Nor should we do something that requires another person to work.
So, if getting to Mass and back entails the purchase of gas, food, drink, or use of public transportation, one should stay home? For a variety of reasons, I can no longer get to Mass, however, when I was still able to drive long distance, was it sinful of me to purchase a tank of gas to return home? Travelling with 10 gallons of pre-purchased gasoline in a tiny car hardly seems safe. Is it wrong to sign in or leave a motel on Sunday? After all, the maid needs to clean the room! What about eating in a restaurant, fast food place, or purchasing food at the gas station convenience store? What about using a restroom in such places? Menial work must be done by someone to clean and replenish supplies, even if no purchase is made. Before EZ Pass, tollbooth collectors sat their shifts and my passage required them to work. It was not possible for me to get to and from Mass toll-free.
I know I'm being trivial, but where, exactly, does one draw the line? Once, I was rebuked by a woman for sewing on Sunday, and was strongly urged to go again to Confession. My sin? Retrieving a sewing kit from my car to assist my friend who had caught her dress on the corner of a bathroom stall door, ripping the dress along the waistline about seven inches, then all the way to the bottom hem. Was she to stay in the church bathroom until she could sneak out after midnight without being seen, then drive home? What if someone saw her while walking from the parking lot to her apartment building? She didn't have extra clothes or a long coat. I thought I had performed an act of mercy! Maybe not!