Chapter LXII: Part II: SPECIAL MORAL THEOLOGY (Continued) (25)

2566. Modest Behavior or Decorum.--(a) The Virtue.--The movements and gestures of the body should be regulated by reason, both because they are indications of one’s own character and disposition, and because they express one’s disposition towards those with whom one lives. Hence, they are not a matter of indifference, but reason demands that they be suitable both to oneself (i.e., to one’s sex, age, position, etc.) and to one’s neighbor (i.e., to the requirements of good social usage in each business or affair of life). Thus, virtuous decorum employs both sincerity, which makes one honestly respectful in act (2403), and affability, which makes one agreeable in the company of others (2421). That this is an important virtue for individuals and society is declared both by sacred and human authority. Ecclesiasticus (xix. 26, 27) calls attention to the importance for himself of a man’s looks, laughter and gait; St. Augustine says that there should be nothing offensive to others in one’s movements; and Aristotle mentions among the qualities of the high-minded man that he is sedate and dignified in demeanor.

(b) The Opposite Vices.--Modest behavior is offended by various vices of excess and defect. Thus, sincerity is offended by bluntness and affectation, self-respect by stiffness and servility, and consideration for others by flattery and rudeness.

2567. Modest Relaxation.--(a) The Virtue.--Just as the body fatigued by manual labor demands the refreshment of sleep and the recuperation afforded by vacations or by intermissions of work, so also the mind cannot be healthy or active unless from time to time it is relieved by some kind of amusement or diversion. The desire for recreation is, therefore, one of the chief inclinations of man, and there is special need of its temperate management by right reason. The person who prudently provides for pastimes and pleasures as a part of his life has the virtue which Aristotle called eutrapelia (good wit, urbanity), and which St. Thomas named gaiety or pleasantness.

(b) The Sin of Excess.--Relaxation is excessive in various ways. Sometimes the entertainment itself is improper (e.g., obscene comedies, scandalous dances, unjust games of chance). Sometimes the disposition of the person himself is sinful (e.g., those who make recreation the chief occupation of life, Wis., xv. 12; those who recreate only for pleasure, or who enjoy themselves uproariously). Sometimes the circumstances make an amusement unsuitable, such as the person (e.g., when a man of dignity belittles himself by acting as clown, when a female takes part in sports unsuited to her sex), or the time (e.g., when the hours that should be given to divine services, or to study or other Work, are spent in golfing or fishing; when Good Friday or a day of bereavement or penance is chosen for a ball or picnic), or the place (eg, when a church is used for sports or farces), or the quality (e.g., when the Scriptures or other sacred things are caricatured or parodied), or the quantity (e.g., when one spends so much on theatres, automobiles, trips and other enjoyments that one has nothing left for duties of justice, charity or religion; when health is injured by violent games).

(b) The Sin of Defect.--Those persons offend here who deprive themselves of necessary relaxation (e.g., misers who fear to take a holiday or go on an outing lest they lose some money), or who interfere with the recreation of others (e.g., killjoys who wish to see others miserable, fanatics who believe that all fun is of the devil). Those who have little sense of humor or who suffer much may be excused to some extent if they never laugh, but at least they should try to look pleasant at times, or at least not frown on innocent happiness.

2568. Gravity of the Sins Opposed to Moderate Enjoyment.--(a) The Absolute Gravity.--The sins just mentioned are mortal or venial according to the character of what is done and the circumstances. Thus, it is a mortal sin to find recreation in wild revelry and debauchery, or to drive one’s children to the devil by forbidding them necessary diversion; it is a venial sin to spend a little too much time at the card table or to work rather too hard.

(b) The Comparative Gravity.--It is worse to relax too much than too little, for amusement is not taken for its own sake, but is subordinated to serious things. Just as it is more senseless to take too much salt or other relish in food than to take too little, because the salt is secondary, so it is more foolish to play too much than too little.

2569. Modesty in Style of Living and Dress.-(a) The Virtue.--External goods, such as dwellings and clothing, are necessary for body and soul, as a protection to health and decency; others, such as furnishings, decorations, ornaments, cars, radios, entertainments for guests, etc., are useful for convenience, beauty and the maintenance of one’s station. But one may be immoderate in the use of these goods, and hence there is need of a virtue to regulate their use, so that it may truthfully be in keeping with one’s position and be not offensive to others.

(b) The Sin of Excess.--This is committed when one’s style is extravagant according to the standards of the community, or when like Dives, clothed in purple and fine linen, one aims only at display or sensual gratification, or when one is too much preoccupied with externals (e.g., when too much time is spent before the mirror or too much money at the dressmaker’s). Dignitaries and the ministers of the altar are not guilty of excess in the pomp and splendor which the Church sanctions, since the honor is intended for their station and the divine worship they perform.

(c) The Sin of Defect.--This is committed when one’s mode of life is not up to the reasonable standard of one’s community, especially if this is due to negligence or itch for notoriety or disregard for decency. Examples are those who through carelessness go about unwashed or unshaven, who keep their quarters in a filthy and disorderly state, or who wear their clothing untidily; also females who dress in male attire, nudists who appear undressed in public places, and cynics who scorn the conventions of refined society. It is not sinful, however, but a virtuous act of temperance, to wear simpler and poorer garments from the spirit of mortification and humility (Heb., xi. 37). The clergy and religious, since they should be models of the penitential spirit, are to be praised, therefore, when they give an example of plainness and simplicity in personal style and dress.

