Article — Noldin, Summa of Moral Theology
Article Second. On the Causes Excusing from Labor
273. A cause excusing from this law must universally be grave; and the longer labor is prolonged, the graver the cause required. Canon law itself mentions a twofold excusing cause, piety and necessity1 (one's own, another's, common), to which custom is to be added.
Although, when a sufficiently grave cause exists, the faithful are of themselves excused from the law, nevertheless on account of the danger of error they are to be warned that they should nevertheless ask the parish priest whether in these circumstances it is licit to labor, or rather that they should seek a dispensation. This indeed they ought chiefly to do when the matter concerns public labors, so that by this means the danger of scandal may be forestalled.
By reason of piety those labors are licit which are necessary for divine worship to be exercised here and now. And so:
a. Servile works are permitted which are proximately ordered to divine worship, as to ring bells, carry a cross or banner in processions, etc.
b. But those are prohibited which concur only remotely with divine worship, as to whitewash walls, build a church, carry stones and wood for the building of a church, make ornaments of the church; nevertheless, that vestments and ornaments, such as chasubles and other vestments, flowers, purificators, corporals, rugs, etc., be made for some poor church can be permitted.
c. Actions intermediate between those which are proximately and those which are remotely ordered to divine worship, as to sweep churches, bake hosts, decorate altars and the church, erect platforms necessary for a festivity, etc., by universal custom now prevailing are to be done on the day before the feast; but if these without just reason are deferred to the feast day itself, a venial sin is committed. Although St. Alphonsus (n. 292), from the custom then prevailing, excuses this from even venial sin, nevertheless when a just reason exists they can be done without sin on the feast day itself.
1 C. Liceat 3 and C. Conquestus 5, De feriis (II, 9).
274. By reason of one's own necessity the following are excused:
a. Servants who are forced by the master to labor and cannot easily or shortly find another master, unless they are forced to labor in contempt of religion.
b. The poor, who otherwise cannot sustain themselves and their own. Mothers of families who mend their own garments or those of their children, if they cannot do this on other days. Maidservants to whom during the week time is not granted so that they can mend and wash their garments. Workers who cultivate their own garden, if they must labor away from home through the whole week. These things indeed ought to be done secretly to avoid scandal.
c. Farmers who, on account of past or imminent rain, turn, bind, carry hay or crops, pluck fruits, etc.
d. Country folk who in the city buy things necessary for their own food or clothing, if they can migrate into the city only on feast days.
Whether the reason of avoiding idleness excuses. - The sole reason of avoiding idleness does not excuse from this precept; for idleness must be driven away by other occupations, and those licit. But if someone could not without difficulty be occupied with other things, and especially if there remained danger of spiritual damage or of sin from games or dangerous conversations, there would be a sufficient reason for permitting light labors to be done for some time at home, by which, namely, scandal may be forestalled.
Thus to a worker who, unless he is occupied with some labor, is accustomed to go to taverns and become drunk, some domestic labor can be permitted. To pious women who complain about the leisure of feast days, and yet do not have in temptations to sin an excusing cause for labor, it can be counseled that they make ornaments for churches or garments for the poor.1
1 Genicot, I, n. 337.
275. By reason of another's necessity the following are excused:
a. Tailors and shoemakers who make garments necessary for funerals or nuptials, which they could not complete the day before. But from this reason, that they had promised the garments, it is not licit for them to labor unless otherwise they would suffer grave damage; for they ought to take care, as far as they can without grave damage, not to cast themselves into this necessity by assuming labor which they cannot complete before the feast day.
In practice let the confessor show himself severe toward those who have contracted the custom of laboring on feast days, easy with those who sometimes do it: for these, not those, are usually excused by right.1
b. Those who exercise works of mercy, although servile, for the support of the poor, as to make garments, bring wood, etc., when by reason of their own necessity the poor themselves could labor for themselves.
alpha. Not only for a determinate poor person, but also for the poor in general existing in common necessity, it is licit to make garments and other things which serve the uses of the poor; but it is not licit to labor to earn money afterward to be distributed among poor persons of this sort, unless they are in grave or extreme necessity, because in these circumstances it would be licit for the poor themselves.
beta. By reason of another's necessity, exercises are also licit which are instituted on feast days by societies destined for extinguishing fires (Feuerwehr), since those exercises cannot be done on weekdays by men impeded by other labors. But care must be taken lest they be withdrawn from ecclesiastical functions, neither those who perform the exercises nor those who gather to watch them.
c. Craftsmen who repair instruments which farmers or artisans need the following day.
d. Those who in extraordinary and urgent necessity, as in a fire, flood, or other misfortune, repair a road, mend a bridge, or assist in another way.
1 Ballerini-Palmieri, II, n. 765.
276. By reason of common necessity or utility the following are excused:
a. Bakers, who make bread and cakes, both by reason of custom and by reason of necessity; but others are not permitted to make bread, nor bakers other foods which neither they themselves nor others need on that day.
b. Butchers, who kill and skin animals where this could not have been done the day before, as in great cities; but not in small towns, unless several feasts occur.
c. Those who in a public profane solemnity, for example, on account of the arrival of a prince or on account of victory, prepare and make those things which are necessary, as triumphal arches, fireworks, garments, decorations, etc.
These indeed ought of themselves to be prepared beforehand, lest the feast day have to be profaned by servile labors; nevertheless, if either culpably or without fault they had not been prepared, it is not necessary that the solemnity be omitted on that account, but they can licitly be done on the feast day. For to omit the solemnity is a grave inconvenience of the republic, to the undergoing of which the precept of the Church does not oblige. Yet those who deliberately defer labors of this sort to the feast day without sufficient cause, of themselves sin gravely.
277. By reason of custom: a. It is licit to prepare foods, even if for more sumptuous meals they need greater labor. Those things which are servile, as to kill and skin smaller animals, ought to be done on the day before if this can conveniently be done; but if on the day before, even culpably, it has not been done, it can be done on the feast day without sin. It is licit to make beds and clean garments with brushes.
b. Barbers licitly shave beards and cut hair.
c. It is licit to drive loaded carriages or ships not only when the journey is continued, but also when it is begun on a feast day, and the labors necessary for this end can be completed.
d. Light labors, as to make rosaries, scapulars, artificial flowers, etc., are indeed of themselves servile and therefore illicit, especially if they are exercised as is customarily done during the week by women gathered into one place; yet if they are done privately, by custom they can be licit.1
1 Cf. Gury-Ballerini, I, n. 356.2.