Communion after missing all eucharistic prayers?

[Queen_Kimi]

hey i have a question , i’m not really sure where to look for the answer . so i figured i would see if maybe you could help .

it has two parts , first , if a person is at mass for the first part up to the point of the dismissal of catechumenates , and dismisses with them to give instruction . should they be allowed to return after all the eucharistic prayers to act as eucharistic ministers .
second , if a person is at mass for the first part up to the point of the dismissal of catechumenates , and dismisses with them to give instruction . should they be allowed to hop in line and go receive communion .

thanks for your help
kim

i am thinking no , if i am correct i need to know where to find this information

 

[Christine85]

I have heard from a friend that JPII said if you miss the Scripture readings then you shouldn’t take Communion

 

[thistle]

hey i have a question , i’m not really sure where to look for the answer . so i figured i would see if maybe you could help .

it has two parts , first , if a person is at mass for the first part up to the point of the dismissal of catechumenates , and dismisses with them to give instruction . should they be allowed to return after all the eucharistic prayers to act as eucharistic ministers .
second , if a person is at mass for the first part up to the point of the dismissal of catechumenates , and dismisses with them to give instruction . should they be allowed to hop in line and go receive communion .

thanks for your help
kim

i am thinking no , if i am correct i need to know where to find this information

Provided a person is in a state of grace and properly disposed to receive Communion they can arrive at Church and walk straight into the Communion line and receive.

As for your other question you should note that EMHC’s are NOT Eucharistic ministers. The priest is the Eucharistic Minister. Lay people are not.

 

[superamazingman]

I have heard from a friend that JPII said if you miss the Scripture readings then you shouldn’t take Communion

More accurately, some say if you don’t hear the gospel, you can’t really say you’ve attended Mass. However, you don’t need to attend Mass to receive communion the first time in a day, so unless you have already received communion in that day, you could walk into a church and receive, provided you were properly disposed. However, keep in mind, if it’s a sunday, you still have to go to Mass, not just receive communion.

 

[SuscipeMeDomine]

it has two parts , first , if a person is at mass for the first part up to the point of the dismissal of catechumenates , and dismisses with them to give instruction . should they be allowed to return after all the eucharistic prayers to act as eucharistic ministers .
second , if a person is at mass for the first part up to the point of the dismissal of catechumenates , and dismisses with them to give instruction . should they be allowed to hop in line and go receive communion .

I’m not sure how either of those scenarios would work. When we do a dismissal of the catechumens, it takes time equivalent to the rest of Mass. The breaking-open-the-word session ends at the same time as Mass ends, so the catechist wouldn’t be able to return to Mass for communion.

My take on things is that when a catechist leads the dismissal, he or she hasn’t met the obligation to attend Mass (since they’ve attended only the first part of it). In my parish the catechist leading the session attends another Mass both to fulfill the obligation and to be able to receive communion.

 

[thistle]

I’m not sure how either of those scenarios would work. When we do a dismissal of the catechumens, it takes time equivalent to the rest of Mass. The breaking-open-the-word session ends at the same time as Mass ends, so the catechist wouldn’t be able to return to Mass for communion.

My take on things is that when a catechist leads the dismissal, he or she hasn’t met the obligation to attend Mass (since they’ve attended only the first part of it). In my parish the catechist leading the session attends another Mass both to fulfill the obligation and to be able to receive communion.

Fulfilling a Mass obligation and receiving Communion are two separate issues.
You fulfill your Sunday obligation by attending Mass on Saturday evening or on Sunday.
To be able to receive Communion you simply have to be in a state of grace and be properly disposed to receive.
Whether its a week day or Sunday any Catholic in a state of grace can arrive at Church and walk straight into the Communion line and receive and then leave the Church.
If its a Sunday they do that they would still separately have to attend another Mass to fulfill their obligation.
As for anyone who attends Mass (no matter what time they arrive) they fulfill their obligation including if they leave during the Mass and return (as in your example of the catechist). You do not have to attend the entire Mass to fulfill your obligation.

