The substitute priest we had at Mass this past weekend said that there are no Holy Days of Obligation and that those are days of Celebration and if you did not feel like going to Mass on Nov. 1st, then don't go. He then said that no one would go to hell if they missed Mass. I felt that this was the wrong message to give especially since I know plenty of Catholics that do not attend Mass on a regular basis. Shouldn't priests tell people what is right and wrong? This was very confusing to me.

Hi Karey,

There are of course HolY Days of Obligation and All Saints is one of those days in the USA, so long as it does not fall on a Saturday or Monday for Latin Catholics.

Here is the relevant norm from the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops.

http://usccb.org/beliefs-and-teachings/what-we-believe/canon-law/complementary-norms/canon-1246.cfm

The determination of who goes to Hell is of course God's province. However, our Church has taught that missing Mass on a Sunday or Holy Day of Obligation is a grave sin and if done with the requisite additional elements, can constitute mortal sin. I think this priest at a minimum misspoke, since his perspective seems quite inconsistent with what our Church teaches about Sundays and Holy Days of Obligation.

Blessings, Bob

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