Liturgical Year
Part 2 Sunday

Chapter y21 Sunday

Preliminary Questions

You’ve got to know what day it is.
you have to own your days and name them,
or else, the years go right by
and none of them belongs to you.
-- A Thousand Clowns

What is your experience of Sunday?  Is it a happy time?  Recall a Sunday that was a really good Sunday; what did you do on that day? Imagine an ideal Sunday; what would that be like?  Spend a few moments reflecting on what you do on Sunday. Do you think of Sunday as being different from the other days?  If so, how does this effect your behavior and activities?

What your parishioners’ experience of Sunday? What do Americans do on Sunday? What is their general attitude toward Sunday?  Do you have any opinions as to how civil society helps or hinders the religious observance of Sunday?

What have you been taught about the meaning of Sunday?  What concerns you about the way you spend Sundays?  Do you confess working on Sunday?  Missing Mass on Sunday? Does it matter with whom you celebrate Eucharist on Sunday?

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Bibliography

Documents

Pope John Paul II, Apostolic Letter Dies Domini, The Day of the Lord, August 12, 1998. http://www.usccb.org/liturgy/innews/998.htm

Congregation for Divine Worship. Directory for Sunday Celebrations in the Absence of a Priest, Vatican City, June 2, 1988. ICEL translation, Washington DC: Office of Publishing and Promotion Services, United States Catholic Conference, 1988.  ISBN 1-55586-251-9. $1.95.

Cardinal Roger Mahony, Archbishop of Los Angeles, "Gather Faithfully Together: A Guide for Sunday Mass."

Studies

Adam, Adolf. The Liturgical Year: Its History, Its Meaning After the Reform of the Liturgy.

Bacchiocchi, Samuele. From Sabath to Sunday: A Historical Investigation of the Rise of Sunday Observance in Early Christianity. Rome: The Pontifical Gregorian University Press, 1977.

Chupungco, OSB, Anscar J.   "Easter Sunday in Latin Patristic Literature," Notitiae 164 (March 1980) pp 93-103.

Denis-Boulet, Noële. The Christian Calendar. P. Hepburne-Scott, trans. The Twentieth Century Encyclopedia of Catholicism. Volume 113. New York: Hawthorn Books, Inc., 1960.

Hughes RSCJ,  Kathleen.   "On Sunday Catholics and Saturday Worship," Assembly, 5:2, September 1978.

Johnson Chapter 3 "Day of the Lord: Day of Mystery" by H. Boone Porter, pp 49-58.

Johnson Chapter 4 "Sunday: the Heart of the Liturgical Year" by Mark Searle, pp 59-76.

Johnson Chapter 5 "The Frequency of the Celebration of the Eucharist Throughout History" by Robert F. Taft, pp 77-98.

Jounel, "Sunday and the Week" TCAP, pp 9-30.

Jounel, "The Feasts of the Lord in Ordinary Time" TCAP, pp 97-107.

Searle, Mark. "Sunday: The Heart of the Liturgical Year," in Johnson (ed). The Church Gives Thanks and Remembers, pp 13-36.

Homily

An excellent site for background to the Sunday readings and other useful information for preparing your homily can be found at The Center for Liturgy at St. Louis University

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Key Issues

Five years from now, when you have forgotten what Saint Ignatius of Antioch wrote in his letter to the Magnesians and you cannot remember who Mark Searle was, what should you still know about what you learned in the Liturgical Year Course about SUNDAY?   What are the "key issues"?   The seven most important things, in the order of importance, are: 

1.  Christians gather on the First Day of the week (the day the Lord rose from the dead)
2.  Christians gather because they are the community of the Resurrection
3.  When they gather they celebrate the Eucharist which incorporates them into the Risen Lord
4.  The Lord's Supper makes the day The Lord's Day
5.  The Lord's Day, Sunday, is at the heart of the Liturgical Year, it is the original "feast day"
These five issues are the key theological / liturgical elements of the Christian Sunday;  the next two items are not of the essence of Sunday -- i.e. they could disappear completely and the Christian Sunday remain intact -- but they are related to the history of Sunday.
6.  Later, the theology of the Sabbath was joined to the Christian Sunday
7.  Latter still, the obligation of the Sabbath was attributed to the Christian Sunday

In what follows, I will say a brief word about each of these seven issues.

1.  Christians gather on the First Day of the week (the day the Lord rose from the dead)   Sunday is the day of Christ. The day of his resurrection. The day on which he presented himself in the midst of his disciples. The day he drank the wine of the kingdom. The day the disciples gathered to await his return.

The following is taken from the my talk "Eucharist:  A Symphony in Four Movements"  on the CDs The Sacraments, © www.NowYouKnowMedia.com

Why do I go to Mass? The way I answer this question reveals an important change in the way I understand the Eucharist.

One of my earliest childhood memories is that of going to Mass every day. (Actually, it was my mother who went to Mass every day; she took me along.) We went to Mass to pray. Mother had her prayer book, which was filled with holy cards containing her favorite prayers. Sometimes we said the rosary out loud with the other daily Mass attendees. But all of these prayers stopped at the moment of consecration. That’s when Mom put down her prayer book, and we looked up to the altar as the priest raised the host that had now become the Body of Christ.

I treasure these memories and I want to speak of them not only with nostalgia but also with great reverence. That style of praying the Mass has formed countless generations of holy women and men. But if you ask me today, "Why do you go to Mass?" I will answer, "I go to Mass, first of all, to come together with other Christians." The first thing we do when we celebrate the Eucharist is we gather!

All of the ritual elements that we experience at the beginning of Mass—the Sign of the Cross, holy water, song, greeting, silence, prayer—have one purpose: to gather us together into the one Body of Christ so that together we are prepared to hear the Word of God and to celebrate the Eucharist.

The words "to gather", "to come together", "to assemble" are frequently used in the Bible to describe what the first Christians did on the Lord’s Day. In perhaps the earliest written text we have regarding the Eucharist, St. Paul speaks of how the Corinthians are to "come together" to "gather" to celebrate the Lord’s Supper.

I have written further on this issue in “The Community Gathers” Eucharist: Jesus With Us, St. Anthony Messenger Press, May 2005. Q0505.  I have placed a draft of this article on my website  and  "Why I Go to Mass," Catholic Update, Cincinnati: St. Anthony Messenger Press, August 2002. C0802  and  "The Ministry of Hospitality," America, 190:15 (May 3, 2004) pp12-14. and "What the Eucharist Means--Still" Catholic Digest, December 1992 pp 32-37.

