Why Do Catholics have 'Holy Days of Obligation'?

Catholics are often accused by our Protestant brothers and sisters of being legalistic. This is largely because of our belief in Holy Days of Obligation. Do we really understand why the Church has specific days set aside as “holy days” when we are “required” to attend Mass?

The Church sets asides these days, a specific type of solemnity, to help us pause during our regular routine of life and reflect on important mysteries of our faith. The holy days of obligation are associated with something very crucial to our faith and the salvation story.

No, the priest is not going to show up at your home and drag you out of the house to make you go to. Mass. No, bishop is not going to excommunicate you if you do not show up for a holy days. I had a priest once to refer to them as “holy days of opportunity” rather than holy days of obligation. The Church encourages us to attend Mass on these days and often provides additional Mass times that are not always available during a regular weekday Mass schedule. 

The holy days of obligation are not going to cause Jesus to turn away from us or refuse to hear our prayers for the rest of our life. The attending of Mass during these days are more for us than Christ and the saints. They enable us to have an opportunity to celebrate and reflect on specific moments, events, and aspects of the faith and the Lord. 

These are days of celebration and not just of “obligation”. In fact, if we go to Mass on these days because we feel like we are “supposed” to or “required to” and we do not spend time reflecting on the purpose of that day or why it is a holy day of obligation, what it means to our faith, and enabling it to help us draw closer to the Lord then we have missed the point of the day. The point is not to “make us” go to Mass just because the Church wants to see us (although the Church wants to see us every Mass). They are days that are intended to help us grow in our faith. 

Think about the days that are holy days of obligation in the church calendar. (By the way, there are only 6 of them in the United States).

The Holy Days of Obligation are:

1.) Solemnity of Mary, Mother of God (January 1)

2.) Solemnity of Christ’s Ascension into Heaven (Thursday of the 6th week of Easter)

3.) Solemnity of Mary’s Assumption into Heaven (August 15)

4.) Solemnity of All Saints (November 1…All Saint’s Day)

5.) Solemnity of Mary’s Immaculate Conception (Dec 8)

6.) Christmas Day (December 25). 

These days tell the beautiful story of our Blessed Mother and our Lord. The year begins with the reflection on Mary. It begins with the meditation on how Mary obeyed God, humbled herself to His Divine Will, and gave birth to the Lord and Messiah that delivered us from our sins. During the Easter season, we draw near to the Lord that ascended into heaven. His divinity is shown more than any other time in His life during his ascension. If Jesus would have just been born and crucified then we would have no faith that differs from any other religion. Without the resurrection, Christianity would topple. It is the resurrection and the ascension of Christ that proves his divinity. Easter is not included in the list of holy days of obligation, but it is a holy day of obligation because it is on Sunday. Each Sunday is a holy day of obligation so there is no need to list it specifically when it is already on Sunday each year. 

The Solemnity of Mary’s Assumption into heaven also shows her divine role in salvation’s story. Jesus prevented His Blessed Mother from tasting death. She is the Mother of God and Queen of Heaven. The Bible gives an account of two others that never experienced death in the Old Testament. Why would Jesus allow his own mother to suffer death on this earth? He raised the dead, healed the sick, and gave sight to the blind. Do we really want to believe He would not bring His mother straight to heaven?

The Solemnity of All Saints allows us to reflect on the truth that we have intercessors cheering for us to grow in our faith that are constantly interceding for us in heaven. This is another concept that non-Catholics may struggle with but it is easy to explain since we all are accustomed to asking others to pray for us during difficult times. Why would it be such a difficult thing to believe Christ would have saints in heaven interceding for us on earth since it is clearly a Biblical concept? Why would we want to miss an opportunity to celebrate Mass with our saints? 

The Immaculate Conception of Mary and Christmas draw us to the beauty of the Incarnation of the Lord. God came down from heaven. God became man in order to suffer and die. He did it for us. What a beautiful gift we have been given by the Creator of the Universe. 

The Code of Canon Law of the Catholic Church gives 9 holy days, but the conference of bishops can also suppress some of them or transfer them to a Sunday and that is why the United States only has 6 rather than the 9. These holy days of obligation do not include each week’s Sunday Mass. The Sunday Mass each week is also a holy day of obligation. These 6 are specifically set aside in addition to the weekly Mass. 

Why do Catholics have “Holy Days of Obligation”? It’s not a rule we must obey. It is a celebration time. It is an opportunity to strengthen our faith and focus on the faith that draws us to our Lord.