Extraordinary Ministers of Holy Communion; When Required?

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Hi, sorry if this question has been asked before, but basically I want to know under what circumstances EMHC should be used at Mass/U. I know they are used to bring Holy Communion to the sick and housebound, and also to help a Priest if there is a very large congregation.

In my parish we have weekday Mass every day, and it being a fairly small town the congregation would be approx. 200 people, maybe less or more. 2 EMHC, sometimes 3 assist the Priest. Is this necessary? The Priest is not an invalid. Also, should a paten always be used when giving Holy Communion?
 
You have 200 people at daily Mass in a small town? Wow.

According to various resources it seems clearly preferable that the paten is used rather than not. However, as with most things, it is not required.
 
sealabeag said:
Hi, sorry if this question has been asked before, but basically I want to know under what circumstances EMHC should be used at Mass
I believe you’ve answered your own question.
sealabeag;11023744:
In my parish we have weekday Mass every day, and it being a fairly small town the congregation would be approx. 200 people, maybe less or more.
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That is a very commendable number of people at a weekday Mass. I don’t even think I’ve seen that many at a weekday Mass at a church in the city centre of a large city.
sealabeag said:
2 EMHC, sometimes 3 assist the Priest. Is this necessary? The Priest is not an invalid. Also, should a paten always be used when giving Holy Communion?
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Three sounds a bit over the top. The fact is they’re used so that Communion doesn’t take too long. AFAIK there’s no guidance on what would be too long. I suppose it’s really at the discretion of the priest.
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Sorry 200 people was a definite overestimation. I’d say more like 100.
 
In my diocese, the use of EMHC is left up to the discretion of the priests, with the following recommendation:

~when both species are offered there "should be" two ministers of the Precious Blood for every one minister of the Precious Body. And considering we do not have enough priests and/or deacons, that can mean sometimes up to 10 EMHC at a well attended Mass.

Now, many here at CAF may argue that this is “abusive” because it’s not necessary for the people in the pews to receive from the cup and I will not get into that debate. I am happy that I have the option of receiving communion under both species, and if that means having more EMHC, I don’t have a problem with it.

I would like to see some changes on the diocesan level with regards to training & duration of commission, but that is a whole other can of worms that I don’t want to open! 😉
 
Hi,

I am a Extraordinary Minister & also a Pastoral Assisting working for an elderly Priest. I love doing it, however, at times I feel very very unworthy for this great ministry. I understand people’s reservations to Ministers at times- as the Consecrated hands of the Priest are really the best for distributing Holy Communion- however in my parish due to the Priest’s age he does not get to visit the sick very often therefore I and other ministers do this. I also assist Father with giving Holy Communion during Mass- one Priest who comes is not able to stand unsupported, therefore, I am the only person giving the Sacred Host at some times as Father is unable…It is great honour to be able to receive Our Lord under both kinds & this usually means that their will have to be further Ministers administering.

I also conduct Eucharist Prayer Services with Communion given from the Tabernacle when Father is unable to say Mass or is away- sadly this is becoming more and more common due to lack of Priests in some areas, however, it is better than nothing. I used to think Ministers were not good and that only Priests should do this- many people think that, however, I now think that in cases like the one in my Parish it is the only solution- otherwise administering Holy Communion could be very difficult. I am also authorised to expose the Blessed Sacrament for a Holy Hour (of course not to bless the people with the Blessed Sacrament).

Having said that- I have seen many abuses by Extraordinary Ministers, some in my own parish. Many do not dress properly for administering Our Lord- others are not fully aware of what an amazing gift this is. Another problem is that Ministers are not allowed to refuse Communion unless for a very serious reason- a Priest has the rite to refuse Communion to somebody if he knows of a reason why- however for example if a person who you knew should not be coming to Communion eg. a divorced person comes to you to receive the Host I was taught by the Monsignor who commissioned me as a Minister and from my own reading that the Minister has no rite or jurisdiction to refuse Holy Communion. I at times find this very difficult, the Priest on occasion grants dispensation to an Anglican lady who comes with her Catholic husband to receive Communion yet I know she does not believe truly in our Church etc. yet she receives and I find it so difficult to give her Holy Communion- especially when the same Priest is happy to give her Communion yet not to some others in a similar position. That I find very difficult.

At other times I am put in a very serious and awkward position when I am asked to Minister when I am not in a state of grace & have not had the chance to go to Confession- this is a very serious problem and Ministers should be concerned about going to Confession before administering. Of course this is not always possible and a good act of contrition has to be made in some cases (with of course the intention to Confess asap) but even so I find this very difficult for me personally. Hope that is of some use!
 
I went to a different parish just yesterday for daily Mass and we had a priest, a deacon, and three EMHC’s to serve the 20 - 30 of us. The deacon didn’t even distribute.

