Orthodox Sunday obligation?

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Greetings. I used to attend two Orthodox Churches north of town. One had services bi-weekly abnd the other once a month. I realize the situation is a little unique as there is only one priest to serve these two churches(and another on another Sunday), but in a more normal situation would the Orthodox have a Sunday obligation like Catholics do? Thanks in advance.

-Joe
 
Not quite, mainly because we view sin differently.

Sin is “missing the mark” - anything we do (or do not do) that does not help us on our road of Theosis.

Going to Liturgy helps us on our journey, so not going is a sin in that sense.

Is it something that needs to be confessed before one could receive Communion? That would depend on what your Spiritual Father says, who will take everything into account.

There is no declaration from The Church, however, saying that we have an “Obligation” to attend Liturgy on Sundays and Feasts. We don’t have the term “Holy Day of Obligation”.
 
josephback said:
Greetings. I used to attend two Orthodox Churches north of town. One had services bi-weekly abnd the other once a month. I realize the situation is a little unique as there is only one priest to serve these two churches(and another on another Sunday), but in a more normal situation would the Orthodox have a Sunday obligation like Catholics do? Thanks in advance.

-Joe
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Just to echo what my brother Joseph said (which was very well-stated) it is more understood in Orthodoxy that you will attend liturgy and the other services out of love for God and a desire to unite yourself to him. Now if you’d rather attend a baseball game than go to services, then there is a disconnect there and your heart is not in the right place. I have always taken the idea of an obligatory attendance to be like forced charity in a sense. If we are just showing up because we have to, then we may not be going for the right reasons. I do understand why the RCC has that discipline, I just disagree with the way it has gone about it.

In Christ,
Andrew

N.B. I am using “you” in a general sense. 🙂
 
I tend to find the idea of Sunday obligation as a bit - difficult. As everyone here has said, not going to Church on Sunday often means that one is not doing all one can to become closer to God.

OTOH, how serious that is really depends. Not attending one week might be quite out of character and have more to do with circumstances.

Or, there might be legitimate things pulling one somewhere else. If you have only the Sunday to visit with your non-Catholic familily who you only see yearly, and you get to church regularly every week, and will go mid-week instead - well honestly, I am not sure that it might not be better to see the relatives, that failing to do that might be messing up a real obligation.

Now, that is arguable - but my point is that whether not attending one week is a real example of putting a barrier between oneself and God could depend on many things.

It seems to me this is the attitude Orthodoxy seems to take as well.
 
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