2570. Morality of Self-Beautification.--Is it wrong to beautify oneself in order to improve one’s looks or to win admiration?

(a) In itself there is no harm, especially for females, in using means to improve one’s looks, such as remedies for deformities, facial paints, powders and cosmetics, hair waves and dyes, and the like. But accidentally there could be sin (e.g., deception). A poor man would be a deceiver if he lived in great style to make a woman believe he was wealthy, and likewise a woman would be a deceiver if she used an artificial beauty to deceive a man about her age (see 2404).

(b) In itself also it is not sinful to desire that others approve one’s appearance and dress. Thus, a wife should strive to be attractive to her husband (I Cor., vii. 34), and modest ornamentation may be used to win a suitor (I Tim., ii. 9). It is mortally sinful, however, to attire oneself with the purpose or in a manner to arouse carnal temptation or to awaken sinful desire in others--for example, if one wishes to capture the sex love of others without marriage (Prov., vii. 10); it is venially sinful to groom oneself well from mere vanity, that is, from a silly ambition to be regarded as handsome and fashionable. By a Decree of the Sacred Congregation of the Council (January 12, 1930), parish-priests, parents, and teachers are admonished to oppose indecent female dress; and it is ordered that women and girls improperly dressed shall be excluded from Communion or even from church, and special services and sermons on decency are prescribed for December 8 of each year (see 1456, 1457).

2571. Complements of the Virtue of Temperance.--(a) The Gift of the Holy Ghost that perfects temperance is fear of the Lord. The virtue of temperance makes one abstain from unlawful pleasures because to do so is reasonable; fear of the Lord inclines one to the same abstinence from reverence. The Gift of Fear looks first to the greatness of the Heavenly Father, before whom the nations are as a drop in the bucket and are counted as the smallest grain of the balance and the islands as but a little dust (Is., xl. 15); and in this respect it represses presumption and serves the virtue of hope (see 1041 sqq.). But secondarily it looks to the insignificance of every delight that is apart from God, and sees that these inferior joys are passing, insipid and bitter, like dust blown away by the wind, like a thin froth dispersed by the storm, like smoke scattered by the breeze (Wis., v. 15), like a sweet poison that turns to gall and destroys (Job, xx. 12 sqq.); and in this respect fear of God sustains temperance, which must regulate the cravings of the flesh and lower appetites. Fear of God, then, makes one fly from those things which chiefly allure one to offend Him, and hence the Psalmist (Ps. cxviii. 120) prays: “Pierce Thou my flesh with Thy fear.”

(b) The Beatitude that corresponds to the present Gift is the second: “Blessed are they that mourn, for they shall be comforted.” Those who have the fear of God perceive the true nature of illicit joys and the evil end that awaits those who chase after them. They prefer, then, to be sorrowful, that is, to deprive themselves of every wicked pleasure and love for the sake of the love of God in this life and the enjoyment of God in the life to come: “Your sorrow shall be changed into joy” (John, xx. 16).

(c) The fruits of fear of the Lord are modesty, continency and chastity. Like a good tree that produces a rich harvest of delightful fruits, filial reverence for God brings forth acts of virtue that have in them a delicious savor more enjoyable and more lasting than the fruits of the flesh. These goodly and pleasant fruits of the spirit of fear of God are modesty in words, deeds and external things, continency of the single and chastity of the married in thoughts and desires.

2572. The Commandments of Temperance.--(a) Negative Precepts.--In the Decalogue the vices of intemperance that are most directly opposed to the love of God and the neighbor (I Tim., i. 5) are expressly forbidden, namely, adultery in act and adultery in desire. Elsewhere other sins are forbidden. Thus, drunkenness (“Drunkards shall not possess the kingdom,” I Cor., vi. 10), every kind of lust (“The works of the flesh are fornication, uncleanness, immodesty, luxury ... those who do such things shall not obtain the kingdom,” Gal., v. 19, 21), anger (“Let all bitterness and anger and indignation be put away from you,” Eph., iv. 31), pride (“God resisteth the proud,” James, iv. 6), etc.

(b) Affirmative Precepts.--The positive modes of observing temperance (i.e., rules on fasting) are not prescribed in the Decalogue. For the law confines itself to general principles that, are of universal application, whereas the manner of practising fasts and abstinences has to be suited to conditions of time and place. Hence, it pertains to the Church to settle by her legislation the details of mortification in eating and drinking, so that they may be suited to the ever-changing conditions of human life (2469).

Question III

THE DUTIES OF PARTICULAR CLASSES OF MEN

2573. The theological and moral virtues treated in the previous Question are obligatory upon all states and conditions, for all men have the same supernatural destiny, and all alike are bound to govern their acts and their passions by the rule of reason. But not all have the same calling or office, or consequently the same particular ends to be striven for or the same special means to be used; wherefore, there are moral duties proper to particular classes and particular ways of life. Those special obligations, however, do not constitute new virtues, but are applications of the seven general virtues to the states of man diversified in reference to the acts and habits of the soul. The diversities now spoken of may be reduced to the three mentioned by St. Paul (I Cor., xii. 4 sqq.), namely, diversities of graces (i.e., some are gifted to edify the Church in marvellous ways by knowledge, speech or miracles), diversities of operations (i.e., some are called to the life of contemplation, others to active life), and diversities of ministries (i.e., there are various stations, ranks, occupations, both in ecclesiastical and non-ecclesiastical life). The higher graces and ways of the spiritual life of man are treated in works of ascetical and mystical theology, and we shall confine ourselves here to two subjects: (a) the duties of men as members of the Church, that is, the general duties of the faithful and the special duties of clerics and religious; (b) the duties of men as members of domestic and civil society.

