Laity doing a Communion Service

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Normally, a local parish offers a very early Friday Mass (6:30am). However, the pastor is out of town. The former pastor gave open permission to some of his lay parishioners to enter the church, and conduct a communion service in lieu of this Mass. They may be doing it again, apparently on their own because the current pastor did not give his permission.

Any sources on the “do’s and don’ts” concerning communion services?
 
I believe there is a specific manual on how to conduct a Communion Service. I have seen some to the fact in some Catholic books stores I have gone to.

PF
 
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WanderAimlessly:
I believe there is a specific manual on how to conduct a Communion Service. I have seen some to the fact in some Catholic books stores I have gone to.

PF
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Holy Communion and Worship of the Eucharist Outside of Mass.

Printed by Catholic Book Publishing Co. (and likely others.)
 
What I am looking for is any source of restrictions on a Communion Service. Do lay people need permission from the pastor, the bishop or who? Under what criteria can they opt to “do it themselves”?

It just seems like it has become a “do-it-yourself” action.
 
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MrS:
What I am looking for is any source of restrictions on a Communion Service. Do lay people need permission from the pastor, the bishop or who? Under what criteria can they opt to “do it themselves”?

It just seems like it has become a “do-it-yourself” action.
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I believe it is by permission only. Nobody can just go in a take the Eucharist out of the Tabernacle. That is desecration and, I believe, automatic Excommunication.

PF
 
PF,
I am not disputing your claims, but can you give me a source that backs up Excommunication for this. I mean a lot of times there is just a kind of understanding that EMHC’S can take the Euchrist out of the Tabernacle to take to the sick and homebound. In our parish the pastor doesn’t give permission in every instance but it is kind of taken for granted that they are doing it…By the way I am a EMHC that has done that. I sincerely hope that I have not been Excommunicated for taking communion to our sick and homebound!
 
I’d guess he met in a more of a ‘No one knows I’m doing this but I’ll do it anyway’ way…
As in, he said the ones who might do this would do so without permission and possibly without the pastor knowing.
I’d assume, as an EMHC, you’d have permission to do so and possibly a schedule of whom to visit.
I don’t care if the previous owner of my house told his friends they could stay there while he was away… If I’m away, I’d much prefer them to ask first 👍
 
I believe it is by permission only. Nobody can just go in a take the Eucharist out of the Tabernacle. That is desecration and, I believe, automatic Excommunication.
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Simply removing the Blessed Sacrament from the tabernacle without authorization is clearly reprehensible and may result in a number of things.

However the intention, doing so for a sacriligious purpose, would be required to incur a latae sententiae (i.e., in general, automatic) excommunication (canon 1367)

Its remission is reserved to the Apostolic See.

Those who legitimately take communion to the sick, even family members who are not extraordinary ministers of Holy Communion, with the approval of the priest would obviously not incur penalty. Unless revoked after it is given, the permission need not be given over and over again, but can be presumed for the cases or situations for which it was given. If one does not customarily bring Holy Communion to the sick or shut in, or there is a long period of time between such actions, permission should be re-confirmed clearly with the priest.
 
I don’t have time to track down the document I read before (which I believe was from the USCCB but could have been a universal norm), but when I was looking into the possibility of a communion service for my particular location I found that it can only be done with permission from the ordinary. Also, the spirit of the law is that communion services are for those who do not have regular recourse to a priest for (Sunday) Mass and thus would be deprived of the Eucharist without a service. It is not foreseen as a substitute for daily Mass.
 
Even the title of the guidelines for lay-led communion services tells it all: Sunday Celebrations in the Absence of a Priest.
 
I found this link on the catholic.org website, where Father Edward McNamara provides a solid answer:

catholic.org/featured/headline.php?ID=1513

As for the local parish referred to in the original post, I had been to a Friday 6:30 AM Mass under the former pastor and I am not surprised that the few Friday morning parishoners were “empowered” to do this!
:rolleyes:

However, less than 6 miles away is a 7:00 AM Mass at a neighboring parish. A Communion Service should hardly be necessary.
 
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