The Precepts of the Church

1. To worship at Mass on Sundays and to observe Sunday as a day of rest.
2. To confess one’s grave sins at least once a year in the Sacrament of Penance.
3. To receive Holy Communion at least once a year during the Easter Season (between Ash Wednesday and Trinity Sunday).
4. To attend Mass on Holy Days of Obligation. (Holy Days of Obligation in Australia are Christmas Day and the Assumption of Our Lady, August 15)
5. To do penance by prayer, works of piety and charity, and fast and abstinence on the days commanded. The days of penance are each Friday of the whole year, and the season of Lent.

The days of fasting and abstinence from meat are Ash Wednesday and Good Friday. The Church also requires all her members to contribute, as best they can, to the support of their priests, parishes, schools and the Church’s works of charity, and to observe the laws of the Church about the sacrament of Marriage.

The precepts of the Church are set in the context of a moral life bound to and nourished by liturgical life. The obligatory character of these positive laws decreed by the pastoral authorities is meant to guarantee to the faithful the very necessary minimum in the spirit of prayer and moral effort, in the growth in love of God and neighbor:

The first precept ("You shall attend Mass on Sundays and holy days of obligation and rest from servile labor") requires the faithful to sanctify the day commemorating the Resurrection of the Lord as well as the principal liturgical feasts honoring the mysteries of the Lord, the Blessed Virgin Mary, and the saints; in the first place, by participating in the Eucharistic celebration, in which the Christian community is gathered, and by resting from those works and activities which could impede such a sanctification of these days.

The second precept ("You shall confess your sins at least once a year") ensures preparation for the Eucharist by the reception of the sacrament of reconciliation, which continues Baptism's work of conversion and forgiveness.

The third precept ("You shall receive the sacrament of the Eucharist at least during the Easter season") guarantees as a minimum the reception of the Lord's Body and Blood in connection with the Paschal feasts, the origin and center of the Christian liturgy.

The fourth precept ("You shall observe the days of fasting and abstinence established by the Church") ensures the times of ascesis and penance which prepare us for the liturgical feasts and help us acquire mastery over our instincts and freedom of heart.

The fifth precept ("You shall help to provide for the needs of the Church") means that the faithful are obliged to assist with the material needs of the Church, each according to his own ability.

The faithful also have the duty of providing for the material needs of the Church, each according to his own abilities.

(Catechism of the Catholic Church, 2041-2043)