They could be deputed to do so by the priest but why would he do that? Extraordinary Ministers of Holy Communion are only supposed to minister if there is such a large number of communicants that the Mass would be too long (5 or 6 minutes is not a hardship) or if the priest is not able to do so for some reason (illness, age, etc). In their plan what is the priest doing?
I concur. Can they? I suppose if there were 1200 communicants at Mass, yes… But under normal circumstances, should they? Nope.
The instruction Redemptionis Sacramentum would probably answer some of your questions. It reiterates the Church’s position on Extraordinary Ministers of Holy Communion - which is that “only when there is a necessity may extraordinary ministers assist the Priest celebrant [in the distribution of Holy Communion] in accordance with the norm of law”. Unless it is a very big wedding where the numbers wishing to receive Holy Communion would excessively prolong the Communion procession, I don’t think there would be any grounds for having an EMHC to assist the priest.
You are right, EMHC’s tend to be used quite a lot - frequently over-used. But that doesn’t change what the Church has directed on the matter. Communion should never be rushed, but what constitutes overly prolonging the Communion procession is obviously a matter of opinion. However, I’ve never played at a wedding where the congregation was so big that it warranted an EMHC or two - in fact, in the case of a wedding, if anything prolongs the Communion procession, it’s the music!
It appears common place for EMHC to assist priests and i have never seen a priest do this by himself.
If couples are the ministers of matrimony would this not be a symbol of great devotion to the body and blood of Our Lord that the first act the couple does is to give the most precious body of Christ to each other and then to the community as a great act of faith and witness.
I believe that it is a parellel symbol of the sacrifice of Christ giving himself on the Cross and the husband and wife giving themselves as a sacriface to each other.
You’re right there - you know, I played at a wedding about two months ago. The organ was situated over to the right of the altar so I could see exactly what was going on! Before the Nuptial Blessing, one of the wedding party (perhaps the mother of the bride or groom, but I’m not sure) had the audacity to ascend the altar steps and approach the priest to ask him to get everyone to extend their hands and give the blessing. The priest obeyed
. I was disgusted and obviously refused to take part in it. I found it interesting, though that while the people at the wedding wouldn’t respond to the prayers and actions which were proper to them, they all wanted a part in the blessing, so they willingly extended their hands…Aye. As they say, once you let the camel’s nose in the tent…You’re right there - you know, I played at a wedding about two months ago. The organ was situated over to the right of the altar so I could see exactly what was going on! Before the Nuptial Blessing, one of the wedding party (perhaps the mother of the bride or groom, but I’m not sure) had the audacity to ascend the altar steps and approach the priest to ask him to get everyone to extend their hands and give the blessing. The priest obeyed
However, in all practicality, not everyone who attends a Wedding Mass receives Holy Communion. I just survived my cousin’s Wedding Mass last week (I was the one planning the liturgy). While we had about 150 people at the Mass, only about 20-30 went to receive Holy Communion. My father, who is an EMHC, assisted my parochial vicar as an altar server. He did not, however, assist in the distribution of Holy Communion; the celebrant did this all by himself.
It appears common place for EMHC to assist priests and i have never seen a priest do this by himself.
If couples are the ministers of matrimony would this not be a symbol of great devotion to the body and blood of Our Lord that the first act the couple does is to give the most precious body of Christ to each other and then to the community as a great act of faith and witness.
I believe that it is a parellel symbol of the sacrifice of Christ giving himself on the Cross and the husband and wife giving themselves as a sacriface to each other.
Remember, too, that the term Eucharistic Minister is reserved only for the priest and bishop since they alone can confect, cause to happen, the Eucharist. They are also the ordinary ministers of Holy Communion.
While the couple administers the sacrament, the priest is the Church’s official witness. They need to do this in front of him, or, in some cases, the deacon.
Just out of curiousity, are you the one who is planning on getting married and wanting to distribute Holy Communion as well?
Ok - I can admit when I’m wrong! The Catechism does say that “according to the Latin tradition, the spouses as ministers of Christ’s grace mutually confer upon each other the sacrament of Matrimony by expressing their consent before the Church” (CCC1623).
They shouldn’t unless there is a REAL need for EMHC’s because of the number of people attending, and no other trained, commissioned EMHC are available.
To be honest, I think the bishop probably has more pressing things to attend to - I would recommend talking to the priest who will be celebrating the Mass. I’m not sure that one could get a dispensation to serve as an EMHC - I assume on would actually have to “become” one - (especially if the reason is simply because the persons involved want to give out Communion) - what I mean is, that if they want to function as EMHC’s, then they should ask their parish priest to direct them to a suitable course or resources to make this a reality.Thanks everyone for your replies. First time on website and enjoyed the experience. God bless to you all. Will redirect the couple to the bishop i think.
But they still can’t give to each other since EMHCs are supposed to receive from the priest.