Wednesday Liturgy: Follow-up: Precious Blood for Young Children
ROME, AUG. 26, 2008 (Zenit.org).- Answered by Legionary of Christ Father Edward McNamara, professor of liturgy at the Regina Apostolorum university.
Related to our July 29 reply on giving the Precious Blood to children, a reader asked about the proper place for distributing Communion to servers.
He asked: "It is the practice in our parish for the celebrant to give Communion under both kinds at the side of the altar to the server (who may also double as assistant in distributing Communion to the congregation) or, if there are a number of Communion assistants, to them all, also at the altar. Is this correct? It is also the practice to give Communion from the chalice only to individuals from the congregation who, presumably, have requested this because of a problem with gluten?"
Following the Gospel principle that the "last will be first," I will tackle quickly the second question and affirm that it is correct to offer the chalice alone to those who for a good reason cannot receive the host.
Regarding the first question, the General Instruction of the Roman Missal, No. 162, says: "The priest may be assisted in the distribution of Communion by other priests who happen to be present. If such priests are not present and there is a very large number of communicants, the priest may call upon extraordinary ministers to assist him, e.g., duly instituted acolytes or even other faithful who have been deputed for this purpose.[1] In case of necessity, the priest may depute suitable faithful for this single occasion.
"These ministers should not approach the altar before the priest has received Communion, and they are always to receive from the hands of the priest celebrant the vessel containing either species of the Most Holy Eucharist for distribution to the faithful."
This number does not explicitly address whether the extraordinary ministers may receive Communion near the altar after the priest's communion. But I think that this is a logical conclusion as it would be cumbersome for the priest to give them Communion somewhere else and then return to the altar to distribute the sacred vessels. It is also appropriate that these ministers receive Communion before distributing it to others.
It is not necessary that servers who are not extraordinary ministers of holy Communion receive near the altar. But there could be good practical reasons for proceeding in this manner and it is not forbidden.
Related to our July 29 reply on giving the Precious Blood to children, a reader asked about the proper place for distributing Communion to servers.
He asked: "It is the practice in our parish for the celebrant to give Communion under both kinds at the side of the altar to the server (who may also double as assistant in distributing Communion to the congregation) or, if there are a number of Communion assistants, to them all, also at the altar. Is this correct? It is also the practice to give Communion from the chalice only to individuals from the congregation who, presumably, have requested this because of a problem with gluten?"
Following the Gospel principle that the "last will be first," I will tackle quickly the second question and affirm that it is correct to offer the chalice alone to those who for a good reason cannot receive the host.
Regarding the first question, the General Instruction of the Roman Missal, No. 162, says: "The priest may be assisted in the distribution of Communion by other priests who happen to be present. If such priests are not present and there is a very large number of communicants, the priest may call upon extraordinary ministers to assist him, e.g., duly instituted acolytes or even other faithful who have been deputed for this purpose.[1] In case of necessity, the priest may depute suitable faithful for this single occasion.
"These ministers should not approach the altar before the priest has received Communion, and they are always to receive from the hands of the priest celebrant the vessel containing either species of the Most Holy Eucharist for distribution to the faithful."
This number does not explicitly address whether the extraordinary ministers may receive Communion near the altar after the priest's communion. But I think that this is a logical conclusion as it would be cumbersome for the priest to give them Communion somewhere else and then return to the altar to distribute the sacred vessels. It is also appropriate that these ministers receive Communion before distributing it to others.
It is not necessary that servers who are not extraordinary ministers of holy Communion receive near the altar. But there could be good practical reasons for proceeding in this manner and it is not forbidden.
posted by Chipi Buenafe at
12:44 PM
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