Before proceeding any further, a word is in order regarding the role of the laity in the Church.

“We desire that all who claim the Church as their mother should seriously consider that not only the sacred ministers and those who have consecrated themselves to God in religious life, but the other members as well of the Mystical Body of Jesus Christ, have the obligation of working hard and constantly for the upbuilding and increase of this Body” (Pius XII, _Mystici Corporis_).

The Catholic layman, long a silent partner in the Church’s apostolate, has assumed a more active part in recent years. His role, his apostolate, his milieu, his special claims to divine graces, his spiritual prerogatives--all have been made subjects of theological investigation particularly by European writers. Controversy, uncertainty, at times even error have characterized their efforts as they grope their way in a new area of theology. Their efforts ultimately will lead to the elaboration of a developed theology of the laity, an extremely important and equally necessary body of knowledge, for “the laity are in the front line of the Church’s life; through them the Church is the vital principle of human society. Accordingly they especially must have an ever clearer consciousness not only of belonging to the Church, but of being the Church....” (Pius XII, _Allocution to the Sacred College, AAS_, 38-149).[1]

[1] To detail the advances made in this new area of theology would demand a volume for itself. We shall have to be content with indicating a select bibliography of the outstanding works available.

Francis M. Keating, S.J., “Theology of the Laity,” _Proceedings of the Catholic Theological Society of America_, 1956, pp. 196 ff.; Ives M. J. Congar, O.P., _Jalons pour une theologie du laicat_, (Paris, Cerf, 1953); translated as _Lay People in the Church_, (The Newman Press, Westminster, Md., 1957); G. Philips, _Le role du laicat dans l’Eglise, (Casterman, Tournai-Paris, 1954); translated as _The Role of the Laity in the Church_. (Mercier, Cork, 1955); Karl Rahner, “The Apostolate of Laymen,” _Theology Digest_, (Spring 1957), pp. 73 ff.; Jacques Leclercq, “Can a Layman be a Saint?” _Theology Digest_, (Winter 1956), pp. 3 ff. (This same issue contains a select bibliography on spirituality of the laity, p. 8.); Paul Dabin, S.J., _Le sacerdoce royal des fideles dans les livres saints_, (Blond et Gay, 1941); _Le sacerdoce royal des fideles dans la tradition ancienne et moderne_, (Les Editions Universelles, Brussels, 1950): Gustave Weigel, S.J., “The Body of Christ and the City of God,” _Social Order_, (Vol. 5, 1955, p. 275 ff.).

Art. 1: THE DUTIES OF MEMBERS OF THE CHURCH

2574. The General Duties of the Faithful.--The Church has the power to make laws which will promote the common good of the whole body and the individual good of the members (see 418). Chief among the laws that bind the faithful in general are the six known as the Precepts of the Church, namely, the laws on the observance of Sundays and holydays, on fasting and abstinence, on yearly confession, on Easter Communion, on the support of pastors, and on marriage.

2575. The First Precept of the Church.--This precept commands that on Sundays and holydays of obligation Mass be heard and servile and other like works be omitted (Canons 1247-1249) by the subjects of church laws (427 sqq.).

(a) This precept is of natural and divine law as to its purpose and substance, for reason teaches and the Third Commandment of the Decalogue prescribes that man set aside some time for the external worship of God, and avoid those things that distract him from worship (Catechism of the Council of Trent, pp. 396 sqq,). Hence, even non-Catholics, though they do not sin by missing Mass (429, 430), are guilty of sin if they do not from time to time worship God externally.

(b) This precept is of ecclesiastical law only as to its details (i.e., the time set apart and the manner of worship and sanctification decreed). The Old Testament Law observed the Sabbath or last day of the Week in memory of the creation of the World, and it abstained most rigorously from work on the Sabbath, because there was a divine prohibition and because this rest was a figure of things to come. But in the New Law the ceremonial precepts of Judaism no longer have force, and the Christian precepts substituted for them were not instituted by Christ Himself but arose from the custom of the Church. During the lifetime of the Apostles themselves Sunday (or the first day of the week) came to be venerated as the Lord’s Day in memory of the Resurrection, which completed the work of Redemption (Acts, ii. 46, iii. 1, v. 12, xxi. 26); and from early times various special holydays were appointed and made days of obligatory worship, as had been the case with certain feasts in the Old Testament. As early as the third and fourth centuries laws were made confirming the primitive customs of assisting at Mass and resting on Sundays and holydays.

2576. The Affirmative and Negative Parts of the First Precept.--The first precept of the Church has two parts, an affirmative (preceptive) part which commands the hearing of Mass, and a negative (prohibitive) part which forbids the doing of servile works. The law is therefore most salutary and simple, requiring that one take part in the greatest act of worship, the sacrifice which is a commemoration of Christ, and that one rest from the labors and cares of the week and be spiritually refreshed. In reference to the Mass, the precept requires that Mass itself be heard, and that it be an entire Mass and the same Mass.

