|
Hi, Amy —
Thanks for your question.
Sunday Mass is not an option. It is the absolute
minimum requirement for keeping the
Holy the Sabbath, the third
commandment.
Technically missing or rather skipping Sunday Mass
without a legitimate reason (illness, taking care
of a sick person, the care of infants,
a work schedule which can't be changed,
etc.) constitutes a mortal sin.
If you truly weren't aware of this, then to a good
extent, your culpability is diminished.
Now that you know this, you need to do something
about it. All you need to do is start going to Mass
every week. Secondly, I'd abstain from receiving
Communion until you go to Confession. I suspect that
if you weren't aware that Sunday Mass is a minimum
requirement, you probably haven't been to Confession
in while either.
Having said that, If I were you aware of this obligation,
I'd study up on what the Mass really is and what
actually happening at Mass. When one:
- knows what the Mass is all about, and
- realizes what receiving Holy Communion is all
about
skipping Sunday Mass won't even be considered.
You want to get to the point where it is not about
doing the required minimum, but rather, through your
participation in the Mass, developing a more intimate
walk with Jesus Christ, Our Lord and
Savior.
If you have to treat it like an obligation to get
yourself going for now, by all means do so, but you
want go beyond that and enter into the Mystery of Christ's
Death, Burial, and Resurrection, which is precisely
what takes place at every Mass.
Hope this helps,
John D.
|
