Should Catholics attend the New Mass?
In this FAQ video, we begin to answer the question by explaining first the nature of the Sunday Obligation.
The topic of our newest FAQ video is: "Should Catholics attend the New Mass?"
This question frequently comes up amongst Catholics since attendance at Mass on Sundays and Holy Days of Obligation is a Church precept under the pain of mortal sin. However, as explained in a previous FAQ video, the Novus Ordo Missae is a danger to the faith, so are Catholics obliged to attend the New Mass to fulfill their Sunday Obligation?
To answer this important inquiry, we must first understand what the Sunday Obligation is and how it applies. Catholics of course know that one of the Ten Commandments is to "keep holy the Lord's day". The catechism further teaches that the Church's Sunday Precept helps us to fulfill God's commandment by attending Mass on Sunday (and Holy Days) and abstaining from servile work—obligations that she obliges under the pain of mortal sin.
But it must be understood that while the third commandment is a divine law of God, the Sunday Obligation is an ecclesiastical law of the Church. Thus if there are circumstances that make it impractical or impossible to fulfill the obligation of attending Mass on a Sunday or Holy Day, the Church can dispense her members from this rule. Such situations can include ill health or dangerous and even lengthy traveling conditions.
To learn more about the Sunday Precept, watch our new FAQ video Episode 14.1. See also our resource page for an extensive list of sidebar media on the New Mass.
