Making New Year’s Day a Holyday of Worship

Submitted by LocutusOP on Tue, 01/02/2018 - 22:05
Author: 

Phoebe Coombey ,AvatarProlifedem6M, Besstercera, drPC , AvatarDarian Diachok, strickerm , Glenn M. Ricketts,Avatargilgarza ,  AvatarTimothy J. Williams , samton909,

AvatarGinnyfree ,AvatarLori Mahoney , drjohnmgrondelski, poetcomic1 , Chris Whittle ,AvatarMag. Theol. ,  7cathy17 ,  JasperBuck , Anthony Cangemi,  FrankW , Cypressclimber , Robin Warchol ,
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Deplorable S E Delenda ,  Anthony Cangemi          

    

Date: 
Tuesday, January 2, 2018 - 22:00
Article link: 
Making New Year’s Day a Holyday of Worship

 

 
    • Avatar
      Phoebe Coombey • a day ago

      Let's just return to the time when life in the Catholic Church was not all that complicated: one was obliged to attend Mass on ALL Sundays and Holydays; servile work on Sundays and Holydays was forbidden; you fasted from midnight before receiving Communion; there were no Saturday Vigil Masses; you didn't eat meat on Fridays; marriage was until death; adultery was a sin; divorce and remarriage was a sin that removed you from communion with the Church so it made sense that a person doing so could not receive communion; and, lastly, bishops were bishops.

      We've become a Church that spends far too much time over-thinking about things. The Catholic Church used to be (wrongly) accused of being a religion with too many rules. We have now become a religion with too few rules but with a VERY long list of of complicated exceptions to those very few rules.

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      Prolifedem6M Phoebe Coombey • a day ago

      All these identified and set us apart as Catholics. They made non-Catholics wonder why was this so special for Catholics and brought many questions about our faith that sometimes led them to faith. None of the common practices were so difficult that we couldn't fit them in while going about our daily lives.
      My sense is that the relaxation of these practices (emphasis on assistance at Mass on Sundays and Holy Days of Obligation, fasting from midnight for Communion, abstinence on Fridays and fasting during Lent) has far more to do with the fall-off of faithful than does the switch to Mass in the Vernacular. There is something about disciplining oneself to live up to the faith that reinforces the faith.
      It may also have to do with cradle Catholics in particular no longe taking marriage until death, adultery as a sin, divorce and remarriage as sinful, and the sacredness of the Eucharist seriously as we once did.

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    Besstercera Phoebe Coombey • a day ago

    ...A church that spends far too much time and energy capitulating to 'the world'. Exponentially more difficult to be 'in the world, not of it' when even the parish around the corner is 'of the world'.

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    drPC Phoebe Coombey • a day ago

    absolutely correct, and the result of the diminishment of obligations is the severe decline in attendance and the dimunition of faithful praxis

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      Darian Diachok drPC • a day ago

      Exactly. One of the definitions of freedom is not an ABSENCE of rules, but rather a mutual acceptance of clearly-defined rules. Think of music without signature keys and set rhythms. Think of driving without rights of way and traffic signals. Think of dating. Think of sports. Think of serving God, who gave us not only the Commandments but also the Sermon on the Mount.

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    strickerm Phoebe Coombey • a day ago

    Oh, you must mean pre VII... somewhere around 1957 is probably ideal.

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    Glenn M. Ricketts Phoebe Coombey • 5 hours ago

    I'd do it in a heartbeat. Unfortunately, we can probably expect the bishops to continue seeking additional loopholes or deletions and give slackers a break on anything that remains.

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    gilgarza • a day ago

    Great article.

    You highlight the absolute mess that the current ordo has left us with transferring holidays, dispensing of them altogether and the mind blowing proposition that going to Mass on Sunday isn't really going to Mass on Sunday, as we have this year which leads many to go to Mass twice on Sunday, which makes no sense at all.

    This mess was entirely created by a lack of preparation and thought put into the shoddy reforms.

    These problems simply didn't exist prior to 1970.

    The result of this mess is the clear understanding by the faithful that the cycle of the liturgical year is entirely capricious. The Bishops are undermining their own efforts by the senseless tinkering with a calendar.

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    Timothy J. Williams • a day ago

    Well, if only the laity – during this great age of "lay participation" – had ever been consulted, not only the feast days but the Mass would never have been changed. This is an excellent article, but I would not expect the secularization of the Church to be arrested any time soon. Before orthopraxis is restored, we are more likely to see "World Unity Day" or "World Religions Day" as obligatory feasts.

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    Ginnyfree Timothy J. Williams • a day ago

    World Religions Day! LOLOLOLOLOL Only they won't be joking. Please don't even suggest this to Pope Francis. He might off-the-cuff suggest it and all heck will break out. God bless. Ginnyfree.

 

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    Lori Mahoney • a day ago

    I just got home from Mass and it was no hardship.

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      Prolifedem6M Lori Mahoney • a day ago

      Thee was only one Mass in the three parishes of our town and that was at 8 AM. The comments of the author apply. Great for earlybirds, not so great for everyone else.

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drjohnmgrondelski Prolifedem6M • a day ago

Yep. In my town, Mass was at 6:30 and 8:30 AM (a town that sponsors a civil Watch Night with a Midnight ringing in of the New Year at midnight on main street). The next nearest parish had one Mass at 10 AM.

