Reader Question: Sunday as a Day of Rest
My husband and I like on Sundays just to ride around in our car and see different things. We like to stop at different stores just to wander around the stores. Maybe sometimes we would find something that we would buy. Why would this be a sin? I do attend Saturday evening Mass, read the Bible, and say the rosary every day. Why is it not a sin to go to a restaurant to eat but not to go to a grocery store to buy some food? If everyone didn’t shop on Sundays, the people that have to work on Sundays would make no money, and we would be hurting them. This doesn’t make sense to me. I can understand not working on Sundays and devoting some time to helping people and reading the Bible.The reader has raised a number of important questions. Our obligation as Christians to keep Sunday as a day of rest extends beyond our Sunday duty to participate in communal worship. But how far do we need to take it? That question often leaves Catholics confused.
From the way that the reader posed her question, it seems likely that she has read the section in the Catechism of the Catholic Church (paragraphs 2184-2188) that deals with Sunday as "A day of grace and rest from work." In those paragraphs, the Church makes it clear that:
- "The institution of the Lord's Day helps everyone enjoy adequate rest and leisure to cultivate their familial, cultural, social, and religious lives."
- "[T]he faithful are to refrain from engaging in work or activities that hinder" worship, joy, works of mercy, and relaxation.
- Conversely, Christians should use Sundays to engage in works of mercy, family obligations, prayer and meditation, and the cultivation of the mind.
- And finally, since "Sanctifying Sunday and holy days requires a common effort," "Christians should see recognition of Sundays and the Church's holy days as legal holidays." Even without such legal recognition, however, "Every Christian should avoid making unnecessary demands on others that would hinder them from observing the Lord's Day."
The Catechism does make an important distinction between "Traditional activities (sports, restaurants, etc.), and social necessities (public services, etc.), [that] require some people to work on Sundays" and other economic activity. From that standpoint, much of the buying and selling that goes on every Sunday in the United States is not really necessary. When I was growing up in the 1970's and 80's in West Michigan, almost no stores and very few restaurants were open on Sundays. (This remains true in most Catholic areas of Europe today.)
Even in most parts of the United States today, grocery stores--which are as close to an economic necessity as you can get--usually have shorter hours on Sunday (and smaller ones may not be open at all). That's an implicit recognition that most of the shopping that is done on Sundays takes place now at malls. In other words, it's largely discretionary shopping.
Is it necessary for some people to work on Sundays? Yes. Is it necessary for most of the people who work on Sundays today to work on Sundays? No. (That's not to say that those employees who work on Sunday don't need the money, but back when most stores were only open five or six days per week, they needed the money as well.) Do we, by making unnecessary purchases on Sunday (instead of trying to make them at other times of the week), encourage a culture that runs contrary to the Church's teaching about Sunday as a "day of grace and rest from work"? Yes.
But in the end, does that mean that it is a sin to shop on Sundays? The Catechism stops short of making such a declaration. If we simply follow its advice--"Every Christian should avoid making unnecessary demands on others that would hinder them from observing the Lord's Day"--we needn't worry.
And we might well find that we then have more time to devote to our own works of mercy, to spend with our family, and to cultivate our minds and souls.
If you have a question that you would like to have featured in our Friday "Reader Questions" series, send me an e-mail at catholicism.guide@about.com. Be sure to put "QUESTION" in the subject line, and please note whether you'd like me to address it privately or on the Catholicism blog.
Where is the joy in religion any more……God only had ten commandments, and he didn’t leave it to us to add all the addendums, indexes, and speculate on what is or is not a sin in His eye…..
Follow the ten commandments as revealed to Moses, and you will be a good person….regardles of whether that makes you a good Catholic or not…..if you no it is wrong ….. then it is wrong….No wonder we lose so many Catholics ….. so much judging going on …..
Nowadays people unfortunately want to follow the parts of the bible that suit themselves, they are part time Christians!
Not one one in the New or Old Testament tells the ’saints’ or newly converted Christians to worship on ‘the 1st day of the week’ or Sunday. Indeed this practice was not Christ’s or His Apostles or the early Church of God. It was established by a Roman Emperor as a differentiation of the Jewish custom of worshipping on the last day of the week. But Saturday or Friday sunset to Saturday sunset is the 4th Commandment of God. No one has authority to change (add to or take from) the Law of God. Prove me wrong if you can via the Bible only. I don’t follow the interpretations of man or man made laws for man’s sake.
Hey Bob, It’s Sunday and I’ve chosen to respond to your question. Genesis 2:3 “Then God blessed the seventh day and sanctified it, because in it He rested from all His work which God had created and made.”
And Exodus 34:21 “You shall work six days, but on the seventh day you shall rest; even during plowing time and harvest you shall rest.
Bob, questions for you if you don’t mind.
Who do you believe put the Bible together?
After all the New Testament was all written after Christ had descended into heaven.
Christ did not leave the Church alone. So when did the Holy Spirit stop counseling the Church? There were always questions by it’s members as you recall. Think about it. The Bible wasn’t even put together for hundreds of years.
Where does it say “The Bible” is the only authority> It was never meant to be the only authority. And no surprise Catholics put the Bible together. So you ARE accepting their authority by following it. And yes it is, the inspired work of God. The Bible itself never says it’s the only authority. It says “The Word of God”. Do you not believe the Holy Spirit speaks “The Word of God”? When did he stop speaking and guiding them, after they finsihed the book? It just doesn’t make sense.
I’m going to pray for you.
Back to your question: The idea was that God desired man to rest on the 7th day. See Col 2:16. The Hebrews worshiped on Saturday. Christians now have long offered God their Sunday as their day to worship Him. It is tradition. But it goes back even before Constantine in 321AD. Possible records as far as the year 70.
The Church celebrated on the day the Lord was resurrected. Also consider in the Bible that Christ appeared to his apostles on the 2 Sundays following his resurrection. By the year 250 records clearly show the Christians even as a persecuted people were celebrating Sunday as their day of worship. Note this is still way before the Bible was written. I personally think they made a great choice in picking Sunday. Sunday is the last day of the week for most of us now, before we go back to work. So it clearly is the 7th day.
If the Bible is the word of God then the Holy Spirit will not controdict the Bible. The devil can apear as an angel of light so how do we know what is truth from God or error from the devil? 2 Cor 11:13-15. The Bible is our only reliable source of truth and if it can’t be proven from the Bible than you could be following a tradition or an error devised by satan. How do we know which day to keep?
The Bible plainly tells us to remember the 7th day which has always been Saturday. There is no everdence in the Bible to keep the first day, even if Jesus visited the deciples on that day it doesn’t make it Holy. The Lord has a Holy day, Rev 1:10. Jesus is Lord of the Sabbath day, Matt 12:8. So which day is it? The Ten Commandment plainly tell us which day it is, Ex 20:8-11. It is the only one of the Ten Commandments that God said remember and this was written by God Himself with His own finger. Were does man get the aurthority to change what God has set up? Heb 4:1-11, tells that it is the seventh day? please read your Bible and tell where God changed it.
Bob and Tim are right Annette is ignorant. Col. is talking about yearly sabbaths.
Bo, you are out of line for flaming Annette