2.  Christians gather because they are the community of the Resurrection  Christ’s resurrection is the essential object of Christian faith and the basis of the Christian’s assurance that we too will pass from death to life.  What is the Lord’s Day? A day of joyful celebration and remembrance of the passion, death and resurrection of Christ. A day of actual presence of the Lord in the Word of God and the eucharist. A day of expectation of the Lord’s return, which we celebrate in hope.  Sunday:  The day of resurrection, the "first day" on which the world was created, the "eighth day" -  the first day of the new and eternal covenant brought into fulfillment by the resurrection of Christ. --- "Does it not seem more true to say that the Church did not choose Sunday but received it from Christ when he rose on that day? We don’t choose and sanctify Sunday. We have been chosen and sanctified by Sunday! Sunday is not simply a fortuitous day, as good as any other, for worship. It is the day." (Kathleen Hughes RSCJ, "On Sunday Catholics and Saturday Worship," Assembly, 5:2, September 1978, p 3.)  How many Christians believe in the Resurrection of Christ? How many Christians believe in their own resurrection? What are their attitudes toward death (and life after death)?   When you look around your parish during Sunday Eucharist, does the assembly look like it has risen from the dead?

3.  When they gather they celebrate the Eucharist which incorporates them into the Risen Lord    As we sit at the Eucharistic table with Jesus and with the disciples and with all those who have believed in the Resurrection throughout the ages past and the ages to come, past-present-future all become one. We eat the flesh of the one who died in the past and taste the future banquet of heaven. We sing of our confidence in Life: "Dying you destroyed our death, rising you restored our life." We sing of our freedom: "By your cross and resurrection you have set us free!" (Eucharistic acclamations) We sing of our strength in the face of evil for in Christ we have "tasted the good word of God and the powers of the age to come." (Hebrews 6:5) The Resurrection makes Sunday the first of all Christian feasts.  This doesn't happen when we stop short at the first epiclesis (i.e. consider primarily the prayer to change the elements rather than continuing to the epiclesis to change the Church).

4.  The Lord's Supper makes the day The Lord's Day   The Sunday assembly for Eucharist is at the very heart of the meaning of Sunday. Speaking of Sunday, the Catechism of the Catholic Church states: "The Lord’s Supper is its center, for there the whole community of the faithful encounters the risen Lord who invites them to his banquet." (CCC 1166)   Does the celebration of Mass during the week obscure the meaning of Sunday?  If the Eucharist makes a day Sunday, when Eucharist is celebrated every day, every day is Sunday.  Or is Eucharist on Sunday a liturgical event and Eucharist on a weekday a devotional event?    How can Sunday remain Sunday when it is not possible to celebrate Eucharist because there is no one present who is authorized to preside at the Eucharist.  If the Eucharist make the day "Sunday" how can one have Sunday without Eucharist?

5.  The Lord's Day, Sunday, is at the heart of the Liturgical Year, it is the original "feast day"   Sunday is the original feast day for Christians.  Every Sunday is a celebration of the Paschal Mystery.   One of the basic guiding principles for the 1969 reform of the Roman Calendar was the restoration of Sunday to its rightful place. 

These five issues are the important things to know about Sunday;  the next two items are not of the essence of Sunday -- i.e. they could disappear completely and the Christian Sunday remain intact.

6.  Later, the theology of the Sabbath was joined to the Christian Sunday   The Jews rest on the Sabbath because the Creator rested (Exodus 20:8-11; Deuteronomy 5:12-15.)   At first, the Christians observed both their Jewish Sabbath and the Lord’s Day.  The Sabbath, a day of rest is on the seventh day of the Jewish week and when the sabbath rest was over, the Christians gathered for Sunday, a day of communal worship.    But soon the Christians stopped observing the sabbath.  

"We are no longer keeping the Sabbath, but the Lord's Day" (St. Ignatius of Antioch, Ad Magn. 9, 1)  For the first three centuries it was work day (with the assembly early in the morning before work–and before the police got up).  The Christian observance of Sunday was more a day of corporate worship rather than a day of abstinence from work.  Sunday was not a day of rest. Christians gathered to celebrate Christ’s resurrection prior to beginning their work day.   Gregory Dix:  "Christians showed no hesitation at all about treating Sunday as an ordinary working day like their neighbors, once they had attended the synaxis and eucharist at the ecclesia. This was the Christian obligation, the weekly gathering of the whole Body of Christ to its Head, to become what it really is, His Body."  (Dix, p 360).  Constantine issued an edict in 321 CE forbidding the law courts to sit on Sunday and enforcing this holiday brought daily life to a near standstill within the empire. While the edict was designed to render attendance at Christian worship, it is more likely the edict was more a propaganda measure to gain support in the empire.  With the Peace of Constantine, Christians could meet later in the morning.

For priests and many other Christian ministers, Sunday is the principal work day of the week.  It is "difficult" for priests to preach about Sunday being a day of rest because they do not experience it as such.  Often "church people" take a "day off" during the week e.g. Monday or Friday.  Sunday is a working day.  -- My own experience of living in Egypt where the "day of rest" was Friday and Sunday was an ordinary working day confirmed this understanding of "Sabbath Rest" -- It was nice to have an actual "day of rest" (Friday) for a change from American where, for the priest and lay minister, there is no rest on Sunday. 

In a "Christian" country,  "religion" and "culture" are often mixed together (as they are in Israel, and in Muslim countries).   This can blur our understanding of what is "religion" and what is "culture".    For example, in 2002, Cardinal Karl Lehmann, president of the German bishops' conference made the following remarks regarding Sunday as a day of rest.  (Oct. 27, 2002)  "The celebration of Sunday is a necessity of human dignity, a protest against the commercialization of the person, and against enslavement by the world of work," he said.  The archbishop of Mainz was speaking at the opening of the exhibition "The Seventh Day: History of Sunday," an event he described as an "extraordinary occasion to reflect again on Sunday and the dangers that threaten it"  "All creatures, especially the human being, must have the possibility to be free and to rest from the pressures of society and our world," the cardinal explained. "For human existence, to alternate work and release from it is as important as its social foundation."  In sketching the history of the existence of Sunday, Cardinal Lehmann said that the Second Vatican Council recognized in the day "the foundation and nucleus of the whole liturgical year."  The cardinal pointed out the danger of Sunday losing its meaning.  "Sunday and feast days could be eliminated or turned into simple weekends, time to go out and to enjoy sports events," he said. "Sunday is not at our free disposal. Among the conditions for real freedom is the proper celebration of Sunday."  He added: "It is not accidental that the Jewish sabbath is a most special gift of God to humanity, as Sunday is."   The question can be asked:  Are these religious remarks, or are they cultural / sociological remarks?  Is the cardinal speaking as a Christian or as a German? 

