Greeters

[TheTrinitySaves]

I don’t want to disrespect Christ in the Eucharist. I highly Revere the Eucharist and I’m very aware of its importance. All I’m doing is sharing the Eucharist with those who would go to Mass but are unable to due to sickness

 

[pianistclare]

Then you should be keenly interested in doing so the correct way. Go get instruction from your pastor.

 

[oldgraymare2]

But it’s also not appropriate for you to deny communion to a person simply because they’re sick

Hi TheTrinitySaves,

There is special training that a person goes through, for those who desire to help take Communion to those who are ill or home-bound and who would like to receive Communion.

I went through this special training myself when I was at my last parish.

A person just doesn’t literally take the Host and take it out of the church and walk away with it and take it away to someone to receive, even if they have the best of intentions towards a family member or another parishioner who may be ill and who would like to receive the Eucharist. There is much more to it than that.

 

[oldgraymare2]

Then you should be keenly interested in doing so the correct way. Go get instruction from your pastor.

Yes, TheTrinitySaves, as pianistclare also says in her post. There is a correct way to do this. I am also basically stating the same thing in my post to you, too.

Please talk to your Pastor about this, if this is something that you want to do.

 

[Gertabelle]

I don’t want to disrespect Christ in the Eucharist. I highly Revere the Eucharist and I’m very aware of its importance. All I’m doing is sharing the Eucharist with those who would go to Mass but are unable to due to sickness

Oh my goodness, I do hope you are not saying that you actually take the consecrated host out of the church without the pastor’s knowledge and permission. That may in fact constitute a serious sin.

My father could not leave the house for a long time due to prolonged illness. My mom called the parish office, and an Extraordinary Minister of Holy Communion (EMHC) came to the house DAILY for weeks.

It is not complicated for someone who is home-bound for ANY reason to get help from the parish while following the rules set forth by Holy Mother Church. To take matters is our own hands is dangerous to our souls.

Are you trying to isolate those in need from their parish by taking things into your own hands?

Or are you trying to bring the Blessed Sacrament to those who are outside the Church or are not allowed to receive Holy Communion licitly.

I cannot imagine a valid reason to go behind the pastor’s back like that. Bad idea for everyone involved.

 

[TheTrinitySaves]

Oh my goodness, I do hope you are not saying that you actually take the consecrated host out of the church without the pastor’s knowledge and permission. That may in fact constitute a serious sin.

My father could not leave the house for a long time due to prolonged illness. My mom called the parish office, and an Extraordinary Minister of Holy Communion (EMHC) came to the house DAILY for weeks.

It is not complicated for someone who is home-bound for ANY reason to get help from the parish while following the rules set forth by Holy Mother Church. To take matters is our own hands is dangerous to our souls.

Are you trying to isolate those in need from their parish by taking things into your own hands?

Or are you trying to bring the Blessed Sacrament to those who are outside the Church or are not allowed to receive Holy Communion licitly.

I cannot imagine a valid reason to go behind the pastor’s back like that. Bad idea for everyone involved.

That’s a bit rude. I have done nothing intentionally wrong

 

[TheTrinitySaves]

Oh my goodness, I do hope you are not saying that you actually take the consecrated host out of the church without the pastor’s knowledge and permission. That may in fact constitute a serious sin.

My father could not leave the house for a long time due to prolonged illness. My mom called the parish office, and an Extraordinary Minister of Holy Communion (EMHC) came to the house DAILY for weeks.

It is not complicated for someone who is home-bound for ANY reason to get help from the parish while following the rules set forth by Holy Mother Church. To take matters is our own hands is dangerous to our souls.

Are you trying to isolate those in need from their parish by taking things into your own hands?

Or are you trying to bring the Blessed Sacrament to those who are outside the Church or are not allowed to receive Holy Communion licitly.

I cannot imagine a valid reason to go behind the pastor’s back like that. Bad idea for everyone involved.

I’ve done nothing intentionally wrong.

 

[LightBound]

I’ve done nothing intentionally wrong.

Well, now you know if you have been doing this, it is wrong, so don’t do it anymore. Like others have told you, if someone is ill and cannot come to Mass where they would normally receive the Eucharist if they were in a state of grace, it is not your place to take the Blessed Sacrament out of church and give it to them. Just tell the pastor or the parish office that person needs a home bound visit and get their name on the list. Simple as that. Wouldn’t be a bad idea to confess this to your priest so that he knows you have not been well-catechized with regards to the Eucharist and how it is to be properly given to those not able to be at Mass and perhaps he can instruct you if you wish to be part of a home bound or hospital-visit ministry.

 

[SMHW]

But if the person sick they need the communion fast to avoid committing a mortal sin of missing a day of obligation. In smaller communities and parishes there is simply not enough time or people

Some one who is truly sick has no obligation to attend Mass.

And there is no obligation to receive communion, only an obligation to attend Mass. Receiving communion does not satisfy the obligation to attend Mass; but it is beneficial for those worthy to receive who cannot attend Mass.

 

[Roseeurekacross]

Greeters yes at the Cathedral. They also hand out the newsletter, tell people where to take the plate of food for after mass morning tea, might work to get car rides home for some people, etc. No ushers. There is a traditional order to going up to communion. Its up to the individual to do the right thing with the Host, and in drinking from the Chalice.

At the rural churches we greet each other , get the newsletter, talk about who has hay for sale, conduct friendly interrogations of any newcomers.

 

[otjm]

In our super-small parish (20 families) we’re all greeters. If a non-parishioner comes in, it is pretty obvious in our tiny church. We get visitors pretty frequently and someone will always step up to say “hello”, give them a book, offer to help, etc. But we don’t have a formal greeting ministry. We greet each other anyway.

Portland?

 

[otjm]

But if the person sick they need the communion fast to avoid committing a mortal sin of missing a day of obligation. In smaller communities and parishes there is simply not enough time or people

They don’t “need Communion to avoid committing a mortal sin of missing Mass”. Receiving the Eucharist when one is home sick on in the hospital is not a substitute for Mass, and if they are truly sick, they cannot commit a sin by not going to Mass; the Church provides (grants) permission to not come to Mass.

And you are argumentative. Try reading carefully, and some of your comments will be answered without needing further response.

 

[Phemie]

Nope, no greeters in our parish. Now if I’m the reader who is bringing up the Book of Gospels, I’m already at the back of the church so I’ll say hello to anyone who comes in but officially we have no one. We don’t have official “ushers” either. When the time comes to take up the collection a couple of men will get up and do that but no one is assigned to the task, they just do it. On the first Sunday of the month all ministries (reader, EMHC, collection taker upper ) are done by members of the KofC.

 

[tseleehw]

The ushers double as greeters at my parish. I’ve been a member of a few different parishes in my lifetime, and this is the first one that has had them.

 

[MarkInOregon]

I am most indeed Catholic however in my lifetime I have known many people who are sick or in the hospital who have taken holy communion. It is not against Church teaching to take Holy Communion outside of the church if its 4 the sick or those unable to attend Mass

Parishes have a ministry for this and the priest, deacon or the volunteers who are trained and commissioned to – take the host to those who are home bound or hospitalized. It has been this way since the earliest days of the Church. Yes but it is against Church discipline for someone to take a host given to them in the communion line for their reception and pocket it and take it out of the Church to give to someone else.

The peace of Christ,
Mark

 

[M-Dent]

Jesus, suffices.