The consecrated hosts were buried

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MooCowSteph

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Our church uses different hosts for Holy Thursday Mass and adoration and the Good Friday service. They are still unleavened, but they are little chewy pieces instead of the flat hosts. I’m not sure if that’s common or even allowed, but anyway, this year there were quite a few left over so I asked what they do with them. Turns out they bury them. If there are only a few, they (the EMsHC) will consume them after Mass, but because there were so many the plans were to bury them. I guess that is the best possible solution…has anyone else heard of this?? :confused:
 
So long as they are made with only wheat and flour, they are still valid for Communion.

Regarding their “disposal”, this is a terrible abuse!! The Body and Blood of our Lord must never be committed to the ground, but must be consumed!! The Eucharist does not cease to be Christ Himself simply because it has been buried, but unless and until the host is no longer recognizable. In a very real sense, Jesus is trapped beneath the earth just outside your Church!!! Tell your priest immediately, or if he already knows this is going on, go straight to the Bishop.
 
Dr. C is right.

Both the GIRM and the US Norms on the Eucharist specify that any remaining Hosts not being reserved are to be consumed by the priest and deacon, if necessary with the assistance of EMHC’s.

Now certain circumstances is the Blessed Sacrament allowed to be buried.

Each church has a special sink, called a* sacrarium * that leads directly undergrount, NOT to the sewer system.

to clean calices, ciboria and purificators, they are first rinsed and the rinse water poured into the sacrarium. By definition, the rinse water would carry the Blessed Sacrament, and thus it is commited to holy ground.

While it is the norm for cleaning Precious vessels, it should NOT be the norm for the Blessed Sacrament as a whole.

Blessed items, such as broken rosaries, palm branches from Palm Sunday ect… are also to be either burned or commited to the ground, NEVER thrown in the garbage.
 
Now certain circumstances is the Blessed Sacrament allowed to be buried.
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Each Church has a special sink, called a* sacrarium *that leads directly undergrount, NOT to the sewer system.
Click to expand...
to clean calixae, ciboria and purificators, they are first rinsed and the rinse water poured into the sacrarium. By definition, the rinse water would carry the Blessed Sacrament, and thus it is commited to holy ground.
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This is only partially correct. When a significant portion of water is mixed with the Sacred Blood, the Church believes it is diluted enough to no longer resemble wine and thus ceases to be the Blood of Christ. Therefore, the reason the water may be poured into the Sacrarium is precisely because it is not the Eucharist any longer.
 
To do this (throw away the hosts, essentially) is to commit grave sacrilige against the Blessed Sacrament, and if done knowingly carries the penalty of automatic excommunication reserved solely to the Holy See for reconciliation. If it is not done knowingly, it is still objectively gravely wrong and needs to be corrected immediately.

You need to write a letter immediately to your priest, copied to your diocesen bishop/chancery office and to the Congregation of Divine Worship and Discipline of the Sacraments detailing precisely what you know about the situation and how you know about it.
In accordance with what is laid down by the canons, “one who throws away the consecrated species or takes them away or keeps them for a sacrilegious purpose, incurs a latae sententiae excommunication reserved to the Apostolic See; a cleric, moreover, may be punished by another penalty, not excluding dismissal from the clerical state”.[194] To be regarded as pertaining to this case is any action that is voluntarily and gravely disrespectful of the sacred species. Anyone, therefore, who acts contrary to these norms, for example casting the sacred species into the sacrarium or in an unworthy place or on the ground, incurs the penalties laid down.[195] Furthermore all will remember that once the distribution of Holy Communion during the celebration of Mass has been completed, the prescriptions of the Roman Missal are to be observed, and in particular, whatever may remain of the Blood of Christ must be entirely and immediately consumed by the Priest or by another minister, according to the norms, while the consecrated hosts that are left are to be consumed by the Priest at the altar or carried to the place for the reservation of the Eucharist.[196]

- Redemptionis Sacramentum, section 107
vatican.va/roman_curia/congregations/ccdds/documents/rc_con_ccdds_doc_20040423_redemptionis-sacramentum_en.html
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Address for reporting to Rome:

His Eminence Francis Cardinal Arinze
Prefect Congregation for Divine Worship and Discipline of the Sacraments
Palazzo delle Congrazioni Piazza Pio XII, 10
00193 Roma

Also see the following:

“How to Address a Liturgical Abuse”
adoremus.org/1295Bruno.html

Catholic Answers Special Report: Liturgical Abuses
catholic.com/library/liturgical_abuses.asp

+veritas+
 
Dr. Colossus:
This is only partially correct. When a significant portion of water is mixed with the Sacred Blood, the Church believes it is diluted enough to no longer resemble wine and thus ceases to be the Blood of Christ. Therefore, the reason the water may be poured into the Sacrarium is precisely because it is not the Eucharist any longer.
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Yes, but there is still the very good chance than the Species of Bread retains it’s accidents. It is assumed that the Blessed Sacrament is still present in some way when the sacrarium is being used and thus is to be treated with reverence.
 