(a) Thus, Mass itself must be heard, and hence one does not satisfy the Sunday obligation by attending other services that precede (e.g., the Asperges, blessing of palm), accompany (e.g., sermon), or follow (e.g., Vespers, Benediction) the celebration of Mass. Neither does this precept oblige one to attend other services on Sunday, although it is most suitable to do this, also to make internal acts of faith, hope and charity, and to read pious books and perform works of charity, and it is sometimes necessary as a natural obligation to attend the sermon or catechetical instruction (see 914 sqq.).

(b) A whole Mass must be heard, that is, all the ceremonies from the prayers at the foot of the altar until the blessing at the end, and it is irreverent to leave church without necessity before the priest has left the altar. He who can assist at only the essential and integral parts of the sacrifice (i.e., from the Consecration to the Communion), is obliged to so much; but he who arrives after the Consecration and cannot hear another Mass is not obliged according to one opinion to remain for the present Mass, since the Consecration, the essential part, is already past.

(c) The same Mass must be heard, and hence one cannot satisfy the obligation by hearing the first half of one Mass being said on one altar and the second half of another Mass being said simultaneously on another altar (see Denzinger, n. 1203), nor by hearing the Consecration in one Mass and the Communion in a previous or subsequent Mass, thus dividing the sacrifice. But if one may have heard from the Consecration to the end in one Mass, one may hear the omitted pre-Consecration parts, it seems, in another Mass that follows, and one should do this if possible.

2577. How Mass Must Be Heard.--In reference to the person who hears Mass, the positive part of the precept calls for external assistance and internal devotion.

(a) Thus, the external or bodily assistance must be such that one can be said to take part in the divine worship. This happens when one is physically present, that is, when one is in the same building or place as the celebrant and can either see or hear him, or is morally present, that is, not in the same building but able to see or hear him naturally (e.g., by looking from the window of a neighboring house), or is unable to see or hear him but joined with the congregation (e.g., those who are outside the closed doors of the church but who can follow the bells and choir to some extent, those who are inside with the congregation but behind a pillar that shuts off the view). In a field Mass amplifiers can carry the voice far out to the edge of a vast crowd. But there does not seem to be a sufficient moral presence when Mass is “seen” by television or “heard” over the radio, since in these cases one is not present to the consecrated species or united to the worshippers.

(b) Internal or mental assistance requires the actual or virtual intention of the will to perform what the Church requires (see 2165), and the attention of the mind, external according to some, internal according to others (see 2166 sqq.). Thus, he who goes to church merely to hear the music or look at the pictures does not hear Mass for lack of intention; he who sleeps soundly all through the service does not hear Mass for lack of attention. One who knows what is going on before him, but whose thoughts are not on any religious matter, complies with the precept of the Church according to some, but he sins by irreverence and voluntary distraction. It suffices during Mass to think either on the Mass itself (which is the best attention), or to think on other pious subjects (e.g., to make an examination of conscience, to say the Rosary). Certain actions (e.g., those that are related to the Mass, such as ringing the bell, taking up the collection, playing the organ) do not exclude external attention, but others certainly exclude it (e.g., writing a letter), and others are doubtful (e.g., going to Confession).

2578. Time and Place of Mass.--In reference to circumstances, the precept requires that Mass be heard at the proper place and the proper time.

(a) Place.--The precept may be complied with by attending Mass in any Catholic rite (Latin, Greek, etc.), and it makes no difference whether Mass is celebrated in the open air, in a church, or in a public or semi-public oratory (Canon 1249). But private chapels are for the benefit of the grantee alone.

(b) Time.--The precept must be complied with on the feast itself, that is, during the period of twenty-four hours from midnight to midnight. Sunday Mass cannot be anticipated on Saturday or put off till Monday. Likewise servile works are unlawful from midnight to midnight.

2579. Servile Works.--The prohibitory part of the precept is concerned with servile works, that is, labor of a kind that tends to make one unfit for devotion or that shows disrespect for the sacredness of the day, even though the labor be done gratis, or for recreation, or out of devotion. Hence, the law forbids:

(a) works given to the service of the devil, that is, sins that deprive one of holiness, such as riotous recreations, gambling, drunkenness, reading improper matter, and attendance at evil movie performances. But these works are opposed to the end, not to the text, of the law; and hence the circumstance of time aggravates their malice but does not give them a new species (see 2314);

(b) works given to the service of the body (servile works properly so called) or to the service of external goods (forensic and commercial works). Servile works in the strict sense cause bodily fatigue and are taken up with material things, and hence they distract the mind from religious thoughts. Such are manual labors (e.g., plowing, digging, housecleaning) and mechanical or industrial labors (e.g., printing, building, plastering, shoemaking). Forensic and commercial labors (e.g., arguing in court, auctioneering) are also of a very worldly kind and unsuitable for the quiet and recollection of Sundays and holydays.

2580. The prohibitory part of the Sunday precept does not affect works which are no impediment to devotion and which cast no dishonor on the day. Such are:

(a) works devoted immediately to the service of God. The purpose of the law is to allow leisure for these works, and hence manifestly their performance is not forbidden. Such works are saying Mass, preaching, administering the Sacraments, singing in church, and visiting the poor and sick (John, vii. 23; Matt., xii. 5). But works that are only remotely related to divine worship (e.g., cleaning the church, painting the altar, repairing the vestments, decorating the shrines) should not be done on Sunday without necessity;

(b) works devoted to the service of the mind (liberal works). These works are of a more elevated kind, do not require great bodily exertion, and are not looked upon as unsuitable to the Sabbath. Such are intellectual works (e.g., teaching, reading, writing, studying), artistic works (e.g., playing the organ, singing, drawing, painting a picture, embroidering), and works of recreation (moderate sports or diversions such as baseball, tennis, and chess).

