What to do when you run out of Hosts?

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snowbee

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At my church they recommend that as needed you break up them into half sizes. But if you do run out, the EMHC go to another EMHC and just grab a handful, put it in their ciborium and go back to their line.
I have never run out yet, but to me this seems so disrespectful to handle the Eucharist in that way.
What is the proper respectful procedure??
 
snowbee said:
At my church they recommend that as needed you break up them into half sizes. But if you do run out, the EMHC go to another EMHC and just grab a handful, put it in their ciborium and go back to their line.
I have never run out yet, but to me this seems so disrespectful to handle the Eucharist in that way.
What is the proper respectful procedure??
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not sure if there’s an order of where you would get more hosts, but ideally you’ll get from the Tabernacle any reserved hosts. or you can get from the other ministers of Communion. make sure there is utmost care when transferring the hosts so no crumbs or hosts would fall. have the altar boy hold the paten up when making the transfer. that is fine and there is no disrespect there.

or, if the line is not too long, say there’s 5-10 people, you can ask them to lineup to the next minister who still have hosts
 
The more reverent way would be to go to the Tabernacle, but I don’t know if the EMHC are supposed to go to the Tabernacle during the Mass. When this happens, I usually see them go to another minister and steal some hosts from them. You just have to be very careful of what you’re doing in case a host would fall to the ground.
 
CatholicZ09 said:
The more reverent way would be to go to the Tabernacle, but I don’t know if the EMHC are supposed to go to the Tabernacle during the Mass. When this happens, I usually see them go to another minister and steal some hosts from them. You just have to be very careful of what you’re doing in case a host would fall to the ground.
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i’ve also seen parishes with a “reserve” ciborium left on the altar, and if there’s a need to get more hosts, the priest or the EMHCs would get from there. i believe it came from the Tabernacle that was brought out by the priest, so there would not be a need for EMHCs to touch the tabernacle
 
EMHC are not meant to touch the tabernacle, a rule that is often ignored but it is never the less the rule.
 
CatholicZ09 said:
The more reverent way would be to go to the Tabernacle, but I don’t know if the EMHC are supposed to go to the Tabernacle during the Mass. When this happens, I usually see them go to another minister and steal some hosts from them. You just have to be very careful of what you’re doing in case a host would fall to the ground.
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Only the priest is supposed to go to the tabernacle during Mass. In my parish, the celebrant goes to the Tabernacle during the Sign of Peace to retrieve the reserve ciborrium. If the EMHC runs out, he simply goes back to the altar and places the ciborrium on the altar, purifies his fingers and then retires to his seat.
 
An EMHC should not approach the Tabernacle during the Mass. It is acceptable however in cases of ministers for the homebound, who may be administering the sacrament outside of Mass. Sacristans are also permitted to access the tabernacle to assist in prepraration of the Mass.

It is acceptable to divide the hosts in the ciborium in order to distribute communion to the faithful. Jesus is present in every particle, not just a complete host. Keeping in mind, that great care is taken when the host is broken into smaller pieces.

I have served as an EMHC, and stood next to the presiding priest (two lines up the main aisle), and had him reach over and obtain more hosts.

I have also seen an unexpectedly high turnout at Ash Wednesday Mass, and have seen where the hosts have been broken in order for everyone to receive.

While none of this is common occurance, it does happen.
 
choy said:
i’ve also seen parishes with a “reserve” ciborium left on the altar, and if there’s a need to get more hosts, the priest or the EMHCs would get from there. i believe it came from the Tabernacle that was brought out by the priest, so there would not be a need for EMHCs to touch the tabernacle
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Oh, yes, my parish does it. I just noticed it today. The priest also leaves it out in case the EMHC or him would need to put any leftover hosts back into the ciborium after Communion, then after that is finished, he proceeds back to the Tabernacle and locks Jesus in there. 🙂
 
benedictgal said:
Only the priest is supposed to go to the tabernacle during Mass. In my parish, the celebrant goes to the Tabernacle during the Sign of Peace to retrieve the reserve ciborrium. If the EMHC runs out, he simply goes back to the altar and places the ciborrium on the altar, purifies his fingers and then retires to his seat.
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I thought that they weren’t supposed to retrieve from the Tabernacle. Thank you for clearing that up.

