There was something in our parish bulletin that said that because All Saints Day falls on a Monday, we are “dispensed from the obligation of attending Mass.” Is this so? And if so, why?
Code of Canon Law (CIC) authorizes each conference of bishops to abrogate or suppress the obligation to attend Mass on particular holy days: “With the prior approval of the Apostolic See… the conference of bishops can suppress some of the holy days of obligation or transfer them to a Sunday” (CIC 1246 §2).
In 1991 the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops decided that whenever All Saints Day, November 1, falls on a Saturday or a Monday, the obligation to attend Mass is abrogated.
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