What can I do on Sundays?

[wonderkid1]

I usually do more weight training or lifting than I do cardio/aerobic excercises. I have found that that is what works best for me to stay in shape. I am not a bodybuilder by any means but I am someone who is not novice either (meaning I am somewhat muscular but not over the top) and try to take care of myself. Is weight training a sin if done on Sundays?

On the same note, if I am asked by a co-worker to fill in for him/her on a Sunday (which I am in a health-related field/business) is this a sin? Even if it is a family emergancy and would not prefer to do it otherwise?

 

[Michelle_Arnold]

One of the most common questions we receive in the Ask an Apologist queue is some variant of “What can I do on Sundays?” and I think it may stem from the post-Puritan culture of our country, in which the founding colonists often believed that they must sit motionless from sundown Saturday to sundown Sunday and that even breathing heavily may be too much work.

I’m speaking here with tongue in cheek, and I do not mean to belittle your question. I would like to try to make the point though that devout American Catholics should quit scrupling over whether each and every activity in which they engage “breaks the Sabbath.”

First of all, Catholics don’t observe the Sabbath, either on Saturday or Sunday. Sunday is the Lord’s Day and is distinct from the Jewish Sabbath (CCC 2175). That means that Catholics also do not observe the mandated restrictions on their activities observed under the Old Covenant. All that the Church requires of Catholics for honoring Sunday is this:

On Sundays and other holy days of obligation, the faithful are to refrain from engaging in work or activities that hinder the worship owed to God, the joy proper to the Lord’s Day, the performance of the works of mercy, and the appropriate relaxation of mind and body. Family needs or important social service can legitimately excuse from the obligation of Sunday rest. The faithful should see to it that legitimate excuses do not lead to habits prejudicial to religion, family life, and health. The charity of truth seeks holy leisure – the necessity of charity accepts just work (CCC 2185, emphasis added).

I usually do more weight training or lifting than I do cardio/aerobic excercises. I have found that that is what works best for me to stay in shape. I am not a bodybuilder by any means but I am someone who is not novice either (meaning I am somewhat muscular but not over the top) and try to take care of myself. Is weight training a sin if done on Sundays?

No. See the Catechism paragraph above in which the Church allows for activity that promotes health and provides appropriate recreation.

wonderkid1:

On the same note, if I am asked by a co-worker to fill in for him/her on a Sunday (which I am in a health-related field/business) is this a sin? Even if it is a family emergancy and would not prefer to do it otherwise?

No. See the Catechism paragraph above in which the Church allows for the performance of important social service and the works of mercy.

Recommended reading:

Do Catholics observe the Sabbath?
Dies Domini by John Paul II