It's been forever since I've posted here. Very briefly, I've been doing a lot of thinking about the true meaning of being Catholic and how exactly to live out a Catholic life. I've also been considering the various Church teachings and whether or not I truly agree with them. I want to be able to still think for myself and not just blindly follow the Church, but wholeheartedly agree with it.
Anyways, I just had a random thought I wanted to explore and that is the obligation of Sunday mass compared to the optional daily masses. Here's my question: should Catholics be going to mass on Sunday out of obligation or out of love for Christ? I think it has become far too common that people attend mass because they feel forced to go and may even slightly resent that rule. I know I did back in high school; I used to fight my parents when they would drag me to mass. It shouldn't be that way though. We should want to attend mass out of the love we have for Christ. Why is mass obligatory on Sunday's and not weekdays (except for the occasional Holy Day of Obligation)? Why is mass obligatory at all? I mean, I understand the importance of attending mass, but I think we should emphasize love over obligation. I think it comes down to the difference of "have to" versus "get to". Mass should be something all people get to attend; both to show love for Christ through worship, scripture, and sacrifice, then through receiving graces through the Holy Eucharist.
Another question on my mind has been about the ultimate goal of my life, which is to go to Heaven upon my eventual death. I've been wondering about the possibility of a person going to Heaven, while doing the minimal 'requirements' of being Catholic. Now, I know I should be striving for holiness and doing the most I can during my time on Earth, but what if a person went to mass only on Sundays and never daily mass? Hypothetically, why then should a person go to daily mass as well, if that person would get to Heaven anyways? Would it be similar to extra credit with God? How does God really decide a person's fate (heaven, hell, or purgatory)? Thinking about it logically, I suppose it would be based on the person's heart and the reasons they did not attend daily mass. God would probably be harsher on a person who skipped mass out of laziness than a person who could not attend due to health, or transportation reasons. Then again, not going to daily mass isn't a mortal sin, which is where I start questioning. The Eucharist is the source and summit of Christian life, everything we do flows from it, so I guess I'm wondering why so few people seem to go during the week. Shouldn't daily mass have equal importance to Sunday mass?
This is just something I've been pondering lately and striving to get myself back to wanting to pursue holiness. Recently, my mindset has been that I want to try things my way, which, in my distorted, sinful view, has appeared easier than following God. I've had to force myself to go to mass, I've almost fallen back into the "mass is boring" trap. I need to remember that it doesn't matter if I find mass boring or if there is something else I'd rather be doing. It's not about me, it's about Christ who comes to me and everyone through the mass.
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