2581. Other Kinds of Works and Sunday Observance.--(a) Common works are those that stand between the liberal and the servile, since they are exercised equally by mind and body, such as walking, riding, hunting, and fishing that is not very laborious. These are lawful.

(b) Doubtful works are those that are now non-servile, now servile, according to the manner in which they are conducted, such as the work of painters, sculptors, typists, seamstresses, and photographers. Thus, it is a liberal work to paint a portrait, a servile work to paint the walls of a house. In settling the character of various kinds of work, one must be guided by the prudent opinion of one’s locality, and in case of doubt and need must seek a dispensation. (For a history of the theology of servile works see Franz X. Pettirsch, S.J., “A Theology of Sunday Rest,” _Theology Digest_, Vol. VI, no. 2, Spring 1958, pp. 114 ff.; for a survey of modern studies on the problem see _Proceedings of the Catholic Theological Society of America_, 1957).

2582. Is it lawful without necessity to hire the servile work of non-Catholics on Sunday, if these persons are not thereby impeded from the natural duty of worshipping God and no scandal is given? (a) If the non-Catholics are infidels and not bound by church laws, this is lawful. The same would be true of those who lack the use of reason (see 427 sqq.). (b) If the non-Catholics are heretics, it is not lawful in the case given to make them work on Sunday.

2583. Obligation of First Precept.--The first precept of the Church obliges under pain of grave sin, because it determines a necessary act of religion (2148), and experience shows that where the Sabbath is neglected the social, spiritual and physical interests of man are seriously harmed (see Denzinger, n. 1202). There is always hope for Catholics who attend Mass, whereas those who miss Mass soon become Catholics only in name. But since neglect of worship may be only slightly disrespectful, and since the end of the precept may be substantially obtained without complete fulfillment, a transgression may be only venial by reason of lightness of matter.

(a) Preceptive Part.--Grave matter is a part of the Mass that is notable on account of dignity (i.e., the essential and integral parts of the Mass, for example, the Consecration and Communion), or on account of its duration (i.e., a third of the whole Mass, e.g., from the beginning to the Offertory inclusively, from the beginning to the Gospel and from the Communion to the end, from the Preface to the Consecration, from the Consecration to the Agnus Dei, etc.). Hence, he who is culpably absent or asleep during a notable part of the Mass sins gravely, but he who is absent or asleep during an inconsiderable part of the Mass (e.g., one who arrives just at the Offertory or who leaves after the Communion) sins venially, unless he is so disposed that he does not care how much he misses.

(b) Prohibitive Part.--Grave matter is labor that is notable on account of its quality (e.g., forensic proceedings even for a brief space on Sunday would be a serious distraction and scandal), or its quantity (e.g., two and a half hours given to very exhausting manual work, such as digging a ditch, three hours given to less arduous labor, such as sowing). He who commands ten laborers to work an hour each on Sunday cooperates in ten venial sins (see 219), but he may be guilty of mortal sin on account of scandal.

2584. Excuses from Observance of First Precept.--These reasons may be reduced to two classes, namely, external reasons (i.e., a dispensation or a lawful custom) and internal reasons (i.e., one’s own inability or necessity).

(a) External Reasons.--Dispensations may be given under certain conditions by local Ordinaries, by parish-priests, and by superiors of exempt clerical institutes (Canon 1245). Custom in certain places excuses from Mass for a month women who have just given birth to a child or who have lost their husband by death, and also--from the Mass in which their banns are to be proclaimed--those women who are about to marry. Custom further permits necessary labors, such as cooking, ordinary housecleaning, barbering, the work of railroad and garage men, etc.

(b) Internal Reasons.--Impossibility or serious inconvenience excuses from hearing Mass (e.g., those who have to walk an hour’s journey to church or ride a two hours’ journey, regarding which, in terms of distance travelled, it has been suggested that the figures should be more than three miles each way if one must walk, more than thirty miles if a car is available and the roads are good; those who will suffer great detriment to health, honor, fortune, etc., if they go; those who are kept away by duties of charity or employment or office that cannot be omitted). Necessity or duty to others permits one to work on Sunday at least to some extent (e.g., those who must labor on a Sunday in order to live, or to keep out of serious trouble, or to perform services or works of charity that cannot easily be done at another time). To avoid self-deception the faithful should consult their pastor or other prudent person if there is doubt about the sufficiency of the excuse.

2585. Though the Church does not impose excessive Sabbatarianism, neither does she admit laxity in the important matter of the Lord’s Day.

(a) Hence, not every reason excuses from the church precept. Thus, those are guilty who unnecessarily place themselves in the impossibility of observing the law (e.g., by moving to a place where there is no church, by taking a position that requires work all Sunday morning, by starting on a vacation or auto trip to a churchless region), or whose excuses are frivolous (e.g., those who stay away from Mass because they dislike the priest, or who work on Sunday merely to keep busy).

