What is Sunday for us? A precept, a duty, an obligation to observe, or a special gift from God to be welcomed? Unfortunately, we have reduced it to a precept; instead, it is a special gift, a treasure that God has given to his people, the source of happiness, capable of renewing the believer’s life.
In the twelfth volume of Quaderni del Concilio, Giuseppe Midili addresses the very subject of Sunday: starting from the Constitution on the Liturgy, Sacrosanctum Concilium, he retraces the steps the Church has taken up to the present day, offering us all the tools necessary to understand Sunday as a gift, so that we may live it fully and consciously.

Sunday is a gift

“Sunday, before being a precept, is a gift that God gives to his people (Pope Francis).” Rediscovering this aspect of the Lord’s Day is the starting point for living it fully and with gratitude.
Welcoming Sunday as a gift entails a profound reconsideration of the precept that for centuries has characterized participation in Sunday Mass and that today, in light of contemporary sensibilities, should be proposed and understood not so much as an obligation to sanctify a day, but rather as an opportunity to rediscover the value of “dies Domini”, the Lord’s Day, and its profound significance for the life of every Christian.

Sunday Mass is the center of the Church's life

The celebration of the Eucharist, in the context of Sunday, must occupy a prominent place over all other activities, because it is constitutive of the Church.
For this reason, Mass must be well prepared, with attention also paid to details and with the sole criterion being the good of the faithful and their encounter with the Lord Jesus.

“Participate,” not “attend”

Taking part in the Eucharist cannot be reduced to mere attendance, with the attitude of spectators, or to passive and indifferent listening; rather, the celebration must evoke the same experience of fervor that characterized the disciples’ encounter at Emmaus and awaken in their hearts the desire to proclaim the Gospel and serve their brothers and sisters.
This makes explicit the theme of the true nature of the assembly, the people of God, the subject of the liturgical action, who are called and “join in offering the Eucharist and exercise their priesthood in receiving the sacraments, in prayer and thanksgiving” (Lumen gentium, 10). 
Fulfilling the obligation merely by attending diminishes the Eucharist’s meaning and makes it less significant for Christian life.

The center of baptismal life

The Sunday Eucharistic celebration is the center of baptismal life, and every effort must be devoted to it so that all - pastors and faithful alike - drawn by the beauty of the liturgy, may find nourishment for their faith and daily lives by participating in Mass.
In light of the guidance of the apostolic letter Dies Domini, Sunday can be defined as the day of the assembly, when the community, freed from work commitments, responds to the Lord’s summons and gathers to celebrate the Eucharist, which makes it a holy people.
Let us rediscover the beauty of Sunday as the Lord’s Day and welcome it as a gift!

Read now

Discover the box set