What is a "commissioned lay minister?

[sirach2v4]

I met a lady who said she was a commissioned lay minister. There seems to be a commissioning assembly at the cathedral by the Bishop, probably at a Mass. But, what is this all about?

Are there “non-commissioned” lay ministers?

 

[crystal_waters]

en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Minister_(Catholic_Church

Maybe she meant this?

 

[DavidFilmer]

I met a lady who said she was a commissioned lay minister.

Maybe she is talking about Extraordinary Ministers of Communion. I’m an EMC, but (in my Diocese) I was “commissioned” by the parish priest (and given a special cross to wear when performing my duties). Or perhaps she means lay readers (same thing, at least in my Diocese, but readers are normally given handy-dandy pronunciation guides).

There seems to be a commissioning assembly at the cathedral by the Bishop, probably at a Mass. But, what is this all about?

Well, if there is such an assembly, then it is SURELY done within a Mass. But probably not during a regularly scheduled Mass.

Are there “non-commissioned” lay ministers?

All (not otherwise appointed/ordained) Catholics are “non-commissioned” lay ministers.

 

[Don_Ruggero]

I met a lady who said she was a commissioned lay minister. There seems to be a commissioning assembly at the cathedral by the Bishop, probably at a Mass. But, what is this all about?

Are there “non-commissioned” lay ministers?

I am not sure how this lady was employing the term.

We have those who receive, from the hands of the bishop, the stable ministries of lector and acolyte, according to Canon 230…but those ministries are reserved to men and so it would not apply in the case of the lady. Besides, in English, I believe the term used habitually for the stable conferral of these ministries is “installed”.

Where I am from, Extraordinary Ministers of the Eucharist are commissioned by the Bishop. It is one at the cathedral and is renewed each year but I have not understood this to be the custom in North America. The Extraordinary Ministers there would be commissioned in some fashion but my confreres in the priesthood.in the United States had given me to understand this is rather done at the level of the parish.

I have met in the United States Catholics who underwent the training and commissioning to be a Stephen Minister…which I found an interesting concept that seems to be used by the Catholic Church in the United States to great benefit.

If you meet this lady again, why don’t you ask her and then report back to us what she tells you?

As to the question about non-commissioned ministers, yes. People can fulfill the ministry of reader or serve at the altar without any ceremony commissioning them.

 

[pianistclare]

Perhaps she meant Lay Ecclesial Minister.
Was she enrolled in a Catholic University or College for this program prior?
We were certified at a Mass with the Archbishop.

 

[MissRose73]

My diocese has a commissioned lay ministry program. People can apply for it, and the admission process has many things involved with it. Once admitted, there are many classes to take, and its a 3 year process before you are commissioned at a special Mass at the cathedral. Most people do the option for doing work with their parish although there are a few people who do the option of being a missionary type not tied to a parish.

My aunt and a few others at my parish are commissioned lay ministers - they typically do things such as lead adult faith formation classes, visit homebound parishioners in hospitals or senior living type places/nursing homes, or lead Word/Communion services at nursing homes/assisted living places. They must also take ongoing faith formation classes and attend the occasional retreat. The commitment is for 3 years then they can renew for same time frame at the same Mass when new ministers are commissioned for the 1st time.

 

[drforjc]

My diocese has a commissioned lay ministry program. People can apply for it, and the admission process has many things involved with it. Once admitted, there are many classes to take, and its a 3 year process before you are commissioned at a special Mass at the cathedral. Most people do the option for doing work with their parish although there are a few people who do the option of being a missionary type not tied to a parish.

So, and this would apparently apply to the OP’s acquaintance as well, this seems to be a purely diocesan program, rather than a canonical status in the Church.

 

[FrDavid96]

Contrary to what has become common experience (in the U.S.), laypersons who are potential extraordinary ministers of Holy Communion, or readers are to be appointed by the bishop. Sometimes, the word “commissioned” is used.

No priest (presbyter) has the ability to appoint an extraordinary minister of Holy Communion for more than a single act. That means, strictly speaking, that if a pastor appoints someone to assist with Communion at Mass, once that part of the Mass is over, the appointment ends. If a priest appoints a layperson to administer Communion during a hospital visit, once that visit is over, the appointment ends. The person must be re-appointed for the next Mass, or next hospital visit, and so on. In actual experience, this re-appointing is usually not done in any outward way.

