Who Can Open The Tabernacle?

  • Thread starter Thread starter OpusFan
  • Start date Start date
Status
Not open for further replies.
O

OpusFan

Guest
I went to a new parish this morning for morning mass and was truly in shock. I am a Cradle Catholic and I remember the reverence that there was for the tabernacle behind the main altar.

As a child I remember always seeing the tabernacle covered with a curtain and the tremendous reverence there was whenever a priest opened the tabernacle to obtain or store consecrated hosts.

At morning mass in this parish I visited, there was a need to get consecrated hosts from the tabernacle and instead of the Priest or Deacon getting them, two women walked over to the tabernacle, half genuflected, opened the tabernacle and removed the hosts placing them on the altar.

It was the first time in my life I ever saw a non religious person ever open the tabernacle and it threw me for a loop. Forgetting about gender issues and the priesthood, is it correct for a layman to open the tabernacle and handle the hosts?

Thanks for the forum.
God’s Blessings to All

OpusFan
 
Hi Buffalo,

Thanks for taking the time to respond to my first posting.
I remember back in the sixties before Vat II when an altar boy
would sound the bell and all would kneel or bow whenever the tabernacle was opened.

The lack of reverence for the Holy Tabernacle was shocking. I was both angry and sad at the complete lack of reverence. To whom should I address this concern to? Obviously the parish priest is allowing this practice. Is there a council to report Liturgical abuses?

All the Best,

OpusFan
 
OpusFan said:
Hi Buffalo,

Thanks for taking the time to respond to my first posting.
I remember back in the sixties before Vat II when an altar boy
would sound the bell and all would kneel or bow whenever the tabernacle was opened.

The lack of reverence for the Holy Tabernacle was shocking. I was both angry and sad at the complete lack of reverence. To whom should I address this concern to? Obviously the parish priest is allowing this practice. Is there a council to report Liturgical abuses?

All the Best,

OpusFan
Click to expand...
According to Redemptionis Sacramentum it is our duty in charity to report this. First our Priest, then if no response your Bishop, then the Holy See.

Redemptionis Sacramentum - look at the end under remedies as well as the right for Catholics to partake in the true liturgy.
 
Sad to say, when I was an EMHC many years ago and very unknowledgable of the rubrics, I had on many occasions been the one to open the Tabernacle, remove our Lord in the ciborium, and after Communion returned the sacred vessels back to the Tabernacle. Other EMHCs took care of cleansing the chalices, including consuming any remaining Blood. Since we alternated I, too, consumed the Blood and cleansed the chalices. The priest did none of these things. I didn’t know it was wrong then but once I learned I quit being an EMHC and eventually, after many other bad things happened, left the parish along with 5 other families to help start up a brand new parish in our area. That parish turned out to be the best we have ever been a part of. Everyone knew the rubrics, including the priests, and never, ever deviated from them. No altar girls, no EMHCs (not needed) and no Protestant type music. Man I miss that parish.

Simon
 
What? Only a priest or deacon can open the Tabernacle? I’ve never seen a priest or deacon do this, unless of course there was no lay “assistance”.
 
I am an EMHC and for the past ten years have not opened or closed the Tabernacle. I also bring Communion to the sick but it is only the pastor that can go to the Taberncale to get Jesus.
 
Freshman88 said:
What? Only a priest or deacon can open the Tabernacle? I’ve never seen a priest or deacon do this, unless of course there was no lay “assistance”.
Click to expand...
Well we have no deacon and the only time the priest will repose the Blessed Sacrament is if there is no EMHC distributing the Body of Christ. If there is one he/she will be the one returning the Blessed Sacrament to the Tabernacle. It’s always an EMHC who gets the ciborium from the Tabernacle. It’s not supposed to happen but that’s what’s done in our parish.

The EMHCs also consume the rest of the Precious Blood (Redemptionis Sacramentum allows this) and purify the vessels since the priest refuses to do so.
 
sbriton said:
I quit being an EMHC and eventually, after many other bad things happened, left the parish along with 5 other families to help start up a brand new parish in our area.Simon
Click to expand...
Just curious. How would six families “start up a brand new parish”?

