March 8, 2026 - Pastor Message
March 7, 2026THE PRECEPTS OF THE CHURCH THE FIFTH AND SIXTH PRECEPTS
THE PRECEPTS OF THE CHURCH
THE FIFTH AND SIXTH PRECEPTS
“You shall observe the prescribed days of fasting and abstinence; The faithful also have the duty of providing for the material needs of the Church, each according to his abilities” (Catechism of the Catholic Church, 2043).
The fifth precept of the Church serves as an extension of the precept regarding confessing our sins at least once a year. Days of penitence and abstinence are prescribed by the Church to cultivate a genuine spirit of repentance that increases our hunger for God’s mercy in the sacraments and enables us to unite our sacrifices to that of Christ, together with his Body, the Church, in atonement for our sins and those of the whole world. They also teach us self-discipline of mind, body, and soul, freeing us from the allure of worldly temptations so that we can focus more fully on God’s kingdom.
The days of penitence are every Friday throughout the year - the day we commemorate Christ’s suffering and death - and the season of Lent. On these days, “the Christian faithful devote themselves in a special way to prayer, perform works of piety and charity, and deny themselves by fulfilling their own obligations more faithfully and especially by observing fast and abstinence” (Canon 1249 of the Code of Canon Law). As a universal form of penance, Catholics fourteen years of age and older are to abstain from eating meat every Friday. Catholics ages eighteen through fifty-nine are further required to fast on Ash Wednesday and Good Friday, which means we limit ourselves on those days to one normal meal and two smaller meals. As an aside, the United States bishops have exercised the authority granted to them by Church law to modify the requirement to abstain from meat on Fridays outside of Lent by allowing Catholics in America to substitute another, more meaningful form of penance on those days (On Penance and Abstinence, Pastoral Statement of the National Conference of Catholic Bishops, November 18, 1966; 18-28).
The final precept reminds the Christian faithful of our obligation to support the work and ministry of the Church, of which we are all one through our baptism into Christ and thus all servants of the same mission (Acts 2:42-47). While the precept emphasizes the need for material support, our obligation extends much further: “The Christian faithful are obliged to assist with the needs of the Church so that the Church has what is necessary for divine worship, for the works of the apostolate and of charity, and for the decent support of ministers. They are also obliged to promote social justice and, mindful of the precept of the Lord, to assist the poor from their own resources” (Canon 222, CCC). While no specific contributions of time, talent, and treasure are required, each member of the faithful is obliged to offer this support freely “according to his [or her] abilities”. This precept is unique in that, while the others focus primarily on the personal spiritual life and growth of the individual and secondarily on the benefits that extend to the whole Church through that, this precept focuses primarily on how we live out the gospel mandate to love others as Christ loves us, both within the Church and beyond, offering us a fitting conclusion to our reflection on the Precepts of the Church. Hopefully, this brief journey has helped all of us enter more deeply into the spirit of Lent and given us much food for thought and repentance to not only do the minimum, but, with the help of God’s grace, to strive for the maximum in our spiritual and moral lives.
Fr. Marc Stockton
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