The Mass

• What is the Eucharistic fast?
  
  
• In attending Mass in churches outside the Diocese of Lincoln, I have noticed that the bread at Mass sometimes seems to be dark and heavy. Is this allowed?
  
  
• When I cannot get to Mass on Sunday, can I fulfill my obligation by watching the TV Mass for shut-ins?
  
  
• How does one have a Mass said? Does a person have to be deceased to have a Mass said for him? What is the usual offering?
  
  
• Is it true that in some western states and in Alaska the obligation to attend Mass on some Holy Days of Obligation does not bind Catholics?
  
  
• Is it a sin to leave Mass early?
  
  
• We are concerned that the shaking of hands during the sign of peace at Mass passes along colds and flu. Is this practice up to the individual parish or diocese? Can it be changed to a nod or another non-contact gesture?
  
  
• Is it a sin to miss Mass on Thanksgiving?
  
  
• When we come to church for Mass are we to genuflect before we get into the pew or is it enough to just bow our head?
  
  
• At what time during Mass are we to strike our breasts? For example, is it at the elevation or before communion?
  
  
• May anyone other than a priest or deacon preach the homily at Mass?
  
  
• How is it possible truly to attend Mass on Sunday, as we are commanded to do, when instead we are permitted to go on Saturday evening?
  

• In some dioceses, where there is a shortage of priests and deacons, there is, in some parishes, a Communion or Eucharist service in place of a Mass on Sunday conducted by a layman or woman. Is this allowed or can it vary from place to place according to the disposition of the bishop?
  
  
• May a song leader or cantor at Mass be a non-Catholic?
  
  
• Is there a law in the Catholic Church about men and women wearing shorts to church?
  
  
• If a person comes to daily Mass and finds that the Mass is already well underway, right around the consecration, should he stay or should he leave?
  
  
• If a person goes to Holy Communion and receives two hosts, is it all right to consume both of them?
  
  
• Is it necessary to use an instituted acolyte at weekday Masses in our diocese?
  
  
• Are divorced people permitted to receive Holy Communion?
  
  
• Do vitamin pills violate the Eucharistic fast?
  
  
• In our parish we pray the rosary before Mass. I notice people have stopped saying "Amen" at the end of the prayers. When did this start?
  
  
• May a priest leave out the Gloria or the Nicene Creed at Mass when he has five weekend Masses to say and no help? This what a priest in another State told me when I asked him about these omissions.
  
  
• May a Catholic receive Holy Communion more than once a day?
  
  
• My daughter says that it is not necessary for Catholics to attend Mass every Sunday anymore. I maintain that we still have to go each Sunday. Which of us is correct?

• May a priest leave out the Gloria or the Nicene Creed at Mass when he has five weekend Masses to say and no help? This what a priest in another State told me when I asked him about these omissions.
  

• Why do some Catholic churches in some dioceses not have kneelers? Are kneelers necessary in churches?
  
  
• Is it permitted for a priest to wear black vestments on Good Friday and at funeral Masses?
  
  
• Where can I find the rules for intercommunion with non-Catholics. This can be a source of pain and misunderstanding for all.
  
  
• Is it all right for Catholics to attend a daily Mass if they do not or cannot go on Sunday?
  
  
• What should the people in the congregation do when they are blessed with incense during a Mass?
  
  
• If a piece of Sacred Host is found on the floor or altar, what should be done about it? Should it be picked up?
  
  
• Which side of an altar should the Papal flag be on?
  
  
• Is it all right to genuflect in church on one's left knee and to bless oneself with the left hand?
  
  
• If a child in CCD class does not go to Mass on Sundays because his parents will not take him, may he still receive Holy Communion when there is a CCD Mass?
  
  
• My children like to "play Mass" and use candy for "play Holy Communion." Should I allow them to do this, even if they use the words of consecration in their play?
  
  
• Why don't Catholics receive from the chalice at Mass?
  
  
• Does our Sunday obligation require us to spend at least an hour in church? Our priest races through Mass so fast, we are out in a few minutes.

• In certain circumstances may an unbaptized person receive Holy Communion in a Catholic Church (A Jewish girl at her wedding to a Catholic man)?
  
  
• Is it permissible for a non-Catholic to occasionally attend Mass and receive Holy Communion in a Catholic Church?
  
  
• Our priest told us not to wear halter tops and shorts to Mass on Sunday. Why is this wrong? God knows how we look, since He made us without any clothes at all.
  
  
• In attending Mass in churches outside the Diocese of Lincoln, I have noticed that the bread at Mass sometimes seems to be dark and heavy. Is this allowed?
  
  
• At a recent wedding Mass celebrated at 7:00 p.m., the priest told the people that the Mass did not count for Sunday, because the wedding Mass did not count for Sunday, because the wedding Mass did not include the Gloria, the Sunday readings, and the Creed. I was under the impression that any Mass after 4:00 p.m. on Saturday counted for Sunday. Who is right here?
  
  
• Are the words used in the singing of a Polk Mass liturgically acceptable?
  
  
• Is it a sin to miss Mass on Ash Wednesday?
  

 

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