At our EF Mass, two priests handle the whole Sunday crowd and there is a bunch of us.

Solution, ALTAR RAILS.
 
If a parish has 200 people attending daily mass, I can certainly see the need for EMCs. Many people cannot afford the extra 10 minutes daily mass would take to hand out communion only by the priests. It is important to keep daily masses under 25-30 minutes. Even at that, some of us are very pressed for time.

Sunday mass of 200? Would not think they are needed. 500 or more? Likely are needed.

Those are my thoughts.
 
EMHCs are never, ever, ever required. They are simply allowed in extraordinary circumstances. The circumstances are laid out well in the instruction Redemptionis Sacramentum, issued in 2004.
 
Elizium23 said:
EMHCs are never, ever, ever required. They are simply allowed in extraordinary circumstances. The circumstances are laid out well in the instruction Redemptionis Sacramentum, issued in 2004.
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Agreed, but the document clearly says they are allowed when the mass would be unduly prolonged without them. My opinion, and it seems supported by the form if the daily mass, is that a daily mass should be short. Prolonging a daily mass, even by 5 or 10 minutes should be avoided. Many of us are pressed for time on most every day when attending morning mass and needing to get to work.
 
tafan said:
Agreed, but the document clearly says they are allowed when the mass would be unduly prolonged without them. My opinion, and it seems supported by the form if the daily mass, is that a daily mass should be short. Prolonging a daily mass, even by 5 or 10 minutes should be avoided. Many of us are pressed for time on most every day when attending morning mass and needing to get to work.
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That is debatable, especially considering the wording of that paragraph. And it is certainly odd that so many people seem perpetually in a state of grace when the opportunities and lines for Confession are precious few.
 
Elizium23 said:
That is debatable, especially considering the wording of that paragraph. And it is certainly odd that so many people seem perpetually in a state of grace when the opportunities and lines for Confession are precious few.
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The wording of my paragraph, or the document you referenced? I know many of the people who attend daily mass at our parish. I would never presume they would be attending communion out if a state of grace. I suspect it is the same in most parishes: people who attend daily mass take their faith rather seriously and likely know when they should or should not receive communion. And we have daily confessions at our parish, other parishes in the vicinity have confessions. 2 or 3 times a week. Quite a few opportunities. And our lines are not short on most days.
 
“[158.] Indeed, the extraordinary minister of Holy Communion may administer Communion only when the Priest and Deacon are lacking, when the Priest is prevented by weakness or advanced age or some other genuine reason, or when the number of faithful coming to Communion is so great that the very celebration of Mass would be unduly prolonged.[259] This, however, is to be understood in such a way that a brief prolongation, considering the circumstances and culture of the place, is not at all a sufficient reason.”

Considering a daily mass as the circumstance, I do not think a 5-10 minute prolongation is brief. If a daily mass takes 25 minutes, extending it 10 minutes is a 40% increase in time. How is a 40% increase in time brief?
 
One last thought: I would think it rare that a EMC would be proper for daily mass. I have never timed communion relative to attendees, so even the OP parish of 200 may not prolong the mass as much as I indicated.
 
I see no point in complaining about EMHCs. The Church allows them so we should accept them. The document permitting their use is vague enough for it to be clearly at the priest’s discretion. In fact it is up to the priest. We don’t know why this priest allows EMHCs at this daily Mass. But the choice is his. This Mass may be in the morning and perhaps the priest wants to keep the Mass within a certain timeframe so people can come to it and then get to work on time. I agree altar rails are an excellent solution and reduce the time it takes to distribute Communion. We shouldn’t be judging whether people are in the appropriate state of grace to receive. That’s between them and God.
 
Elizium23 said:
That is debatable, especially considering the wording of that paragraph. And it is certainly odd that so many people seem perpetually in a state of grace when the opportunities and lines for Confession are precious few.
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Yes…that is debatable…but not decided by you. I find it interesting that you seem to be judging whether people attending daily Mass are in a state of grace. What makes you qualified to say?

For me, I attend daily Mass, and a prolonging of 5 to 10 minutes would make it impossible for me to do so as I do it on my lunch hour. Often times Mass is a little late because confessions got backed up and often they have to stop them for the priest to say Mass. If you have the time for Mass to be delayed during the weekday…consider yourself lucky but don’t speak for the rest of us on that one.
 
tafan said:
One last thought: I would think it rare that a EMC would be proper for daily mass. I have never timed communion relative to attendees, so even the OP parish of 200 may not prolong the mass as much as I indicated.
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Again, depends on if communion is distributed in both species or not. If it is, then yes you will have EMHC’s. But as I indicated earlier–5 or 10 minutes for some of us means the difference between being able to attend or not. Sorry that I work, but that is the way it is…🤷
 
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