When does Sunday begin?

[Catlick]

In the West the official start of the day is 12 midnight.
In the experience of many it starts when they wake up at, say, 7 AM.
In Old Testament times the day started when the sun set on the 'previous' day, e.g. Friday started when the sun set on Thursday.

What's the universal Church's take on this? Does she consider Sunday to start on what is normally considered Sunday evening? Which sounds logical to me given the fact that when necessary you can fulfill your Sunday obligation on Saturday evening (and not on Monday morning.)

On the other hand the Church does not instruct us to refrain from servile work on Saturday evening.

[formerbuddhist]

I think it's at Vespers the night before...basically at sundown. At least in my Slavic style Prayerbook and Horologion the first hour of the liturgical day is Vespers. I'm not sure what it is in modern Roman Catholic practice though.

[Dominicus]

I think of the time between Vespers (sunset) and midnight as a kind of In between time that can be one day or another depending on your purpose. Thus you can fulfil your Sunday obligation on Saturday night and if you are a priest or religious, still recite Saturdays Divine Office if you missed an Hour before doing Vespers.

[Dominicus]

Also you have the best profile name and picture ever.

[Catlick]

I have to confess that my curiosity was driven primarily by a desire for cake, sweets, and beer this Saturday evening  :blush:

[Dominicus]

I have to confess that my curiosity was driven primarily by a desire for cake, sweets, and beer this Saturday evening  :blush:

I think that's the kind of thing that should wait till after mass tomorrow, though I'm hardly qualified to talk, I stink at fasting.  :LOL:

[aquinas138]

A few issues:

- The liturgical observance of Sunday begins with Vespers of Saturday evening. This is distinct from:
- The canonical day, which runs midnight to midnight, following the civil day. The Sunday obligation applies to the canonical day, however:
- The Code of Canon Law allows the Sunday obligation to be anticipated on Saturday evening. This is essentially unrelated to the liturgical observance beginning at Vespers.
- A priest's obligation to the daily Office is for the canonical day, though the Office of Readings may be read after Vespers of the preceding day; no more specific time is given. In the EF breviary, Matins may be anticipated as early as 2 pm the preceding day.

[Leonhard]

I think it's at Vespers the night before...basically at sundown. At least in my Slavic style Prayerbook and Horologion the first hour of the liturgical day is Vespers. I'm not sure what it is in modern Roman Catholic practice though.

My N.O. divine office prayer book has the saturday vesper as the 1st Sunday vesper, and the vesper said on Sunday is the 2nd Vesper. So my instinct, going from what prayers have taught me, it liturgically starts saturday evening.

However my canon-law instinct tells me that, in terms of discipline, it starts after midnight. So I wouldn't break a saturday fast (if I was on one) because I had just said a 1st Vesper.

But I'm not expert.

[Poche]

In the West the official start of the day is 12 midnight.
In the experience of many it starts when they wake up at, say, 7 AM.
In Old Testament times the day started when the sun set on the 'previous' day, e.g. Friday started when the sun set on Thursday.

What's the universal Church's take on this? Does she consider Sunday to start on what is normally considered Sunday evening? Which sounds logical to me given the fact that when necessary you can fulfill your Sunday obligation on Saturday evening (and not on Monday morning.)

On the other hand the Church does not instruct us to refrain from servile work on Saturday evening.

According to Canon Law for purposes of obligatory mass attendance it begins at 4:00pm

[GangGreen]

I think for fasting or lenten penance purposes (which is what the OP is asking about) it's from midnight to midnight.

Just a few thoughts.
Lent starts on Ash Wednesday.
From Ash Wednesday to Easter there are actually 47 Days.
From Ash Wednesday to Palm Sunday there are 40 days.
From Ash Wednesday to Easter is also 40 days if you exclude Sundays.

Easter technically begins after the Easter Vigil on Holy Saturday.  So on that day, at least, you can break any kind of fast after the Vigil Mass. I still don't believe that applies to other Sundays.