“Remember to keep holy the sabbath day” means, literally, to keep holy Saturday, the seventh day of the week. Faithful Jewish people today observe the Sabbath from sundown Friday to sundown Saturday.
The Sabbath has rich connections with events in the Old Testament or Hebrew Scriptures. It recalls the creation of the world. It recalls the deliverance of the Chosen People from pagan slavery in Egypt and the obligation of the liberated covenant that God made with us as we observe a day of praise and gratitude for the Lord’s saving actions. It recalls the fact that God rested on the seventh day as a model for us to imitate.
Why, then, do most Christians keep the sabbath on Sunday?
At the very beginning of the Christian era, the Church shifted this observance from Saturday to Sunday, basically for two reasons: Jesus rose on Easter Sunday, and the Holy Spirit came upon the apostles fifty days later, also a Sunday. It also sees in the celebration an understanding that Christ ushered in the new creation and fulfills the sabbath.Is Mass central to keeping Sunday holy?
Do Catholics have an obligation to be present for Mass every Sunday?
How do we observe Sunday as a day of rest?
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