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MooCowSteph:
Our church uses different hosts for Holy Thursday Mass and adoration and the Good Friday service. They are still unleavened, but they are little chewy pieces instead of the flat hosts. I’m not sure if that’s common or even allowed, but anyway, this year there were quite a few left over so I asked what they do with them. Turns out they bury them. If there are only a few, they (the EMsHC) will consume them after Mass, but because there were so many the plans were to bury them. I guess that is the best possible solution…has anyone else heard of this?? :confused:
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WHAT?

Buried where?

Who stood watch over them all night?

The Blessed Sacrament needed to be placed in a locked cabinet in the sacristy. The Blessed Sacrament simply removed from public access, by removing the Blessed Sacrament from the taberncale and extinguishing the sanctuary lamp. Many times the Blessed Sacrament is placed in a chapel in the rectory where no one has access, except the pastor in case viaticum is needed.

(P.S. - I assume that we are talking only for Good Friday and Holy Saturday) Until the Hosts can be placed back into the tabernacle.)
 
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Brendan:
Dr. C is right.

Both the GIRM and the US Norms on the Eucharist specify that any remaining Hosts not being reserved are to be consumed by the priest and deacon, if necessary with the assistance of EMHC’s.

Now certain circumstances is the Blessed Sacrament allowed to be buried.

Each church has a special sink, called a* sacrarium *that leads directly undergrount, NOT to the sewer system.

to clean calices, ciboria and purificators, they are first rinsed and the rinse water poured into the sacrarium. By definition, the rinse water would carry the Blessed Sacrament, and thus it is commited to holy ground.

While it is the norm for cleaning Precious vessels, it should NOT be the norm for the Blessed Sacrament as a whole.

Blessed items, such as broken rosaries, palm branches from Palm Sunday ect… are also to be either burned or commited to the ground, NEVER thrown in the garbage.
Click to expand...
The first rinse water is always consummed. The ciborum is never used as a cup. Water is placed in it and circulated then poured into a chalice to be consummed. The second rinse water can be poured down the sacrarium.

This is why the GIRM requires that the priest or deacon be the one purifiying the vessels who can be ASSISTED by an EMHC if necessary. It also requires that the remaining Precious Blood be consummed in the open, at the altar, under the supervision of the priest or deacon. The vessels can then be placed if necessary on a table for further purification by the priest or deacon later.
 
Veritas is correct. The people who buried the Holy Eucharist have been automatically excommunicated and are no longer members of the Church.
 
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Benedictus:
Veritas is correct. The people who buried the Holy Eucharist have been automatically excommunicated and are no longer members of the Church.
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Not quite. Latae Sententiae excommunication requires that the guilty parties are aware of the canonical penalty. It is unlikely that the EMsHC know how grave of a matter this really is. If a priest is involved on the other hand, he should know better.
 
I can’t believe it. I am so distraught! I hate confrontation, but I clearly have to say something to my Priest. I was concerned, but I had no idea it was something over which he could be excommunicated.

My church commits many abuses, and while I’ve never said anything directly to my priest, i’ve rationalized it because I know other parishoners have, and they’ve been met with unfriendly, even hostile, responses. I think we’re going to have to leave the church. I don’t see being able to stay once we’ve confronted the priest. My husband and I are both pretty involved there which makes the whole situation even more difficult. We have a personal relationship with Father.

Oh, I’m just so upset thinking of Jesus being defamed in this way.
 
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MooCowSteph:
I can’t believe it. I am so distraught! I hate confrontation, but I clearly have to say something to my Priest. I was concerned, but I had no idea it was something over which he could be excommunicated.

My church commits many abuses, and while I’ve never said anything directly to my priest, i’ve rationalized it because I know other parishoners have, and they’ve been met with unfriendly, even hostile, responses. I think we’re going to have to leave the church. I don’t see being able to stay once we’ve confronted the priest. My husband and I are both pretty involved there which makes the whole situation even more difficult. We have a personal relationship with Father.

Oh, I’m just so upset thinking of Jesus being defamed in this way.
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Have faith! You know what you have to do, and Christ will give you the strength to do it. But you may not have anything to worry about. I suspect that the priest may not know that this is going on. If that’s so, it will not be “confrontation” to inform him of the matter. Hopefully he will appreciate your concern and quickly take care of the matter. I will pray for you that this is resolved easily.
 
Dr. Colossus:
Have faith! You know what you have to do, and Christ will give you the strength to do it. But you may not have anything to worry about. I suspect that the priest may not know that this is going on. If that’s so, it will not be “confrontation” to inform him of the matter. Hopefully he will appreciate your concern and quickly take care of the matter. I will pray for you that this is resolved easily.
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Unfortunately, I am not so optimistic. The person I asked about the hosts is one of two people in charge of organizing the EMHC. She said she didn’t know until this year that they bury them, so I suspect it was at the direction of the priest since they otherwise probably would not have known what to do with them.
 
