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Always do the best you can. If weekday mass is what you can make, then that is what you do. Perhaps after mass one day in the weekday you can ask your priest whether there has been any interest to hold a Sunday evening mass for people who work during the day on Saturday and Sunday. I was in one parish that had mass Sunday night at 8:30pm and whenever I was out of town for the weekend or working I was able to make that.
@cvbee, thank you for your comment. I think it's worth asking the priest but I'm guessing there aren't enough people attending to add another mass. At least I could consult my situation with him :)
I agree with @cvbee - you should talk to your priest. If your specific church doesn't offer Sunday evening mass, he may know of somewhere else nearby that does. I'm not really sure about weekday mass fulfilling Sunday obligation, but I'm sure he help you with that part, too.
There are plenty of people who work on Sundays (or weekends) not to mention those who cant even go to church, I think that it would be more than okay for you to attend during the week.
If you feel uneasy about it - I agree, talk to your priest - Im sure he will calm your nerves!
Ask your local priest or look into Online mass or mass over Radio. In my area we have such a thing although I only know of it being broadcasted in spanish. There has to be something like this.
infact i just did a quick google search and found
http://www.catholic.org/prwire/headline.php?ID=5192
I would look deeper into this for you but I am on a work computer. \
I encourage you to do so.
you are seriously bound to attend Mass every Sunday to fulfil your Holy Obligation for the week. However, you should attend daily mass as often as possible. I have never heard of going to Mass on a Saturday fulfilling your Sunday obligation...but it may be different in your Parish. If you have an obligation such as work or taking care of a child--you are excused from attending mass on Sunday but should still try to attend all other holy days of obligations and daily mass as often as possible.
In my church, going to mass Saturday at 5pm fulfills Sunday obligation.
It's pretty common for Catholic churches to have Saturday evening mass (vigil), that does fulfill Sunday obligation. Weekday mass does not. However, some churches will have an evening Sunday mass. If your church isn't big enough, is there another church in your area, that is?
Also, sometimes churches will have a Sunday mass at 6:30 or 7am. Maybe you can do that?
That is interesting about the Saturday mass, since technically, sunday is considered to be the lords day when no servile works are to be preformed and our minds are supposed to be focused on prayer. But as I said, if you have a job that you cannot get out of it and it helps pay for a roof over your head and food on the table, or have an obligation to take care of children-- you are excused from having to fulfil this obligation of attending mass on Sunday.
Ms. Scarlet,
My recommendation is to be willing to go to Mass at a different parish. Go to www.masstimes.org and you will be able to look up the Mass schedule for any of the Masses being held in your area. In the area I used to live (I moved), I became aware of all the Mass times in a half our radius. It was real nice to know that one parish actually offered a Sunday Mass on Sunday evening. It was also nice to know that if I couldn't make it to the 10:30, I could make it to an 11am elsewhere.
To meet the Sunday obligation, you either need to go to the Sunday Vigil Mass that takes place Saturday evening or to any Sunday liturgy. It has to be the Sunday Liturgy.
I too once was in a situation where I was offered a job that required me to work weekends every other weekend. One of the schedule's would totally prevent me from making Sunday Mass. The other allowed me to but required me to go through sleep deprivation to do it. I prayed about it and didn't take the job even though I was desperate for it. Granted, I wasn't living in the economy the way it is now, but I still recommend you to pray over the Matthew 6:24ff
"....You cannot serve God and money. Therefore, I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about what you will wear. Is not life more important than food, and the body more important than cloths? Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life?
Why do you worry about clothes? See how the lillies of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith? So do not worry, saying, 'What shall we eat?' or 'What shall we drink?' or 'What shall we wear? For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own."
I understand where you're coming from in the work situation. I used to work at a restaurant, which meant lots of shifts during Saturday night and Sunday brunch hours. I was lucky enough to find a Catholic church that held mass on Sunday evenings. For a while that was the only one I could make it to, and a couple times I ended up substituting the Monday morning mass when I had worked late on Sunday.
I'm no priest, but in my opinion, if weekday masses are all you can make it to, then that's what you have to do. We should not put work and money before God, but you have to make a living right? You and God will both know if you ever skip a weekend mass that you really could have made it to. If you find yourself coming up with excuses why you didn't make it to mass last week, then you know you're not trying hard enough. Continue to make every effort to rearrange your work and life so you can keep the Sabbath holy.
