Noon to Midnight, Norm 14

Did you know that some plenary indulgence works can be done ‘early?’ For example, you may be able to do a work on a Saturday afternoon which would would count as that Sunday’s indulgence! This comes from Norm 14.

Norm 14 states: If a visit to a Church or an oratory is required to obtain an indulgence attached to a particular day, this may be accomplished from noon of the preceding day until midnight of the particular day.

Why would we have this norm? My personal opinion is that it is for a couple, practical reasons:

1. This accounts for the common practice of ‘Vigil Masses.’ Sometimes a Mass can be dedicated to a certain cause/day, and some of these causes/days have an indulgence work attached to it. Days like All Souls Day, World day of Peace, and the Solemnity of Christ the King are some examples. Therefore, it makes sense that you may gain a specific indulgence by going to church (to attend the Mass) on either the official day of the indulgenced celebration, or on its Vigil the evening before.

2. There are some areas of the world where a church may be difficult to get to. If a journey is needed to get to a specific church, there is more freedom to gain an indulgence if the opportunity lasts a day and a half rather then only one day. This is especially helpful for some pilgrimages or in more secluded areas.

3. The Church has no desire to make any holy and edifying processes hard. Although indulgences are particular, the Church does her best to not make them so hard that we can not gain them. She wants everyone to have the opportunity to gain indulgences. So some indulgences have ingrained in them special allowances. This time extension is simply one type of allowance.

Out of the 33+ Grants, I believe that there are 8 Grants that have portions that could apply to Norm 14. They are under the categories:

• EUCHARISTIC ADORATION AND PROCESSION (Grant 7)

• PRAYERS TO THE BLESSED VIRGIN MARY (Grant 17)

• PRAYERS IN HONOR OF THE SAINTS AND BLESSEDS (Grant 21)

• PRAYERS OF THE EASTERN CHURCHES (Grant 23)

• FOR THE FAITHFUL DEPARTED (Grant 29)

• A DIOCESAN SYNOD (Grant 31)

• VISITING SACRED PLACES (Grant 33)

• DEVOTIONS IN HONOR OF DIVINE MERCY (Grant ‘DM’)

Grant 7 - EUCHARISTIC ADORATION AND PROCESSION

A plenary indulgence is granted to the faithful who

1° visit the Blessed Sacrament for adoration lasting at least a half hour;

2° piously recite the verses of the Tantum ergo after the Mass of the Lord’s Supper on Holy Thursday during the solemn reposition of the Most Blessed Sacrament;

3° devoutly participate in a solemn Eucharistic procession, held inside or outside a church, of greatest importance on the Solemnity of the Body and Blood of Christ;

4° participate religiously in the solemn Eucharistic celebration which is customarily held at the conclusion of a Eucharistic congress.

...

The portion of this that I’m looking at is: 3° devoutly participate in a solemn Eucharistic procession, held inside or outside a church, of greatest importance on the Solemnity of the Body and Blood of Christ;

I believe that, by needing a church to be ‘inside or outside’ of, that this would offer the opportunity for processions to be done on the Vigil of the Solemnity of the Body and Blood of Christ (aka. Corpus Christi). I could be wrong, so if you plan to gain this particular indulgence outside of the day of Corpus Christi, it would be worth it to ask a priest about the discrepancies.

It is worth noting that one compelling reason I could be wrong is that it may be that any procession offers an indulgence any time, regardless of the occasion. This would make any procession an opportunity for a plenary indulgence, regardless of it’s reliance on a church.

Grant 17 - PRAYERS TO THE BLESSED VIRGIN MARY

A plenary indulgence is granted to the faithful who

1° devoutly recite the Marian rosary in a church or oratory, or in a family, a religious community, or an association of the faithful, and in general when several of the faithful gather for some honest purpose;

2° devoutly join in the recitation of the rosary while it is being recited by the Supreme Pontiff and broadcast live by radio or television.

…..

The portion of this that I’m looking at is: 1° devoutly recite the Marian rosary in a church or oratory… Although there is no specific event that this lines up with, by need a church to be IN a church does qualify this particular action to be done from noon the day before. Note that rosaries “in a family, a religious community, or an association of the faithful, and in general when several of the faithful gather for some honest purpose,” do not require a church and would only offer an indulgence the day of.

Grant 21 - PRAYERS IN HONOR OF THE SAINTS AND BLESSEDS

A partial indulgence is granted to the faithful who on the memorial of any saint listed in the calendar recite in that saint’s honor the prayer taken from the Missal or another one approved by legitimate authority.