(b) Reasons that excuse from part of the ecclesiastical precept do not excuse from all of it. Thus, those who are unable to hear Mass are not thereby justified in doing servile work, those who can hear the essential part of Mass (Consecration and Communion), but not the other parts, should hear the essential part; those who can hear Mass only on one Sunday a year are not excused on that Sunday.

(c) Reasons that excuse from the ecclesiastical precept do not excuse from the divine precept (see 2575) of worshipping God. Hence, those who are really obliged to work every Sunday should sanctify the Lord’s Day by whatever private prayer or devotion they can substitute. Some authors very rightly believe that those who can never go to Mass on Sunday are held by divine law to hear Mass on weekdays three or four times a year at least, when this is possible (see 2148, 2180).

2586. The Second Precept of the Church.--This precept commands that on all Fridays of the year and certain other specified days (unless they fall on a holyday outside of Lent) every baptized person who has completed the age of seven and has attained the use of reason shall abstain from eating flesh meat and from drinking the broth or soup made from flesh meat (Canons 1250-1254).

(a) Under the name flesh are included all land and warm-blooded animals (i.e., mammals and birds). The law does not include aquatic animals (i.e., fishes, clams, oysters and other shellfish, lobsters, shrimps, crabs and other crustaceans), nor cold-blooded animals (i.e., reptiles, snails and amphibians, such as frogs, tortoises). Some authors include under aquatic animals otters, beavers, seals, walruses, loons, and coots, though generally the birds are regarded as flesh. In doubt whether a food is fish or flesh, it may be judged to be fish, for in doubts laws are to be interpreted benignly.

(b) Under the name meat are included all the parts of an animal (i.e., its flesh, blood, marrow, brains, lard, meat extracts, mince-pie, pepsin) but not its fruit (e.g., eggs, milk, and things made from milk, such as butter, cheese).

(c) Under the name broth is included any liquid made from the juice of meat, such as beef tea, chicken broth, mutton soup, gravy, etc. But the law does not forbid condiments made from animal fats (e.g., margarin).

2587. Obligation of the Second Precept of the Church.--(a) Origin of the Obligation.--In substance this precept is of the natural law, but in details (time, manner, etc.) it is of ecclesiastical law (2468 b) and has come down from customs that began in the first ages of Christianity. The church regulation on abstinence is most wise and moderate: the foods forbidden are those whose deprivation is a mortification to most persons, and at the same time a great benefit to spiritual and bodily health; the times appointed are few but appropriate (viz., days of sorrow, special prayer, penance, preparation, such as Fridays, Ember Days, Lent, vigils), and they are so distributed as to sanctify by mortification each week and each season of the year. True, no food is evil in itself (Matt., xv. 11; I Cor., viii, 8; I Tim., iv. 3; Col., ii. 16), but just as the physician can forbid certain foods to his patient for the sake of temporal good, so for the sake of spiritual good God forbade to Adam the fruit of one tree and to the Jews the flesh of certain animals; and the Church from the days of the Apostles (Acts, xv. 29) has exercised the same right.

(b) Gravity of the Obligation.--The abstinence required by the Second Precept is a grave duty, because the Church makes it the necessary act of the necessary virtue of abstemiousness and a serious duty of obedience. But not every transgression is a serious injury to the spirit of this law, and hence some sins against it are venial. Grave matter is such a quantity of forbidden food as gives considerable nourishment, and hence for practical purposes the rule may be given that flesh meat which weighs two ounces (or, according to others, what would be the size of a walnut or of a small hen’s egg) is grave matter. Some hold for a more liberal interpretation when the food is not strictly flesh meat, and believe that liquid from meat is not grave matter at any time, or at least when it weighs less than four ounces. Vegetables cooked or seasoned with meat or meat juice are also considered light matter. He who eats meat twice on a Friday or other abstinence day commits two sins, just as he who works twice on a Sunday or holyday commits two sins. It is commonly held that many venial sins against abstinence committed on the same day coalesce to form grave matter, but on account of the separation between the eatings a larger amount is necessary for grave matter.

(c) Exceptions to the Obligation.--Those are not bound to observe a day of abstinence who have been exempted by indult (Canon 1253), who have been dispensed by the Ordinary, pastor or superior (Canon 1245), or who are excused on account of real impossibility (e.g., the poor, the sick, those obliged to perform very hard work, those who are morally forced to eat meat but not as a sign of contempt of the law). Persons dispensed from abstinence may not eat meat oftener than once a day on fast days, unless they have a special grant. The faithful should be guided by the Lenten regulations of their dioceses, and in doubt they should consult their pastors.

2588. The Obligation of Fasting.--The Second Precept also commands that on the weekdays of Lent and certain other specified days (holydays outside Lent excepted) every baptized person between the ages of twenty-one years completed and sixty years begun shall eat not more than one full meal a day (Canon 1251).

(a) The law speaks of eating, that is, of solid food, and hence the Lenten and other similar fasts are not broken by liquids which are beverages rather than foods, or which are used to allay thirst, or carry food or assist digestion, and not chiefly to nourish (e.g., water, teas, coffee, light cocoa, wine, beer, lemonade, fruit juice). Likewise, sirups taken as medicines are not considered foods, even though they contain nourishment, unless one drinks a large quantity for its food content. Light ices may be considered drink, but ice-cream is food. On the contrary, liquids that are chiefly nourishing are regarded as food (e.g., soup, oil, honey). Finally, some liquors vary between food and drink, according to their richness or weakness, their great or small quantity. Thus, hot chocolate as made in the United States contains only a small amount of solid and may be considered as a drink, but as made in Europe it is stronger and rather food than drink.

