Dies Domini

The next document in the queue is another from Pope John Paul II, Dies Domini. The Vatican site has it in its entirety.

We’ll cover it largely in the usual method here: daily posts plus brief reflection from me. Your commentary is always welcome, and encouraged.

Dies Domini comes in at just over 20,000 words in the English translation. 87 numbered sections should take us a bit more than three months–some sections are long. As usual for our late pope, some are lengthier than your average Vatican document. I expect we’ll be well into summer before we are finished. The plan will be to make this the #2 document post of the day. Evangelii Gaudium will remain a task for my morning. I will drop in something from Dies Domini on my lunch break, unless we have an Aparecida post. Then JP2 gets the American dinner slot.

To whet your appetite for a Sunday start, here’s the outline of the document. Looks like five metatopics: of God, of Christ, of the Church, of people, and of time.

Introduction
Chapter I
DIES DOMINI

• The Celebration of the Creator’s Work
• “Through him all things were made” (Jn 1:3)
• “In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth” (Gn 1:1)
• “Shabbat”: the Creator’s joyful rest
• “God blessed the seventh day and made it holy” (Gn 2:3)
• “To keep holy” by “remembering”
• From the Sabbath to Sunday

Chapter II
DIES CHRISTI

• The Day of the Risen Lord and of the Gift of the Holy Spirit
• The weekly Easter
• The first day of the week
• Growing distinction from the Sabbath
• The day of the new creation
• The eighth day: image of eternity
• The day of Christ-Light
• The day of the gift of the Spirit
• The day of faith
• An indispensable day!

Chapter III
DIES ECCLESIAE

• The Eucharistic Assembly: Heart of Sunday
• The presence of the Risen Lord
• The Eucharistic assembly
• The Sunday Eucharist
• The day of the Church
• A pilgrim people
• The day of hope
• The table of the word
• The table of the Body of Christ
• Easter banquet and fraternal gathering
• From Mass to “mission”
• The Sunday obligation
• A joyful celebration in song
• A celebration involving all
• Other moments of the Christian Sunday
• Sunday assemblies without a priest
• Radio and television

Chapter IV
DIES HOMINIS

• Sunday: Day of Joy, Rest and Solidarity
• The “full joy” of Christ
• The fulfilment of the Sabbath
• The day of rest
• A day of solidarity

Chapter V
DIES DIERUM

• Sunday: the Primordial Feast, Revealing the Meaning of Time
• Christ the Alpha and Omega of time
• Sunday in the Liturgical Year
• Conclusion