Can a deacon assisting at Mass self-communicate?

[Elzee]

I wish I would have kept the excerpt but I didn’t - I recently read an article or q&a (I think it may have been from CA but can’t find it now) that the only people allowed to self-communicate during Mass are the priest(s) celebrating/con-celebrating. A deacon who is assisting at Mass must *receive *communion from the priest.
Is this correct?

 

[Deacon_Ed]

Elzee,

Yes, that is correct. The deacon(s) at Mass must receive from the priest. However, it sometimes happens that the priest forgets (after all, mosgt priests serve 80-90% of their Masses without a deacon) and then the deacon is forced to “fend for himself.” It’s not right, but sometimes it’s necessary!

Deacon Ed

 

[John_Lilburne]

From the 2002 General Instruction of the Roman Missal (GIRM) approved for the USA, which can be accessed from romanrite.com/girm.html :

“182. After the priest’s Communion, the deacon receives Communion under both kinds from the priest himself and then assists the priest in distributing Communion to the people. If Communion is given under both kinds, the deacon himself administers the chalice to the communicants; and, when the distribution is completed, he immediately and reverently consumes at the altar all of the Blood of Christ that remains, assisted if necessary by other deacons and priests.”

So the deacon receives Communion from the priest. But after everyone has received Communion he consumes what remains of the Blood of Christ. The second time the priest does not present him with the chalice, saying “The Blood of Christ”.

 

[Elzee]

From the 2002 General Instruction of the Roman Missal (GIRM) approved for the USA, which can be accessed from romanrite.com/girm.html :

“182. After the priest’s Communion, the deacon receives Communion under both kinds from the priest himself and then assists the priest in distributing Communion to the people. If Communion is given under both kinds, the deacon himself administers the chalice to the communicants; and, when the distribution is completed, he immediately and reverently consumes at the altar all of the Blood of Christ that remains, assisted if necessary by other deacons and priests.”

So the deacon receives Communion from the priest. But after everyone has received Communion he consumes what remains of the Blood of Christ. The second time the priest does not present him with the chalice, saying “The Blood of Christ”.

In our parish, the deacon self-communicates both species. He then gives the hosts to the EMHC’s in the sanctuary, but then the EMHC’s distribute the Precioius Blood to each other. Sometimes an EMHC helps administer the hosts to the others in the sanctuary along with the deacon. After Communion (we always receive under both species in our parish) the EMHCs take any Precoius Blood remaining in their chalices to the sacristy where they consume it. Sounds like we’re doing several things incorrectly…

 

[THurifer2]

In our parish, the deacon self-communicates both species. He then gives the hosts to the EMHC’s in the sanctuary, but then the EMHC’s distribute the Precioius Blood to each other. Sometimes an EMHC helps administer the hosts to the others in the sanctuary along with the deacon. After Communion (we always receive under both species in our parish) the EMHCs take any Precoius Blood remaining in their chalices to the sacristy where they consume it. Sounds like we’re doing several things incorrectly…

Yes you are doing several things incorrectly…No one can self communicate at Mass but the priest. The EMHCs CAN consume the remaining Precious Blood but they cannot purify the vessels…Unless one of them is an Acolyte.

 

[John_Lilburne]

…No one can self communicate at Mass but the priest. The EMHCs CAN consume the remaining Precious Blood but they cannot purify the vessels…Unless one of them is an Acolyte.

Generally EMHCs cannot consume the remaining Precious Blood in their chalice.

From the 2002 General Instruction of the Roman Missal (GIRM) approved for the USA, which can be accessed from romanrite.com/girm.html :

“284. … b. Whatever may remain of the Blood of Christ is consumed at the altar by the priest or the deacon or the duly instituted acolyte who ministered the chalice.”

An exception is in the USA, if the diocesan bishop approves. This is because the Vatican has approved “Norms for the Distribution and Reception of Holy Communion under Both Kinds in the Dioceses of the United States of America,” which includes:

“52. When more of the Precious Blood remains than was necessary for Communion, and if not consumed by the bishop or priest celebrant, “the deacon immediately and reverently consumes at the altar all of the Blood of Christ which remains; he may be assisted, if needs dictate, by other deacons and priests.” When there are extraordinary ministers of Holy Communion, they may consume what remains of the Precious Blood from their chalice of distribution with permission of the diocesan bishop.”

The full document is at usccb.org/liturgy/current/norms.shtml .

If there is an exceptional situation of more consecrated wine than the priests, deacons and instituted acolytes can consume, then as reported in the USCCB Bishops’ Committee on the Liturgy Newsletter of March/April 2002:

"With respect to the second request, Cardinal Medina, Prefect of CDWDS, noted that neither an indult nor even the permission of the diocesan bishop is required for extraordinary ministers of Holy Communion to help the priest celebrant to consume what may remain of the Precious Blood after the distribution of Holy Communion. “Rather,” he wrote, “given the grave and overriding need to safeguard the Precious Blood, ministers of Holy Communion or other communicants may consume what remains of the Precious Blood in a dignified and reverent manner.”

 

[Elzee]

We have 10 EMHC’s at every Sunday Mass I’m sure that is why they consume the Precious Blood instead of one Deacon (we have a Deacon at almost every Mass). ** I didn’t think, however, they were allowed to consume it in the back room sacristy, but rather should do it at the altar. ** When Communion is over, our EMHCs instead walk to the sacristy, consume what is remaining, and then leave their chalice for Deacon to purify. On the rare occasion we don’t have a Deacon at Sunday Mass, our nun purifies the vessles, or one of the EMHCs… at the (incorrect) request of our pastor. He must not like doing it…

One other thing that is done that drives me crazy is if someone is ‘running low’ during Communion, our priest, if he is holding a chalice that day, will walk over and pour some of what remains in his chalice into theirs. I cringe everytime I see him do this.