Communion Services

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Neil_K

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I recently attended a Communion Service where a nun proclaimed the Gospel and proceeded to give a homily. Is this OK or is it an abuse? I thought only priests & deacons could proclaim the Gospel and give homilies.

Thanks,

Neil
 
As I understand it, the rules are different for a Eucharistic prayer service than for a Mass. In a prayer service, the person leading it offers a “reflection” rather than a homily. Semantics, I know, but it’s legit. :rolleyes:
 
Neil_K said:
I recently attended a Communion Service where a nun proclaimed the Gospel and proceeded to give a homily. Is this OK or is it an abuse? I thought only priests & deacons could proclaim the Gospel and give homilies.

Thanks,

Neil
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Priests and deacons (and bishops!) can proclaim the gospel and give a homily at Mass. Outside of Mass the same restrictions don’t apply.
 
Neil_K said:
I recently attended a Communion Service where a nun proclaimed the Gospel and proceeded to give a homily. Is this OK or is it an abuse? I thought only priests & deacons could proclaim the Gospel and give homilies.

Thanks,

Neil
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a lay person can be deputed to conduct a communion service outside Mass, including proclaiming the readings, and she offered a reflection, not a homily, by definition, becaues only a priest or deacon gives a homily.
 
There are guidelines for communion services and yes laypeople are taking part in it. They may not give a homily however and can only read something written in advance by a Priest or a reflection . This is not a homily. These services also do not take the place of Mass or fulfill the Sunday obligation unless there is no other Mass available.
 
Seatuck said:
These services also do not take the place of Mass or fulfill the Sunday obligation unless there is no other Mass available.
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Actually, if no Mass is available there is no obligation. (You can’t be required to do what is impossible.) On the other hand, a communion service is a good opportunity to come together with the community to pray and to receive the Eucharist even in the absence of an obligation.
 
SuscipeMeDomine said:
Actually, if no Mass is available there is no obligation. (You can’t be required to do what is impossible.) On the other hand, a communion service is a good opportunity to come together with the community to pray and to receive the Eucharist even in the absence of an obligation.
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Yes, thank you .
 
Two Fridays ago, our parochial vicar left town and forgot to get a substitute. We were waiting for about 15 minutes for daily Mass when the secretary came and said that she couldn’t get another priest. I filled in and led the Communion service.

I surprised some of the EMHCs who were there because I did not sit up in the presidential chair nor did I say “The Lord be with you.” I explained to them after the service that as laymen, we do not take on aspects that do not apply to us. Yes, I wore an alb, but, that was it.

Incidentally, there were about 40 folks there. ONe of the EMHCs asked me if I needed help. I poltely declined and explained to her that we really shouldn’t use an EMHC at daily Mass because the number of communicants doesn’t justify it.

The reflection was a brief commentary on the life of St. Janarius and how it related to the Gospel. We were out in under 10 minutes.

It is not the most comfortable service to lead; however, it wasn’t the fault of the people. We were there. Our PV just forgot to cover the bases.
 
benedictgal said:
Two Fridays ago, our parochial vicar left town and forgot to get a substitute. We were waiting for about 15 minutes for daily Mass when the secretary came and said that she couldn’t get another priest. I filled in and led the Communion service.

I surprised some of the EMHCs who were there because I did not sit up in the presidential chair nor did I say “The Lord be with you.” I explained to them after the service that as laymen, we do not take on aspects that do not apply to us. Yes, I wore an alb, but, that was it.

Incidentally, there were about 40 folks there. ONe of the EMHCs asked me if I needed help. I poltely declined and explained to her that we really shouldn’t use an EMHC at daily Mass because the number of communicants doesn’t justify it.

The reflection was a brief commentary on the life of St. Janarius and how it related to the Gospel. We were out in under 10 minutes.