7.  Latter still, the obligation of the Sabbath was attributed to the Christian Sunday      In the late sixth century the REST of the Jewish Sabbath is added to the celebration of the Christian Sunday.  In 589 the Council of Norbonne imposes punishments (6 pieces of gold or 100 lashes) on those who work on Sunday. The 1917 Code of Canon Law says missing Sunday Mass is a mortal sin.   The Second Vatican Council debated eliminating obligatory nature of Sunday worship.  Many bishops felt that the obligation obscures the aspect of celebration essential for the Eucharist.  --  How is the question of "obligation" understood today?  Holy Days of Obligation have one half the number who attend on Sunday. Christmas, Easter, Palm Sunday, Ash Wednesday have double the Sunday attendance.  Today many Catholics find a God who would condemn someone to an eternity of hell for an extra hour in bed on Sunday morning to be inconsistent with the God they find in the Christian Scriptures.  I have explored this issue for fully in  "Discipleship and the Moral Life: The Reality of Sin and Grace," Catechist, February 2, 2003 (36:5) pp 50-54.

Personally, I have come to believe that "resurrection" is at the heart of the issue -- even with the issue of "obligation."  People would be drawn to gather with us on the Lord's Day if the Body of Christ looked like it had risen from the dead -- I am referring to Christ's Body today -- namely US!  Frequently I encounter Christians who give me the impression that they are still in the tomb! 

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Sunday Observed: Vignettes from the Tradition. Reprinted from Assembly Volume 7, number 5, June 1981, pages 130, 131, 136.  Reprinted with the permission of the Notre Dame Center for Pastoral Liturgy, dated 9/11/2002)

I have found the following three "vignettes" by Mark Searle to be an excellent introduction to the study of the history of the Christian Sunday.  They help us get in touch with the concept of "Sunday" in ways that broaden our contemporary understanding.

First Vignette  THIRD CENTURY: A SMALL TOWN NEAR ROME

It is about 4:30 in the morning on an ordinary working day, but as yet the town lies quiet under the blanket of night. Shadowy figures slip through the empty streets and make their way singly or in pairs to the back door of a large villa, the house of a wealthy Christian lady. People arriving at the back door are quickly recognized, admitted and led through to a large family room where there are others already gathered. The people mingle and talk, their voices low and their handshakes firm -- for these are men and women who risk everything in just being here.

There are few chairs in the room, but one at the far end is already occupied by an elderly man, who is clearly a person of some authority; but that appears from his face rather than his clothes which are virtually indistinguishable from everyone else’s. Chairs have also been set out nearby for the bishop’s advisory committee – for the elderly man is the bishop of this community and the committee of men who advise him is known as the presbyterate. The man standing beside the bishop, like the man who scrutinized the arrivals at the back door, is known as a deacon, or servant.

The bishop stands and greets the assembled crowd. They respond to his greeting and then immediately fall silent as he leads them in prayer. One of the group brings forward a parchment book from a nearby closet and, after the bishop has been helped to his seat again, begins to read from it a letter originally sent by the Apostle Paul to the community at Corinth. After a while the bishop signals for him to stop and then stands up as the deacon at his side begins to read from another parchment book some of the teachings of Jesus recorded by the evangelist Mark. Again, a sign from the bishop and the reading stops The bishop himself then takes over and begins to address words of exhortation and encouragement to the assembled people, taking his themes from the readings just heard.

The sermon over, the deacon gives the order for the catechumens -- those preparing for baptism -- to leave, and then leads the congregation in a list of petitionary prayers for the Church, the emperor, the city officials, for the success of the harvest and, not least, for the grace to serve God in peace and perseverance. Members of the congregation then greet one another with a kiss of peace -- a gesture of reconciliation and of mutual trust in these difficult times.

A small table is brought forward and a cup and plate are set upon it. The deacon goes round among the people collecting the gifts they have brought: small loaves of bread, a flask or two of wine, some flasks of oil, some cheeses. These are all put in a basket for later distribution among the poor, the sick and the imprisoned members of the community, but some of the wine is used to fill the cup and one of the loaves is set on the table. The bishop greets the familiar faces around him. He exhorts them to lift up their hearts and give thanks to God. They respond in strong, quiet voices and then he goes on to offer a lengthy prayer of thanksgiving. It is always improvised, but the phrases and cadences are familiar as they lead up to the final praise and the "Amen" of the people present. Then the bishop takes the bread into his hands and breaks it into many pieces. One he eats himself, the others he passes to his presbyters and deacons. They all drink in turn from the cup and then the bishop distributes the broken bread to the people as they come up before him. The deacon at his side administers the cup to each in turn.

The distribution completed (and some have taken extra pieces either for those who could not be here today or for themselves during the week), a silence falls over the group. Then there are some announcements: news of new arrests in Rome, but also of some new converts. The hostess announces that all who can come are invited for prayer here after dusk tonight. Then, with a final word of encouragement, the bishop dismisses the congregation and they slip out, one by one and at intervals, into the grey light of dawn. It is the first day of the week. Another day of work lies ahead for each of them and another week of working hard and keeping a low profile, of praying alone or with the family, of trying to be true to the Gospel without provoking the attention of the authorities ... all in the hope of being able to gather again like this next Sunday to celebrate him who suffered as a servant, but whose kingdom will survive all empires.

(Based on Gregory Dix, THE SHAPE OF THE LITURGY (1947), 141-145; and M. H. Shepherd, AT ALL TIMES AND IN ALL PLACES (1963), 11-21.)

