Mary, the Patroness of the United States
“I am the Immaculate Conception” were the words spoken to St. Bernadette in 1858 affirming the centuries old tradition of the Blessed Virgin Mary’s conception without the stain of sin. This canon was formally adopted and proclaimed as dogma by Pope Pius IX just four years prior.
Though this is a defining teaching of what it means to be a Catholic, it has special veneration in the United States. In 1946, the United States Catholic Bishops chose the Blessed Virgin Mary, under the title of the Immaculate Conception, as the patroness of our nation. As such, all Catholics in the United States are obligated to attend Mass to honor Our Mother who is attached to us in a special way.
Across the globe, feast days of national patrons are raised to holy days of obligation. In Ireland, St. Patrick’s Day (March 17) is a holy day of obligation for Irish Catholics since he is the patron of their country. The same is for the Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe in Mexico on December 12.
This year, the Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception falls on a Monday which means we have the obligation to attend Mass for the Second Sunday of Advent and a separate Mass for the Immaculate Conception. That means that all Catholics must attend two Masses. Here is what the Diocese of Fargo published regarding this:
Attending any Mass from 4:00 pm on Sunday, December 7, through midnight on Monday, December 8, fulfills the obligation for the Immaculate Conception. Please note that you cannot fulfill two obligations with a single Mass, so if you attend a Mass late on Sunday to fulfill your Sunday Obligation, you must attend a second Mass to fulfill your obligation for the Holy Day.
Our Mass Times and Your Obligation
Sts. Anne & Joachim Catholic Church will offer our normal weekend Mass times for the Second Sunday of Advent:
Saturday: 5:00 pm
Sunday: 7:45 am, 9:15 am, 11:00 am, and 7:00 pm
We also have the following Masses in observance of the holy day of obligation:
Monday: 7:00 am, 12:10 pm, 5:30 pm
We often receive the question if proper Mass readings are necessary to fulfill the obligation which comes into question for the 7:00 pm Mass on Sunday, December 7. The 7:00 pm Sunday Mass will be celebrated liturgically as the Second Sunday of Advent (with violet vestments and Second Sunday of Advent readings) though it can fulfill one’s obligation for the Immaculate Conception only if the person has attended a previous Sunday Mass. Regarding Holy Days of Obligation, the Mass time is of more importance than the liturgical features such as readings.
And just to reiterate, all Catholics must attend two Masses. There are no two-for-one specials this year!
