• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar

Corpus Christi Watershed

“What earlier generations held as sacred, remains sacred and great for us too…” Pope Benedict XVI (7 July 2007)

  • Our Team
  • Pew Resources
    • Brébeuf Catholic Hymnal
    • Jogues Illuminated Missal
    • Campion Missal, 3rd Edition
  • MUSICAL WEBSITES
    • René Goupil Gregorian Chant
    • Noël Chabanel Psalms
    • Nova Organi Harmonia (2,279 pages)
    • Lalemant Polyphonic
    • Saint Antoine Daniel KYRIALE
    • Roman Missal, 3rd Edition
    • Emporium Kevin Allen
  • Miscellaneous
    • Site Map
    • Saint Jean de Lalande Library
    • Sacred Music Symposium 2023
  • Donate
Views from the Choir Loft

Juggling Holy Days of Obligation

Andrew R. Motyka · November 6, 2013

OLY DAYS OF OBLIGATION are a relatively contentious subject among liturgical geeks like me. Questions like: Which days get precedence? Are/Should the obligation be lifted when the day falls on Saturday? Can you “double dip” on obligations (please don’t go down this rabbit hole)? The Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary hits many of these questions.

In the United States, the obligation of several of our holy days is abrogated (made non-obligatory) when the feast falls on Saturday or Monday. While there is plenty of legitimate debate over whether this should be the case, the bishops nonetheless have the authority to lift this obligation. Next year (2014), for example, All Saints will fall on a Saturday, and the obligation to attend Mass will be lifted.

For that principle, though, the Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception is the exception. Even when December 8 falls on a Saturday or Monday, it retains its obligatory status because Mary of the Immaculate Conception is the patron saint of the United States. She holds a special devotion in this country and so is celebrated on any day.

When Immaculate Conception falls on a Sunday, however (like this year), the celebration is shifted. “Wait, Andy,” I can hear you say, “I thought that in your previous, handsome, brilliantly insightful post that you showed that Solemnities take precedence over Sunday celebrations.” Of course they do, my fellow calendar enthusiast, when that Sunday is in Ordinary Time or in the Christmas Season. However, according to the General Norms on the Roman Calendar (#5):

Because of its special importance, the celebration of Sunday gives way only to Solemnities and Feasts of the Lord; indeed, the Sundays of Advent, Lent, and Easter have precedence over all Feasts of the Lord and over all Solemnities. In fact, Solemnities occurring on these Sundays are transferred to the following Monday unless they occur on Palm Sunday or on Sunday of the Lord’s Resurrection. (emphasis mine)

Sundays of Advent have precedence over all Feasts of the Lord and Solemnities and should be transferred to the following Monday. Therefore, this year we celebrate Immaculate Conception on Monday, December 9, since Sunday, December 8 is the 2nd Sunday of Advent. So, you are obligated to attend Mass on both days, right? Not so fast. According to this past February’s newletter from the USCCB Committee on Divine Worship:

The obligation of the faithful to attend Mass remains attached to the day itself (December 8), however, and so it does not transfer with the liturgical observance.

This year, the obligation to attend Mass on Immaculate Conception is lifted. I strongly encourage you to attend anyway, of course, since this feast should hold a special place in our devotions as Christians in general and Americans in particular.

Tune in next time for some more calendar geekery.

Opinions by blog authors do not necessarily represent the views of Corpus Christi Watershed.

Filed Under: Articles Last Updated: January 1, 2020

Subscribe

It greatly helps us if you subscribe to our mailing list!

* indicates required

About Andrew R. Motyka

Andrew Motyka is the Archdiocesan Director of Liturgical Music and Cathedral Music for the Archdiocese of Indianapolis.—(Read full biography).

Primary Sidebar

Corpus Christi Watershed

Quick Thoughts

    Hymn by Cardinal Newman
    During the season of Septuagesima, we will be using this hymn by Cardinal Newman, which employs both Latin and English. (Readers probably know that Cardinal Newman was one of the world's experts when it comes to Lingua Latina.) The final verse contains a beautiful soprano descant. Father Louis Bouyer—famous theologian, close friend of Pope Paul VI, and architect of post-conciliar reforms—wrote thus vis-à-vis the elimination of Septuagesima: “I prefer to say nothing, or very little, about the new calendar, the handiwork of a trio of maniacs who suppressed (with no good reason) Septuagesima and the Octave of Pentecost and who scattered three quarters of the Saints higgledy-piddledy, all based on notions of their own devising!”
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    Introit • Candlemas (2 February)
    “Candlemas” • Our choir sang on February 2nd, and here's a live recording of the beautiful INTROIT: Suscépimus Deus. We had very little time to rehearse, but I think it has some very nice moments. I promise that by the 8th Sunday after Pentecost it will be perfect! (That Introit is repeated on the 8th Sunday after Pentecost.) We still need to improve, but we're definitely on the right track!
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    Simplified Antiphons • “Candlemas”
    Anyone who desires simplified antiphons (“psalm tone versions”) for 2 February, the Feast of the Purification—which is also known as “Candlemas” or the Feast of the Presentation—may freely download them. The texts of the antiphons are quite beautiful. From “Lumen Ad Revelatiónem Géntium” you can hear a live excerpt (Mp3). I'm not a fan of chant in octaves, but we had such limited time to rehearse, it seemed the best choice. After all, everyone should have an opportunity to learn “Lumen Ad Revelatiónem Géntium,” which summarizes Candlemas.
    —Jeff Ostrowski

Random Quote

When a friend speaks of his accomplishments and triumphs, he stands at a distance from our heart. When he shares his weaknesses and failings, he’s very near.

— Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen

Recent Posts

  • Did Pope Francis Just Publicly Rebuke the Prefect of Divine Worship?
  • Gregorian Rhythm Wars • “The Normal Syllabic Value” (6 Feb 2023)
  • Hymn by Cardinal Newman
  • Church Music Shouldn’t Be “Headache-Inducing”
  • Introit • Candlemas (2 February)

Subscribe

Subscribe

* indicates required

Copyright © 2023 Corpus Christi Watershed · Isaac Jogues on Genesis Framework · WordPress · Log in

Corpus Christi Watershed is a 501(c)3 public charity dedicated to exploring and embodying as our calling the relationship of religion, culture, and the arts. This non-profit organization employs the creative media in service of theology, the Church, and Christian culture for the enrichment and enjoyment of the public.