(b) The law admits as an indulgence on fast days, in addition to the one meal, a small breakfast in the morning and a light collation to be taken either around noon (lunch) or in the evening (supper). The quality and quantity of these two repasts are left to local custom. The Uniform Norm for Fast and Abstinence in the United States adopted by the Hierarchy, Nov. 14, 1951, establishes the following norm for these two meatless meals. They are to be “sufficient to maintain strength, may be taken according to each one’s needs; but together they should not equal another full meal.” This norm, called the relative standard, was adopted by many Bishops of the United States, beginning with Lent of 1952. Thus, the amount of food is dependent to some degree on a person’s own needs and appetite. The relative standard is distinguished from the absolute norm which allows about two ounces for the morning collation and eight ounces for the evening.

(c) The law permits one to eat but once in the day (exception being made for breakfast and collation), but it places no limits as to the quality of the food at the principal meal (unless the day be also a day of abstinence, when meat is forbidden), or as to its quantity, though temperance bids one to eat at all times in moderation. On fast days, therefore, one may not eat between meals, nor so divide or prolong the dinner that it really becomes several meals. A notable interruption (two or three hours) made without good reason divides a dinner into two meals, and over two hours of uninterrupted eating, under ordinary circumstances, seems to be more than the one full meal which the law allows.

2589. The Obligation of the Precept of Fasting.--(a) Origin.--The natural law commands fasting in general, since without some kind of austerity above common temperance certain desirable ends (such as atonement for past transgressions, conquest of unruly passions, and elevation of the soul) cannot be attained; and as these ends are necessary it is also necessary to use the means as far as one needs them. The particularization of this natural law has been made by the positive law of the Church, and with such wisdom as to promote the good of both soul and body. The times appointed are most appropriate (e.g., the season when the Passion is commemorated, Luke, v. 35); the duration of the long fast is modelled on that of Christ (Matt., iv. 1); the curtailment of food required is not only beneficial (as an exercise of self-control and a rest and change to the metabolism), but is moderate, since it permits sufficient food for the day, and even in the fast of Lent the Sundays occur to give a respite.

(b) Gravity.--The precept of fasting is grave, both from the purpose of the law (see 2469), and from the express declaration of the lawgiver (Denzinger, n. 1123). But the spirit of the precept is not notably deviated from by every transgression, and hence even in reference to matter there are minor or venial violations; and moreover the precept is probably (unlike that of abstinence) an indivisible one, since it consists in the limitation to one meal, and hence it cannot be violated more than once a day. Grave matter, when the absolute norm is used, seems to be about four ounces added to the collations or taken between meals, either all at once or at different times during the day (Denzinger, n.1129), But if the relative norm is used, a greater quantity is needed to establish grave matter, e.g., one fourth of a full meal. But he who has broken his fast (e.g., by a second full meal) does not break it again by a third or fourth full meal on the same day, for after the second full meal the fast has become impossible for that day. He who accidentally takes too much at breakfast can still keep the fast by proportionately diminishing his evening repast.

(c) Exceptions.--Physical or moral impossibility excuses from the fast, and gives the right to eat meat as often as moderation allows on days that are not meatless days. The chief persons who labor under impossibility are those who are too weak to fast (e.g., the sick, the convalescent, pregnant and nursing mothers, the nervous), those who are too poor to get one square meal a day (e.g., street beggars who have nothing may eat as often as they are given an alms, if it does not buy them a dinner), and those who cannot do their necessary or customary hard work if they fast. Hard work is such as is exercised for many hours continuously, or for a less time if it is very intense, and which is greatly fatiguing to the mind (e.g., daily teaching, lecturing, studying, hearing confessions, preaching, etc.) or to the body (e.g., heavy manual labor, the difficult jobs in offices or stores, work that requires one to be on one’s feet for hours at a time, necessary journeys made under hardship). The confessor or physician can decide about cases of impossibility that are not manifest, but dispensation should be had from the pastor (Canon 1245). Those who are dispensed from the ecclesiastical fast or abstinence should remember that they are not dispensed from the natural law of temperance, and they should practise some abstemiousness according to their ability (e.g., by self-denial in alcoholic beverages, tobacco, sweets, etc., or mortification in the quantity or quality of food).

2590. The Third Precept of the Church.--This precept commands that all the faithful, male and female, who have reached the age of discretion go to confession at least once a year (Canon 906).

(a) The subject of this precept is every baptized person who has entered the Church through valid Baptism and who has the use of reason, which begins usually at the age of seven. Infants are incapable of committing sin, and the unbaptized are incapable of receiving the Sacrament of Penance.

(b) The matter of the precept is a good sacramental confession of the grave sins not yet confessed, made with the purpose of obtaining absolution to any duly authorized priest. Hence, those who have only venial sins on their conscience are not bound according to the common opinion by this precept, and, on the other hand, those who make a sacrilegious or voluntarily null confession do not fulfill the law (Denzinger, n. 1114; Code, Canon 907). It seems that one who, after a confession of venial sins at Easter, falls into grave sin is not bound from this precept to confess again before the end of the year.

