Every year as Easter draws near, I am approached by any number of people asking me the same question: “Father, what exactly is my “Easter duty”? The answer to this question is actually quite simple and straightforward. Your “Easter duty” is one of the five Precepts of the Church that all Catholics are bound to fulfill. Specifically, the third precept states,“You shall receive the sacrament of the Eucharist at least during the Easter season.” This precept guarantees as a minimum the reception of the Lord’s Body and Blood in connection with the Paschal feasts, the origin and center of the Christian Liturgy.
For the sake of completeness, the other four Precepts of the Church are as follows:
1.) “You shall attend Mass on Sundays and on holy days of obligation and rest from servile labor.”
2.) You shall confess your sins at least once a year.”
3.) “Easter duty”
4.) You shall observe the days of fasting and abstinence established by the Church.”
5.) You shall help to provide for the needs of the Church, each according to his/her own ability.
The obligatory character of the positive laws (precepts) decreed by the pastoral authorities is meant to guarantee to the faithful the very necessary minimum in the spirit of prayer and moral effort, in the growth of love of God and neighbor.
(Catechism of the Catholic Church: #’s 2041-2043)
Fr. Bernie Carlin, C.Ss.R.