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Second Vignette  THIRTEENTH CENTURY: A VILLAGE IN ENGLAND

It is about 9:30 in the morning and families are dribbling out of their dark, smoky cottages and wending their way up the track that leads out of the village towards the church on the hillside. The contrast is striking: the church, while not exactly huge, looms solid, its tower especially dominating the miserable hovels where the people live. The cottages come and go: they catch fire or get destroyed by storms. But the church on the hill has been there longer than anyone can remember and the bones of several generations now huddle together against its walls, as if seeking permanent refuge there. Normally, by this time of the day there would be none but women and children in the village. The men would be out tending their cattle on the common land, hunting in the woods, or scratching the little plots of land where they try to grow corn for their wives to make bread. But today, as every Sunday, there is early rising only for those who have a cow to milk or whose chickens have broken out of their compound. For most of the thirty or so families in this village, Sunday is a day to sleep off the labors of the week and the hangover of the night before.

The bell has tolled half an hour ago to wake the sluggards and to summon those who live out in the woods or on the heath; now they are converging on the churchyard. Children are running around and no one seems in any great hurry to enter the building. The sexton comes out and urges them in. The Mass is about to start. They wander into the church and take up their accustomed places. There are no seats, except for the stone ledge running around the wall where the old people and the pregnant mothers sit. The people stand, some leaning against a pillar, some carrying on a conversation. Men and women are supposed to be on separate sides of the church, but that doesn't prevent some people on one side providing a fair amount of distraction to some people on the other.

The priest comes out of the vestry, dressed in a well-worn, once-white alb and a worn stole. The church does have a chasuble, but it is only worn on high feasts since it is the only one they have. The Mass begins with the priest approaching the altar, which is built against the far end of the church and cut off from where the people stand by a couple of steps. He is accompanied by a young clerk whom he has taught to make the responses, for everything is in Latin, of course. The ritual is familiar to the onlookers as are the chants which a small group of boys and men struggle, not always successfully, to sustain. On some special days, there is a procession which everyone can join in, but apart from standing and kneeling at appropriate times there isn't much for the congregation to do today. The older ones, knowing their days to be numbered give themselves assiduously to their beads, but the rest seem to have a fairly relaxed attitude toward the proceedings. Except, that is, when the bell rings. This is a new custom only recently introduced. In one of his rare sermons -- for he only preaches usually about four times a year -- the priest told them it was so they would know exactly when the bread and wine became God's body and blood, and he would hold it up to show them so they could worship. This was the high and holy moment of Sunday worship. Only at Eastertide would they go to receive holy communion. That takes some preparation, including going to confession and being cross-examined by the priest on what they believed and how they lived. The priest himself receives communion at every Mass and when he does they know the service is almost over. A brief Latin prayer in conclusion and then the blessing and dismissal and it is out into the sunshine again.

The thing about Sunday is not so much that you go to church, though almost everyone does go to Mass and the elderly and the devout also go to Vespers on Saturday and Sunday afternoons, as well as to Matins before Mass. The thing about Sunday is that it is a day of rest. In the town about two hour's walk away there is often a fair, despite the attempts of the local clergy to put a stop to it. There is time to sit around and talk, to drop in on your neighbors, to play games. And it is a day when the lord of the manor knows he can't send for you to chop wood or mend a cart or whatever. From noon on Saturday till dawn on Monday, every Christian is free from the obligations of service. There are times when things have to be done, of course: harvest-time doesn't follow the Church calendar and everyone knows that. But sometimes you want to finish a little job, or decide to take some skins over to the market to make a little profit: and then you're in trouble. That's not only a sin on your soul, it's an offence against the King's law and you can be punished for that. No, Sunday is a day when you don't work, when you have time to enjoy yourself.

(Based in part on J. R. H. Moorman, CHURCH LIFE IN ENGLAND IN THE XIII^th CENTURY, 1955, 68 ff.)

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Third Vignette   SEVENTEENTH CENTURY: A NEW ENGLAND SETTLEMENT

In this little place, everything comes to a stop at three o'clock on Saturday afternoon and a holy stillness reigns until Monday morning. For the families living here, refugees from tyrannical governments in Europe and survivors of a perilous journey across thousands of miles of dangerous ocean, striving with the rigors of the wilderness and the danger of the Indians, the Sunday-Sabbath is both a welcome respite from toil and an occasion to thank God for his manifold blessings Here they are building a new and godly civilization: "this is the place where the Lord will create a new Heaven, and a new Earth, in new Churches, and a Common-wealth together."

Rejecting heart and soul the superstitions of Rome and the compromises of the Church of England, these zealous Puritans take most seriously the Scriptural Word of God. For them, both Old and New Testaments are equally to be obeyed and nowhere is this more true than in the observance of the Sabbath. The day may have changed from the last to the first day of the week, but the Sabbath ordinances of the Old Testament are closely adhered to. Local legislation reflects this. In its very early days, the Massachusetts Bay Company had provided for "the Saboth (to) bee celebrated in a religious manner" by ordering that "all that inhabite the plantation ... may surcease their labor every Satterday throughout the yeare at 3 of the clock in the afternoone, and that they spend the rest of the day in catichising and preparation for the Saboth."

It is now shortly before nine on Sunday morning and a drumbeat is heard summoning the settlers to worship. Families emerge from their log houses and make their way to the church, all dressed in their long black cloaks. Inside there are benches for all, which is just as well, for they will be there for a couple of hours at least. The interior is very plain – benches for the people and a pulpit for the preacher, together with a small table used for the Lord's Supper when it is celebrated, which is just four times a year. The minister checks that all are present and then calls them to worship before launching into a lengthy prayer protesting the unworthiness of this congregation to appear before the great and majestic God and asking his pardon, his help and his blessing on this service. Then is read a chapter from a book of the Old Testament and a chapter from the New. Once the readings are over, the preacher again begins a long rambling prayer of his own devising, bewailing his sinfulness and that of his people, begging for the Spirit of sanctification, praying for the spread of the Gospel and the deliverance of those who suffer for true religion and many more things besides, coming at last to pray for himself and his ministry of preaching. Finally it is over and the members of the congregation settle back for what they know is to be a lengthy address. Indeed it is, ranging from the works of Antichrist to the sins of the congregation, setting forth the Word of God gravely and zealously. An hour later, the preacher steps down and takes himself once again to prayer, introducing another litany of godly concerns, before rising up at last to bless the congregation and send them forth. Then it is home for something to eat before the drum sounds again for the afternoon service.

