Eucharist in the monstrance left unattended

[Mary_Ellen]

The pastor is responsible for safe-guarding the Blessed Sacrament. This is a major part of his vocation as a priest. General speaking, as evidenced by the posts on this thread, lay people don’t fully comprehend the sacredness of it and that it is NEVER EVER supposed to be left, not just unattended, but not watched/guarded. In other words, if someone is sleeping in the Adoration Chapel (I was once instructed by the woman in charge of the committed adorers to leave the Blessed Sacrament alone with a sleeping homeless person in the 24 Chapel when the person after me (who had 4 hours scheduled in the middle of the night) didn’t show up. This didn’t suffice because she wasn’t actually guarding/keeping watch. I called one of the priests and he came and closed the Tabernacle and locked it (lay people aren’t allowed to open or close the Tabernacle).

They may not be allowed in your parish/diocese but Extraordinary Ministers of Holy Communion are allowed to open and close the Tabernacles here, as are sacristans. We even Expose and Repose the Blessed Sacrament on a daily basis as our Adoration program is not 24/7.

In our Adoration program I would report an empty chapel/abandoned Sacrament to the Program Co-Chairs. They know how serious this situation is, it means that permission for our Adoration program could be withdrawn by the Bishop as it is ultimately HIS responsibility that the Blessed Sacrament be protected within his diocese. Parish pastors act under the Bishop’s authority.

 

[GoGoDiego]

Better yet, there should be at least some curtain to close the Sacrament if it would be left alone. In my parish, a security guard, who is a catholic, keeps watch over It round the clock. There is a parish that I know that carries the exposition in the Adoration Chapel at the start of the day and reposition at the end of the day.

 

[Brendan_64]

We are frail humans. If we are getting ready to leave to go to the Adoration Chapel for our Holy Hour, and we receive one of those awful phone calls that our spouse, child, parent, or some other loved one, has been injured or taken seriously ill and is at the Emergency Room, well…the Lord has compassion on human beings because He was/is one of us.

Then the person(s) who is there watching during the previous hour must stay until someone arrives to take over. Either that of place the Eucharist back in the tabernacle and lock it.

Likewise if you are at your Holy Hour, and you yourself are taken ill, I don’t think the Lord would be offended if you had to leave. I certainly would not remain if I were feverish or vomiting. If I had the strength, I would call the number displayed and let them know that I had to leave. But sometimes when you are sick, you don’t have the strength.

Which is why there should be two people present, in case something happens to one of them.

And sometimes, we busy, frazzled, exhausted, or just silly human beings simply forget. It’s not a mortal sin because we didn’t intend to forget.

Would you forget and leave a your infant child unattended and alone because you were busy, frazzled, exhausted?

They may not be allowed in your parish/diocese but Extraordinary Ministers of Holy Communion are allowed to open and close the Tabernacles here, as are sacristans. We even Expose and Repose the Blessed Sacrament on a daily basis as our Adoration program is not 24/7.

They may be allowed to do so, but that does not mean that the responsibility for the Blessed sacrament is not still the parish priest’s. He is still responsible, even though he may delegate tasks.

In our Adoration program I would report an empty chapel/abandoned Sacrament to the Program Co-Chairs.

It is the parish priest, not the lay person (whatever title they have been given) who is responsible, and who should be informed.

The Blessed Sacrament should NEVER under any circumstances be left exposed without at least one person watching and keeping guard. No person should ever leave the exposed Blessed Sacrament without ensuring that someone is there to continue watching. Either that or they must ensure that the tabernacle is closed, even if that means phoning the parish priest to get him to come along and do it.

 

[Cat]

=Brendan 64;12840365]Then the person(s) who is there watching during the previous hour must stay until someone arrives to take over. Either that of place the Eucharist back in the tabernacle and lock it.
Which is why there should be two people present, in case something happens to one of them.
Would you forget and leave a your infant child unattended and alone because you were busy, frazzled, exhausted?

People do it all the time. Think of the children each summer who are left in the car and die of over-heating. Think of the people who leave their toddlers at home alone because they are compelled to leave their house for some reason, not always a serious reason (although sometimes it’s because they have to work, but can’t afford a sitter), but the parent is so frazzled or busy or desperate that they fail to use common sense. Think of the people who are so exhausted that they fall asleep while driving with their children and cause an accident, or who fall asleep and don’t wake up to attend a child in distress or danger.

Yes, it happens because we are frail human beings, not gods or angels. Unless they deliberately and coolly set out to destroy their children, surely these poor wretched people cannot be treated harshly by others as they have already suffered one of the worse punishments–hurting or endangering or even killing their own child(ren). May God treat them with kindness and mercy in their agony.

They may be allowed to do so, but that does not mean that the responsibility for the Blessed sacrament is not still the parish priest’s. He is still responsible, even though he may delegate tasks.

It is the parish priest, not the lay person (whatever title they have been given) who is responsible, and who should be informed.

The Blessed Sacrament should NEVER under any circumstances be left exposed without at least one person watching and keeping guard. No person should ever leave the exposed Blessed Sacrament without ensuring that someone is there to continue watching. Either that or they must ensure that the tabernacle is closed, even if that means phoning the parish priest to get him to come along and do it.

Yes, I agree with you that we need to take the True Presence of the Lord seriously and gravely, and not be flippant about insuring that He receives the honor due His Majesty.

But we are also human and subject to failures. All the time, we see the Queen of England make allowances for humans who do not follow the expected protocol around her. If a human queen can be gracious and forgiving, the Lord Jesus will surely be even more gracious and forgiving when we mess things up without meaning to.

 

[Brendan_64]

Yes, it happens because we are frail human beings, not gods or angels.

We have been given the gift of free will, we are responsible for our actions. The ‘frail human beings with weaknesses’ card is too often played to give us a ‘get-out’ from our responsibilities. We have free-will, we are responsible for our actions, we are accountable for what we do.

Yes, I agree with you that we need to take the True Presence of the Lord seriously and gravely, and not be flippant about insuring that He receives the honor due His Majesty.

But we are also human and subject to failures.

Again, the ‘frail, weak human’ card is played. We are responsible for our actions, and we ought to be held accountable.

All the time, we see the Queen of England make allowances for humans who do not follow the expected protocol around her. If a human queen can be gracious and forgiving, the Lord Jesus will surely be even more gracious and forgiving when we mess things up without meaning to.

This isn’t a matter of mere ‘protocol’. This is the real Body, Blood, Soul and Divinity of Christ Our Lord. This is the most precious thing in the whole world, in the whole universe, in its most vulnerable state. That is God in the monstrance, nothing less.

The exposed Eucharist must never be left un-guarded, never, not even for a single second.

 

[Deo_Gratias42]

How many saints we willing to give up their lives to protect the Blessed Sacrament?

 

[fin]

Hi all and thank you for the suggestions. I wrote to the three parishes regarding the situation, including the quote from the Vatican document (thank you UUAA) as well as the link. Their Adoration chapels aren’t the type where people sign up from a specified Holy Hour; they come and go, including me.

Yesterday I went to one of the chapels and once again, the Blessed Sacrament was unattended. I spent some moments in there and a few people came in.

One chapel has a dedicated security guard outside. However, I assume the Eucharist still can’t be left alone inside the chapel right?