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Unfortunately, I missed Mass this past weekend and am not sure about
the correct thing to do.
I know I have to go to Confession.
Do I just go before Mass next weekend?
Try to go right now?
Do I have to go to a daily Mass as well?
Please help!
Thanks,
— Karen
{
If I missed Mass and know I have to go to Confession when should I go? }
Mike replied:
Hi Karen,
Thanks for the question.
You are absolutely correct. Just go to Confession, before next Sunday Mass, like
on Saturday afternoon, when they always have Confessions.
By the tone of your e-mail, it sounds like their was no malice or effort to purposely
miss Mass.
If there was:
I would recommend you seek out a priest some time during the week.
Just stop by any rectory and ask for a priest.
in addition, you should refrain from receiving the Eucharist until
you've gone to Confession.
If a Catholic misses Mass for:
an emergency or
an illness
there is no cause for concern.
All of the team at AskACatholic would strongly recommend getting to daily
Mass, when possible, and when one's work schedule allows for it.
Although getting to a daily Mass, if you accidentally missed Sunday
Mass,
would be a good secondary substitute, there is no obligation to go to daily
Mass NOR should any one think that going to a daily Mass is a normal substitution
for Sunday Mass.
We are to keep the Lord's Day holy.
Hope this helps,
Mike
Bob replied:
Karen,
Going to Confession before your next Mass is the ideal solution. I'm assuming you
could have avoided missing Mass, but for whatever reason, didn't. (You
knew it was wrong to do so, but did it anyway.) If it was not deliberate (you had to go
the hospital or some situation you couldn't prevent), then you have no culpability.
In short, confess it, if you own it, and move on. You could "make up" the
Mass with a week day Mass (that seems appropriate) if that helps your conscience,
but the priest will give you a penance anyway.
Welcome to the club: the church is full of saints in the making — lots of
failings along the way. Don't let this weigh you down, but keep moving forward.
God
loves you, and loves a repentant heart.
God bless you,
Bob Kirby
Mary Ann replied:
Karen —
If you missed Mass purposely and knowingly, without a good reason, you
must confess.
If you were sick or
needed to stay with a
sick person or
had to stop and help someone in distress or
circumstances
left you without transportation or in some other way unable to attend
then you have done nothing wrong, provided you did not ignore a later
possibility to attend Mass.
It is only when we miss Mass for our own laziness or convenience that
we have sinned.
Mary Ann
John replied:
Hi Karen,
One last point to clarify what others have said. If you purposely skipped
Mass for no good reason, then you need to go to Confession before you go
to Communion. If for some reason, you can't go to Confession before Sunday,
you can, and must go to Mass next Sunday (or Saturday vigil), you just
can't receive the Eucharist until you have gone to Confession.
Nevertheless,
you can ask Jesus to give you a Spiritual Communion.
Spiritual Communion
O Lord Jesus, I believe that You are present in the Most Blessed Sacrament of the Altar.
I love you above all things, (with all my mind, with all my heart, and with all my soul).
I love you because you are infinitely good and worthy of all my love.
Since I cannot receive You now sacramentally, at least come spiritually into my heart.
I embrace myself entirely to You and unite myself wholly to You.
Never permit me to be separated from You.
Come Lord Jesus and glorify Yourself through my weak, broken body.
Amen.
If you missed Mass for a legitimate reason, as my colleagues have
said, you are still in a state of grace.
If you missed Mass out
of negligence, you were in the middle of something and you forgot, or you
over slept, then you are less culpable than deliberately skipping Mass.
In any
case, it's not a bad a idea to make frequent Confession a habit. We all
have sins, be they serious (mortal) or minor (venial). Confession is an
encounter with Christ. The more we go to Confession, the more Christ can
show us our hidden sins. The bad attitudes we harbor can eventually
lead to more overt sins. The sins of omission we commit by not showing
charity when given the opportunity are just as important to confess. The
point of our Christian walk on earth is to allow God to perfect us and
mold us into the image of His Son.
So the answers my colleagues gave are very accurate, but even if you didn't
skip Mass intentionally, you might consider examining your conscience to
see if there are other things you need to tell Jesus about in the Sacrament;
especially if it's been a while since your last Confession.