It is not the most comfortable service to lead; however, it wasn’t the fault of the people. We were there. Our PV just forgot to cover the bases.
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The instructions we have from our bishops in Canada is that the leader of a Communion service is not to do everything. That it should be split between several ministries: minimum being Leader, readers & EMHC. The Leader is not necessarily a regular reader nor a commissioned EMHC (I’m not an EMHC) and the EMHC does the entire Communion Rite.
 
Phemie said:
The instructions we have from our bishops in Canada is that the leader of a Communion service is not to do everything. That it should be split between several ministries: minimum being Leader, readers & EMHC. The Leader is not necessarily a regular reader nor a commissioned EMHC (I’m not an EMHC) and the EMHC does the entire Communion Rite.
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Unfortunately, it’s rather nebulous down here. In my diocese, it’s SOP for the person who is leadnig the Communion Service to handle the entire event (with the exception of proclaiming the first readnig and the psalm).

Phemie, PM me and I’ll send you the document that I’ve been working out of for these cases. Now, I didn’t proclaim all of the readings. I just read the Gospel. Sometimes the reflections I have are taken form Magnificat or from Benedictus, daily meditatinos from Pope Benedict XVI that sometimes pair up really well with the readings. But, these are short.

I also did this as kind of a teaching moment for the EMHCs because some of them were doing things that weren’t in line with what the Church allows (saying prayers reserved for the priest/deacon and other things). Some of the reflections they’ve offered have turned into homilies (lengthy disciourses) and have been a little on the interesting side.
 
benedictgal said:
Two Fridays ago, our parochial vicar left town and forgot to get a substitute. We were waiting for about 15 minutes for daily Mass when the secretary came and said that she couldn’t get another priest. I filled in and led the Communion service.

I surprised some of the EMHCs who were there because I did not sit up in the presidential chair nor did I say “The Lord be with you.” I explained to them after the service that as laymen, we do not take on aspects that do not apply to us. Yes, I wore an alb, but, that was it.

Incidentally, there were about 40 folks there. ONe of the EMHCs asked me if I needed help. I poltely declined and explained to her that we really shouldn’t use an EMHC at daily Mass because the number of communicants doesn’t justify it.

The reflection was a brief commentary on the life of St. Janarius and how it related to the Gospel. We were out in under 10 minutes.

It is not the most comfortable service to lead; however, it wasn’t the fault of the people. We were there. Our PV just forgot to cover the bases.
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I was under the impression that communion services aren’t allowed on a weekday?

Shouldn’t Mass have just been cancelled, as there is no obligation?

God Bless
 
True, but, there are also the members of the faithful to consider. It was not their fault that the parochial vicar (pastor was on his day off) didn’t secure a substitute. We waited for 15 minutes before the secretary came in and told us that there would not be a priest. Furthermore, while LOTH would have been a viable option, we don’t have any of the books in order to do this.

The secretary suggested having a communion service for pastoral cncerns. Since there had been some issues as to how these were being conducted, I volunteered to lead it.

Now, here is another monkey wrench: our parish will sometimes have a communion service on the days when all of the priests are on retreat with the bishop. Because there aren’t enough religous-order priests and deacons (who don’t hold regular jobs to go around), many parishes opt for a communion service during that week.

Bilop, I know what you are saying. Perhaps I didn’t take the best course of action, but, at the time, with about 40 people gathered for a Mass that wasn’t going to happen, a pastoral decision, right or wrong, was made.
 
puzzleannie said:
a lay person can be deputed to conduct a communion service outside Mass, including proclaiming the readings, and she offered a reflection, not a homily, by definition, becaues only a priest or deacon gives a homily.
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Sometimes the term “homily” seems to include talks by lay people. For example: “§ 4. Homilies in non-eucharistic liturgies may be preached by the non-ordained faithful only when expressly permitted by law and when its prescriptions for doing so are observed.” (Ecclesia de Mysterio, Article 3, at vatican.va/roman_curia/pontifical_councils/laity/documents/rc_con_interdic_doc_15081997_en.html ).

