Communion from a Lay Person

[Andrew B.]

What do you think of receiving communion from a lay person. The RC church up the street has a lay person making house calls to offer communion. He says he was authorized by the church to do this.

 

[Michie]

What do you think of receiving communion from a lay person. The RC church up the street has a lay person making house calls to offer communion. He says he was authorized by the church to do this.

I'm fine about it. I brought communion to the homebound & sick. Priests & Deacons need the help. We cannot expect them to do everything & the people's needs be met as well.

 

[Sarcalogos Deus]

I'm fine with it. An older lady in our choir takes communion to her bedridden husband every Sunday.

 

[AvilaSurfer]

It's fairly normal.

 

[Willie T]

I believe Jesus said, "As often as YOU do this...." NOT, as often as you hire a priest to do it.

 

[football5680]

If the Church says it is ok then it is fine.

 

[Michie]

If the Church says it is ok then it is fine.

 

[Willie T]

Are you saying some guy is coming door-to-door, offering to do the communion thing in your living room? And he doesn't know who may or may not be a Catholic, right?

This should raise a few Catholic eyebrows. (Me, I think it's cool as can be.)

 

[Michie]

Are you saying some guy is coming door-to-door, offering to do the communion thing in your living room? And he doesn't know who may or may not be a Catholic, right?

This should raise a few Catholic eyebrows.

Um, no. An EMHC is called, has a list & goes out to give communion to Catholics that cannot go to church.

 

[Willie T]

Um, no. An EMHC is called, has a list & goes out to give communion to Catholics that cannot go to church.

Well, how does the OP (whose avatar emblem says he is not Catholic) know anything about this going on?

 

[Michie]

Well, how does the OP (whose avatar emblem says he is not Catholic) know anything about this going on?

You should ask the OP. May be a Catholic not using the icon, the possibilities are endless in OBOB.

 

[gurneyhalleck1]

I'm not ok with it. Priests or deacons should be the stewards of the Eucharist bringing it to the faithful. Clergy. Period. In the early Church that was something deacons did as well as priests, but not lay folks.

 

[Ave Maria]

I see absolutely nothing wrong with receive Communion from a lay person if they are an Extraordinary Minister of Holy Communion. The Church has no problem with it and neither do I.

 

[Second Phoenix]

I'm not ok with it. Priests or deacons should be the stewards of the Eucharist bringing it to the faithful. Clergy. Period. In the early Church that was something deacons did as well as priests, but not lay folks.

I believe the reason Catholics have lay ministers of communion is going back to the earlier practices of the Church.

EMHCs have become normative, which was not the goal of Vatican II. They were meant for emergencies.

 

[AvilaSurfer]

I'm not ok with it. Priests or deacons should be the stewards of the Eucharist bringing it to the faithful. Clergy. Period. In the early Church that was something deacons did as well as priests, but not lay folks.

Fortunately you don't make the rules for the Catholic Church.

 

[WarriorAngel]

The number of priests/deacons have shrunk - while lay minsters have grown.
In fact - there is some fear that the calling of ministers among men may have caused the numbers of priests to shrink.

But as far as all of this goes - Catholics being the biggest Church world wide - and priests being rather under staffed - then i suppose the use of lay minsters should continue until priests/deacons numbers increase....hopefully.

 

[Tallguy88]

I'm not ok with it. Priests or deacons should be the stewards of the Eucharist bringing it to the faithful. Clergy. Period. In the early Church that was something deacons did as well as priests, but not lay folks.

I've read that back during the church of the Roman persecutions, Christians who made it to Mass would take some of the consecrated bread home for their family who couldn't make it to Mass. Being caught with it by the Romans was an automatic death sentence.

 

[AMDG]

I don't think just any person can distribute the Eucharist. Only those who have been called by their Bishop/priest for the purpose. The Ministry is usually only for emergency reasons due to the extreme shortage of priests (and the ministry is usually for just a few years at a time) and there is training so that respect is always shown toward our Lord in the Eucharist. There are Church documents allowing for it.

 

[JimR-OCDS]

I don't think just any person can distribute the Eucharist. Only those who have been called by their Bishop/priest for the purpose. The Ministry is usually only for emergency reasons due to the extreme shortage of priests (and the ministry is usually for just a few years at a time) and there is training so that respect is always shown toward our Lord in the Eucharist. There are Church documents allowing for it.

We have an extreme shortage of priests, so EMHC have become the norm.


Jim

 

[AvilaSurfer]

Beat me to it. Plus Priest and Bishops don't call. Lay people volunteer, and if there is a need, assignments are made. And most are permanent. And Level 2 EMHC is required to take Communion to the sick, home bound.