Religion should be spontaneous?

Not going for Sunday Mass is a mortal sin. It should be your choice to go or not go. If people talk about freedom, why should religion be so strict? It reminds me of the good old days, when my parents used to use the stick to make me study my daily lessons.

Darryl

What religion is it a 'mortal sin' not to go to Sunday Mass? I've never heard about that.

It is not a mortal sin not to go to Mass. As a matter of fact I have not seen even one verse where it says you must go to mass each week. The commandments say keep the sabbath day holy, and actually that is Saturday. We worship and praise on Sunday instead, but missing Mass is not listed anywhere in the bible as a sin. I go to church each and every Sunday unless I'm sick. I still have a wonderful relationship with my Savior even on those days.

There are no laws compelling mass attendance. It IS your choice whether or not to go.

Hmmm. . . Never been to a Mass in my life, But I have been to church services. . . . It's good for the soul.

Jesus never went to mass!

There are many religions besides christianity, and many variations within each.
If you really want to participate in a religion, find one that suits you by supporting spontaneous actions - and one that does not require you to shut off your brain or drop your pants at the command of someone wearing a robe.

If you don't want to follow the will of God or the will of the church - your choice.

1 John 1:6 & 7
6 If we say that we have fellowship with him, and walk in darkness, we lie, and do not the truth:
7 But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin.

It says right there in the bible ... I mean you can't argue with that ...

I try to never miss a Sabbath day worship with my church family. When Christians worship Christ together every week their faith becomes stronger and it strengthens their walk with God. It is not a sin to miss church however.

Scripture again says, 'You shall not forsake the gathering of yourselves, as is the habit of some'. Going to mass or a service doesn't mean a hill of beans if you don't put in to practice that which we hear from the pulpit Sunday, Wednesday, or whatever. To be fair though, there are some that for one reason or another can't go every week for work committments and the like. When we choose not to go to a service then we are depriving ourselves of one the greatest gifts God has given to us :corporate worship.

There are very few people who do not eat at least once a day. Most people try to eat more than once a day, but I think that it is safe to say that all people try to eat at least once a day.

Don't you think that your soul deserves at least one good meal a week?

The poster of this question says that religion should be spontaneous. I respectfully disagree. I think that the ideal religion is perpetual. The Holy Spirit should be the very air that we breathe. Our entire life should be a prayer. I suspect that that is the only way that we can fulfill Christ's command to 'Be perfect, just as your heavenly Father is perfect' (Matthew 5:48).

Unfortunately, most of us aren't there yet, myself included. For those of us who are working towards Christian perfection, the Lord gave us commandments to be our guide. Christ himself said, 'If you keep[ my commandments, you will abide in my love, just as I have kept the Father's commandments and abide in his love' (John 15:10; This consept of 'abiding in Christ is imporatnt: more on this shortly).

The Lord has commanded us to keep the sabbath rest. Thus he commanded the Israelites at Mount Sinai and beyond the Jordan (Ex. 20:8-11; Dt 5:12-15). At the bare minimum we owe God at least one day a week, out of respect for him and the things that he has done for us. He doesn't need us to set a day aside for him (we add nothing to his glory), we need to do it for our own sake.

Furthermore, Christ gave us another commandment (and this is the one that makes Sunday Mass absolutely critical). St. John testifies:

'[Jesus said] 'I am the living bread which came down from heaven; if any one eats of this bread, he will live forever; and the bread which I will give for the life of the world is my flesh.' THe Jews then disputed among themselves saying, 'How can this man give us his flesh to eat?' So Jesus said to them, 'Truly, Truly, I say to you, UNLESS YOU EAT OF THE FLESH OF THE SON OF MAN AND DRINK OF HIS BLOOD, YOU HAVE NO LIFE IN YOU; he who eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise him on the last day. FOR MY FLESH IS FOOD INDEED and MY BLOOD IS DRINK INDEED. he who eats my flesh and drinks my blood ABIDES in me and I in him. As the living Father has sent me, and I have life because of the Father, so he who eats me will live because of me' (RSVCE John 6:51-57 emphasis added).

At the Mass, we are so blessed to have Jesus truly present in the Eucharist, body, blood, soul and divinity. We NEED to go to Mass on Sundays.

I would love to write more, but I have to leave for Mass now.