Sunday Mass celebrated on a weekday?

[champ07]

Greetings all,

I’m really needing some help from any knowledgeable liturgists. I’ve contacted the diocesan vicar general about this, and he says there’s no problem.

My parish celebrates a hispanic Mass on Monday evenings. It’s identical to the previous Sunday’s Mass. I’m aware of situations where an area might celebrate the Sunday Mass on a different day due to a great impediment, but why not have Sunday Mass on either Saturday evening or Sunday?

In the same way, we have a young adult Mass on Thursdays where, again, the priest celebrates the Mass as if it’s the upcoming Sunday. At this Mass, young adults give reflections after each reading. The vicar general said that as long as the priest gives a homily, this isn’t a problem. The problem is that my conscience is bothering me about it. Part of me says to keep going to the young adult Mass since I’ve met great people there, but the other part isn’t sure . Anyone have any suggestions?

 

[Marauder]

It all depends on why the Mass is being celebrated. Priests may celebrate special Masses using different readings from those specified for the day. This typically happens on local feast days, wedding Masses, special Masses and things like that. So giving a Mass using valid readings at a different time from the parish Daily Mass isn’t a problem.

The problem comes in if people think this Monday Mass can be subsituted for their Sunday obligation. A person is still supposed to go to Mass sometime between Saturday evening and Sunday night, unless they are validly excused. Going to this Monday Mass does not substitute for that.

If the purpose of this Mass is because they have a lot of Spanish speaking members in the parish and are unable to have a Spanish Mass on the weekend, but they can during the week and they feel it is good to “replay” the Mass on Monday so people can understand it. Then as long as they have permission of the Bishop it is fine. But the people attending Mass on Monday are still under obligation to fulfil their Sunday obligation at another Mass.

 

[Digitonomy]

Greetings all,

I’m really needing some help from any knowledgeable liturgists. I’ve contacted the diocesan vicar general about this, and he says there’s no problem.

My parish celebrates a hispanic Mass on Monday evenings. It’s identical to the previous Sunday’s Mass. I’m aware of situations where an area might celebrate the Sunday Mass on a different day due to a great impediment, but why not have Sunday Mass on either Saturday evening or Sunday?

In the case you mention, it may be that all Spanish-speaking priests are booked elsewhere on Saturday and Sunday. Still sounds a bit questionable to me, however, since the mass is available on Sunday, but not in a particular language - doesn’t sound like a just cause to transfer that community’s obligation to a weekday.

champ07:

At this Mass, young adults give reflections after each reading. The vicar general said that as long as the priest gives a homily, this isn’t a problem.

The GIRM provides for a commentator:

The commentator, who provides the faithful, when appropriate, with brief explanations and commentaries with the purpose of introducing them to the celebration and preparing them to understand it better. The commentator’s remarks must be meticulously prepared and clear though brief. In performing this function the commentator stands in an appropriate place facing the faithful, but not at the ambo.

It doesn’t envision the task being split between multiple people, but neither does it prohibit that. It does, however, instruct that the commentaries be brief - a rather subjective term, but a full-blown lay homily would obviously be excessive. And it implies that the explanations and commentaries occur prior to the parts of the mass discussed.

If you’ve found the young adult mass to be fulfilling, I would suggest you continue to attend. It’s a valid mass, and it’s an opportunity for fellowship with other Cathlolics. Your job is not to enforce the GIRM - the Church gives that role to others. If you feel the need to notify proper authorities about irregularities or abuses you notice, do so - and then leave it in their hands, and instead focus on the purpose of the mass, not the irregularities.

 

[TheMc]

Greetings all,

I’m really needing some help from any knowledgeable liturgists. I’ve contacted the diocesan vicar general about this, and he says there’s no problem.

My parish celebrates a hispanic Mass on Monday evenings. It’s identical to the previous Sunday’s Mass. I’m aware of situations where an area might celebrate the Sunday Mass on a different day due to a great impediment, but why not have Sunday Mass on either Saturday evening or Sunday?

In the same way, we have a young adult Mass on Thursdays where, again, the priest celebrates the Mass as if it’s the upcoming Sunday. At this Mass, young adults give reflections after each reading. The vicar general said that as long as the priest gives a homily, this isn’t a problem. The problem is that my conscience is bothering me about it. Part of me says to keep going to the young adult Mass since I’ve met great people there, but the other part isn’t sure . Anyone have any suggestions?

The reflections after the readings seem problematic (“if the books don’t say to do it, than don’t”), but what do you mean by “like a Sunday mass”? This is a bit unclear to me.

