Question III: Concerning the Sin Against the Service of God, Or Concerning the Violation of Sunday

I. Object of the question. - Just as fidelity toward God is commanded by the first precept, and reverence by the second, so service is commanded by the third precept of the Decalogue. Natural reason itself dictates, and the law of nature prescribes, that some time in human life be reserved for the service of divine worship; but by positive law that time and the manner of worshiping God are to be determined more. In the old law, indeed, positive divine law commanded: Remember to sanctify the sabbath day; this precept together with the other ceremonial prescriptions of the Old Law was abolished by the death of Christ; but now by ecclesiastical law the first day in the week is established to be observed, which by this reason is called the Lord's day.

The precept is at once negative and affirmative: namely, it prohibits servile and forensic works because they are more wont to draw away from the service of God, and it commands assistance at the sacred sacrifice of the altar as the most excellent work of public worship. These things are customarily set forth sufficiently completely in manuals of moral theology; hence here we only set beneath certain practical admonitions for confessors.

II. Rules and principles to be attended to by confessors. - As regards the third precept it is altogether necessary to note that it is opportune for confessors to act not more indulgently but rather more severely, because if the unlearned transgress it habitually, they will now never pray, nor any longer care sufficiently about religion; indeed they will shortly lose due knowledge of the truths of faith and morals because they are never present at sermon or religious instruction. As Berardi well says, Praxis confessariorum, n. 367:

"Very many, occupied the whole week in affairs and labors, if on a feast day they do not provide for the most grave necessities of their own soul by serious reflections and effective remedies, when will they provide? Especially as regards the obligation of hearing the word of God, which being neglected, innumerable Christian faithful live immersed in the mire of vices until death, we have the following from Trent, sess. 24, c. 4: 'Let the Bishop diligently admonish each one that he is bound to be present in his own parish, where this can conveniently be done, for hearing the word of God.'"

Wherefore:

1. Those who are always bound to work on Sundays and can never be present at the sacred rite must obtain another office or service for themselves, at least if they can without great inconvenience, and meanwhile employ means so that they may satisfy the precept both of knowing the doctrine of religion and of praying.

2. Those who on Sundays can never be present at the sacred rite, even if this does not altogether harm their religious life, must obtain another service for themselves insofar as they can without great inconvenience; or, if this is not possible, several times in the year they must assist at the sacred rite during the week, because there is also a natural and divine precept of assisting at the sacrifice several times.

3. Wives and children of families should not easily yield to the husband or father prohibiting the hearing of the sacred rite, even to avoid blasphemies or anger or great indignation, at least if this happens frequently, because otherwise no religious practice would be permitted to them; unless nevertheless they feared grave striking or beating. But if it were demanded in contempt of religion, even then it would not be lawful to do it, but they should never yield.

4. Those who labor on account of legitimate reasons should take care, to avoid scandal, that they do not do this publicly; or, if this is necessary, that the legitimate excuse at least be known by others.

5. Let them also know that a small labor, continued for a brief or at least not long time, nevertheless can, by reason of scandal, be gravely sinful: thus, for a very brief time, for example, publicly to plow land for a quarter of an hour, and similarly to command several persons to labor for one hour, can be a grave sin by reason of scandal.

6. Those are to be blamed who voluntarily place a proximate impediment to the fulfillment of the precept, as if by reason of curiosity, recreation, or a lighter motive they begin a journey on Saturday evening or on Sunday before the first Mass and arrive at another place after the last has ended; for this is not lawful unless the journey is truly necessary and at the same time cannot be made on another day.

7. In practice one must especially attend to certain categories of works:

a) Lest women or girls think lighter feminine works lawful for themselves, such as spinning, sewing, weaving by hand, making lace-work, artificial flowers or images of wax, silk, paper, etc., because they easily exercise such things and thus gradually pass over to many other things. But if they think they have some motive, let them ask a dispensation from the pastor.

b) Lest tailors and shoemakers, without a valid reason, pretend a necessity of working on Sunday to finish a work lest they lose customers: if this is truly so, there is a sufficient reason for working; but often they spontaneously bring themselves into such a necessity, by not employing due solicitude or by losing time at the beginning of the week, or by undertaking more works than they can complete; indeed they work also for those who would not in fact be alienated at all by a delay of the work.

c) Lest farmers exercise rural works and the cultivation of gardens, unless permission has first been obtained from the pastor.

III. Observations. - 1. "Let confessors carefully note that, especially as regards persons of conscience little careful, they ought not easily to approve their manner of acting, as many do who, with the matter by no means weighed, immediately say: go, act, if you have necessity you can work. The matter is on one side too harmful, and on the other too subject to hallucinations: for each one very easily persuades himself that he works from necessity, even when a true, grave, and unavoidable necessity is by no means present... Indeed let them admonish lest, relying on vain reasons, they think themselves not to sin mortally." Thus Berardi, o.c., n. 409.

2. Let confessors know that they have no power in dispensing concerning the precept of observing Sunday; but that this is reserved to the pastor and to those who are in the place of the pastor, and indeed only in particular cases.

3. Let those reading books of moral theology attend lest from theologians of other regions they introduce new customs into their own.