The Vatican has confirmed that Catholic holy days of obligation remain binding even if the celebration is moved to a Monday or Saturday.
This clarification directly addresses the Feast of the Immaculate Conception, which falls on the second Sunday of Advent this year and has been transferred to Monday, Dec. 9.
According to the Dicastery for Legislative Texts, the obligation to attend Mass does not diminish due to such transfers. In a September 4 letter to U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) Committee Chair Bishop Thomas Paprocki, Archbishop Filippo Iannone stated said “the feast must be observed as a day of obligation on the day to which it is transferred.”
The USCCB’s current norms allow certain feasts that fall on a Saturday or Monday to be exempt from the Mass obligation, a policy that does not apply to the Immaculate Conception. This national feast is ordinarily observed on Dec. 8 but was moved due to its overlap with Advent.
Despite the Vatican’s guidance, Cardinal Blase Cupich of Chicago and Cardinal Daniel DiNardo of Galveston-Houston announced dispensations for their respective dioceses. Both cited the “short notice” and “unusual circumstances,” as many liturgical calendars already show Dec. 9 as non-obligatory.
Other dioceses, including Boston and Youngstown, Ohio, the Archdiocese of Cincinnati and the Diocese of Peori are following the Vatican’s direction, reminding Catholics of their Mass obligation on Dec. 9.
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