(c) The time for fulfillment of the precept is once during the year. The law leaves one free to confess on any day during the twelvemonth, and to count the year either civilly (i.e., from January 1 to December 31), or ecclesiastically (e.g., from Easter time to Easter time, as is commonly done), or from the date of the last confession. The limit is set, however, not to terminate but to insist upon obligation, and hence it seems that he who has not made his 1957 confession must make it as soon as possible in 1958, but the 1957 confession made in 1958 will satisfy for the 1958 obligation also (see 468 sqq.).

2591. The Obligation of the Third Precept.--(a) Origin.--From divine law sacramental confession is necessary for all who have fallen into serious sin after Baptism, since Christ has given His Church the keys of heaven and appointed His bishops and priests the physicians and judges to cure and pardon (Matt., xviii. 18; John, xx. 23). But Our Lord did not fix the frequency of confession, and it is this which the present precept determines. The law of annual confession goes back to the Fourth Lateran Council (1215).

(b) Gravity.--The precept of annual confession obliges under pain of mortal sin, for its purpose is of vital importance and the Church has always regarded it as a grave obligation. The purpose of the law is to ensure the use of the Sacrament instituted by Christ for forgiveness and to keep sinners from delaying their repentance too long. If a good business man takes stock of his assets and liabilities at least once a year, and those who are careful of their health have medical attention or examination at least yearly, it is most reasonable that the faithful should settle their spiritual accounts and attend to the well-being of their souls within an equal period of time. In the early centuries when fervor was greater and conditions different, no general church law on the frequency of confession was needed; but there is no doubt that the Lateran Decree met well the need that began after the change from the early penitential discipline, The penalties for violation of this precept were excommunication and exclusion from ecclesiastical burial, and, though they are not enforced today, they show the intention of the Church to impose a grave duty.

2592. The Fourth Precept of the Church.--This precept commands that all the faithful, male and female, who have attained the use of reason, go to Holy Communion at least once a year, and that during Easter time (Canon 859).

(a) The subjects of this precept are the same as those of the previous precept, and consequently children of seven years or thereabout, who are able to understand, must make the Easter duty.

(b) The matter of the precept is a worthy Communion (Viaticum or ordinary Communion) received in any parish, but preferably in one’s own parish. Persons living in community (e.g., religious, soldiers, college boarders) may make the Easter duty in their own chapels, strangers and vagi in any church or chapel, and priests in the place where they say Mass.

(c) The time of the precept is the Paschal Season (i.e., from Palm Sunday to Low Sunday, but in the United States, by privilege, from the First Sunday of Lent to Trinity Sunday). The Easter time may be prolonged for an individual by his pastor or confessor for a just reason. The year within which the Easter duty is to be made begins, it seems, with the opening of one Paschal Season and ends with the opening of the Paschal Season of the following calendar year. Since the law requires that the Easter duty be made, not only within the Paschal Season, but also once a year, it follows that he who neglects Communion during the Easter period is still bound by the law to go to Communion before the opening of the next Paschal Season, but probably he is not bound to go at the first opportunity. As a rule, we believe those who do not make their Easter duty during a year are guilty of but one sin, since they do not think of distinct violations.

2593. The Obligation of the Fourth Precept.--(a) Origin.--There is a divine precept of receiving Communion some time during life, since Our Lord willed the Eucharist to be the necessary nourishment of the soul’s journey (John, vi. 54) and the perpetual memorial of Himself (I Cor., xi. 24). The Church in the present precept has prescribed both the frequency and the time for complying with the will of Christ. Since the Eucharist is a daily bread, the law does not permit it to be abstained from by anyone beyond a year; and, since the Paschal Season brings the anniversary of Christ’s sacrifice and of the institution of the Blessed Sacrament, it is the time most fitly chosen for the obligatory Communion.

(b) Gravity.--The precept obliges under pain of grave sin, for it determines a law given by Our Lord Himself and regulates the minimum in the use of the Eucharist, the greatest of the Sacraments and the end of all the others. The doctrine of theologians is that it is a grave sin to delay culpably the Easter Communion for even a day beyond the Paschal Season as prescribed.

2594. The Fifth and Sixth Precepts of the Church.--The Fifth Precept commands the proper maintenance of the clergy by the laity. The manner of giving the support is left to the special statutes and customs of each country (Canons 1496, 1502). This ecclesiastical law is but a determination of the natural law of justice and religion, and also of the divine law; for even in the Old Testament the Levites were supported by the people. The duty is, therefore, grave (see 2185 sqq.). Respect and obedience in spiritual matters are owed the clergy, and it is sinful to usurp their functions (see 2351, 2355 sqq., and Canons 119, 683, 1931, 166).

The Sixth Precept commands the proper solemnization of marriage and prohibits the solemn blessing of marriages at stated times. Canon 1108, Sec.2 specifies these times as “from the first Sunday of Advent until the day of the Nativity of Our Lord inclusive, and from Ash Wednesday until Easter Sunday inclusive.” It is to be noted that the forbidden time excludes only the solemn blessing, and even this may be permitted by the Ordinary for just cause, subject to liturgical laws (Canon 1108, Sec.3).

2595. Two Other Important General Laws of the Church.--(a) The prohibition of wicked and dangerous writings (Canons 1384 sqq.) is based on the natural law, which requires one to avoid what is proximately dangerous to faith or morals. This subject is treated above in 1456, 849 sqq., 1529.