What does the Church teach about the Sunday rest?

It’s an interesting question. How extensive is the Sunday rest? The first place we should look is the official teaching of the church. For the sake of this conversation I’ll go through what I found then expand from there. There are three paragraphs of particular interest in the Catechism of the Catholic Church.

“God entrusted the sabbath to Israel to keep as a sign of the irrevocable covenant. The sabbath is for the Lord, holy and set apart for the praise of God, his work of creation, and his saving actions on behalf of Israel.” (CCC 2171)

“God’s action is the model for human action. If God “rested and was refreshed” on the seventh day, man too ought to “rest” and should let others, especially the poor, “be refreshed.” The sabbath brings everyday work to a halt and provides a respite. It is a day of protest against the servitude of work and the worship of money.” (CCC 2172)

“The Gospel reports many incidents when Jesus was accused of violating the sabbath law. But Jesus never fails to respect the holiness of this day. He gives this law its authentic and authoritative interpretation: “The sabbath was made for man, not man for the sabbath.” With compassion, Christ declares the sabbath for doing good rather than harm, for saving life rather than killing. The sabbath is the day of the Lord of mercies and a day to honor God. “The Son of Man is lord even of the sabbath.” (CCC 2173)

“On Sundays and other holy days of obligation, the faithful are to refrain from engaging in work or activities that hinder the worship owed to God, the joy proper to the Lord’s Day, the performance of the works of mercy, and the appropriate relaxation of mind and body. Family needs or important social service can legitimately excuse from the obligation of Sunday rest. The faithful should see to it that legitimate excuses do not lead to habits prejudicial to religion, family life, and health.” (CCC 2185)

The USSCB’s Examination of conscience asks “Do I avoid, when possible, work that impedes worship to God, joy for the Lord’s Day, and proper relaxation of mind and body? Do I look for ways to spend time with family or in service on Sunday?”.

So is it a sin to work on Sunday’s and Holy Days of Obligation? The question in context of Church teaching becomes less of are certain tasks a sin and more of what is your priority and focus. Firstly, how do we handle the obligations of daily life? The Church recognizes that it is completely unrealistic to expect anyone to do no work whatsoever on these days. However, Sundays and Holy Days of Obligation are ordained in a special way towards God, Family, and rest. If you feel you must work I would ask two sometimes difficult questions. 

• Is my priority being shifted away from these things towards which the Sabbath is intended?
• Is there a compromise that could be made to allow you to more fully worship God, spend time with Family, and rest on these days? (Ex. Could these tasks be done during the week)

Secondly, what about paid servile work? (in other words a career or job). Especially in this modern world the Church recognizes the need for these servile positions on all days of the week. If all hospitals, law enforcement, and fire stations shut down once a week things would not…end well to say the least. It’s not sinful to work on Sundays in exchange for compensation. However, the focus of the Sabbath still remains.

So, in short the concern is less about doing work and more about retaining the intention or substance of the day. The focus on days of obligation is to be towards God, family and rest. There are times when responsibilities must be fulfilled. That is simply a fact of life. The balance is not doing unnecessary work that takes your focus away from that which these days are meant for.