392 / 665
364 • Part III. Christian Morality: The Faith Lived
THIS IS THE DAY THE LORD HAS MADE
Jesus rose from the dead “on the first day of the week.”
. . . For Christians it has become the first of all days, the
first of all feasts, the Lord’s Day.
—CCC, no. 2174
The Third Commandment calls us to keep holy the Sabbath day. For
Christians, the observance of the Sabbath is transferred to Sunday, the
day that Jesus rose from the dead. God, through the Church, obliges us
to make Sunday holy by participation in the Eucharist and by our being
prayerfully reflective as far as possible. Sunday observance fulfills the
interior law inscribed in the human heart to render to God visible and
public worship as a sign of radical dependence upon God and as grati-
tude for all the blessings we have received.
Every seven days, the Church celebrates the Easter mystery. This
tradition goes back to the time of the Apostles. It takes its origin from
the actual day of Christ’s Resurrection. Sunday extends the celebration
of Easter throughout the year. It is meant to be illumined by the glory
of the Risen Christ. It makes present the new creation brought about
by Christ.
Sunday also recalls the creation of the world. The Genesis account
of creation, expressed in poetic style, is a hymn of awe and adoration of
God in the presence of the immensity of creation.
The Fathers of the Second Vatican Council explained how we should
celebrate the Eucharist on Sunday, or its vigil on Saturday evening:
The Church, therefore, earnestly desires that Christ’s faithful,
when present at this mystery of faith, should not be there as
strangers or silent spectators. On the contrary, through a good
understanding of the rites and prayers they should take part in
the sacred action, conscious of what they are doing, with devo-
tion and full collaboration. They should be instructed by God’s
word and be nourished at the table of the Lord’s Body. They
should give thanks to God. Offering the immaculate victim,
not only through the hands of the priest, but also together with