! There it is! There it is! But, mostly, I’m all Labrador Retriever!”)

 

[edwest2]

Stores used to be closed on Sundays. It’s a shame that most are still open. The only exceptions should be pharmacies and gas stations.

I avoid shopping online on Sundays.

Peace,
Ed

 

[Mike_tn]

Stores used to be closed on Sundays. It’s a shame that most are still open. The only exceptions should be pharmacies and gas stations.

I avoid shopping online on Sundays.

Maybe it is the hardness of my heart that I do not live exactly that way yet. I find it quite hard to conform to the time to start or stop some behavior when I ought to.

 

[Newbie2]

i’m not saying that shopping, like murder, is rarely *not *a mortal sin, but as we are told in the catechism, we are to avoid all *unnecessary *servile labor, so as i said previously, there are exceptions, but what i am referring to is what would be considered unnecessary.
"On Sundays and other holy days of obligation the faithful are bound . . . to abstain from those labors and business concerns which impede the worship to be rendered to God, the joy which is proper to the Lord’s Day, or the proper relaxation of mind and body" (CIC, can. 1247). "
what makes it a sin to shop on Sunday is not only the act of buying or selling of goods, but also the example you give to others, the importance(or lack thereof) of keeping the day holy and avoiding all unnecessary servile labor, and also the putting of unnecessary work on others,
while i’ll admit it’s hard finding any kind of list in the CCC of mortal sins, it is still easily found in other catechisms, or examination of conscience,
the distinction between what is necessary or not is not always easy, but some things are more easily distinguishable than others, such as “shopping for fun”, which is unnecessary work for both you and those you put the work on,
if someone has absolutely no other day to shop, then perhaps that is an exception, but it’s decisions such as those that we go to our priest for, because it is not a decision to be made or taken lightly.
i’m sorry if there is a misunderstanding here, but this is what i’ve always been taught or read, and most other Catholics i know have been taught the same thing, and i don’t know why the church doesn’t make things like this more clear, but i dunno, maybe they do and i just haven’t found it.
anyways, whether i am right or wrong, i will pray to God for better clearer answers regarding this, and i will research it more, because it does tend to come up often.
ok, take care.

If shopping “impede(s) the worship to be rendered to God” it is sinful; otherwise, it is not. Let’s not get carried away here. “Shopping for fun” is not work, by definition, and one cannot offhandedly say that the people working at the stores where one shops have their worship necessarily “impeded”.

 

[Newbie2]

but the church does teach that shopping on Sundays is a mortal sin, with the exception of what is necessary, such as medication or whatever else,

Nope. It would be correct to say that the Church teaches that shopping on Sundays*** could be ***a mortal sin.

 

[pnewton]

This thread reminds me of the Pharisees that confronted Jesus when his disciples plucked the heads of wheat. We do not live by Sabbatical Laws but by principles.

 

[Mike_tn]

If shopping “impede(s) the worship to be rendered to God” it is sinful; otherwise, it is not. Let’s not get carried away here. “Shopping for fun” is not work, by definition, and one cannot offhandedly say that the people working at the stores where one shops have their worship necessarily “impeded”.

I would agree with that after recently talking to my priest who said servile work is forbidden not necessarily all kinds of shopping. Certainly shopping at weekend “special events” is acceptable. But perhaps one does not go to many rodeos or fairs. Instead one may include special interest fun shopping sporadically during the year, in moderation of course. Seems the same as cultural festival weekend family fun places.

I’m not referring to the extremes next here, but I believe you can get many answers along this fuzzy zone depending on what priest you consult. To p(name removed by moderator)oint your action to take you will have to pray about it too.

 

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