Is it proper for Priest to almost always use Eucharistic Prayer IV?

  • Thread starter Thread starter LittleFlower378
  • Start date Start date
Status
Not open for further replies.
L

LittleFlower378

Guest
I know of a priest that when he says mass almost always uses Eucharistic Prayer IV Jesus, Who Went About Doing Good. Is this ok that he does this? He is into helping refugees and that is one thing that this Eucharistic Prayer is said for. Also, I have read the Eucharistic Prayer IV online and it seems(Im not 100% sure though)that he adds words to it. Are there different versions of the Eucharistic prayers?
 
Last edited:
I read online that Eucharistic Prayer IV is said for many things, one being for refugees. This priest is into preaching about helping refugees. So maybe thats why he uses this Eucharistic Prayer. Im not judging his intentions.

He does pray in the Eucharistic Prayer IV at the Mass something like “he came to cure sinners yet death has hunt him down,” although I dont see that in the prayer?
 
Last edited:
A priest can use any EP he wants, exclusively or otherwise.

There are more than 4 EPs so he may be using one that is not in your pew missals.
 
Ok thanks, although he says he uses the one that is called Jesus, Who Went About Doing Good. So that must be Eucharistic prayer IV unless there is another EP with that name.

Maybe there is a revision of the ones online?
 
Last edited:
There are
EPs 1-4
EPs for Masses of Reconciliation 1 & 2
EPs for use in Masses of Various Needs and Occasions 1-4

The one he is using is EP 4 in “masses for various needs” not the EP 4 in your missal. That one is called “Jesus who went about doing good”.

And it is within his prerogative to use any of the above he so chooses. See here for links to the text of all the EPs:

https://catholic-resources.org/ChurchDocs/EP.htm
 
Last edited:
Aren’t there some restrictions on when EP IV can be used? I thought it had a Preface that must always be used when choosing that prayer; if there is proper Preface for the day (Feast or Solemnity) the priest must use that Preface and therefore cannot choose EP IV.

I might be wrong - if so, I defer to others with better info.
 
Awesome thanks, although I dont see the part in EP IV (for various needs) where this priest prays “he came to cure sinners yet death has hunt him down.”
 
This is my understanding as well. To give another example, EP IV cannot be used during Lent because the Lenten prefaces are proper to the season. Since EP IV has its own preface that cannot be separated from it, there is an obvious conflict here that can only be resolved by not selecting EPIV during Lent.

I would think that is true as well for all four forms of the EP for various needs and occasions, since it also comes with its own prefaces.
 
Last edited:
UpUpAndAway said:
This is my understanding as well. To give another example, EP IV cannot be used during Lent because the Lenten prefaces are proper to the season. Since EP IV has its own preface that cannot be separated from it, there is an obvious conflict here that can only be resolved by not selecting EPIV during Lent.

I would think that is true as well for all four forms of the EP for various needs and occasions, since it also comes with its own prefaces.
Click to expand...
I have heard this as well.

I actually really love EP IV, but I have only known one priest who has used it regularly. It’s been rare that I have been to a Mass where it’s been used.
 
It’s quite profound, isn’t it?

I should add that outside of the days when a proper preface would supersede that of EP IV, a priest could opt for it at will.
 
LittleFlower378 said:
“he came to cure sinners yet death has hunt him down.”
Click to expand...
I am unaware of any of the EPs containing this phrase. Note that I live in France and don’t possess a current English-language missal.
 
Last edited:
CTBcin said:
I actually really love EP IV, but I have only known one priest who has used it regularly. It’s been rare that I have been to a Mass where it’s been used.
Click to expand...
I was at Mass at the abbey on Wednesday, and EP IV was used. It is by far and away my favourite. The abbey uses it quite regularly when it is permissible to use it.
1ke said:
And it is within his prerogative to use any of the above he so chooses.
Click to expand...
Minor quibble but as UpUpandAway points out, EP IV is not used on days or seasons that require a proper preface, as EP IV has its own fixed preface. Otherwise, yes it is the priest’s prerogative. At the abbey they rotate through all the EPs. EP I is used occasionally on Sundays, at solemnities and for any feast or memorial where the saint being celebrated is mentioned in the Canon. EP II mostly on weekdays but occasionally on Sundays, especially in the summer, and EP III is the most frequently used one on Sundays. So I usually get to hear them all.
 
he came to cure sinners yet death has hunt him down
Click to expand...
Never heard that phrase in any US Mass prayer of any sort. Perhaps our OP can ask her priest
 
That’s my understanding. Where there’s a proper preface for the day, Eucharistic Prayer IV cannot be used. GIRM 365(d) (it may be numbered differently in American Missals) says:

(d) Eucharistic Prayer IV has an invariable Preface and gives a fuller summary of salvation history. It may be used when a Mass has no Preface of its own and on Sundays in Ordinary Time. On account of its structure, no special formula for a deceased person may be inserted into this prayer.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top