Leaving the Blessed Sacrament alone?

[cjkaupke]

When the Blessed Sacrament is exposed, there is supposed to be one (or two??) people present. Is this Church law, or just a prudential judgment?

More importantly, what is my obligation when I have to leave? If there is only one other person there, or no one else there, you ought to stay, but what if I have an obligation that requires me to leave at a certain time, like going to work, and I don’t know how many people will be there, or how safe It will be, after I’m gone? I don’t want to expose the Blessed Sacrament to risk of harm, but I also have to be at work. Then again, the church is in a generally safe area; I don’t think there’s much of a chance of anyone coming in and harming It, and I’ve never heard of any instances of that happening in my parish, or any other parish in my area.

What should I do in situations like this? Thank you.

 

[Fr.Charles_Grondin]

Holy Communion and Worship of the Eucharist outside Mass:

1. Where there cannot be uninterrupted exposition because there is not a sufficient number of worshipers…

It appears to be a prudential judgment. It would seem to me that if the parish is consistently running the risk of the Blessed Sacrament being exposed and alone then there is not a sufficient number of people.

Ultimately it is the responsibility of the pastor to ensure the sufficient number of people present. If you are the only one there and have to leave, then you could contact the rectory to let them know that the church/chapel is empty.