Ushers monitoring reception of Communion?

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Have you seen this? This was a first for me. I was at the Cathedral in Denver on Colfax, and in addition to the two ushers going from pew to pew at Communion, there were two ushers stationed on each side of the priest and the EMHC that was distributing the Body of Christ. I could not think of any other reason that they would be there, other than to monitor the reception of the Eucharist, and to assist those who did not eat the Body of Christ when received.

I wonder if this has been a problem there, or if it is a problem in other cities as well. This is a parish that, among other things, is in the heart of the homeless people population, very inner city, I would say. But I have been to inner city parishes in other locations and did not observe this; they did not have a large number of homeless people lingering/living nearby, however. It could also be a destination parish, for both Catholic and non-Catholic tourists alike.
 
ccmcmg said:
Have you seen this? This was a first for me. I was at the Cathedral in Denver on Colfax, and in addition to the two ushers going from pew to pew at Communion, there were two ushers stationed on each side of the priest and the EMHC that was distributing the Body of Christ. I could not think of any other reason that they would be there, other than to monitor the reception of the Eucharist, and to assist those who did not eat the Body of Christ when received.

I wonder if this has been a problem there, or if it is a problem in other cities as well. This is a parish that, among other things, is in the heart of the homeless people population, very inner city, I would say. But I have been to inner city parishes in other locations and did not observe this; they did not have a large number of homeless people lingering/living nearby, however. It could also be a destination parish, for both Catholic and non-Catholic tourists alike.
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I was at the cathedral a couple Sundays ago and noticed the ushers as well. They kinda stand out the way they’re positioned on the altar there.

You are correct. The ushers are there to make sure that people who receive Holy Communion in the hand actually consume the host immediately.

We have ushers who do the same thing at my home parish, but our ushers blend in more. I have actually seen the usher stop people as they walk by and tell them to please consume the host right then. They have also helped out when some of the Precious Blood spilled on the floor 😦

It has nothing to do with the area in which the parish is located or the homeless population in the area. The ushers are there to help insure that Our Lord’s precious Body and Blood are cared for.

Gertie
 
  1. Cathedrals sometimes get groups coming inside to protest and trying to do inappropriate things. Fewer people try this with big bulky ushers around. This is also true of people trying to walk off with Communion in hand.
  2. If people kneel for Communion (and of course we all are allowed to do this!), and if there is no support there, sometimes older folks get stuck on their knees and need help getting up, or help keeping their balance. One usher on one side and another usher on the other = no problem getting back up!
  3. Sometimes bishops get threats, I hate to say. But again, a couple of bulky ushers probably reduce security problems too.
  4. Handy for guarding and escorting the offertory, so they might as well stick around.
 
When I attended Mass at the Vatican last year, this was done to prevent people for not consuming the Host. There was also an announcement in several languages that the Host must be consumed in the presences of the usher. Sadly, sacrilege is on the rise, including use of the Host in satanic rituals.

JMR
 
I do not think that I have ever seen this done at my home parish except this past Sunday. There was a usher also monitoring people when they received communion. I do not know why that is not normally done but was done this Sunday but I think it is a good idea. Especially at Cathedrals and bigger parishes that could be a bigger target for people who would seek to disrespect The Body of Our Lord.
 
It is common as some of the cathedrals and basilicas which are also tourist attractions. The National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception in Washington DC is one such place.

Tourists sometimes try to get the Eucharist as a souvenir.

-Tim-
 
They are called Eucharistic guardians. My mother is one at her fairly small parish. Had them for a few years now.
 
The alternative is to have the priest do it, and having an ignorant person chased down by the priest and told to consume the host would be much more embarrassing and disruptive than having an usher do it.

Some Catholics know they made their First Holy Communion, but then they don’t go to Mass again except when their grandma’s funeral comes around. They really don’t know what to do. You wouldn’t believe it, but I know people who were baptized Catholic who had to ask their parents what their religion was when they started dating and their date wanted to know. The parent acted shocked the child didn’t know, but how is the child going to remember, when you never take the child to church again after the 2nd grade?

I would think it the best to station these ushers in the most inconspicuous place possible, though.
 
EasterJoy said:
The alternative is to have the priest do it, and having an ignorant person chased down by the priest and told to consume the host would be much more embarrassing and disruptive than having an usher do it.

Some Catholics know they made their First Holy Communion, but then they don’t go to Mass again except when their grandma’s funeral comes around. They really don’t know what to do. You wouldn’t believe it, but I know people who were baptized Catholic who had to ask their parents what their religion was when they started dating and their date wanted to know. The parent acted shocked the child didn’t know, but how is the child going to remember, when you never take the child to church again after the 2nd grade?

I would think it the best to station these ushers in the most inconspicuous place possible, though.
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That is funny! And sad…:eek:
 
EasterJoy said:
The alternative is to have the priest do it, and having an ignorant person chased down by the priest and told to consume the host would be much more embarrassing and disruptive than having an usher do it.

Some Catholics know they made their First Holy Communion, but then they don’t go to Mass again except when their grandma’s funeral comes around. They really don’t know what to do. You wouldn’t believe it, but I know people who were baptized Catholic who had to ask their parents what their religion was when they started dating and their date wanted to know. The parent acted shocked the child didn’t know, but how is the child going to remember, when you never take the child to church again after the 2nd grade?

