Tuesday, November 1, 2016

A Reflection on the Potential of Holy Days of Obligation

Muslims and Jews rightly seem to have no problem requesting off work/requesting to leave early/come in late for binding religious observances and for their important worship services...and bosses are happy to let that happen unless they desire to be sued for billions of dollars.

Catholics should model that devotion! Tomorrow, November 1, is a holy day of obligation. There are lots of Masses tonight and there are Masses all day and night tomorrow all over the country.

Catholics should go in to their boss/professor/principal and let them know that they need to leave a bit early tonight/come in a bit late tomorrow morning/leave a bit early tomorrow.

Parents - what a WONDERFUL OPPORTUNITY to show your children that Catholicism matters. "Kids, we are going to Mass tomorrow, so call your coaches/bosses/etc. and let them know we won't be able to come tomorrow evening because we'll be in Church."

I talk to a lot of parents who lament their children leaving the Catholic Faith behind as young adults. A great question to ask - did you instill in them at any point that Catholicism has some non-negotiable things that EVERYthing else takes a backseat too? If not, then why in the world would anyone expect them to grow up and think of Catholicism as anything other than a cultural decoration?

For those who do not attend a holy day Mass tonight or tomorrow, remember that you must confess that sin before receiving Holy Communion again (unless you are sick or caring for someone who is sick). But that is NOT the reason to go - go because it actually does our souls good to worship and praise God a few times a year outside our normal cycle of weekend Mass!

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