 

[superamazingman]

To be able to receive Communion you simply have to be in a state of grace and be properly disposed to receive.

I’m sure you meant this, but keep in mind that this statement only applies for the first time you receive communion in a day. The second time, you actually have to attend Mass to receive.

 

[CB_Catholic]

I have heard from a friend that JPII said if you miss the Scripture readings then you shouldn’t take Communion

This doesn’t make sense. People receive Communion all the time without attending Mass and hearing the Scriptures–think of those ill at home or in the hospital or nursing homes. I think there is a misunderstanding here.

 

[Aran_Houlihan]

each mass has a message and more accurately, some say if you don’t hear the gospel, you can’t really say you’ve attended Mass. However, you don’t need to attend Mass to receive communion the first time in a day, so unless you have already received communion in that day, you could walk into a church and receive, provided you were properly disposed. However, keep in mind, if it’s a sunday, you still have to go to Mass, not just receive communion.

In nomine Patris, + et Filii, et Spiritus Sancti. Amen.
Introibo ad altare Dei. R: Ad deum qui laetificat juventutem meam.

 

[thistle]

I’m sure you meant this, but keep in mind that this statement only applies for the first time you receive communion in a day. The second time, you actually have to attend Mass to receive.

That is correct although I wasn’t actually talking about the number of times in a day Communion can be received and how. That’s not actually the question of the OP, albeit what you say is right.
A person who is in a state of grace and properly disposed to receive may arrive at Church, walk directly into the Communion line, receive and then leave. If this is a weekday there is no Mass obligation to fulfill but if that person wants to receive again they can during a Mass later in the day.
If its a Sunday the person who simply arrives and walks into the Communion line (in a state of grace and properly disposed to receive) and receives may or may not have to attend another Mass to fulfill their obligation. The reason I say that is that Canon Law is not clear. It states you must participate in Mass to fulfill the Sunday obligation but it does not define any time period so it could be argued that by being in the Communion line to receive you have participated in the Mass and thereby fulfilled the obligation.
If anyone can show me a Church document that specifies the minimum time required to be at Mass to fulfill the obligation I would be really interested because this is a subject of many debates in these forums. I don’t think such a document exists.

 

[InThePew]

americancatholic.org/messenger/feb1998/wiseman.asp

Before Vatican II, moral theologians and canonists would talk about the three principal parts of Mass as the Offertory, Consecration and Communion. If you missed any one of those parts, they wrote, you would not have fulfilled the obligation of hearing Mass.

Of course the problem was people would only show up for those parts of the mass (or they might hang around outside until then, possibly smoking…).

Today, canonists and liturgists do not use that terminology. They speak of the gathering, the Liturgy of the Word, the Liturgy of the Eucharist and the commissioning as the main divisions of Mass.

And moralists are more likely to speak of substantial observance of the law and what that might mean. They would assert that the law imposes a serious obligation. But some would question whether a person seriously or gravely violates the law if on one occasion he or she does not attend Sunday Mass. And all moralists would acknowledge that to miss a few minutes would not be a serious matter.

I tend to agree that it’s really about substance - as well as intention. I once showed up to a mass at the Sanctus. I stayed because I thought it was the Gloria (the mass was in Italian - go figure) and figured that I might as well take communion since it was an honest mistake and I was there anyway.

 

[Leon_Bloy]

T
If anyone can show me a Church document that specifies the minimum time required to be at Mass to fulfill the obligation I would be really interested because this is a subject of many debates in these forums. I don’t think such a document exists.

I think thistle is right about the above. I have searched high and low and found nothing.

Also, I think it’s correct that as long as you

1. are a baptized Catholic in a state of grace
2. properly disposed/prepared (the Church does not define this)
3. have kept the communion fast

you can go to communion, though as others noted, only twice in one day as long as the second time is in the context of a complete mass.