The 2004 Instruction Redemptionis Sacramentum included: “[165.] It is necessary to avoid any sort of confusion between this type of gathering and the celebration of the Eucharist.[271] The diocesan Bishops, therefore, should prudently discern whether Holy Communion ought to be distributed in these gatherings. The matter would appropriately be determined in view of a more ample coordination in the Bishops’ Conference, to be put into effect after the recognitio of the acts by the Apostolic See through the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments. It will be preferable, moreover, when both a Priest and a Deacon are absent, that the various parts be distributed among several faithful rather than having a single lay member of the faithful direct the whole celebration alone. Nor is it ever appropriate to refer to any member of the lay faithful as “presiding” over the celebration.
[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.”

So there is now considerable sensitivity about Communion Services. Without clear guidelines, I think it is doubtful that it is appropriate to “fill in” because the priest has not arrived as expected.
 
John_Lilburne said:
Sometimes the term “homily” seems to include talks by lay people. For example: “§ 4. Homilies in non-eucharistic liturgies may be preached by the non-ordained faithful only when expressly permitted by law and when its prescriptions for doing so are observed.” (Ecclesia de Mysterio, Article 3, at vatican.va/roman_curia/pontifical_councils/laity/documents/rc_con_interdic_doc_15081997_en.html ).

The 2004 Instruction Redemptionis Sacramentum included: “[165.] It is necessary to avoid any sort of confusion between this type of gathering and the celebration of the Eucharist.[271] The diocesan Bishops, therefore, should prudently discern whether Holy Communion ought to be distributed in these gatherings. The matter would appropriately be determined in view of a more ample coordination in the Bishops’ Conference, to be put into effect after the recognitio of the acts by the Apostolic See through the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments. It will be preferable, moreover, when both a Priest and a Deacon are absent, that the various parts be distributed among several faithful rather than having a single lay member of the faithful direct the whole celebration alone. Nor is it ever appropriate to refer to any member of the lay faithful as “presiding” over the celebration.
[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.”

So there is now considerable sensitivity about Communion Services. Without clear guidelines, I think it is doubtful that it is appropriate to “fill in” because the priest has not arrived as expected.
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I probably laid a huge egg doing what I did two Fridays ago. However, in my diocese, for better or for worse, having Communion Services during the week when a priest is unavailable is pretty much the norm. When one of the priests went to South America for vacation, he had a substitute for the weekend Masses, but, he used EMHCs throughout the week for Communion Services. In fact, the names of the people leading the services were posted in the bulletin.

Now, in our case, this was a rare instance. I am not going to say that our parochial vicar was irresponsible in not securing a substitute, or, at least letting us know that he wasn’t going to be there for Mass. There was little to no warning that this would happen. It’s kind of like a liturgical tornado, if you will, where you have no advanced warning. It happens. In this case, our Mass was supposed to have begun at 12:05PM. It was about 12:25 when I started the service. There was no chance to get a priest to literally drop everything at the last minute and come to our assistance. The closest parish is about ten minutes away and, since it’s lunchtime, the chances are slim to nil that you will get someone at the last minute.

To my knowledge, our diocese doesn’t have any policy in place regarding Communion services. The bishop has not issued any documentation or decree in the eight years we’ve been a diocese. Thus, the section referenced in RS hasn’t even been looked at, even though it was issued four years after our diocese was erected.

I would take this up with our diocesan director of divine worship; however, because my pastor has not returned from vacation, I will defer until he returns. I don’t even want to discuss this with my PV yet because of the issue of his not notifying anyone that he wouldn’t be there for the Mass and I want to prevent any conflict.
 
Neil:
At a Communion service, a nun or a layperson can read the Gospel, but they cannot say, “The Lord be with you”, they can only say, a reading from the Gosepl of___________. And we respond, Glory to You, O Lord.
I wasn’t there, but there are some priests that allow a nun or layperson to read a homily written by other priests, in other words, it is not the nun’s homily, she is reading it from, let’s say, Homiies for the week.
Remember, she did not write the homily, she is readin one from a book of homilies. Perhaps she was doing a reading from The Liturgy of the Hours of that day.
 
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