Sunday Obligation and Homestay

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JSSebastianoP

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First off I’m a high school student and a sort of “revert” to the faith, I never really left the Church but only this summer did I truly come back in to the fold.
This June I plan to go on a homestay experience to Japan. I will most likely not be staying with a Catholic family (I have some choice in who I stay with inside the program, but I have a particular friend that I will probably stay with).
Do I still have a Sunday obligation?
I could make a note that as a Catholic, I would like to attend Mass…

Thanks in advance.
 
This is the rough draft I have come up with for a paper I need to submit on special concerns:

For coming to Japan, since I have hosted {Japanese Student} in America, I would like to meet and stay with her family when I come to Sera Prefectural High School. …] As for special consierations and things I would like to do, I am a Catholic, and so if it is not too much of a problem, I would like to go to Sunday mass. That way I can see what it is like to be a Catholic in Japan. However, I am looking forward to the experience and program whatever it may be and I express my sincerest gratitude and thanks for the opportunity.

Is what I have written sound from a Catholic point of view? :confused:

Thanks again.
 
You should take up the Mass question with a priest before you leave the States. I lived in Japan for a year and was able to attend Mass at the Navy base where my husband was stationed at the time, you can get permission to go on a military base for Mass if there is one near you. I also attended Mass at a Marynoll Mission. It was in Japanese, but the Mass is the Mass. The Japanese are very gracious to their guests, and I’m sure they will find a Catholic Church for you.
 
Catholic1954 said:
You should take up the Mass question with a priest before you leave the States. I lived in Japan for a year and was able to attend Mass at the Navy base where my husband was stationed at the time, you can get permission to go on a military base for Mass if there is one near you. I also attended Mass at a Marynoll Mission. It was in Japanese, but the Mass is the Mass. The Japanese are very gracious to their guests, and I’m sure they will find a Catholic Church for you.
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Thanks - I definitely planned on talking to my priest anyways!
 
JSSebastianoP said:
This is the rough draft I have come up with for a paper I need to submit on special concerns:

For coming to Japan, since I have hosted {Japanese Student} in America, I would like to meet and stay with her family when I come to Sera Prefectural High School. …] As for special consierations and things I would like to do, I am a Catholic, and so if it is not too much of a problem, I would like to go to Sunday mass. That way I can see what it is like to be a Catholic in Japan. However, I am looking forward to the experience and program whatever it may be and I express my sincerest gratitude and thanks for the opportunity.

Is what I have written sound from a Catholic point of view? :confused:

Thanks again.
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That sounds good. I would reword it just a little bit. " . . . I am a Catholic, and would very much like to attend Sunday Mass weekly if at all possible, " You want to be considerate of your host family, but you also don’t want to give the impression that it’s just a whim, not a real need for you.

Completely incidentally, if you want to read a great Japanese novel exploring the history of Catholicism in Japan before you go, I highly recommend Shusaku Endo’s Silence.
 
Moscati said:
That sounds good. I would reword it just a little bit. " . . . I am a Catholic, and would very much like to attend Sunday Mass weekly if at all possible, " You want to be considerate of your host family, but you also don’t want to give the impression that it’s just a whim, not a real need for you.

Completely incidentally, if you want to read a great Japanese novel exploring the history of Catholicism in Japan before you go, I highly recommend Shusaku Endo’s Silence.
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I love it! But unfortunately it is too late - I just got back from handing it in 😦

And Silence is my favorite book!

Thank you!
 
I have lived in various parts of Japan for a total of over 4 1/2 years. While Catholics are rare there, each time I was fortunate enough to live in walking distance of a Catholic Church. Sometimes it was a long walk though! I have attended Japanese Mass frequently and some churches have a booklet with English, Japanese, and Latin so you can follow along.

As a side note, some Japanese Catholic women cover their head at Mass with a mantilla. They also dress up more for Mass than Americans.

I hope you enjoy your time in Japan. It is a wonderful country. Feel free to send me a PM if you have any questions. Do you know what part of the country you are staying in? If so, I can try to track down the nearest Catholic church.

Sincerely,

Maria1212
 
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