Ordinary and Extraordinary Eucharistic Ministers

Ordinary and Extraordinary Eucharistic Ministers

ISSUE: What is an “extraordinary” Eucharistic minister? What is the role of lay people in the distribution of HolyCommunion?

RESPONSE: An extraordinary minister of the Eucharist is a Eucharistic minister who is not ordained. The “ordinary” ministers of Holy Communion are bishops, priests, and deacons, all of whom have received the sacrament of Holy Orders.
The Church does permit the use of extraordinary Eucharistic ministers under certain circumstances. The Catechismof the Catholic Church, quoting Canon Law, provides:
When the necessity of the Church warrants it and when ministers are lacking, lay persons . . . can also . . . distribute Holy Communion in accord with the prescriptions of law (no. 903).

DISCUSSION: Following the liturgical renewal of Pope St. Pius X via his decree Sacra Tridentina Synodus (1905), there was a great increase in the number of laity who receive Holy Communion on a regular basis. In the last generation, there has been a decrease in the number of ordinary ministers, i.e., bishops, priests, and deacons. In light of these changes, the Church has authorized non- ordained or “extraordinary” ministers to distribute Communion.
The use of extraordinary ministers has been a controversial issue in some circles, with clergy and lay people disagreeing on when extraordinary ministers should be used.
First, we need to understand our terms properly. As noted above, the ordinary ministers of Holy Communion are bishops, priests, and deacons. Every other Eucharistic minister is extraordinary. “Ordinary” in this sense does not mean what is customary or usual. It simply means “ordained.” Further, the term “extraordinary” minister unfortunately gives the impression that such ministry should be exercised—if at all—rarely (i.e., only when extraordinary circumstances exist). Some therefore incorrectly conclude that regular use of extraordinary Eucharistic ministers is an abuse. However, in this instance “extraordinary” simply refers to those who are not ordained.
There are two types of extraordinary Eucharistic ministers, in that some are acolytes. The ministry of acolyte, according to canon law, is open to lay men who have reached a specified age, and there is an installation liturgy at which the candidate receives this non-ordained ministry. Practically speaking, this ministry is usually reserved to seminarians who are preparing for priesthood. The vast majority of parishes in this country do not have formally installed acolytes. Others who are not acolytes are simply called extraordinary Eucharistic ministers, or commonly “Eucharistic ministers.”
The foregoing is summarized in Canon 910 of the Code of Canon Law:
§1 The ordinary minister of Holy Communion is a bishop, a presbyter [priest], or a deacon.
§2 The extraordinary minister of Holy Communion is an acolyte or other member of the Christian faithful deputed in accord with [Church law].
There is a 1973 Instruction of the Vatican Congregation for the Discipline of the Sacraments (Immensae Caritatis), which lists the circumstances in which local bishops may permit lay persons to distribute Communion. The first of these circumstances is “whenever no priest, deacon, or acolyte is available. ”The Vatican Congregation for the Sacraments further addressed the matter in its 1980 Instruction Concerning Worship of the Eucharistic Mystery (Inaestimabile Donum):
The faithful, whether religious or lay, who are authorized as extraordinary ministers of the Eucharist, can distribute Communion only when there is no priest, deacon, or acolyte, when the priest is impeded by illness or age, or when the number of the faithful going to Communion is so large as to make the celebration of the Mass excessively long. Accordingly, a reprehensible attitude is shown by those priests who, though present at the celebration, refrain from distributing Communion and leave this task to the laity (no. 10).
As the two aforementioned Church documents indicate, it is also impermissible for a lay person to conduct a communion service when a priest or deacon is available, a subject the Church has addressed elsewhere:
The local Ordinary [i.e., bishop] may give to other extraordinary ministers the faculty to give communion whenever it seems necessary for the pastoral benefit of the faithful, and when a priest, deacon, or acolyte is not available (On Holy Communion and the Worship of the Eucharistic Mystery Outside of Mass, 1973, no. 17).
The foregoing guidelines, in some circumstances, are open to interpretation. For example, when is the congregation so large that the use of extraordinary ministers is necessary to keep Mass from being “excessively long?” In such circumstances, the decision is ultimately subject to the discretion of the pastor. Regarding liturgical rites, the Church teaches the following at Vatican II in Sacrosanctum Concilium (Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy), no. 22:
· Regulation of the sacred liturgy depends solely on the authority of the Church, that is, on the Apostolic See [the Pope and those directly under him], and, as laws may determine, on the bishop.
· In virtue of power conceded by law, the regulation of the liturgy within certain defined limits belongs also to various kinds of bishops’ conferences, legitimately established, with competence in given territories.
· Therefore no other person, not even a priest, may add, remove, or change anything in the liturgy on his own authority.
In dealing with liturgical concerns, we must make sure that our orthodoxy (right belief and discipline) is accompanied by orthopraxy (right action). In other words, we need to cultivate and use the virtues that right Faith avails us-—virtues such as patience, fortitude, and, above all, charity. Orthodoxy requires us to promote the truth, but never allows us to offend against charity. As Vatican II teaches us, “[O]ne who does not . . . persevere in charity is not saved” (Lumen Gentium, no. 14; cf. Catechism, no. 837).
If your efforts are not successful, resist the desire to speak uncharitably toward your pastor and/or bishop (cf. Ex. 16:2-12; Num. 16). Instead, we should offer any such imperfections and distractions as a sacrifice in union with our Eucharistic Lord, for our salvation and that of the universal Church. And we should look for a providential opportunity to express our concerns in a manner which respects both the person and the office of a pastor. It is this genuine fidelity to Christ and His Church that is most effective in fostering authentic liturgical renewal.
Further inquiries in this matter can be directed to CUF, your diocesan liturgy office, or, if necessary, the Secretariat for the Liturgy, National Conference of Catholic Bishops, 3211 4th St., N.E., Washington, D.C. 20017-1194.