An Apologetical Explanation of the

Precepts of the Church

What are the Precepts of the Church?

Train yourself in godliness; for while bodily training is of some value, godliness is of value in every way, as it holds promise fo the present life and also for the life to come.  (1 Tm 4:7-8)

The Precepts of the Church are five positive laws that the Church gives to guide the faithful to fulfill at least a minimum level of prayer, moral reflection, spiritual growth, and love for God and neighbor.

Far from serving as an onerous legal imposition on the faithful, the Precepts of the Church serve as a fundamental minimum of pious practice expected of all members of the faithful.  There are five precepts listed in the Catechism (cf. CCC 2041):

  • The first precept requires that all members of the Church attend Mass on Sundays and Holy Days of Obligation and refrain from those activities that would impede the proper sanctification of these days.
  • The second precept requires every member of the faithful, after having reached the age of discretion, to confess in kind and number all of their grave sins in the Sacrament of Penance and Reconciliation at least once a year.  It is recommended that they also confess their venial sins.
  • The third precept states that the faithful must receive the Eucharist at least annually during the Easter season.  (Cf. CCC 2042)
  • The fourth precept stipulates that the faithful must observe the prescribed days of fasting and abstinence during hte liturgical year as a penitential practice.  The prescribed days of fasting are Ash Wednesday and Good Friday.  On these days Catholics from the age of eighteen through fifty-nine may have one full meal and two smaller meals, which together do not equal a full meal.  Every Friday of the year is a day of abstinence, and Catholics from the age of fourteen should abstain from eating meat.  On Fridays outside of Lent, the bishops’ conference may allow the faithful in its region of the world to substitute abstinence from meat with an act of charity or penance.
  • The fifth and final precept obliges the faithful to contribute to the material needs of the Church as they are able.  (Cf. CCC 2043)

The Catechism addresses this question in paragraphs 2041 and 2048.

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