When the concept of extraordinary minister of Holy Communion was still rather new, it was common for bishops to hold ceremonies appointing/commissioning them. As the years went by, it has become increasingly less common, however some bishops are reviving it. Today we see that trend very slowly reversing, and we see more bishops holding commissioning ceremonies.

The bishop can appoint them for a period of time, such as 1-year or 3-years, etc. They are still extraordinary ministers, so even if they are commissioned by the bishop, they can only exercise that function in cases of true necessity.

 

[FrDavid96]

So, and this would apparently apply to the OP’s acquaintance as well, this seems to be a purely diocesan program, rather than a canonical status in the Church.

Actually, this is exactly what the Church intended when the concept of extraordinary ministers of Holy Communion was first introduced. It seems that what the OP describes is exactly what canon law intends as the universal practice (assuming there is even a genuine need in the first place).

On the other hand, the more common practice of not-commissioning extraordinary ministers is exactly what the Church’s norms do not intend. The parish priest appointing extraordinary ministers is supposed to be reserved for only the most extreme circumstances.

 

[Phemie]

Contrary to what has become common experience (in the U.S.), laypersons who are potential extraordinary ministers of Holy Communion, or readers are to be appointed by the bishop. Sometimes, the word “commissioned” is used.

When the concept of extraordinary minister of Holy Communion was still rather new, it was common for bishops to hold ceremonies appointing/commissioning them. As the years went by, it has become increasingly less common, however some bishops are reviving it. Today we see that trend very slowly reversing, and we see more bishops holding commissioning ceremonies.

The bishop can appoint them for a period of time, such as 1-year or 3-years, etc. They are still extraordinary ministers, so even if they are commissioned by the bishop, they can only exercise that function in cases of true necessity.

We didn’t have a ceremony but I still have the letter I received from my Bishop when I was first commissioned to be an EMHC back in the 80s in my military parish. That letter laid out when and where I could exercise that ministry and made it clear that it was for a specific time and only in my own parish.

 

[John_Lilburne]

It seems to me there are three types of Extraordinary Ministers of Holy Communion: 1. Instituted acolytes. 2. Commissioned. 3. Deputed for a single occasion.

Appendix III of the Roman Missal has the “RITE OF DEPUTING A MINISTER TO DISTRIBUTE HOLY COMMUNION ON A SINGLE OCCASION”. It has:

1. The Diocesan Bishop has the faculty to permit individual Priests exercising sacred duties to depute a suitable member of the faithful to distribute Holy Communion with them on a single occasion, in cases of real necessity.
2. When one of the faithful is deputed to distribute Communion on a single occasion in such cases, it is fitting that a mandate to do so should be conferred according to the following rite.
3. After the Priest Celebrant himself has received the Sacrament in the usual way, the extraordinary minister comes to the altar and stands before the Celebrant, who blesses him or her with these words:
   May the Lord + bless you, so that at this Mass you may minister the Body and Blood of Christ to your brothers and sisters.
   And he or she replies:
   Amen.
4. If the extraordinary minister is to receive the Most Holy Eucharist, the Priest gives Communion to the minister. Then the Priest gives him or her the ciborium or vessel with the hosts or the chalice and together they go to administer Communion to the faithful.

The Book of Blessings approved for the USA in 1989 has Chapter 63 “ORDER FOR THE COMMISSIONING OF EXTRAORDINARY MINISTERS OF HOLY COMMUNION”. This is taken from the “Rite of Commissioning Special Ministers of Holy Communion” of 1973. There are two ceremonies. One for within Mass, the other for within a Celebration of the Word of God. The rubrics from the Book of Blessings include:

"1872. Persons authorized to distribute holy communion in special circumstances should be commissioned by the local Ordinary or his delegate [footnote 7: See instruction Immensae caritatis I, nos. 1, 6.] according to the following rite. This rite should take place in the presence of the people during Mass or outside Mass.

1. The pastor is the usual minister of this rite. However, he may delegate another priest to celebrate it, or a deacon when it is celebrated outside Mass."

The 2004 Instruction Redemptionis Sacramentum has:

“[155.] In addition to the ordinary ministers there is the formally instituted acolyte, who by virtue of his institution is an extraordinary minister of Holy Communion even outside the celebration of Mass. If, moreover, reasons of real necessity prompt it, another lay member of Christ’s faithful may also be delegated by the diocesan Bishop, in accordance with the norm of law,[256] for one occasion or for a specified time, and an appropriate formula of blessing may be used for the occasion. This act of appointment, however, does not necessarily take a liturgical form, nor, if it does take a liturgical form, should it resemble sacred Ordination in any way. Finally, in special cases of an unforeseen nature, permission can be given for a single occasion by the Priest who presides at the celebration of the Eucharist.[257]”

It highlights these ceremonies (“liturgical form”) are optional. So there are other ways of appointing Extraordinary Ministers of Holy Communion.

