Is it ok for the priest to hold the monstrance with his bare hands?

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margarete

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After benediction at a local church, I have a few questions. First and foremost, does the priest need to wear the humeral veil or can he hold the monstrance in his bare hands? Is the cope required to be worn? And how long does Benediction generally last? Longer than five minutes?
I sort of recalled Benediction being different. The priest said the cope and veil were “antiquities.” Have they been "done away with?’
Thanks for your assistance!
God Bless,
Margarete
 
I’m not worried about it, although I prefer the traditional vestment.
 
I don’t know the current rules. I do know my own opinion that it is a pity that the cope, one of the most useful and at the same time beauitful vestments, has fallen into disuse. Unfortunately, the person chiefly responsible for this was Pope John Paul II, who always wore a chasuble no matter what function he was performing. Prior to him, the cope was a common papal vestment, featured typically in official photographs.

I used to play organ for Monday night Novena in high school more than 30 years ago. It always included benediction. I cannot now for the life of me remember the vestiture of the priest or whether the humeral veil was used even then. The only time I can clearly remember these vestments being used in my parish at the time was at various times during holy week, notably , the procession of the Blessed Sacrament on Holy Thursday, where there was also a canopy over the priest.

Oddly enough, and as strange as it sounds, I do remember benedictions at Catholic school when I was very young (7 and 8, before Vatican II), where the children knelt around the altar rail and the priest presented the monstrance for us to kiss the pyx with the host inside (incredibly unsanitary). He obviously was not wearing the humeral veil when he did that, and I don’t remember him wearing gloves.
 
The symbolism behind the use of the cope is that the Blessing is coming from Christ Himself in the Eucharist, not the priest.

As it is strictly a symbolism, it does not affect the Grace and Blessing of the Benediction.
 
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Brendan:
The symbolism behind the use of the cope is that the Blessing is coming from Christ Himself in the Eucharist, not the priest.

As it is strictly a symbolism, it does not affect the Grace and Blessing of the Benediction.
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What?? :confused:
 
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jbuck919:
What?? :confused:
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The cope and humeral veil serve a symbolic purpose. If the priest fails to use them, you will still receive the same graces from attending Benediction.
 
The liturigical books require the priest to wear the humeral veil.

From Holy Communion and the Worship of the Eucharist Outside of Mass (HCWE):

“99. After the prayer the priest or deacon puts on the humeral veil, genuflects, and takes the monstrance or ciborium. He makes the sign of the cross over the people with the monstrance or ciborium, in silence.”

The 1984 Ceremonial of Bishops is even more explicit:
“1114 After the prayer, the bishop puts on the humeral veil, goes up to the altar, and genuflects. With the help of the deacon, he takes the monstrance, which, with both hands covered by the veil, he holds in a raised position; he then turns toward the people and makes the sign of the cross over them with the monstrance in silence.”
In n. 1108 it describes the deacon using the humeral veil to bring the blessed sacrament from the tabernacle.

The 1974 HCWE seemed to require a white cope. But the 1984 Ceremonial of Bishops seems to allow a “cope of appropriate color” (Ceremonial of Bishops, n. 1106).

From HCWE, n. 92: “The priest or deacon should wear a white cope and humeral veil to give the blessing at the end of adoration, when the exposition takes place with the monstrance; in the case of exposition in the ciborium, the humeral veil should be worn.”

I think benediction is required to last longer than five minutes. From HCWE: "89. Shorter expositions of the eucharist are to be arranged in such a way that the blessing with the eucharist is preceded by a suitable period for readings of the word of God, songs, prayers, and sufficient time for silence prayer. [Footnote 9: See Congregation of Rites, instruction Eucharisticum mysterium, n. 66: AAS 59 (1967) 572]
“Exposition which is held exclusively for the giving of benediction is prohibited.”
In five minutes one could hardly do the required: lighting the 4 or 6 candles, removal from the tabernacle, incensing, prayer before benediction, incensing, benediction and reposition to the tabernacle.

References:
Caeremoniale Episcoporum, Liberia Editrice Vaticana, 1995, ISBN 88-209-4217-8.

Holy Communion and the Worship of the Eucharist Outside of Mass, E.J. Dwyer, Sydney, 1975, ISBN 0-85574-401-4.
 
I don’t see why Benediction, itself, would need to last longer than 5 minutes. Though if the host is being exposed, adored, and benediction given all within 5 minutes just so benediction can be given, well that’s really not the ideal.
 
I’m a Rookie. As I’m reading this thread, I’m looking the various terms up on Advent.com. Advent.com does not have pictures.

Can someone recommend a website that has pictures of what you guys are talking about? :confused:
 
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jbuck919:
I don’t know the current rules. I do know my own opinion that it is a pity that the cope, one of the most useful and at the same time beauitful vestments, has fallen into disuse. Unfortunately, the person chiefly responsible for this was Pope John Paul II, who always wore a chasuble no matter what function he was performing. Prior to him, the cope was a common papal vestment, featured typically in official photographs.
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Hmmm, IIRC H.H. Pope John Paul, of blessed memory, did wear copes several times- notably on his travels(e.g. to Hungary for vespers) and the Great Jubilee.

http://chronicle.augusta.com/images/headlines/110798/pope.jpg

http://www.pbs.org/wnet/religionandethics/week326/pics/p_feature_begin.jpg

http://www.cdom.org/wtc/wtc_archives/wtc011101/wtc_pages/coverpic011101.jpg

http://members.ozemail.com.au/~acolyte/Roman%20Catholic%20Vestments/images/20.jpg

http://www.thehollandsentinel.net/images/122699/pope.jpg

http://themissionchurch.com/popeholydoor.jpg

http://www.pbs.org/wnet/religionandethics/week329/pics/p_news_confess.jpg

Perhaps you are refering instead to the papal mantle, which went out of fashion with the tiara, rather than the cope? Its like a super cope. I’m not sure whether Pope John Paul II did indeed wear a version on one or two occassions (during the Great Jubilee), perhaps there were other times as well.
 
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AJV:
Hmmm, IIRC H.H. Pope John Paul, of blessed memory, did wear copes several times- notably on his travels(e.g. to Hungary for vespers) and the Great Jubilee.

Perhaps you are refering instead to the papal mantle, which went out of fashion with the tiara, rather than the cope? Its like a super cope. I’m not sure whether Pope John Paul II did indeed wear a version on one or two occassions (during the Great Jubilee), perhaps there were other times as well.
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Thank you for the pictures. Interesting that the pictures would be from a trip to Hungary. I’m Hungarian. Inancsi is the Hungarian spelling of my last name.
 
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AJV:
Hmmm, IIRC H.H. Pope John Paul, of blessed memory, did wear copes several times- notably on his travels(e.g. to Hungary for vespers) and the Great Jubilee.
Click to expand...
Thanks for setting me straight. Great pics.
 
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