Communion Service

[mystified]

This was published in a California parish bulletin Sunday.
“Every morning, Monday through Friday, there is a Communion Service in the Church at 6:15 a.m. This service, led by a lay person, is a wonderful early-morning opportunity for prayer, readings of the day, and Eucharist. Feel renewed in spirit!”

This raised a question in my mind. First, such a service is normally offered when no priest is available such as in remote area where a priest serves several parishes and/or missions. Second, this parish has three priests living next door to the church, a convent of religious order priests nearby, plus a couple of deacons.
With this many members of the clergy available, why would a Communion Service be needed, especially led by a lay person.
According to the parish bulletin, there are daily Masses at 7:45 a.m., and three days a week Masses are celebrated in the evening, too. Confessions are generally available for one or two hours on Saturdays.

 

[Cluny]

My understanding is that such services are to be held ONLY on Sundays or holy days in churches where there are no resident priests.

For such occasions, there is a book entitled SUNDAY SERVICES IN ABSENCE OF A PRIEST or something similar.

There is also a book called WORSHIP OF THE EUCHARIST OUTSIDE OF MASS for leading services, including Communion from the Reserved Sacrament, for sick and shut-ins and nursing homes.

But in a parish church with a resident priest, I understand such services are forbidden on ordinary days. If the priest is absent, either the Liturgy of the Hours or possibly Liturgy of the Word can to be celebrated.

This sounds highly irregular to me. As the priest why this is going on.

 

[Malkin71]

This was published in a California parish bulletin Sunday.
“Every morning, Monday through Friday, there is a Communion Service in the Church at 6:15 a.m. This service, led by a lay person, is a wonderful early-morning opportunity for prayer, readings of the day, and Eucharist. Feel renewed in spirit!”

This raised a question in my mind. First, such a service is normally offered when no priest is available such as in remote area where a priest serves several parishes and/or missions. Second, this parish has three priests living next door to the church, a convent of religious order priests nearby, plus a couple of deacons.
With this many members of the clergy available, why would a Communion Service be needed, especially led by a lay person.
According to the parish bulletin, there are daily Masses at 7:45 a.m., and three days a week Masses are celebrated in the evening, too. Confessions are generally available for one or two hours on Saturdays.

If the Communion service is 6:15 a.m. and weekday Mass is an hour and a half later at 7:45 a.m. there is no need for a Communion service if there are 3 Priests who are next door.

 

[benedictgal]

This was published in a California parish bulletin Sunday.
“Every morning, Monday through Friday, there is a Communion Service in the Church at 6:15 a.m. This service, led by a lay person, is a wonderful early-morning opportunity for prayer, readings of the day, and Eucharist. Feel renewed in spirit!”

This raised a question in my mind. First, such a service is normally offered when no priest is available such as in remote area where a priest serves several parishes and/or missions. Second, this parish has three priests living next door to the church, a convent of religious order priests nearby, plus a couple of deacons.
With this many members of the clergy available, why would a Communion Service be needed, especially led by a lay person.
According to the parish bulletin, there are daily Masses at 7:45 a.m., and three days a week Masses are celebrated in the evening, too. Confessions are generally available for one or two hours on Saturdays.

It raises more than a question in my mind: it raises a huge and glaring red flag. Please read what Redemptionis Sacramentum says on the subject:

[166.] Likewise, especially if Holy Communion is distributed during such celebrations, **the diocesan Bishop, to whose exclusive competence this matter pertains, must not easily grant permission for such celebrations to be held on weekdays, especially in places where it was possible or would be possible to have the celebration of Mass on the preceding or the following Sunday. **Priests are therefore earnestly requested to celebrate Mass daily for the people in one of the churches entrusted to their care.

If there are already Masses scheduled in the parish during the week, there is no need, as I see it, for these anomolies to be happening. You might very well want to bring this matter up to the attention of your pastor, charitably citing the relevant passage from Redemptionis Sacramentum.

 

[Joe_Kelley]

I think a Communion Service is forbidden if there is a mass in that churc at any time that day.

Technically, I think the Communion Service is restricted to Sunday when there is no mass, but I know of many places that have it on weekdays when there is no mass. I hear rumors that this will be phased out. It is preferred that the community celebrate the LOH Morning Prayer if no mass is possible.

 

[Br.Rich_SFO]

This was published in a California parish bulletin Sunday.
“Every morning, Monday through Friday, there is a Communion Service in the Church at 6:15 a.m. This service, led by a lay person, is a wonderful early-morning opportunity for prayer, readings of the day, and Eucharist. Feel renewed in spirit!”

This raised a question in my mind. First, such a service is normally offered when no priest is available such as in remote area where a priest serves several parishes and/or missions. Second, this parish has three priests living next door to the church, a convent of religious order priests nearby, plus a couple of deacons.
With this many members of the clergy available, why would a Communion Service be needed, especially led by a lay person.
According to the parish bulletin, there are daily Masses at 7:45 a.m., and three days a week Masses are celebrated in the evening, too. Confessions are generally available for one or two hours on Saturdays.

Based on what you post this would be an abuse. If no priest is available for daily Mass then the Liturgy of the Hours/ Morning Prayer should be recited, without Holy Communion.

 

[AngelRose81]

We have had communion services during the week led by our deacons if our priests were away at retreats. Was this wrong?

 

[benedictgal]

We have had communion services during the week led by our deacons if our priests were away at retreats. Was this wrong?

These really should not be happenng. Again, please read what RS notes:

[166.] Likewise, especially if Holy Communion is distributed during such celebrations, the diocesan Bishop, to whose exclusive competence this matter pertains, must not easily grant permission for such celebrations to be held on weekdays, especially in places where it was possible or would be possible to have the celebration of Mass on the preceding or the following Sunday. Priests are therefore earnestly requested to celebrate Mass daily for the people in one of the churches entrusted to their care.

In my parish, this also happened. When I spoke to my pv about it, he was not very happy that we were doing this. Daily Mass is not obligatory, unless, there happens to be a Holy Day of Obligation during a weekday. The bishop needs to exercise careful judgment and not easily grant permission for such services.

In my diocese, we have several parishes that are staffed by religious orders. In fact, the local hospital chapel usually employs the services of these particular priests when the diocesan ones are unavailable. When the priests are away on retreat, I will usually head out to one of these parishes or to the monastery of the Congregation of St. John.

 

[Br.Rich_SFO]

We have had communion services during the week led by our deacons if our priests were away at retreats. Was this wrong?

I believe so. Was it not possible to make an announcement before hand that Fr, X would not be here this week and no daily Mass would be available?

 

[Mrs_Sally]

I believe so. Was it not possible to make an announcement before hand that Fr, X would not be here this week and no daily Mass would be available?

This is what usually happens at my parish. An announcement will be made the Sunday prior that there will be no daily Masses on XYZ day because all the priests will be away. It’s usually good to announce that anyway so that people are not expecting to have a priest available that day (ie, an ordinary appointment can be rescheduled and in an emergency the priests will be called away from retreat).

Many years ago my parish did schedule a communion service with the deacon on alternate days (Mass being offered on the other days). That parish has since stopped that practice. I beleive they have one Mass each weekday at alternating times now.

 

[Phemie]

We only have these when there is no priest available on Sunday and since we are a relatively small parish we only have one such celebration per weekend (IOW, none at the normal time for the anticipated Sunday Mass).