What Does Pope John Paul II Have to Say About What You Can and Can’t Do on Sunday? (Special Podcast Highlight)
The Patrick Madrid Show
Relevant Radio
4.8 • 590 Ratings
🗓️ 16 October 2024
⏱️ 16 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
Do you often get confused about what's meant by "Sunday rest?" Are you truly honoring the Sabbath?
Patrick Madrid explored Dies Domini, St. John Paul II's letter that's all about Sundays. There are some things you can do on Sundays and others… not so much. Here's what Patrick shared: Catch the whole hour of conversation here.
Mass is Non-Negotiable First things first: Go to Mass! That’s the cornerstone of keeping Sunday holy. While you don’t have to receive Communion every time, you still have to show up if you can. No excuses, unless you’re sick or delivering a baby in the ER.
Rest (But Make It Holy) St. John Paul II says Sunday should be a day of rest. You can do things that rejuvenate you: think picnics with the family, long walks, and reading Scripture. Rest and reconnect with God.
Acts of Charity = Sunday Gold Star Helping out at a soup kitchen? That’s a win. Doing nice things for others isn’t "work" in the bad sense; it’s love in action. So, while mowing the lawn is a no-go, handing out food to the needy is definitely on the Sunday-approved list.
No Unnecessary Work Doing your taxes or tackling those leaves in the yard: not allowed on Sundays. This includes unnecessary commercial activities too. St. Pope JP2 wasn’t about running errands or treating Sunday like any other day.
Super Bowl vs. Sacred Rest Now, what about the Super Bowl? Patrick says, you can probably go ahead and enjoy it, but only if you’ve already gone to Mass. Balance fun with faith; don’t let entertainment take over your sacred Sunday time.
Family Time Wins Sundays are prime for family bonding: whether that’s a BBQ or a prayer circle. Keep it together and avoid isolating yourself. Patrick reminds us: Sunday is a family day, but that can also mean your parish family, neighbors, or visiting someone in need.
Evangelize with Your Life Keeping your Sunday holy is a witness to the world. People will see that you’re prioritizing your faith, and boom: you’re evangelizing without even saying a word!
So, to wrap it up: Sundays are a spiritual reset button. Mass, rest, family, and mercy are the ingredients for a truly holy day.
Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | We had an email about what constitutes fulfilling the commandment to keep holy the Lord's Day. |
| 0:06.6 | And I referred to Pope John Paul II's Apostolic Letter, Diaz Domini, which is Latin, which means the day of the Lord. |
| 0:14.5 | I think a lot of people, first of all, are quite, I don't know if confused is the right word, |
| 0:20.3 | but they just don't really know what's allowed |
| 0:23.7 | and what's not allowed. What is something that you could do on a Sunday, the day of the Lord, |
| 0:29.4 | or that you shouldn't do on the day of the Lord? And I've seen some different opinions floating around there, |
| 0:34.7 | some of which are closer to the mark than others. So what I'm going to do right |
| 0:38.8 | now is I went back into Diaz Domini, and I spent the time and I went through and I distilled, |
| 0:45.7 | I guess you might say, or summarized, what does Pope John Paul II have to say about what you can do |
| 0:52.3 | and what you can't do on Sunday. |
| 0:54.8 | I think people kind of need that sort of, well, give me some specifics. |
| 0:58.6 | So here it goes. |
| 1:00.3 | So first of all, and this is in light of the Third Commandment to remember the Sabbath |
| 1:05.5 | day to keep it holy. |
| 1:06.8 | That's in Exodus 20, verse 8. |
| 1:08.4 | Keeping in mind, of course, that Sunday is not the Sabbath day Sunday is the |
| 1:12.4 | first day the Sabbath day refers to the seventh day of the week Saturday and that was the way to |
| 1:19.1 | observe this commandment until the time of Jesus's resurrection and the church having been granted |
| 1:25.0 | the authority by Jesus transferred the observance of the |
| 1:29.0 | Sabbath to the first day of the week Sunday. |
| 1:31.2 | That's why we go to Mass on Sunday. |
| 1:33.3 | So you can talk about it as the Sabbath day because it's the same observation of the same |
... |
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