EMHC Blessing Children?

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St.Catherine

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I have been noticing a new trend of Extraordinary Ministers of Holy Commmunion blessing children while thier parents receive the Eucharist. I know that this is a major no-no and can be classified as a liturgical abuse. I need some documentation stating as such; either an article or Church document.
 
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St.Catherine:
I have been noticing a new trend of Extraordinary Ministers of Holy Commmunion blessing children while thier parents receive the Eucharist. I know that this is a major no-no and can be classified as a liturgical abuse. I need some documentation stating as such; either an article or Church document.
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Its not a major no-no. Spend more of yoru energy encouraging blessings rather than restricting them.
 
The only time this would be an abuse is if the EMHC is giving a blessing like a priest or (in the case of the Latin Church) a deacon.

Laity can give blessings but they are different than the blessings the clergy give.

The reason I made the distinction above between priests and deacons is that in the Byzantine rite a deacon can not give a blessing, the blessings they give are the same as the laity.

But then we also do not have EMHCs in the Byzantine rite.
 
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Seatuck:
Yes, it is a NO-NO. Extra ordinary ministers of Holy Communion should not be giving blessings in the name of the church. We can give personal blessings like saying God Bless you or blessing our own children at home etc.Here’s Archbishop Chaput on the matter;

archden.org/archbishop/docs/2_12_03_liturgy_communion.htm]

Archbishop Chaput’s statement doesn’t match your post. He holds that no one, neither priest or EMHC should be giving blessings but that either should recommend making a spiritual communion to the person.
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Katherine2, It is a liturgical abuse. I was listening to Catholic Answers live a couple months ago and heard it discussed. I just hadn’t seen it happen locally until recently.

It is forbidden because the blessing is occurring during the mass. This is not the same as giving a child a blessing at bedtime. The reason that an EMHC should not do such a blessing during mass is that (s)he is acting in the person of Christ which only the priest can do during the mass. This confuses the line between the ordained and the nonordained.

I look forward to reading Chaput’s article if only I could get the link to work.
 
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St.Catherine:
I look forward to reading Chaput’s article if only I could get the link to work.
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Try hard, but be forewarned it does not match your position.
 
You are right that the Chaput article does not answer my original question but it does introduce a whole host of other questions. Come to think of it, blessings by the priest at communion is a fairly new thing.

I wish I could remember what was said on the Catholic Answers Live program because they made a big deal about the difference between the priest and laity performing this function.

I guess I’ll have to call the Apologetics line. I was trying to avoid that.
 
The main reference for the Catholic Church is a book called “The Book of Blessings”

It describes what blessings the laity might give, and what blessings each level of clergy may give.

Generally speaking, a lay person cannot bless others outside their own family.

Now if an EMHC says something like “May Jesus Bless you”, that is really a prayer for a blessing, not an actual blessing.

If an EMHC is using something like " Jesus Bless you", without the petitioning qualifer, then that is a “no-no”.

And only a priest may Bless with the sign of the Cross.
 
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katherine2:
Its not a major no-no. Spend more of yoru energy encouraging blessings rather than restricting them.
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Katherine, I’m sure none of us here would discourge blessings, the question is actually if an EMHC actually has the authority, and thus the power, to bless.

The answer to that is No.
 
I don’t even know if receiving a blessing at communion is practiced outside of the United States. A non-Catholic friend of mind, conditioned by her time here at Notre Dame, went up for a blessing during our study abroad in Austria. The priest was the most confused I have ever seen in my life. He had no idea what this girl was doing in the communion line if she did not want to receive the Eucharist. In 10 months in Austria I never saw a person go forward for a blessing, not even children. Does anyone know when this particular blessing developed and how widespread it actually is?
 
Andreas Hofer:
I don’t even know if receiving a blessing at communion is practiced outside of the United States?
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I actually first encountered it in Quebec. We were visiting in-laws there and went up for communion with my then infant son.

The priest traced a cross on my son’s forehead.
 
Some of you may know that at times I take a more conservative bent to things however I have never been persuaded that a EMHC saying God Bless You to someone who presents themselves for a blessing is illicit especially if the priest has instructed the EMHC to do it.

Don’t get in the way of the little ones who come forward with a clear conscience. Regulate the actions of the laity but err on the side of the sincere heart.

God Bless

PS it is perfectly licit to have laity apply a cross to another lay persons forehead such as on ash wednesday etc.
 
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Deacon2006:
to things however I have never been persuaded that a EMHC saying God Bless You to someone who presents themselves for a blessing is illicit especially if the priest has instructed the EMHC to do it.
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I think we can all agree that the use of “MAY Jesus Bless you” would be more theologically appropriate though.
PS it is perfectly licit to have laity apply a cross to another lay persons forehead such as on ash wednesday etc.
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Of course, the Blessing is a priestly Blessing inherent in the Sacramental (the Ashes). The Ashes have been blessed and convey that priestly blessing, no matter who the agent is.

The same is true for Holy Water.
 
Does a wacko non-church attending Methodist have the power to bless? I’m talking about people outside his family. I’m talking about without the qualifer “may”? How about when he tried to bless the whole country? What about when he does it during the State of the Union address?
 
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katherine2:
Does a wacko non-church attending Methodist have the power to bless? I’m talking about people outside his family. I’m talking about without the qualifer “may”? How about when he tried to bless the whole country? What about when he does it during the State of the Union address?
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Speaking hypothetically,of course, since the only known wacko to give a State of the Union did so in the mid-late '90’s and he was a non-church attending Baptist.

I could see how you can confuse the two denominations, a lot of people do.

But in the case you mentioned, no actual Blessing would occur unless the person involved was in Catholic recognized Holy Orders, and with duly delegated authority from their Bishop (if not Bishop themselves).
 
I will have to say, that as an EMHC it is difficult to know exactly what to do when a small child or an adult whom is not yet fully practicing in our wonderful religion comes up to you. the attempt is not to act as a priest or act as Jesus it is an attempt to welcome them i generally trace a cross on their forehead saying nothing… is that right what exactly should I do?[BIBLEDRB]
 
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