In addition, in order to promote the veneration of newly proclaimed saints and blesseds, a plenary indulgence is granted a single time within the year following the canonization or beatification to those faithful who make a visit to a church or an oratory in which a solemn celebrations is held in honor of the saint or blessed, and who there devoutly recite the Our Father and the Creed.

...

The portion of this that I’m looking at is: a plenary indulgence is granted a single time within the year following the canonization or beatification to those faithful who make a visit to a church or an oratory in which a solemn celebrations is held in honor of the saint or blessed, and who there devoutly recite the Our Father and the Creed

This would be especially good for pilgrimages, where time schedules are tight and the most reasonable opportunity to visit to a church or an oratory does not line up perfectly with an appropriate day. Note that the likely intention of this indulgence to promote people to join ‘solemn celebrations.’ But, even if you cannot attend a ‘solemn celebrations’ that should be okay because the focus is on the visit to the church rather then the event that take place in the church. That said, this may be another one that would be worth it to ask a priest about the discrepancies. (If you plan to go during the celebrations, you should be fine, but if you are planning to go to the church when a ‘solemn celebration’ is not being held it may be worth it to ask.)

Grant 23 - PRAYERS OF THE EASTERN CHURCHES

§1 A plenary indulgence is granted to the faithful who devoutly recite the Akathistos hymn or the Office of the Paraclisis in a church or oratory, or in a family, a religious community, or an association of the faithful, and in general when several of the faithful gather for some honest purpose. In other circumstances, the indulgence will be partial.

The portion of this that I’m looking at is: A plenary indulgence is granted to the faithful who devoutly recite the Akathistos hymn or the Office of the Paraclisis in a church or oratory,

The Akathistos hymn or the Office of the Paraclisis are Marian praises similar to the Rosary, but for the Easter Church or other Catholic denominations that do not have the Rosary. And, like the rosary Grant above, this Grant follows the same rules. That is, these prayers may be done in a church regardless of if there is a certain event or not. Also the rest of the indulgence: “in a family, a religious community, or an association of the faithful, and in general when several of the faithful gather for some honest purpose,” do not require a church and would only offer an indulgence the day of.

Grant 29 - FOR THE FAITHFUL DEPARTED

A plenary indulgence, applicable only to the souls in purgatory, is granted to the faithful who, 1° on any and each day from November 1 to 8, devoutly visit a cemetery and pray, if only mentally, for the departed;

2° on All Souls’ Day (or, according to the judgment of the ordinary, on the Sunday preceding or following it, or on the solemnity of All Saints), devoutly visit a church or an oratory and recite an Our Father and the Creed.

…..

The portion of this that I’m looking at is: on All Souls’ Day... devoutly visit a church or an oratory and recite an Our Father and the Creed.

This indulgence is straight forward in its need for a church and what the indulgence is for (All Soul’s Day). Something new that we can learn though is that this indulgence utilizes another Norm: “N13. If a liturgical celebration or its external solemnity is lawfully transferred, it is understood that an indulgence attached to that liturgical celebration is likewise transferred to the same day.”

This means that All Souls’ Day and its vigil offer a plenary indulgence in line with Norm 14, but it also may be legitimately celebrated on different days depending on the culture, location, or surrounding circumstances. So, if in one country All Souls’ Day is celebrated on the 2^nd of November, the Vigil is the 1^st. If in another country All Souls’ Day is on Sunday, the Vigil is on Saturday.

Grant 31 - A DIOCESAN SYNOD

A plenary indulgence is granted a single time to the faithful who, during a diocesan synod, devoutly visit the church in which the synod is celebrated and there recite an Our Father and the Creed.

…..

The portion of this that I’m looking at is: ... to the faithful who, during a diocesan synod, devoutly visit the church in which the synod is celebrated …

This whole Grant is based on a visit to a particular church, so Norm 14 is certainly implied. But, kind of like the indulgence for Saints and Blesseds, I’m certain that this indulgence is to encourage people to attend Synods and Synod celebrations. But, if you can not attend the Synod, this indulgence's focus is, and may remain, on the visit to the church rather then the event that take place in the church. It would be worth it to ask a priest about the discrepancies (If you plan to go during the synod, you should be fine. If you are planning to go to the church when the synod is not being held, you may want to ask.)