I would think if that were possible, the TLM crowd would be all over it.

:confused:
 
Phemie said:
Well we have no deacon and the only time the priest will repose the Blessed Sacrament is if there is no EMHC distributing the Body of Christ. If there is one he/she will be the one returning the Blessed Sacrament to the Tabernacle. It’s always an EMHC who gets the ciborium from the Tabernacle. It’s not supposed to happen but that’s what’s done in our parish.

The EMHCs also consume the rest of the Precious Blood (Redemptionis Sacramentum allows this) and purify the vessels since the priest refuses to do so.
Click to expand...
The Priest must purify the vessels.

US Must Observe General Law on Purifying Sacred Vessels After Mass
 
sbriton said:
Sad to say, when I was an EMHC many years ago and very unknowledgable of the rubrics, I had on many occasions been the one to open the Tabernacle, remove our Lord in the ciborium, and after Communion returned the sacred vessels back to the Tabernacle. Other EMHCs took care of cleansing the chalices, including consuming any remaining Blood. Since we alternated I, too, consumed the Blood and cleansed the chalices. The priest did none of these things.
Click to expand...
Simon: From about 1985 or so to 2006, there was an indult in place for the US permitting that. The indult was NOT renewed in 2006. RS specifically abrogates that indult, as well.

The Intent was that it was to be used in extremis; it was not used that way, but was not in violation then. Now, RS is the rule of the day, and it would be error NOW.

It has always been most proper for the priest or deacon, or subdeacon* or acolyte, to do so, but for that 20 years, it was permitted for commissioned laymen to do so.
  • V II eliminated Roman lesser orders, including subdeacon, acolyte, thurifer, porter, lector, and cantor. So it wasn’t entirely doctrinal… it abrogated an entire category of ordinations.
Buffalo: thanks for the link!
 
A couple of days ago I created a thread asking whether I should continue to be an extraordinary minister because I was told by a parishioner of another parish that they should only be used in rare cases!!! I want to do what the church teaches and this has been bothering me…

Well, now I came across this thread and am even more upset because I had absolutely NO IDEA that only the priest or the deacon was supposed to remove the hosts from the tabernacle!

I was told by the deacon of my parish to remove the hosts from the tabernacle whenever I needed to take communion to the homebound… He showed me where the key is kept and everything. IS THIS WRONG??? I HAD ABSOLUTELY NO IDEA!!!
 
2Bcatholic said:
A couple of days ago I created a thread asking whether I should continue to be an extraordinary minister because I was told by a parishioner of another parish that they should only be used in rare cases!!! I want to do what the church teaches and this has been bothering me…

Well, now I came across this thread and am even more upset because I had absolutely NO IDEA that only the priest or the deacon was supposed to remove the hosts from the tabernacle!

I was told by the deacon of my parish to remove the hosts from the tabernacle whenever I needed to take communion to the homebound… He showed me where the key is kept and everything. IS THIS WRONG??? I HAD ABSOLUTELY NO IDEA!!!
Click to expand...
Code:
Don’t be upset…it’s not your fault. It’s not liek you were disobeying. It is up to the authority to implement these rules. But now, you can gently tell your priest or deacon that if this does not change, you will refuse to go to the Tabernacle. It is that simple!🙂
 
OpusFan said:
I went to a new parish this morning for morning mass and was truly in shock. I am a Cradle Catholic and I remember the reverence that there was for the tabernacle behind the main altar.

As a child I remember always seeing the tabernacle covered with a curtain and the tremendous reverence there was whenever a priest opened the tabernacle to obtain or store consecrated hosts.

At morning mass in this parish I visited, there was a need to get consecrated hosts from the tabernacle and instead of the Priest or Deacon getting them, two women walked over to the tabernacle, half genuflected, opened the tabernacle and removed the hosts placing them on the altar.

It was the first time in my life I ever saw a non religious person ever open the tabernacle and it threw me for a loop. Forgetting about gender issues and the priesthood, is it correct for a layman to open the tabernacle and handle the hosts?

