Too Many Extraordiary Ministers of Holy Communion?

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7_Sorrows said:
I think we have 14-16 EMHC’s at the Sunday Mass I attend.

Before EMHC’s, who would visit the hospitals and private homes to bring the Eucharist?
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We used to have far more Priests/Deacons than we have now. There is a severe shortage of Priests today.
 
tawny said:
We used to have far more Priests/Deacons than we have now. There is a severe shortage of Priests today.
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If it’s a matter of distributing communion and given its importance, wouldn’t or shouldn’t the shortage of deacons be a bigger concern?
 
Irishmom2 said:
We usually have 7. It does not matter to me which line I am in. I don’t understand the constant fuss over this. 🤷
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Neither do I. Never been to a Catholic mass that didn’t have EMHCs. They’re still distributing the same consecrated Eucharist to you that the priest confected. Nothing changes if a EMHC or a priest conveys it to you.
 
ProVobis said:
If it’s a matter of distributing communion and given its importance, wouldn’t or shouldn’t the shortage of deacons be a bigger concern?
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It’s not just about distributing Communion; the scope is broarder than that. Deacons today have taken on far more responsibilities in the Parish because of the shortage of Priests. A Parish having EMHC affords the Priests and also the Deacons the ability to address other responsibilities outside of the realm of the EMHC.
 
Padres1969 said:
Neither do I. Never been to a Catholic mass that didn’t have EMHCs. They’re still distributing the same consecrated Eucharist to you that the priest confected. Nothing changes if a EMHC or a priest conveys it to you.
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Theologically that’s true even if it’s passed from person to person, such as I’ve seen at Papal Masses, but don’t forget before the 60’s it was considered sacrilegious for any lay person to touch the sacred species or even touch the top of the paten with the sacred particles.
 
ProVobis said:
Theologically that’s true even if it’s passed from person to person, such as I’ve seen at Papal Masses, but don’t forget before the 60’s it was considered sacrilegious for any lay person to touch the sacred species or even touch the top of the paten with the sacred particles.
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True, but then reception by hand was deemed by the Vatican to be ok. Once that was allowed the EMHC touching the host as well hardly seems like a problem. The church evolved, attitudes evolved with it. I mean any Catholic born in the last half century typically has never seen it done any other way, and the Vatican maintains that there is no problem. Seems the church itself got a little less scrupulous about communion. Seems the laity who still have issue with that need to follow Rome’s lead.
 
Padres1969 said:
and the Vatican maintains that there is no problem.
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Well, there is a matter of self-communicating which the Church absolutely forbids (and Protestants allow) but that’s not relevant to this discussion.
 
LordHaveMercy said:
The Bishops determine the can/can’t part 🙂

The maze is worth it! At the end you’ll find a man who can whisper a few words over a piece of bread and that bread becomes a man, and that man is God. That man was called to the Holy Priesthood founded by Jesus Christ. Whether he talks, looks, or thinks like me and whether we’re in my neighborhood or halfway around the world, I get to call him Father. He can even turn regular water into holy water!! I’ll gleefully* search out his line…

*Interior glee so as not to disturb or be noticed by others.
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So, you don’t accept the use of Eucharistic Ministers, who the Church has designated as valid. :confused:
 
ProVobis said:
Well, there is a matter of self-communicating which the Church absolutely forbids (and Protestants allow) but that’s not relevant to this discussion.
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Not sure why you brought it up then. How do Catholic EMHC have any relation to self communicating? Mind you I’ve never seen a EMHC self communicate in a Catholic Church.
 
Padres1969 said:
Not sure why you brought it up then. How do Catholic EMHC have any relation to self communicating? Mind you I’ve never seen a EMHC self communicate in a Catholic Church.
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Agenda posting. It’s a thing here.
Many people take every opportunity to post with a certain “slant”.
Unsubscribing. .
 
StJoseph8 said:
I am in a parish that just got new priests, so we have a grand total of 2 plus 1 deacon. Now, my parish is totally in line with the Church based on what I have seen with the 2 years I have been there and have noticed no problems. However, I was reading more about the EMHC’s and I was wondering if what they do is OK. In the time I go to Mass, there is usually only 1 priest celebrating, and each time I go there are 2 EMHC’s, unless the deacon or the other priest is present. They have a schedule for EMHC’s and they do not have any more than 3 at any Mass time. Last time I checked, there were about 2500-2700 families registered with the parishes, and my Mass time is not completely full, but I see it as mostly full. I never saw anything wrong with what they are doing, but what do you think? Does this sound OK?
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Yes.
 
Padres1969 said:
Not sure why you brought it up then.
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It was in response to your “no problem” remark and clearly there was a problem with it.
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4. As to the way to carry out the new rite: one possible model is the traditional usage, which expresses the ministerial functions, by having the priest or deacon place the host in the hand of the communicant. Alternatively, it is permissible to adopt a simpler procedure, namely, allowing the faithful themselves to take the host from the ciborium or paten. The faithful should consume the host before returning to their place; the minister’s part will be brought out by use of the usual formulary, The body of Christ, to which the communicant replies: Amen. Note: Rome later forbid the Communicant to take the Host themselves.]
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ewtn.com/expert/answers/communion_in_hand.htm
 
I just have a problem with one of our EMHC’s who wants to hug and kiss everyone if they can’t receive or even if they do.
 
its the host and the wine that are the body and blood, not who administers it to you. Technically, we have one priest and eight EMHC’s at the Saturday night mass - two administer the bread, six administer the wine.
 
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