I usually see them go to another minister and take from them. I think going to the altar to the ciborium with the extra hosts would be easier, but I think they are thinking it would be faster to get some more from the person next to them, or closest to.
 
snowbee said:
just grab a handful, put it in their ciborium
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I’m not a fan of that, nor of “pouring” Hosts from one ciborium to another. I’ve seen priests do that while walking. It’s inviting an accident, and it doesn’t seem indicative of the reality of What the Hosts are, What the Eucharist really is. We don’t toss our newborns back and forth, we cradle them with care and hand them carefully and slowly to one another. Can’t we show the same love and respect to the Body of Christ?
 
japhy said:
I’m not a fan of that, nor of “pouring” Hosts from one ciborium to another. I’ve seen priests do that while walking. It’s inviting an accident, and it doesn’t seem indicative of the reality of What the Hosts are, What the Eucharist really is. We don’t toss our newborns back and forth, we cradle them with care and hand them carefully and slowly to one another. Can’t we show the same love and respect to the Body of Christ?
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Wait, you’re saying we shouldn’t do this with the ciborium?–

 
When you run out you just break the ones you have left into smaller pieces until it lasts you the rest of the mass :/.
I went to one mass where they had no official Eucharist bread, so the priest used a loaf of bread, which i thought was cool.
 
Wildjunglecat said:
When you run out you just break the ones you have left into smaller pieces until it lasts you the rest of the mass :/.
I went to one mass where they had no official Eucharist bread, so the priest used a loaf of bread, which i thought was cool.
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are you serious?

maybe you went to an Eastern Catholic Divine Liturgy?
 
benedict gal said:
Only the priest is supposed to go to the tabernacle during Mass. In my parish, the celebrant goes to the Tabernacle during the Sign of Peace to retrieve the reserve ciborium. If the EMHC runs out, he simply goes back to the altar and places the ciborium on the altar, purifies his fingers and then retires to his seat.
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**Only the priest is supposed to go to the tabernacle during Mass. **
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I wish this was the protocol in my parish when consecrated hosts run short.
In my parish the EMHC’s do all this work. After the prayer when the priest recites (“Lamb of God Who takes away the Sins of the World”), the senior EMHC goes to the Tabernacle and takes out the reserve ciborium and places it on the Altar corporal. Should any Eucharistic Minister run short they go behind the Altar to replenish their ciboria with consecrated hosts.

At the end of Communion usually one EMHC stations himself/herself in front of the tabernacle and awaits other EMC’s bringing their ciborium and empties the remaining consecrated hosts into one ciborium and places it inside the Tabernacle.
Note: this is the responsibility of the priest who would rather sit in the presidential chair and let the EMHC’s clean up the Altar and purify all the sacred vessels. Often their are some EMHC’s who don’t even genuflect at the Tabernacle when they return their coboria in front of the Tabernacle.

This whole discombobulated display of protocol really irks me.
Seemly many Catholics in my parish don’t even take notice. Everything is all as well should be? :eek:
 
benedictgal said:
Only the priest is supposed to go to the tabernacle during Mass. In my parish, the celebrant goes to the Tabernacle during the Sign of Peace to retrieve the reserve ciborrium. If the EMHC runs out, he simply goes back to the altar and places the ciborrium on the altar, purifies his fingers and then retires to his seat.
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Surely the deacon also? In our parish the deacon goes to the tabernacle for the ciboria during the Sign of Peace, and replaces them after communion. Hope we’re not doing this wrong.
 
The topic isn’t who has/should have access to the tabernacle, so please don’t bog down the thread to discuss this issue, instead please start a new thread. It’s unfair and rude to the OP to highjack the thread. Thank you all.
 
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