Catholic Holy Days of Obligation 2009

by Tina Kells | April 10, 2009 at 02:25 pm

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Good Friday is an important day on the Christian calendar but it is not a Catholic holy day of obligation. Holy days of obligation are the Catholic equivalent of statutory holidays. They are days on which all Catholics must go to mass and must adhere to Canon Law.

Every Sunday is a holy day of obligation but the other dates vary depending on where you live. According to current Canon Law there are 10 holy days of obligation but some countries mark fewer than 10 days as mandatory religious observances.

A list of Holy Days of Obligation in different countries

Yes. At one time, all solemn feasts were obligatory, and in Ukraine many people still observe them as if they were. Western society does not make allowances so many religious holidays, so the Church, using the Power of the Keys, removed the obligation from all except four of the Solemn Feast days. Annunciation, Ascension, Peter-& -Paul, Dormition are designated Holy days of obligation, as are all Sundays.

The 10 Holy Days of Observance

Placed in the order of the civil calendar, the ten days (apart from Sundays) that this canon mentions are:

1 January: Solemnity of Mary, Mother of God

6 January: the Epiphany

19 March: Solemnity of St. Joseph, Husband of the Blessed Virgin Mary

Thursday of the sixth week of Easter: the Ascension

Thursday after Trinity Sunday: the Body and Blood of Christ

29 June: Solemnity of Saints Peter and Paul, Apostles

15 August: the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary

1 November: All Saints

8 December: the Feast of the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary

25 December: the Nativity of our Lord Jesus Christ (Christmas)