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    poetcomic1 • a day ago

    I may be an idiot but 40 days after Easter is forty days after Easter and 4 P.M. on a Saturday afternoon is NOT Sunday it is Saturday and if the local Bishop tells me Saturday is Sunday and grandma with a fake beard is grandpa I am going to have a 'crisis of faith' indeed.

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    Mag. Theol. poetcomic1 • a day ago

    Yeah, this pushing around of feast days is disgusting. It doesn't even make sense. But any feast that falls on a weekday may be celebrated on the following Sunday.

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    7cathy17 • a day ago

    In December 2015 as I picked up bullitens here in my new home town I discovered that January 1 2016 which fell on a Friday was not going to be celebrated as a Holy Day of obligation.I sent an email to Divine Worship ,Fr Andrew Menke responded and suggested that I contact my Bishop for clarification,for January 1 is a Holy Day.As I researched I found that this diocese Las Vegas falls under the Umbrella shall we say of California,which for some reason is overseen by Bishop Cordolone in San Francisco.Further research showed that California claimed it was hardship so therefore ,there was no obligation.Many parishes still had masses as they would for a Holy Day and it was Lovely and there was good attendance.So the Bishops can do what they want ,but those who understand the significance of today The Mother of God will come.

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      strickerm 7cathy17 • a day ago

      I don't understand the, "hardship", as it's a secular holiday anyway so most people aren't working and should be able to get to Mass.

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    JasperBuck • a day ago

    The author got his PhD at Fordham (another Jesuit University) and writes an article like this? I'm shocked. Fordham hasn't been a Catholic school for as long as I can remember... Great article. Thank you.

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      Anthony Cangemi JasperBuck • a day ago

      A bit off topic but I cannot abide what has happened to formerly Catholic colleges in the US. I was Jesuit educated in the '50's and '60's and I cannot recognize ANY truly Catholic influence in education today. Yes, I know, I am an old-line Catholic fool who is just not "with it". Actually, I am proud of every word in that accusation.

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FrankW • a day ago

Totally agree with the author's point. Our parish scheduled one mass today, which was sparsely attended. There is no reason to exclude this day as a Holy Day of Obligation because of the day of the week on which it falls. Parishes need to take the faith seriously if they want parishioners to do the same.

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Cypressclimber • 4 hours ago

Part of the argument for mitigating the obligation to attend Mass on certain holydays was that, not being civil holidays, it was a hardship to ask Catholics to go to work and Mass.

I take your word for it that this argument was made. That said, however, it doesn't make sense. After all, people tend to work on Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday and Friday, too; but the obligation to attend Mass is not suspended those days. Saturday, however, is a day many fewer people work; yet the obligation is suspended on that day. So the rationale of the obligation conflicting with work obligations doesn't make sense.

On the other hand, another rationale does make sense -- which you didn't mention. Namely, the difficulties faced by priests when they have a full schedule of Masses for Saturday evening and Sunday, and then added to that is a full schedule for a Holy Day. When the Holy Day falls Tuesday to Friday, the priest gets at least a little respite between the Holy Day and Sunday. But when the Holy Day falls on Saturday or Monday, it's indeed a burden.

So I think this points to the true rationale: the obligation was lifted, not because of a hardship for the laity, but for priests. And when you have priests responsible for two, three and even four parishes, this is a genuine concern.

That doesn't mean I agree with the adaptation. My solution would rather be, keep the obligation, but inform the faithful that where a parish doesn't have enough priests, there won't be as many Masses as they might like. And if they cannot get to Mass because of not enough options, they are dispensed.

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Robin Warchol • a day ago

Great article. It seems when requirements are relaxed in order to be accommodating, the result is that people will either drift away or go to a Church or religion that will challenge them. Unfortunately, the Church has become too accommodating and not challenging enough. However, even though not "officially" a required Mass, I was surprised to see a pretty well attended Mass with many going to Church despite the cold. The down side was my 15 year old daughter was the only young person/child there outside of the altar servers. One wonders about the future if families with children don't make the effort when it's not "required"?

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Deplorable S E Delenda • a day ago

Maybe we can add Earth day to the liturgical calendar.

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Anthony Cangemi • a day ago

What ever happened to "One, Holy, Catholic and Apostolic"? It is still said at Mass in my parish but apparently disregarded in reality.

 

Own comment: 

The idea of celebrating feast days which fall on weekdays, and apparently even on Saturdays, to the Sunday has been nothing short of disaster. It wreaks of a hierarchy which does not take the faith seriously, as indeed one must conclude it doesn't.

The commenter Cypressclimber makes a good point, but I do not agree with his whole comment so I only quote the parts with which I agree:

Part of the argument for mitigating the obligation to attend Mass on certain holydays was that, not being civil holidays, it was a hardship to ask Catholics to go to work and Mass.

I take your word for it that this argument was made. That said, however, it doesn't make sense. After all, people tend to work on Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday and Friday, too; but the obligation to attend Mass is not suspended those days. Saturday, however, is a day many fewer people work; yet the obligation is suspended on that day. So the rationale of the obligation conflicting with work obligations doesn't make sense.

 

The part I don't agree with is when he says that it makes sense when one considers that they are doing it for the priests, who are now over-burdened by being spread out over many parishes. That would make sense if the change was instituted today, but the  changes were instituted a long time ago, when there was not exactly a dire shortage of priests.