 

[pianistclare]

I think if it was about distributing communion she would have said so.
It may be this:
usccb.org/about/laity-marriage-family-life-and-youth/lay-ecclesial-ministry/lay-ecclesial-ministry-faqs.cfm

 

[drforjc]

I think if it was about distributing communion she would have said so.
It may be this:
usccb.org/about/laity-marriage-family-life-and-youth/lay-ecclesial-ministry/lay-ecclesial-ministry-faqs.cfm

Thanks. This quote from your link confirms my previous post:

“Lay ecclesial minister” is not itself a specific position title. It is not used in order to establish a new rank or order among the laity. It is the responsibility of the bishop, or his delegate, in accord with the norms of canon law, to identify the roles that most clearly exemplify lay ecclesial ministry. Application of the term may vary from diocese to diocese.

 

[pianistclare]

Thanks. This quote from your link confirms my previous post:

It is in our Archdiocese, actually. When people talk about the need for more lay help in the parishes, more well educated Catholics, and they get defensive when the laity actually do go out and get degrees…I don’t get it. Its not the priesthood, it’s not the deaconate. But it’s a big help to pastors.
Credibility is a good thing, not a negative.
our Archbishop put out a call for DRE’s, and other various laypeople to sign up and take the coursework from a Catholic University. We had a Deacon in our group. He was delighted with the additional learning opportunity. We had some good professors and fine discourse.

 

[drforjc]

Oh, I’m not disputing the value of these folks.

Canonically, however, they are simply lay persons. The OP’s term is a function rather than a personal title.

I remember, years ago on this forum, someone posted that they had met someone who, in introducing themself, whipped a business card out of their wallet that had “Lay Minister” or a similar “title” below their name-- as in “John Doe, Lay Minister.”

That, IMO, is an example of someone believing that they had been given a special “rank or order” rather than a service function within their diocese.

 

[pianistclare]

Oh, I’m not disputing the value of these folks.

Canonically, however, they are simply lay persons. The OP’s term is a function rather than a personal title.

I remember, years ago on this forum, someone posted that they had met someone who, in introducing themself, whipped a business card out of their wallet that had “Lay Minister” or a similar “title” below their name-- as in “John Doe, Lay Minister.”

That, IMO, is an example of someone believing that they had been given a special “rank or order” rather than a service function within their diocese.

Our LEM’s have that designation as a title after their names.
They are not simply lay persons. They certainly have WAY more Catholic theology under their belts than “simply lay persons”. Our “simply lay persons” believe it’s ok to skip Mass in the summer
If the Catholic Bishops can acknowledge their work I don’t see why it’s such a bone of contention for people.
Catechesis is a wonderful thing…especially when charged with the catechesis of others. I’ve seen many well-intentioned Sunday school teachers lead children waaaaaaay off track. that was the motivation for this by our Archbishop, at least. He wanted more well trained Catechetical staff at the parish level. Not to make light of people’s sacrifice of time, but at this time in the US it’s more important than ever that the children and RCIA folks and everyone enrolled in parish programs have access to people with solid training.

I suspect someone will have a comeback, so I’m unsubscribing.

 

[FrDavid96]

Our LEM’s have that designation as a title after their names.
They are not simply lay persons. They certainly have WAY more Catholic theology under their belts than “simply lay persons”. Our “simply lay persons” believe it’s ok to skip Mass in the summer
If the Catholic Bishops can acknowledge their work I don’t see why it’s such a bone of contention for people.
Catechesis is a wonderful thing…especially when charged with the catechesis of others. I’ve seen many well-intentioned Sunday school teachers lead children waaaaaaay off track. that was the motivation for this by our Archbishop, at least. He wanted more well trained Catechetical staff at the parish level. Not to make light of people’s sacrifice of time, but at this time in the US it’s more important than ever that the children and RCIA folks and everyone enrolled in parish programs have access to people with solid training.

I suspect someone will have a comeback, so I’m unsubscribing.

I suppose “LEM” means “Lay Eucharistic Minister”?

