FROM THE PASTOR’S DESK
Dear St. Mary’s Parishioners,
As we begin this new liturgical year, it is appropriate to take stock of where we have been, where we are now and where we are going. Much has transpired in the last year. At this time last year, we were having Mass outside. While us priests were somewhat protected under the parish hall alcove where the altar was situated, many of you courageously and faithfully stood and knelt in the parking lot under the open sky. When it rained, you brought umbrellas. When it was cold, you bundled up. Some of you participated in Mass from your cars. Others followed our live-streamed Mass. This past June, Bishop Soto rescinded the general dispensation from the obligation to attend Sunday Mass. The Bishop clarified that, beginning on Sunday, June 20th, 2021, all the Catholic faithful in the Diocese of Sacramento were obliged to personally attend and actively participate in Sunday Mass (Code of Canon Law, par. 1247) and in holy days of obligation. Bishop Soto reminded us pastors and the faithful that individuals are not obligated to attend Mass on Sunday or other obligatory solemnities if they are sick, have a vulnerable health condition, are caring for someone with a vulnerable health condition, or have other serious reasons (Code of Canon Law, par. 1245; Catechism of the Catholic Church, 2181).
What would be a serious reason to miss Mass? Paragraph 2181 of the Catechism (cited above) puts it this way:
The Sunday Eucharist is the foundation and confirmation of all Christian practice. For this reason the faithful are obliged to participate in the Eucharist on days of obligation, unless excused for a serious reason (for example, illness, the care of infants) or dispensed by their own pastor. Those who deliberately fail in this obligation commit a grave sin.
Okay, so what would be a “serious reason” to not attend Mass? If there were a snow storm and the roads were very dangerous, that could be a reason to miss Sunday Mass. If one were elderly, could not drive and were to have no way otherwise to get to Mass, that could be a serious reason to miss Mass. One way of discerning if one has a good reason to miss Mass would be if one would not go out for any reason at all. Thus, if someone were going out to shop for groceries, go to a movie, attend one’s children’s soccer games, and yet, not go to Mass, that would be a problem because these would not be serious reasons for missing Mass. Being afraid of getting COVID-19 is not a good enough reason to not go to Mass.
Furthermore, watching or participating in a livestreamed Mass does not fulfill one’s obligation of attending Mass. (Technically, it never did fulfill the obligation. The obligation was dispensed. Thus, the obligation to attend Mass did not technically exist in the Diocese of Sacramento during that period from March 2020 to June 2021.) To fulfill one’s Sunday obligation, one must attend Mass in person. (One may fulfill the obligation of attending Mass in person by being in one’s vehicle in our parking lot during the Mass by tuning to 90.7 FM radio station.) The obligation to attend Mass is serious. Therefore, when one misses Mass, for a reason that is not serious and with the full understanding that attending Mass is an obligation, one should go to confession to confess missing Mass before receiving Holy Communion. Of course, along with attending Mass on Sunday, it is also important that Sunday be a day set aside for “prayer, spiritual reflection, works of mercy, fellowship and rest” as Bishop Soto has pointed out. Thus, one should try to avoid shopping on Sundays, among other things.
I am aware that most of you who are reading this article are going to Sunday Mass. But I bring the above to your attention so that you can bring it up with your family members, friends and loved ones who have not yet returned to Mass following the 3 month lockdown that we had from mid-March to early June 2020. That was a long time ago. It’s time to get back to Mass. In 2019, 1,100 parishioners attended our Sunday Masses in English and 1,100 parishioners attended our Sunday Masses in Spanish. The Mass counts that we took in October, revealed that around 600 people are attending our Masses in English and 450 people are attending our Masses in Spanish. Where are the other 1,150 faithful who attended St. Mary’s in 2019? If you know of anyone who should be with us, please invite them back. We have 8 Masses here on the weekends so that folks have a number of opportunities to fulfill their Sunday obligation. We could easily get by with 3 or 4 weekend Masses, as our church holds 570 people, but Fr. Joseph and I celebrate extra Masses with the expectation that more people will come to Sunday Mass. With God’s grace, we can all work together to help St. Mary’s Parish to grow in number, in faith and in spirit. May you have a blessed Advent!
In Christ,
Fr. Blaise Berg