Thanks for the forum.
God’s Blessings to All

OpusFan
Click to expand...
This actually should not be shocking at all. Now that the over-use of EMHCs and communion in the hand is seen as the norm, the laity opening the tabernacle makes absolutely perfect sense! I’m being facetious, but what I say is also true.

If the non-ordained can handle the body of Christ, why wouldn’t they be able to handle the ciboria and open the tabernacle? One abuse always leads to another, and in a sort of twisted logic the non-ordained opening the tabernacle makes perfect sense.

If the ordained performed their roles we wouldn’t be having these problems in the first place.
 
WOW!

For my very first post I never expected this kind of response. Thanks to all of you for responding.

Where are our Bishops? If everyone emailed copies of the various posts highlighting Liturgical abuses would they do anything?

Truly Sad 😦

OpusFan
 
OpusFan said:
WOW!

For my very first post I never expected this kind of response. Thanks to all of you for responding.

Where are our Bishops? If everyone emailed copies of the various posts highlighting Liturgical abuses would they do anything?

Truly Sad 😦

OpusFan
Click to expand...
For 20 of the last 25 years THESE WERE NOT ABUSES!!!

The norms and rules have changed. Now they are. It will take time for them to be removed from common praxis.
 
This may sound rude but what is the document that you are speaking from that says only an ordained person such as a deacon or father may open the Tabernacle? I have read the postings and must have missed your document source. So far it only sounds like opion and not fact. How ever i do agree that is should be an ordained person for mass to open and close the Tabernacle. Outside of mass in my parish lay people open the Tabernacle to take comminoue to the home bound and sick. Also the sacrestins are lay people and they some time open the Tabernacle before mass to see how much bread to set out for Jesus through his preist to turn into his body.
 
lancebermudez said:
This may sound rude but what is the document that you are speaking from that says only an ordained person such as a deacon or father may open the Tabernacle? I have read the postings and must have missed your document source. So far it only sounds like opion and not fact. How ever i do agree that is should be an ordained person for mass to open and close the Tabernacle. Outside of mass in my parish lay people open the Tabernacle to take comminoue to the home bound and sick. Also the sacrestins are lay people and they some time open the Tabernacle before mass to see how much bread to set out for Jesus through his preist to turn into his body.
Click to expand...
Yes, an extraordinary minister of Holy Communion may retrieve hosts from the tabernacle, if he/she is bringing Holy Communion to the sick. There is no instruction in any document that I’ve read which prohibits a lay person from opening the tabernacle before Mass, to see how many consecrated hosts are in the ciborium (to help him/her prepare for Mass). Also, during an authorized Communion Service, a duly-instituted lay person may also retrieve the hosts from the tabernacle (if there are no deacons available). However, during Mass, only a priest or deacon may
retrieve the ciborium from the tabernacle, and return it after Holy Communion.

From Redemptionis Sacramentum:
[133.] A Priest or Deacon, or an extraordinary minister who takes the Most Holy Eucharist when an ordained minister is absent or impeded in order to administer it as Communion for a sick person, should go insofar as possible directly from the place where the Sacrament is reserved to the sick person’s home, leaving aside any profane business so that any danger of profanation may be avoided and the greatest reverence for the Body of Christ may be ensured. Furthermore the Rite for the administration of Communion to the sick, as prescribed in the Roman Ritual, is always to be used.[226]
Click to expand...
 
quiet52 said:
Yes, an extraordinary minister of Holy Communion may retrieve hosts from the tabernacle, if he/she is bringing Holy Communion to the sick. There is no instruction in any document that I’ve read which prohibits a lay person from opening the tabernacle before Mass, to see how many consecrated hosts are in the ciborium (to help him/her prepare for Mass). Also, during an authorized Communion Service, a duly-instituted lay person may also retrieve the hosts from the tabernacle (if there are no deacons available). However, during Mass, only a priest or deacon may
retrieve the ciborium from the tabernacle, and return it after Holy Communion.

From Redemptionis Sacramentum:
Click to expand...
How does this quote answer the question?
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top