My son is on a Rugby team, and will be in Denver, and they have a schedule to follow. On this Sunday, he has to do breakfast at 8-9 on the Bus at 9:30. My husband is requesting he does church on Sunday at 7:00. He does not want to go to church on Sunday. My question is, is it necessary to do Mass, if he might be running into his schedule for Rugby? I am concerned Mass will go over, and he will be late for his breakfast and putting his stuff on the bus and being rushed around. I said since we are on vacation he should be able to miss Mass this Sunday, my husband said it is a sin if he misses.

Yours truly,

Diadora  Dazeoff

You are a lucky woman, that is if you are a Catholic. How rare it is to have a husband who actually thinks Mass is more important than sports. Let me begin by quoting the Catechism.  That’s the book on the shelf that you got four years ago that you should probably dust by now.

Paragraph 2192 "Sunday . . . is to be observed as the foremost holy day of obligation in the universal Church" (CIC, can. 1246 §1). "On Sundays and other holy days of obligation the faithful are bound to participate in the Mass" and Paragraph 2185 “On Sundays and other holy days of obligation, the faithful are to refrain from engaging in work or activities that hinder the worship owed to God, the joy proper to the Lord's Day, the performance of the works of mercy, and the appropriate relaxation of mind and body. Family needs or important social service can legitimately excuse from the obligation of Sunday rest. The faithful should see to it that legitimate excuses do not lead to habits prejudicial to religion, family life, and health.”

The old troll you married is, however, correct, for the most part. Summarized, the two paragraphs quoted above mean that we have to go to Mass on Sunday and we have to treat Sunday as a sabbath, a day of rest -- no work, no dry cleaner, no  K-mart, just faith, family, food and works of charity. (You may work in a soup kitchen on Sunday.)

If I understood your letter, your son is traveling. This mitigates the obligation we have regarding Mass, but it doesn’t eliminate it. Why not go to a Saturday evening Mass? 

What’s wrong with missing the occasional Mass for such a noble pursuit as rugby or the Olympic Knitting Team or some such character building sport? Allow me to quote the Scriptures. In Deuteronomy, Chapter 6 verse 10 and following we read: “When the Lord your God brings you into the land which he swore to your fathers... that he would give you, ......you shall not follow other gods such as those of the surrounding nations..... lest the wrath of the Lord flare up against you... for the Lord your God is a jealous God!!!”  God is crazy in love with you and your family and your son, even if the lad does not return the sentiment.  We were created by Him for Him, not to wallow around in mud trying to inflict bodily harm on our fellow human beings (which is the point of rugby as far as I can tell, though if rugby does not interfere with an intense relationship with the Creator of all things, I suppose there’s nothing inherently wrong with it.)

The Israelites were forbidden to worship the gods of the land into which they were coming. They were forbidden to intermarry with the pagans or even to eat their food. They belonged to their Creator, not to the gods of pleasure. Most of us in this great country come from  immigrant backgrounds. We were poor and oppressed and our faith was our only treasure. Well, we came into this new land and promptly started to worship its gods; narcissism masquerading as freedom, money masquerading as success, fame masquerading as achievement and of course the gods of sports who promised health and entertainment and relaxation, whose temples dominate skylines; the domes of churches replaced by superdomes. 

There is the myth that sports are healthy. Actually playing them is healthy. Sitting in a recliner, ruining our livers and clogging our arteries is not. The young men, and now women, who play sports become the old men and old woman who watch sports. The cult of adoration grows unabated. The pantheon of athletic saints is worshiped ever more intensely as men in suits comment on the foibles of their favorite players. 

So, to prefer sports to the worship of God, which is probably true of most Americans, is a sin. Church is boring. Sports are exciting. This is true of other things. Marriage is boring (at times). Adultery is exciting. Service is boring. Self indulgence is exciting. Charity is boring. Winning big in the football pool is exciting. Raising your children day after day can be terribly boring. They will fight you at every turn. It sounds like your little dear is winning at more than rugby.  Everybody says that sports builds character. I really believe that the worship of God builds character.

The catechism makes the point that, of all the creatures of the world, only man can worship. Worship makes us human. Antelopes compete. Lemurs compete. Good grief!, even bacteria compete. Only a human being looks to the heavens in wonder. Only a human being can worship. So, I hope that worshiping at the Church of Contemporary American Culture works out for you and your boy. As for me and mine, we will serve the Lord.

Yours ever, 

Rev. Know-It-All