That’s exactly the problem.

They are not ministers, they are extraordinary ministers, and they are only extraordinary ministers when they are actively engaged in assisting the priest by distributing Holy Communion.

Unless they are in a situation where some priest has actually appointed them at that moment to distribute Communion, then they are not ministers of any kind, they are only potential extraordinary ministers.

They should not be presenting themselves as “LEMs” any more than your average parish priest should have business cards printed that read “Father John Doe, Confirmation Minister” based on the fact that a priest can be an extraordinary minister of confirmation under certain circumstances.

Extraordinary Ministers of Holy Communion do not hold any office in the Church, they have no title, nor should they give themselves any title that implies an office.

§ 3. The non-ordained faithful may be generically designated “extraordinary ministers” when deputed by competent authority to discharge, solely by way of supply, those offices mentioned in Canon 230, § 3(56) and in Canons 943 and 1112. Naturally, the concrete term may be applied to those to whom functions are canonically entrusted e.g. catechists, acolytes, lectors etc.

Temporary deputation for liturgical purposes — mentioned in Canon 230, § 2 — does not confer any special or permanent title on the non-ordained faithful.(57)
vatican.va/roman_curia/congregations/cclergy/documents/rc_con_interdic_doc_15081997_en.html

That’s pretty clear. Extraordinary Ministers of Holy Communion (potential ones, at that) do not have any title, nor should they.

Appending the letters “LEM” after their names is directly contrary to the Church’s discipline.

 

[liturgyluver]

I suppose “LEM” means “Lay Eucharistic Minister”?

That’s exactly the problem.

They are not ministers, they are extraordinary ministers, and they are only extraordinary ministers when they are actively engaged in assisting the priest by distributing Holy Communion.

Unless they are in a situation where some priest has actually appointed them at that moment to distribute Communion, then they are not ministers of any kind, they are only potential extraordinary ministers.

They should not be presenting themselves as “LEMs” any more than your average parish priest should have business cards printed that read “Father John Doe, Confirmation Minister” based on the fact that a priest can be an extraordinary minister of confirmation under certain circumstances.

Extraordinary Ministers of Holy Communion do not hold any office in the Church, they have no title, nor should they give themselves any title that implies an office.

§ 3. The non-ordained faithful may be generically designated “extraordinary ministers” when deputed by competent authority to discharge, solely by way of supply, those offices mentioned in Canon 230, § 3(56) and in Canons 943 and 1112. Naturally, the concrete term may be applied to those to whom functions are canonically entrusted e.g. catechists, acolytes, lectors etc.

Temporary deputation for liturgical purposes — mentioned in Canon 230, § 2 — does not confer any special or permanent title on the non-ordained faithful.(57)
vatican.va/roman_curia/congregations/cclergy/documents/rc_con_interdic_doc_15081997_en.html

That’s pretty clear. Extraordinary Ministers of Holy Communion (potential ones, at that) do not have any title, nor should they.

Appending the letters “LEM” after their names is directly contrary to the Church’s discipline.

Who cares about the semantics? Surely most people are grateful that these people volunteer for a very important role in the church

 

[drforjc]

Our LEM’s have that designation as a title after their names.
They are not simply lay persons. They certainly have WAY more Catholic theology under their belts than “simply lay persons”. Our “simply lay persons” believe it’s ok to skip Mass in the summer
If the Catholic Bishops can acknowledge their work I don’t see why it’s such a bone of contention for people.
Catechesis is a wonderful thing…especially when charged with the catechesis of others. I’ve seen many well-intentioned Sunday school teachers lead children waaaaaaay off track. that was the motivation for this by our Archbishop, at least. He wanted more well trained Catechetical staff at the parish level. Not to make light of people’s sacrifice of time, but at this time in the US it’s more important than ever that the children and RCIA folks and everyone enrolled in parish programs have access to people with solid training.

I suspect someone will have a comeback, so I’m unsubscribing.

Why do you describe it as a “comeback?” Don’t you value reasoned, respectful discourse?

Canonically, they are simply lay persons. Period. One’s canonical status in the Church is not altered by having “way more theology under their belt.”

Yes, they fulfill a needed function. I never said they didn’t.

But again, it’s not really a personal title, it’s a functional title used for convenience by the local Church (diocese).

 

[drforjc]

Who cares about the semantics? Surely most people are grateful that these people volunteer for a very important role in the church

Who cares about the semantics? Read my second-last post about the person’s business card.