I would think it the best to station these ushers in the most inconspicuous place possible, though.
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I think the term you are looking for is cultural catholic…plenty of those out there
 
I have never witnessed this before, but it sounds like a good idea to me.
 
TimothyH said:
It is common as some of the cathedrals and basilicas which are also tourist attractions. The National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception in Washington DC is one such place.

Tourists sometimes try to get the Eucharist as a souvenir.

-Tim-
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I understand; I wonder if it’s only weekend Masses? There weren’t any ‘guardians’ in place when I attended in the Lower Crypt for the weekday noon Mass last year.
Gertabelle said:
I was at the cathedral a couple Sundays ago and noticed the ushers as well. They kinda stand out the way they’re positioned on the altar there.

You are correct. The ushers are there to make sure that people who receive Holy Communion in the hand actually consume the host immediately.

We have ushers who do the same thing at my home parish, but our ushers blend in more. I have actually seen the usher stop people as they walk by and tell them to please consume the host right then. They have also helped out when some of the Precious Blood spilled on the floor 😦

It has nothing to do with the area in which the parish is located or the homeless population in the area. The ushers are there to help insure that Our Lord’s precious Body and Blood are cared for.

Gertie
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Oh, don’t get me wrong; there’s nothing wrong with where the location is; I only added that since I did notice some people sleeping in the pews, and wandering in and out. They might not realize what the line is for, but want to blend in, or for some other good reason in their mind.

Is this standard across the diocese in Denver?

I’m all for keeping the Body and Blood cared for and consumed reverently and properly. Perhaps I wouldn’t have even noticed these two if I hadn’t been sitting/receiving where I was at (far right pews near the wall/front, front of Mama).
 
At my last parish ushers were stationed to make certain the Eucharist was consumed as well. Also, if the person receiving the Eucharist turned away before consuming the priests and EMHC would tell them to consume it before stepping away.

At our new parish I have noticed that people taking Eucharist in the hand always side step out of line to consume under the premise of getting out of the way of the next personal. This is improper. One should consume before leaving.

Yes, the incidence of taking the Eucharist for rituals is increasing.
 
ccmcmg said:
Is this standard across the diocese in Denver?

I’m all for keeping the Body and Blood cared for and consumed reverently and properly. Perhaps I wouldn’t have even noticed these two if I hadn’t been sitting/receiving where I was at (far right pews near the wall/front, front of Mama).
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I’ve only noticed it at my own parish (in a different city, but same archdiocese) and at the cathedral. But to be honest, I don’t attend a lot of other parishes, being a musician and “tied” to a certain mass each Sunday.

We don’t have “guardians” for the weekday masses – don’t know about the cathedral for that as I’ve rarely ever attended a weekday mass there. Well, I was there for the installation mass of Archbishop Aquila (in the choir loft, of course) on a Thursday 😃

Sadly, there’s been some security concerns with the cathedral and they’re having to keep it locked in between masses. :sad_yes:

Gertie
 
Gertabelle said:
I’ve only noticed it at my own parish (in a different city, but same archdiocese) and at the cathedral. But to be honest, I don’t attend a lot of other parishes, being a musician and “tied” to a certain mass each Sunday.

We don’t have “guardians” for the weekday masses – don’t know about the cathedral for that as I’ve rarely ever attended a weekday mass there. Well, I was there for the installation mass of Archbishop Aquila (in the choir loft, of course) on a Thursday 😃

Sadly, there’s been some security concerns with the cathedral and they’re having to keep it locked in between masses. :sad_yes:

Gertie
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This was Saturday afternoon, 4:30 PM Mass, so I wouldn’t know about weekdays either. As for being locked, I was actually surprised it was unlocked more than 1 hour before Confession. If I had realized that though, I wouldn’t have gotten to visit with so many interesting people at McDonald’s next door, during the rain! I wanted to keep an eye on my car so that it wasn’t towed for being in the Church parking lot, while I was actually in the Church! 🙂 (There was actually some incident at the corner of the Church as I was making my way to the parking lot, complete with ambulance and a few police cars.)
 
Mintaka said:
Cathedrals sometimes get groups coming inside to protest and trying to do inappropriate things. Fewer people try this with big bulky ushers around. This is also true of people trying to walk off with Communion in hand.
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Even as a non-Catholic I can understand the concern about someone walking off with the Eucharist. I suppose that a few watchful eyes might cause someone to think twice before acting in such an uncivilized manner. But…what happens if someone is determined to “take a souvenir?” If a request to either consume or return the Eucharist is not met with the desired response, what are these “big bulky ushers” going to do? Physically attack the offender? I really can’t see that turning out too well.
 
WillyAL said:
Even as a non-Catholic I can understand the concern about someone walking off with the Eucharist. I suppose that a few watchful eyes might cause someone to think twice before acting in such an uncivilized manner. But…what happens if someone is determined to “take a souvenir?” If a request to either consume or return the Eucharist is not met with the desired response, what are these “big bulky ushers” going to do? Physically attack the offender? I really can’t see that turning out too well.
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Oh, I don’t know…I’d like to think that if I feared that the Lord would be desecrated or mistreated, I would do whatever it took to keep that from happening. It’s not a bite of bread. It’s the Body of Christ.
 
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