Bug in the prescious blood

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Agnes123

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I was distributing communion today and a fly was in the cup. I scooped it out and washed it down the “special” sink. After Mass I told the priest - he was really nice about it but that wasn’t what I should have done - What do you do in that situation?
 
To set it aside and not distribute it. Deal with it after Mass. What would the sacristan have done?
 
Agnes123 said:
To set it aside and not distribute it. Deal with it after Mass. What would the sacristan have done?
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That sounds more correct. First of all, the consecrated wine was now possibly tainted. Second, it is not allowed to pour consecrated wine into the sacrarium (sink). The wine must first be diluted so as not to be really wine any more. Hard to do that while scooping out a bug. And third, I don’t think the bug should have gone into the sacrarium anyway.

But you did the best you could think of under the circumstances. 🙂
 
Corki said:
That sounds more correct. First of all, the consecrated wine was now possibly tainted…
And third, I don’t think the bug should have gone into the sacrarium anyway.
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So, what is the proper thing to do if the precious blood is tainted, and what do you do with a wine-soaked bug if you can’t put it down the drain?
 
Digitonomy said:
So, what is the proper thing to do if the precious blood is tainted, and what do you do with a wine-soaked bug if you can’t put it down the drain?
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Cover the chalice. (which is why they used to use the linen covered boards “pall” to keep bugs out in the first place) set it aside. It will be diluted with at least twice as much water and poured down the “special” sink.
 
Digitonomy said:
So, what is the proper thing to do if the precious blood is tainted, and what do you do with a wine-soaked bug if you can’t put it down the drain?
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The consecrated wine would be diluted until it no longer resembles wine and then poured down the sacrarium.

As for the bug, I think this would fall into the same category as wine-stained altar cloths. You rinse it out as much as possible and then dispose of it. A respectful burial? 🙂
 
Corki said:
As for the bug, I think this would fall into the same category as wine-stained altar cloths. You rinse it out as much as possible and then dispose of it. A respectful burial? 🙂
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What if the bug is still alive? And if it’s a dangerous critter (say, a big hornet or even a rabid rodent)? Would there be any problem with swatting it as it crawled across the altar, leaving a trail of consecrated wine behind? Or trapping it in the chalice so that it drowns? These would be rather unfortunate and bizarre situations, but ideas on dealing with them give insight to the less-knowledgeable like myself on how more common situations might be dealt with.
 
I have no clue what your priest had in mind, but prior to 1970, missals used to have a section in the front called De Defectibus. One of the contingencies was what to do if a fly or spider fell in in the chalice. The answer was:

(a) drink it if you can, and it isn’t nauseous to you (a rare occurrence, I would think!)
(b) fish it out. Wash it over a chalice with wine. Then burn it and throw the ashes down the sacrarium.

The usual method of De Defectibus for disposing the Precious Blood was not to dilute It, since the proportion of water needed is somewhat uncertain, but to absorb It using a linen cloth, and wait for It to dry. Then burn the cloth and throw the ashes down the sacrarium.

Similar courses of action are prescribed with regard to impious rodents.

(To be honest, if a rodent did indeed materialize on the altar, I can’t imagine what most priests would do to catch it. Try smacking it with the paten, or the sacramentary? I guess this is one of the situations where the fans employed in some of the Eastern Rites would be in handy.)
 
I still remember one time when I was receiving the Precious Blood and there was a spider in the chalice. I ignored the spider (with some difficulty ;)) and received the Precious Blood anyway. The spider was dead and was just floating in His blood.
 
Agnes123 said:
I was distributing communion today and a fly was in the cup. I scooped it out and washed it down the “special” sink. After Mass I told the priest - he was really nice about it but that wasn’t what I should have done - What do you do in that situation?
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It’s kinda sad in my opinion that the laity (assuming you are of the laity) is even put in the position of having to deal with this situation. If you look at the document De Defectibus it will tell you.
  1. If before the Consecration a fly or spider or anything else falls into the chalice, the priest is to pour out the wine in a suitable place, put other wine into the chalice, add a little water, offer it, as above, and continue the Mass. If after the Consecration a fly or something of the kind falls into the chalice, he is to take it out, wash it with wine, burn it after the Mass is over, and throw the ashes and the wine which was used for washing into the sacrarium.
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– Nicole
 
yablabo said:
It’s kinda sad in my opinion that the laity (assuming you are of the laity) is even put in the position of having to deal with this situation. If you look at the document De Defectibus it will tell you.

– Nicole
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Excellent find. Thanks. 👍
 
I am a lay person. I am not sure if you are sad because a lay person is distributing communion or if a bug fell into the chalice in the first place.
If if is because I am a lay person - then welcome to post Vatican 2 - I worship in a church that seats over 1000 with one priest. It is the call of the laity to participate fully in the Mass and my volunteering as an extraordinary minister is a beautiful expression of my love for God and the church.
If you are sad that the bug ended up in the chalice - well I assume that in this Universal Church that we are a part of - where Mass sometimes is celebrated on the back of a jeep or on a makeshift alter in Africa or South America - this kind of thing happens. We live in a messy world - God made it that way!
 
Like said:
Maybe that bug was Catholic?😊
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All bugs are Catholic. Just like all creation is Catholic.
😃

At the risk of sounding like a loon, I probably would have just trusted Jesus and swallowed the fly.

But I am not an EM and don’t want to be.
 
I just wandered in here…

It’s a funny story, but it also has message for us, I think.

For are we not all of us, like the bug, floating in Jesus? For surely without Him and His Blood shed for us, we would all certainly drown.

Pax,

Dettingen
 
Agnes123 said:
I am a lay person. I am not sure if you are sad because a lay person is distributing communion or if a bug fell into the chalice in the first place.
If if is because I am a lay person - then welcome to post Vatican 2 - I worship in a church that seats over 1000 with one priest. It is the call of the laity to participate fully in the Mass and my volunteering as an extraordinary minister is a beautiful expression of my love for God and the church.
If you are sad that the bug ended up in the chalice - well I assume that in this Universal Church that we are a part of - where Mass sometimes is celebrated on the back of a jeep or on a makeshift alter in Africa or South America - this kind of thing happens. We live in a messy world - God made it that way!
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My expression of sadness was directed toward the fact that there is a lacking in number of ordinary ministers in most localities.

– Nicole
 
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