What with the time spent in the church and the time spent in prayer and Bible reading with the family, there is hardly any time left over for any of those works which could break the Sabbath observance. Yet every now and then someone is caught traveling on the Sabbath, or driving a cart, or doing washing, or out hunting: they are fined and may even be flogged. For the observance of Sunday here is above all a matter of breaking altogether with the occupations of the rest of the week. Church-going is only one way of keeping the Sabbath, but the whole day has to be sanctified by abstaining from ordinary activities in order to devote the day to God. For the truly devout, this is not a dull or tedious day. Games and sports may be frowned upon, but the righteous find joy in the things of God and in the oasis of rest from the labors of the week. By enforcing strict Sabbath observance upon all, it is their pious hope that not only will the refreshment of their own spirits be safeguarded but the hearts of sinners might be brought to repentance and in either case the righteous reign of God will be realized on earth in the lives and laws of his saints.

(Based in part on Winton Solberg, Redeem the Time, The Puritan Sabbath in Early America, Cambridge, Mass., 1977)

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"First Day of the Week" in Scripture

Resurrection Accounts:  Mt 28:1; Mk 16:9; Lk 24:1; Jn 20:1

Encounters:  Jn 20:26. Jesus appears again on the first day of the week; Acts 20:On the first day of the week, when we were gathered together to break bread, Paul talked with them. . . (20:7); I Cor 16:2 Paul and the collection for Jerusalem; Rev 1:10. I received the revelation on "the Lord’s day. 

Note the following passages from the NAB Revised

Matthew 28:1-10 After the Sabbath, as the first day of the week was dawning, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary came to see the tomb. And behold, there was a great earthquake; for an angel of the Lord descended from heaven, approached, rolled back the stone, and sat upon it. His appearance was like lightning and his clothing was white as snow. The guards were shaken with fear of him and became like dead men. Then the angel said to the women in reply, "Do not be afraid! I know that you are seeking Jesus the crucified. He is not here, for he has been raised just as he said. Come and see the place where he lay. Then go quickly and tell his disciples, ‘He has been raised from the dead, and he is going before you to Galilee; there you will see him.’ Behold, I have told you." Then they went away quickly from the tomb, fearful yet overjoyed, and ran to announce this to his disciples. And behold, Jesus met them on their way and greeted them. They approached, embraced his feet, and did him homage. Then Jesus said to them, "Do not be afraid. Go tell my brothers to go to Galilee, and there they will see me."

Mark 16:1-8   When the Sabbath was over, Mary Magdalene, Mary, the mother of James, and Salome bought spices so that they might go and anoint him. Very early when the sun had risen, on the first day of the week, they came to the tomb. They were saying to one another, "Who will roll back the stone for us from the entrance to the tomb?" When they looked up, they saw that the stone had been rolled back; it was very large. On entering the tomb they saw a young man sitting on the right side, clothed in a white robe, and they were utterly amazed. He said to them, "Do not be amazed! You seek Jesus of Nazareth, the crucified. He has been raised; he is not here. Behold the place where they laid him. But go and tell his disciples and Peter, ‘He is going before you to Galilee; there you will see him, as he told you.’ " Then they went out and fled from the tomb, seized with trembling and bewilderment. They said nothing to anyone, for they were afraid.

Mark 16:9-11 When he had risen, early on the first day of the week, he appeared first to Mary Magdalene, out of whom he had driven seven demons. She went and told his companions who were mourning and weeping. When they heard that he was alive and had been seen by her, they did not believe.

Luke 23:54-24:14  It was the day of preparation, and the Sabbath was about to begin. The women who had come from Galilee with him followed behind, and when they had seen the tomb and the way in which his body was laid in it, they returned and prepared spices and perfumed oils. Then they rested on the Sabbath according to the commandment. – But at daybreak on the first day of the week they took the spices they had prepared and went to the tomb. They found the stone rolled away from the tomb; but when they entered, they did not find the body of the Lord Jesus. While they were puzzling over this, behold, two men in dazzling garments appeared to them. They were terrified and bowed their faces to the ground. They said to them, "Why do you seek the living one among the dead? He is not here, but he has been raised. Remember what he said to you while he was still in Galilee, that the Son of Man must be handed over to sinners and be crucified, and rise on the third day." And they remembered his words. Then they returned from the tomb and announced all these things to the eleven and to all the others. The women were Mary Magdalene, Joanna, and Mary the mother of James; the others who accompanied them also told this to the apostles, but their story seemed like nonsense and they did not believe them. But Peter got up and ran to the tomb, bent down, and saw the burial cloths alone; then he went home amazed at what had happened.

Luke 23:54-24:14  Now that very day two of them were going to a village seven miles from Jerusalem called Emmaus, and they were conversing about all the things that had occurred.

John 20:1-18  On the first day of the week, Mary of Magdala came to the tomb early in the morning, while it was still dark, and saw the stone removed from the tomb. So she ran and went to Simon Peter and to the other disciple whom Jesus loved, and told them, "They have taken the Lord from the tomb, and we don’t know where they put him." So Peter and the other disciple went out and came to the tomb. They both ran, but the other disciple ran faster than Peter and arrived at the tomb first; he bent down and saw the burial cloths there, but did not go in. When Simon Peter arrived after him, he went into the tomb and saw the burial cloths there, and the cloth that had covered his head, not with the burial cloths but rolled up in a separate place. Then the other disciple also went in, the one who had arrived at the tomb first, and he saw and believed. For they did not yet understand the scripture that he had to rise from the dead. Then the disciples returned home.

But Mary stayed outside the tomb weeping. And as she wept, she bent over into the tomb and saw two angels in white sitting there, one at the head and one at the feet where the body of Jesus had been. And they said to her, "Woman, why are you weeping?" She said to them, "They have taken my Lord, and I don’t know where they laid him." When she had said this, she turned around and saw Jesus there, but did not know it was Jesus. Jesus said to her, "Woman, why are you weeping? Whom are you looking for?" She thought it was the gardener and said to him, "Sir, if you carried him away, tell me where you laid him, and I will take him." Jesus said to her, "Mary!" She turned and said to him in Hebrew, "Rabbouni," which means Teacher. Jesus said to her, "Stop holding on to me, for I have not yet ascended to the Father. But go to my brothers and tell them, ‘I am going to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.’ " Mary of Magdala went and announced to the disciples, "I have seen the Lord," and what he told her.

