I converted to the Catholic Church last Easter and I still don’t really understand what I am allowed to do on Sunday.
Can I water plants to keep them from dying?
Can I wash my hair? (I don’t wash my hair every day - don’t absolutely have to do it on a Sunday)
Can I hand-wash an article of clothing if I spill something on it?
Can I cut my fingernails?
Can I knit for relaxation?
Do minor tidying around the house?
Cook dinner?
Etc, etc, etc. Basically I have been trying to avoid everything, and it’s amazing how stressful and exhausting it is trying to do nothing for a day.
The idea behind keeping holy the Lords day, is not in resting or relaxing, Sunday is not meant as a good excuse to be lazy all day, if anyone thinks this way, they are missing the point, and then likewise, as you’ve described, stressing yourself out all day worrying about what you can and can’t do on Sunday, is also missing the point,
servile work is the work we are forbidden from on Sunday, but there is another kind of work to be done on Sunday, and that is, works of piety, which is the honor and reverence we owe to God,
now of course we must give God honor and praise every day and even at all times(which we do by keeping His commandments and living in imitation of Him.), but in a particular way we must give God honor and praise on Sunday,
the works of piety we are called to do particularly on Sunday, are things such as praying, reading religious books, receiving the sacraments, occupying yourself with works of mercy(the spiritual and corporal works of mercy especially), and if possible, attending other catholic services, such as various kinds of devotions(like Adoration or vespers) or going to some catholic religious instructions…and then most important of all is going to mass.
and of course you are free to rest on Sunday, as long as you don’t make it the majority of your day, because anything done in excess is not good, and also because it’s Gods day not yours,
the point of keeping holy the sabbath, is to serve God and to increase in sanctity,
it is a day of service to the spiritual and holy things, we are supposed to regard our spiritual needs as being more important than our bodily needs, and likewise to regard the things of God and our souls above anything of this world,
we keep from bodily labor, then, as a sign that we serve God and love Him above all else,
the things we are told to keep from doing on Sunday are, in general, things that are done for worldly gain, or any physical labor that is not necessary,
things that are aloud because of their necessity, are things such as cooking, washing dishes, making your bed, etc.
and then things that are preformed by the mind are aloud on Sunday, such as studying, writing, playing musical instruments, teaching…etc.
but even those things must be done in moderation, and anything done on Sunday which interferes with your duties to God can be a sin,
the recreation we do take on Sunday should be looked at as a break from the day, not the week, meaning, we should not sum up all our breaks from the whole week and put them into Sunday as one big break…
and it seems that most Catholics really do not consider the commandment to keep Sunday holy to be as strict as it really is, when in truth, what you consider scrupulous questions are actually legitimate questions,
the questions you asked are actually good to ask and should be answered with all seriousness.
but instead of stressing yourself trying to do nothing all day, you should instead fill the day with pious works(as i’ve already said) because being idle all day is also bad,
but all the same, don’t worry like that, be patient and calm and just seek the answers to your questions.
well, if you want your questions answers more specifically, you should present them to your priest,
and if you want to know alot more on how to keep Sunday holy, and what you can and can’t do, listen to these very excellent sermons, which explain it much better than me -
audiosancto.org/sermon/20070729-Keeping-Sunday-Holy.html
audiosancto.org/sermon/20050814-The-3rd-Commandment-Grace-of-Divine-Love-and-Final-Perseverance.html
and then check out the other wonderful sermons on that site.
ok, hope this helps, take care.
Relax.