And remember to tithe whatever you can, even during these desparate times; give and you will receive!
Wow, that kind of did sound like a sermon, haha. O_o
There are rules to what constitutes a Sunday Obligation on Saturday. It has to be an evening mass and it's all the same readings, etc....
My church has 2 Saturday Evening (one's spanish) and Sunday masses at 7:15, 9:00, 11:00, 12:45, 6:00pm, and 7:30pm Spanish
I second checking Masstimes.org... if there is another church in your area they may have a saturday or sunday evening mass you can make.
Thank you all for your comments! I have been trying to work things out and been doing my best to get a normal fulltime job but it has been impossible:(
@farmersdaughter, @leighannd, @alishadhs4, @Tanya, you're are all correct, weekdays mass does not fulfull Sunday obligation. I try to make sure I make the most of the otherdays I'm free though since it's during lent anyways.
@JustlikeHeaven, oh I never thought of mass over radio...what about receiving communion? Thanks for the link!
@alis, @twoangels, @jen, yeah my situation is not ideal at all. It's not that I'm a workaholic it's actually because I'm unemployed. I've been trying to get a job for the past 4 months but it's really hard. I took this weekend thing to take some financial pressure of SO since the income used to come from both of us.
I feel guilty every Sunday and sometimes feel like maybe I'm missing mass so I'm being punished by not getting a job...but when I don't work I feel useless and lazy..oh well...
@KLP thank you for the website! I have been trying one place near where I work (it's a struggle but I try to sqeeze it in). The only problem is the mass is in French and I don't understand anything...is going to mass conducted in a language you don't understand the readings and the sermon really fulfilling my obilgations? I guess I still am working it out...hopefully I can get a better job!
Yes mass in another language does meet your obligation. Hopefully the missal is in English? Ugg. Hopefully, your situation will improve soon. Keep praying. And I'll say a prayer for you too. :)
If someone hasn't said this to you already- WELCOME BACK! I also spent a period of time not attending Church and returned in my late 20s. In my dioscese we doing a Catholics come Home campaign right now. The website has a lot of great resources for returning Catholics. www.catholicscomehome.org. Please know that the Church community rejoyces at your return. I hope you don't mind if I keep you and your job search in my prayers. :) HUGS!
I don't know how much this will help but masstimes.org may help you find a church that has multiple masses. I'm sorry you're unemployed :(
I found that if you live in a fairly good size town/city that has your diocesan Cathedral or a college town, you'll have better luck finding an alternative mass. For instance, my parish has a 5:30 pm Saturday vigil Mass and 7:00pm and 9:00 pm Sunday Masses. Our local Cathedral has a 6:30 pm Sunday Mass and 5:00 pm Saturday vigil and another parish around here has a 5:30 pm Sunday Mass.
I seriously found that masstimes.org to be the best source of local churches and their masses, adoration, and reconciliation times. Btw, KUDOS on attending daily Mass!
_____________________________
EDIT: I just read that another poster suggested that site, sorry for not paying attention and reiterating what someone else said.
Yup, french does count! Sometimes I can only make Spanish and in my global travels you never know what language you'll be attending. That's one thing that is really awesome about being Catholic. Anywhere in the world and in any language, the readings and mass is the same. Also, at any given time, the Eucharist is being blessed. It's really amazing!
Lots of good answers here! I just have to say, on a funny note: So long as your putting a few pennies in the collection, the Catholic Church would rather you keep employed, even if it's on Sunday. Hee Hee. (I'm Catholic too!)
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I'm not sure where I should be posting this. I need some advice from the Catholic bees but it's not a wedding related question.
I was baptized and raised Catholic, went to a Catholic school, went to church every Sunday, prayed etc…
As I got older and moved out of home for school my church going started to fade and at one point I was living in a country that access to a Catholic church was limited and that’s when I stopped going to church. After I passed that point in life (and moved out of that country) I wanted to reconnect (I didn’t lose faith but once church was not in habit I did feel a bit distant from my religion). So slowly I tried to regain the habit of going to church every Sunday or Saturday.
Until recently my work and life schedule has changed (and there’s not much I can do about it, I’m unemployed and desperate). Right now I’m free all weekdays but not weekends. Is there a way to work around that? Weekday mass doesn’t fulfill obligations of a Sunday mass does it?
Thanks bees!