For example, at my parish’s Sunday mass, we have 12-15 servers, 6 candle bearers, incense, sprinkling rite, a choir with many “choir only” pieces (like at the offertory, and before mass) etc… we don’t celebrate weekday masses like this, but there would be no rule stopping us from celebrating weekday masses in the same way as Sunday (besides being very impratical), except for dropping the gloria, second reading, and creed.

Could you clarify what you mean by “celebrated like a Sunday mass”?

 

[Matthew_Holford]

Greetings all,

I’m really needing some help from any knowledgeable liturgists. I’ve contacted the diocesan vicar general about this, and he says there’s no problem.

My parish celebrates a hispanic Mass on Monday evenings. It’s identical to the previous Sunday’s Mass. I’m aware of situations where an area might celebrate the Sunday Mass on a different day due to a great impediment, but why not have Sunday Mass on either Saturday evening or Sunday?

In the same way, we have a young adult Mass on Thursdays where, again, the priest celebrates the Mass as if it’s the upcoming Sunday. At this Mass, young adults give reflections after each reading. The vicar general said that as long as the priest gives a homily, this isn’t a problem. The problem is that my conscience is bothering me about it. Part of me says to keep going to the young adult Mass since I’ve met great people there, but the other part isn’t sure . Anyone have any suggestions?

I am not sure what you mean by Sunday Mass. Do you mean the ceremonial with which it’s celebrated. Pre-Vatican II and in the EF there are three ways to celebrate Mass: Solemn, Cantata, or Low each with its own rubrics. Nowadays those distinctions don’t exist in the OF. There is no reason why Mass on a weekday evening couldn’t be celebrated will full solemnity with a deacon, full complement of ministers, incense, singing parts of the Mass, organ played, etc.

Alternatively you may mean he’s celebrating the Ordinary of the Mass as on a Sunday and therefore singing or saying the Goria and saying the Credo. On ferial weekdays these are normally omitted. He may give a homily because one may be given at any Mass.

Or, are you referring to the Propers. Ferial weekdays in Ordinary Time don’t have their own Propers so either the Propers of the preceding Sunday can be used or the Propers of any of the 34 Sundays in Ordinary Time. Ferial weekdays do have their own Readings and they ought to be used.

On your second point laypersons giving reflections on the readings is not permitted. It doesn’t make the Mass invalid but it is illicit, i.e. a liturgical abuse.

 

[thistle]

Greetings all,

I’m really needing some help from any knowledgeable liturgists. I’ve contacted the diocesan vicar general about this, and he says there’s no problem.

My parish celebrates a hispanic Mass on Monday evenings. It’s identical to the previous Sunday’s Mass. I’m aware of situations where an area might celebrate the Sunday Mass on a different day due to a great impediment, but why not have Sunday Mass on either Saturday evening or Sunday?

In the same way, we have a young adult Mass on Thursdays where, again, the priest celebrates the Mass as if it’s the upcoming Sunday. At this Mass, young adults give reflections after each reading. The vicar general said that as long as the priest gives a homily, this isn’t a problem. The problem is that my conscience is bothering me about it. Part of me says to keep going to the young adult Mass since I’ve met great people there, but the other part isn’t sure . Anyone have any suggestions?

The Sunday Mass obligation is not fulfilled by any weekday Mass. It is only fulfilled by attending Mass on a Sunday or a Saturday evening.

CCC 2180 The precept of the Church specifies the law of the Lord more precisely: “On Sundays and other holy days of obligation the faithful are bound to participate in the Mass.” “The precept of participating in the Mass is satisfied by assistance at a Mass which is celebrated anywhere in a Catholic rite either on the holy day or on the evening of the preceding day.”

 

[champ07]

One poster asked me to clarify what I meant by a Sunday Mass.

It means that on Thursday evening, the Mass is celebrated as if it’s the upcoming Sunday Mass. 2 readings/gospel from the coming Sunday’s liturgy, the creed, gloria, etc.

It’s strange…I don’t know any good reason to do so.

 

[Matthew_Holford]

One poster asked me to clarify what I meant by a Sunday Mass.

It means that on Thursday evening, the Mass is celebrated as if it’s the upcoming Sunday Mass. 2 readings/gospel from the coming Sunday’s liturgy, the creed, gloria, etc.

It’s strange…I don’t know any good reason to do so.

The only way I can see for you to get the answer is to ask the priest who celebrates this Mass. I cannot figure out why he does this.