This actually is what I think is the biggest potential drawback of using “substantial” bread… if there’s a lot left over, it doesn’t keep well. It gets stale and eventually becomes inedible if not consumed within a day or two. Actually a chewy unleavened bread made just from wheat and water is barely edible in the first place.

Anyway, you need a fairly accurate headcount before the gifts are brought forward. Some of the sacristans at my church fail to do this, and too much gets consecrated. Sometimes the priest will give multiple pieces to each communicant when he sees that there’s going to be a lot left over. But if there’s still a lot left, several people will go back to the sacristy to help consume the remaining hosts after the last Mass on Sunday. And it’s very hard to do that in a reverent way.
 
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MooCowSteph:
Our church uses different hosts for Holy Thursday Mass and adoration and the Good Friday service. They are still unleavened, but they are little chewy pieces instead of the flat hosts. I’m not sure if that’s common or even allowed, but anyway, this year there were quite a few left over so I asked what they do with them. Turns out they bury them. If there are only a few, they (the EMsHC) will consume them after Mass, but because there were so many the plans were to bury them. I guess that is the best possible solution…has anyone else heard of this?? :confused:
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if they were consecrated, they must be consumed, to bury them is a horrible abuse and sacrilege, contact the bishop immediately, but make sure you have the facts right. What a way to treat the precious Body of the Lord.
 
This has already been posted, but here is my concern:

In accordance with what is laid down by the canons, “one who throws away the consecrated species or takes them away or keeps them for a sacrilegious purpose, incurs a latae sententiae excommunication reserved to the Apostolic See; a cleric, moreover, may be punished by another penalty, not excluding dismissal from the clerical state”.[194] To be regarded as pertaining to this case is any action that is voluntarily and gravely disrespectful of the sacred species. Anyone, therefore, who acts contrary to these norms, for example casting the sacred species into the sacrarium or in an unworthy place or on the ground,** incurs the penalties laid down.[195] Furthermore all will remember that once the distribution of Holy Communion during the celebration of Mass has been completed, the prescriptions of the Roman Missal are to be observed, and in particular, whatever may remain of the Blood of Christ must be entirely and immediately consumed by the Priest or by another minister, according to the norms, while the consecrated hosts that are left are to be consumed by the Priest at the altar or carried to the place for the reservation of the Eucharist.[196]

- Redemptionis Sacramentum, section 107
vatican.va/roman_curia/c…amentum_en.html

I’m preparing what I’ll say Sunday. I’m wondering if my priest will say he didn’t place them on the ground bu IN the ground. How should I prepare for that?

Are there any other documents I should cite? Something from the Code of Canon Law or the GIRM?
 
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MooCowSteph:
I’m preparing what I’ll say Sunday. I’m wondering if my priest will say he didn’t place them on the ground bu IN the ground. How should I prepare for that?

Are there any other documents I should cite? Something from the Code of Canon Law or the GIRM?
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Your references already contain all you need:
one who throws away the consecrated species or takes them away…incurs a latae sententiae excommunication
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It doesn’t matter that the Hosts are in the ground rather than *on *it. They have been removed from a suitable place and desecrated. If your priest will not see it from your argument there is no point in trying to convince him further. Go directly to the Bishop.
 
Consecrated Hosts
Question from Mike on 12-22-2003: Colin, Are the hosts sitting in the Tabernackle already consecrated before the Mass begins? I take it the hosts in the Tabernackle were consecrated at a previous Mass. During the Mass, is it only the host the priest is holding which gets consecrated or are other hosts being consecrated as well. Just a bit confused!

Answer by Colin B. Donovan, STL on 12-22-2003: Once a Host is consecrated it must either be consumed or reserved. The Hosts in the Tabernacle, therefore, are reserved from other Masses. They are not re-consecrated, they couldn’t be, they are already Christ. So, when the priest runs low of Hosts consecrated from a particular Mass, he distributes Hosts from the Tabernacle. He also takes them to the sick from there. And, of course, outside Mass we can adore Jesus Present there. The priest is able to consecrate every host that is on the altar that he intends to consecrate, whether he touches them or not. They are very careful that only such hosts are there. If you watch our TV Mass, you will notice that there is usually a second vessel, larger and broader than the chalice, on the altar. That is a ciborium. It is filled with unconsecrated hosts. Usually only the priests’ hosts are on the paten, the little plate. At the Consecration he holds up one priest host. It, the priests’ hosts remaining on the paten, and the communicants’ hosts in the ciborium, are all consecrated. Good question, and Merry Christmas.

ewtn.com/vexperts/showresult.asp?RecNum=386187&Forums=0&Experts=0&Days=3000&Author=&Keyword=consecrated+hosts&pgnu=1&groupnum=0
 
If it turns out the priest knew about this, is the consecration still valid, since he would have excommunicated himself?
 
If it turns out the priest knew about this, is the consecration still valid, since he would have excommunicated himself?
 
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