John 20:19-20  On the evening of that first day of the week, when the doors were locked, where the disciples were, for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood in their midst and said to them, "Peace be with you." When he had said this, he showed them his hands and his side. The disciples rejoiced when they saw the Lord.

John 20:26-29  Now a week later his disciples were again inside and Thomas was with them. Jesus came, although the doors were locked, and stood in their midst and said, "Peace be with you." Then he said to Thomas, "Put your finger here and see my hands, and bring your hand and put it into my side, and do not be unbelieving, but believe." Thomas answered and said to him, "My Lord and my God!" Jesus said to him, "Have you come to believe because you have seen me? Blessed are those who have not seen and have believed."

Acts 20:6-12  We sailed from Philippi after the feast of Unleavened Bread, and rejoined them five days later in Troas, where we spent a week.

On the first day of the week when we gathered to break bread, Paul spoke to them because he was going to leave on the next day, and he kept on speaking until midnight. There were many lamps in the upstairs room where we were gathered, and a young man named Eutychus who was sitting on the window sill was sinking into a deep sleep as Paul talked on and on. Once overcome by sleep, he fell down from the third story and when he was picked up, he was dead. Paul went down, threw himself upon him, and said as he embraced him, "Don’t be alarmed; there is life in him." Then he returned upstairs, broke the bread, and ate; after a long conversation that lasted until daybreak, he departed. And they took the boy away alive and were immeasurably comforted.

1 Corinthians 15:58-16:4  Therefore, my beloved brothers, be firm, steadfast, always fully devoted to the work of the Lord, knowing that in the Lord your labor is not in vain.

Now in regard to the collection for the holy ones, you also should do as I ordered the churches of Galatia. On the first day of the week each of you should set aside and save whatever one can afford, so that collections will not be going on when I come. And when I arrive, I shall send those whom you have approved with letters of recommendation to take your gracious gift to Jerusalem. If it seems fitting that I should go also, they will go with me.

Revelation 1:9-11  I, John, your brother, who share with you the distress, the kingdom, and the endurance we have in Jesus, found myself on the island called Patmos because I proclaimed God’s word and gave testimony to Jesus. I was caught up in spirit on the Lord’s day and heard behind me a voice as loud as a trumpet, which said, "Write on a scroll what you see and send it to the seven churches: to Ephesus, Smyrna, Pergamum, Thyatira, Sardis, Philadelphia, and Laodicea."

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Ten Finger History:  Sunday

For an explanation of this historical grid memory see Chapter d21 Overview of the History of Liturgy

1. Apostolic [0-399] The Christians gather on the First Day of the Week, the day on which the Lord rose from the dead.  The Christians gather Sunday evening after work;  then they begin to gather Sunday morning before work.   The New Testament authors connect "the Lord's Day" and "the Lord's Supper".  About the year 100 the Sabbath is no longer observed.  

See Searle's First Vignette above:  THIRD CENTURY: A SMALL TOWN NEAR ROME

2. Patristic [400-799]  Constantine issued an edict in 321 CE forbidding the law courts to sit on Sunday.  Sunday in Rome now honors both the pagan Sun-God and the Christian's Christ.  Late 6the century, Sunday becomes a day of rest.  Multiplication of Masses. Council of Norbonne imposes punishments (6 pieces of gold or 100 lashes) on those who work on Sunday. Rise of monastic clergy leads to development of private Masses.  Theological problems arise with the "Christian Sabbath" .  Bishops speak in opposition. What then to do on this day? Idleness is the devil’s workshop!   Sabbath symbols and meanings begin to be used to interpret the theological meaning of Sunday. 

3. Early Medieval [800-1199]  Council of Elvira forbids all labor on Sunday.  Ember Days, Private Masses. Saints Days multiply.  Movement away from community continues: emphasis now begins to be placed on the eucharistic elements, not the gathering.  Eucharist no longer received in the hand; now normally received in mouth -- when it is received at all.  Reception of the Eucharist becomes rare. Easter Duty is established; one must receive at least once a year under pain of mortal sin.  Eucharist distributed before and after Mass.  European languages develop;  Mass remains in Latin; Latin becomes language of clergy and educated.  Private devotional prayers begin to be encouraged during Mass.  Devotions, Mystery Plays and Ritual Processions replace the gathering of the faithful around the Eucharistic table.

4. Medieval [1200-1299]  Cult of the Eucharist  outside of Mass develops (Benediction, visits to the tabernacle, etc).  The emphasis moves from the presence of Christ in the Assembly to the presence of Christ in the consecrated Bread.  Scholastics debate the moment when consecration occurs.  Benediction develops.  

5. Late Medieval [1300-1499]  Legalism overshadows worship.  Sunday evening Vespers and the new rite of Benediction.  Missing Mass begins to be seen as mortal sin.   The cult of the saints helps suppress Christological implications of Sunday.  Celebration of saints obscures meaning of Sunday.  In Medieval Europe, Sundays and feast days were the ONLY de facto rest days.  The multiplication of holiday days is the multiplication of days of rest for the peasants.  Feudal lords are, of course, opposed to holy days for they have to support their serfs who can’t work on those days = paid vacations. Consequently Holy days are multiplied.  But then we get so many holidays that the people can’t make a living! Out of concern for the poor the Church reduces the number of holy days.  Holy Thursday and Good Friday and Holy Saturday become work days, and the liturgies are moved to the morning before work. 

See Searle's Second Vignette  THIRTEENTH CENTURY: A VILLAGE IN ENGLAND

6. Reformation [1500-1699]  Fewer Holidays of obligation.   The Liturgical Calendar divided Sundays into "after Epiphany" and "after Pentecost."   Paul V initiates the Eucharistic fast beginning at midnight.  Printing press enables service books possible.   Pius IV "limits" saint’s feasts to 158.

7. After Trent [1700-1899]  Celebration of Saints obscures meaning of Sunday and the decline of emphasis on Christ continues.  Clement XIII says Preface of the Blessed Trinity is to be used on all Sunday Masses.   Cult of Saints continues growth.   There are 230 saints’ feasts in the liturgical calendar at the turn of the 20th  century.