Grant 33 - VISITING SACRED PLACES

A plenary indulgence is granted to the faithful who visit, and there devoutly recite an Our Father and the Creed,

1° one of the four Patriarchal Basilicas in Rome, either as part of group making a pilgrimage to the basilica, or at least with the purpose of expressing during the visit filial submission to the Roman Pontiff;

2° a minor basilica

a. on the solemnity of the holy Apostles Peter and Paul;

b. on the solemnity of its Titular;

c. on August 2, the day of the “Portiuncula” indulgence;

d. once a year, on a day chosen by the Christian faithful;

3° the cathedral church

a. on the solemnity of the holy Apostles Peter and Paul,

b. on the solemnity of its Titular;

c. on the liturgical celebration of the Cathedral of St. Peter, the Apostle;

d. on the dedication of the Archbasilica of the Most Holy Savior;

e. on August 2, the day of the “Portiuncula” indulgence;

4° an international, national, or diocesan shrine established by competent authority

a. on the solemnity of its Titular;

b. once a year, on a day chosen by the Christian faithful;

c. as often as they assist in a group pilgrimage visiting the shrine;

5° a parish church

a. on the solemnity of its Titular;

b. on August 2, the day of the “Portiuncula” indulgence;

6° a church or an altar on the day of its dedication;

7° a church or an oratory of institutes of consecrated life and societies of apostolic life, on the liturgical memorial of their founder.

§2 Similarly, a plenary indulgence is granted to the faithful who assist in the sacred functions held in any stational church on its designated day; if they merely visit the church devoutly, the indulgence will be partial.

...

The portion of this that I’m looking at is: All of what is written here!

This means that, for all these listed (and within the guidelines listed for each) the indulgence can be done from noon to midnight according to Norm 14.

1. Visiting Basilicas in Rome (1°)

2. Founder's Feasts (7°)

3. Helping in a Stational Church on a designated day (§2)

4. On the Solemnity of Peter and Paul

5. On a Solemnity of a church’s Titular

6. On August 2, the day of the “Portiuncula” indulgence

7. A certain date chosen by the faithful for certain church’s or shrines

8. The Dedication of the Archbasilica of the Most Holy Savior

9. The Celebration of the Cathedral of St. Peter, the Apostle

10. on a pilgrimage to certain international, national, or diocesan shrines

Grant ‘DM’ - DEVOTIONS IN HONOR OF DIVINE MERCY

a plenary indulgence, granted under the usual conditions (sacramental confession, Eucharistic communion and prayer for the intentions of Supreme Pontiff) to the faithful who, on the Second Sunday of Easter or Divine Mercy Sunday, in any church or chapel, in a spirit that is completely detached from the affection for a sin, even a venial sin, take part in the prayers and devotions held in honour of Divine Mercy, or who, in the presence of the Blessed Sacrament exposed or reserved in the tabernacle, recite the Our Father and the Creed, adding a devout prayer to the merciful Lord Jesus (e.g., “Merciful Jesus, I trust in you!”);

a partial indulgence, granted to the faithful who, at least with a contrite heart, pray to the merciful Lord Jesus a legitimately approved invocation.

The portion of this that I’m looking at is: to the faithful who, on the Second Sunday of Easter or Divine Mercy Sunday, in any church or chapel,… take part in the prayers and devotions held in honour of Divine Mercy or who, in the presence of the Blessed Sacrament….

This means that any prayers and devotions held in honour of Divine Mercy may be done on the Vigil of Divine Mercy. Also, even though this indulgence is written a little strangely, I would say that the second part regarding the Blessed Sacrament would also depend on it being in a church or chapel…. I think? This may be something to ask a priest about. (That is, you should ask if you plan to visit the Blessed Sacrament outside of a church or chapel.)

These are the 8 Grants that specifically mention needing a church. Like I’ve mentioned in some of these grants though, you may want to consult a priest for some of these, especially if there seems to be an event that the grants is suggesting you attend which you can’t attend. (Corpus Christi, Saint’s solemn celebrations, synods, or Divine Mercy adoration.)

Be warned though, it is entirely possible that these questions do not have a solid answer. Your priest may recommend one thing, but if you are still feeling uncertain, and unable to do the grant as it is outlines, remember that you are always free to choose another indulgence work that you have more confidence in. Like: Praying the Rosary, the Akathistos hymn or the Office of the Paraclisis in a church or oratory are certain ways that incorporate Norm 14. They also have the added benefit of being works that can be done daily!