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I. CHOICE
OF MASS
314.
On solemnities the priest is bound to follow the calendar of the church where
he is celebrating.
315.
On Sundays, on weekdays of Advent, the Christmas season, Lent, and the Easter
season, on feasts, and on obligatory memorials:
a. if Mass
is celebrated with a congregation, the priest should follow the calendar of the
church where he is celebrating;
b. if Mass
is celebrated without a congregation, the priest may choose either the calendar
of the church or his own calendar.
316.
On optional memorials:
a. On the
weekdays of Advent from 17 December to 24 December, during the octave of
Christmas, and on the weekdays of Lent, apart from Ash Wednesday and in Holy
Week, the priest celebrates the Mass of the day; but he may take the opening
prayer from a memorial listed in the General Roman Calendar for that day,
except on Ash Wednesday and during Holy Week.
b. On the
weekdays of Advent before 17 December, the weekdays of the Christmas season
from 2 January on, and the weekdays of the Easter season, the priest may choose
the weekday Mass, the Mass of the saint or of one of the saints whose memorial
is observed, or the Mass of a saint inscribed in the martyrology for that day.
c. On the
weekdays in Ordinary Time, the priest may choose the weekday Mass, the Mass of
an optional memorial, the Mass of a saint inscribed in the martyrology for that
day, a Mass for various needs and occasions, or a votive Mass.
If he
celebrates with a congregation, the priest should first consider the spiritual
good of the faithful and avoid imposing his own personal preferences. In
particular, he should not omit the readings assigned for each day in the
weekday lectionary too frequently or without sufficient reason, since the
Church desires that a richer portion of God's word be provided for the
people.94
For similar
reasons he should use Masses for the dead sparingly. Every Mass is offered for
both the living and the dead and there is a remembrance of the dead in each
eucharistic prayer.
Where the
faithful are attached to the optional memorials of Mary or the saints, at least
one Mass of the memorial should be celebrated to satisfy their devotion.
When an
option is given between a memorial in the General Roman Calendar and one in a
diocesan or religious calendar, the preference should be given, all things
being equal and depending on tradition, to the memorial in the particular
calendar.
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