See Searle's Third Vignette   SEVENTEENTH CENTURY: A NEW ENGLAND SETTLEMENT

8. Before Vatican II [1900-1959]   1903 Pius X:  Tra le sollecitudini. Odo Casel:  Mysteriengegenwart reintroduces the biblical notion of Anamnesis.  Dom Guéranger.  Lambert Beauduin. 1926 Oratre Fratres (now Worship) magazine founded. Virgil Michel.  Fasting rules become gradually relaxed in 1953 and 1957. "Holy Communion" and "Mass" are seen as separate things!  Distribution of Holy Communion begins when priest begins preparing gifts. In some places, Holy Communion is distributed all during Mass and afterwards, but Mass is not "interrupted" for distribution of the Eucharist.  Confessions heard during Mass so that one can leave the confessional and receive Communion without much time to commit more sins.   The 1917 Code of Canon Law says missing Sunday Mass is a mortal sin. Cult of Saints continues to grow;  there are 262 saints' feasts in the liturgical calendar in 1950. 

9.  Vatican II [1960-1975] The Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy, #102, 106.  Restore Sunday. Christ over saints.  Stated the eucharistic assembly is the specific characteristic of Sunday. No other activities in church during Mass times (e.g. can't hear confessions during Mass). Only receive eucharist which was consecrated at that Mass. Eucharistic fast: one hour before receiving communion. Debate eliminating obligatory nature of Sunday worship; feels it obscures the aspect of celebration. Cult of Saints reduced: only Solemnities or Feasts of the Lord could supplant ordinary Sunday Mass. Any themes on Sunday should be "loosely and flexibly conceived" to avoid obscuring Christological nature of day.   Fear Sunday no longer seen as first day of week:  International Organization of Standardization decreed that Sunday to be regarded as last day of week, effective July 1, 1976 (Many print calendars and computer calendars are arranged with Sunday as the last day of the week.)

By a tradition handed down from the apostles and having its origin from the very day of Christ’s resurrection, the Church celebrates the paschal mystery every eighth day, which, with good reason, bears the name of the Lord’s Day or Sunday. For on this day Christ’s faithful must gather together so that, by hearing the word of God and taking part in the eucharist, they may call to mind the passion, the resurrection and the glorification of the Lord Jesus and may thank God, who "has begotten them again unto a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead " (1 Pt 1:3). Hence the Lord’s day is the first holyday of all and should be proposed to the devotion of the faithful and taught to them in such a way that it may become in fact a day of joy and of freedom from work. Other celebrations, unless they be truly of greatest importance, shall not have precedence over the Sunday, the foundation and core of the whole liturgical year. (DOL 106)

10. After Vatican II [1975-2050]   The Roman Calendar.    Lectionary. n 66-68.  The 1983 Code of Canon Law, cc 1244-1248. CLSA (1985) Commentary, pp 853-854.   --  Publication of:  Sunday Celebrations in Anticipation of a Priest. 

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Naming the Days

The Jewish week: The Jews count the days: first day, second day, third day, sixth day or parascheve (preparation day) and Sabbath. The theology of the Sabbath is based on the account of creation in Genesis, in which we are told that God rested after finishing his work. The sabbath is above all a day of thanksgiving and prayer. The central idea of "sabbath rest" is the complete focusing of the mind and heart on God.

The Latin names for the days of the week are: Feria prima, Feria secunda, etc.

The Hellenistic week named the days of the week after the planets. The Hellenistic world accused the Jews of really being followers of Saturn, since they celebrated Saturday, while it accused Christians of being worshipers of the sun, because they celebrated Sunday. Meanwhile within the Christian community the leaders had to be on guard against the superstitions of the faithful who were at times inclined to overestimate the influence of the stars on their behavior. Christians choose "Lord’s Day" instead of "Sunday".

Christian names: The Lord’s Day. The First Day of the Week. The Eighth Day (that is, the day of the new creation. See 2 Peter 2:5 - Noah is the 8th man saved; the writers of the 4th century considered 8 to mean the resurrection. [ogdoad]. Sunday.

Days of the week and the planets which give them their names

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To Think About

 

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© Copyright: Tom Richstatter, Franciscan Province of St. John the Baptist, Cincinnati Ohio, Order of Friars Minor. All Rights Reserved.  This page was created by Fr. Thomas Richstatter, O.F.M.  Every effort has been, and is being made, to acknowledge sources when the ideas are not my own.  Any failure to comply with the United States Copyright Act (Title 17, United States Code) will be corrected immediately should I become aware of it.  This site was updated on 03/10/08 .  Your comments on this site are welcome at webmaster2@tomrichstatter.org.

Planet	English	French	Spanish	Italian	German
Sun	Sunday	dimanche	domingo	domenica	Sonntag
Moon	Monday	lundi	lunes	lunedi	Montag
Mars	Tuesday	mardi	martes	martedi	Dienstag
Mercury	Wednesday	mercredi	miércoles	mercoledi	Mittwoch
Jupiter	Thursday	judi	jueves	giovedi	Donnerstag
Venus	Friday	vendredi	viernes	venerdi	Fritag
Saturn	Saturday	samedi	sábado	sabato	Samstag

The Names in English

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Spirituality of the Seasons

[Reprinted from: Thomas Richstatter, O.F.M. "Spirituality of the Seasons: Sunday, the First Feast Day," St. Anthony Messenger, 102:9 (February, 1995) p 56.]

The feasts and seasons of the liturgical year are one of our most precious Christian treasures. The key which can help us unlock this treasure is Sunday. Sunday is the original Christian feast day. Sunday is "the first holy day of all, ... the foundation and core of the whole liturgical year." (Constitution on the Liturgy, 106)

Sunday–the day to go shopping, the day to watch football, the day to sleep late, the day we have to go to Church–Sunday can mean a lot of different things. But before we get too distracted by our attitudes toward Sunday, or by what we do on Sunday, let’s take a look at what Sunday is in itself. What makes Sunday "the first holy day of all"?

The system we use for naming the days of the week is based on the seven planets of antiquity: the sun, the moon, etc. (Sunday, Monday, etc.) The Jewish system known to Jesus and the first disciples simply numbered the days of the week: the first day, the second day, etc. They named only the seventh day, Sabbath, (and its eve, parasceve or preparation day). When the planetary system was "Christianized" the first day of the week, the Sun’s Day, was renamed the Lord’s Day and Sunday became dies domicalis (Dominus = Lord) in Latin, domenica in Italian, dimanche in French, domingo in Spanish, etc. But whether we call it Sunday, the Lord’s Day, or the first day of the week, this day is important for us because this is the day God chose to transform the history of the world: it is the day of Resurrection!

Each of the four Gospels mentions explicitly that the Resurrection took place on the day we call Sunday. "After the Sabbath, as the first day of the week was dawning, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary came to see the tomb." (Matthew 28:1) "Very early when the sun had risen, on the first day of the week, they came to the tomb." (Mark 16:2) "But at daybreak on the first day of the week they took the spices they had prepared and went to the tomb." (Luke 24:1) "On the first day of the week, Mary of Magdala came to the tomb early in the morning, while it was still dark, and saw the stone removed from the tomb." (John 20:1)

Why is Sunday "the foundation and core of the whole liturgical year?" Because it is the day of the Resurrection and "the Resurrection of Jesus is the crowning truth of our faith." (Catechism of the Catholic Church, 638) As the Resurrection is the center of our Faith, Sunday–the day of the Resurrection–is the center of the Liturgical Year. In large part, the way we view Sunday will be colored by the way we view the Resurrection!

"Do you believe in the Resurrection?" Any Christian will answer "yes" to that question without hesitation. But what if we ask "Do you believe in the Resurrection, not only as a historical event, but as happening NOW? (We observed in this column last month that the liturgical year does not merely remember past events but makes them present.) The Resurrection is more than a historical event, "it remains at the very heart of the mystery of faith as something that transcends and surpasses history." (CCC 647)

What does it mean to believe that the Resurrection is NOW? I have a friend who hates movies that don’t end happily. When renting a movie for his VCR, he will first fast forward to check out the ending so that he won’t waste time watching a movie that he is not going to like! You may think this a silly way to watch movies, but I find it a good analogy for what God does for us in the Resurrection. The Resurrection is our proof that life has a "happy ending."

There are times when life can be discouraging and the world disappointing. There are times when I look around me and see so much sin and pain, dysfunction and darkness, that I am tempted to wonder if Death isn’t actually winning the battle! But in the midst of oppression, poverty, pain, and injustice the Resurrection is God’s great cry of triumph! The Resurrection is the vindication of the life and death of Jesus of Nazareth. The Resurrection is our assurance that God is in charge. Sin and evil have been definitively conquered. The story has a glorious ending. We are people of HOPE for we have nothing to fear, not even death itself. "Where, O death, is your victory? Where, O death, is your sting?" (1 Corinthians 15:55)

The Resurrection is a universal event. The "happy ending" extends to all creation. Consequently we celebrate the Resurrection not only in our hearts and in our homes but we go out and join with others and all creation to proclaim that the Lord is risen. Sunday is first of all a day of assembly, a day of gathering for worship. Even before Sunday became a day of rest (at first it was an ordinary work day like the other days of the week), Sunday was the day to come together and to proclaim the death and resurrection of the Lord in the Breaking of the Bread, the day for Eucharist. We follow the example of the two disciples from Emmaus who, on the first day of the week when they came to know the Resurrection in the Breaking of the Bread, "set out at once and returned to Jerusalem" to share this Good News with the other disciples. (Luke 24:13-35)

The Sunday assembly for Eucharist is at the very heart of the meaning of Sunday. Speaking of Sunday, the Catechism of the Catholic Church states: "The Lord’s Supper is its center, for there the whole community of the faithful encounters the risen Lord who invites them to his banquet." (CCC 1166) As we sit at the Eucharistic table with Jesus and with the disciples and with all those who have believed in the Resurrection throughout the ages past and the ages to come, past-present-future all become one. We eat the flesh of the one who died in the past and taste the future banquet of heaven. We sing of our confidence in Life: "Dying you destroyed our death, rising you restored our life." We sing of our freedom: "By your cross and resurrection you have set us free!" (Eucharistic acclamations) We sing of our strength in the face of evil for in Christ we have "tasted the good word of God and the powers of the age to come." (Hebrews 6:5) The Resurrection makes Sunday the first of all Christian feasts.

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To Think About

What are the theological differences between the Jewish Sabbath and the Christian Sunday.

Give a history of the relation between abstinence from work and the celebration of the Christian Sunday.

What do the Christian Scriptures say about what we call "Sunday"?

What are the major obstacles to the celebration of Sunday in today’s parish?  The contemporary weekend customs; e.g. sports, travel.

What is the theological difference between remembering the mysteries of the Christian Liturgical Year and a mere historical recalling of the event celebrated?

If the assembly of Christians is to gather on Sunday, what happened to the centrality of one Eucharist = one Assembly? Where has convenience crept in?

To what extent are Catholics catechized regarding the importance of Sunday? Beyond that of mere legal obligation?

If making Christ present in the Word and the eucharist makes a day Sunday, how do we keep weekday Masses from making everyday Sunday?

Does Sunday obligation take away from the joyous celebration?

Does the Saturday evening anticipatory mass distract from the uniqueness of the Sunday liturgy?  Some Catholics go to Saturday evening Mass and have no religious observance on Sunday.  For many people Sunday is a work day. Factory workers, farmers, hospital workers, airline personnel, etc -- and especially Priests and Liturgical Ministers.

Interruption of the Sunday readings for special "themes" and "collections" without any regard for the integrity of the Lectionary; e.g. Mission Sunday, Vocation Sunday, Right to Life Sunday, Catholic University Sunday,

Sunday should be set apart for a day of more complete focusing of the mind and heart on God, rather than a prohibition against all work.

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© Copyright: Tom Richstatter, Franciscan Province of St. John the Baptist, Cincinnati Ohio, Order of Friars Minor. All Rights Reserved.  This page was created by Fr. Thomas Richstatter, O.F.M.  Every effort has been, and is being made, to acknowledge sources when the ideas are not my own.  Any failure to comply with the United States Copyright Act (Title 17, United States Code) will be corrected immediately should I become aware of it.  This site was updated on 03/10/08 .  Your comments on this site are welcome at webmaster2@tomrichstatter.org.