Guidelines for Ministers of the Eucharist

Transcription

1 Guidelines for Ministers of the Eucharist Old St. Joseph s Church, Philadelphia, Pa.

2 Prayer before Serving Good and gracious God, we ask your blessing upon us, that we may serve at your altar with reverence, attention, and love, in order to draw others to do the same. We ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen. Preparaing for Liturgy is a Ministry and an Art The ministry of preparing for worship calls for time, energy, patience, understanding and much prayer; it demands, at times, creativity and ingenuity. In all this, the work must be ordered toward the service of God and God s people at prayer. The discretion required here is the kind that goes into the preparation for a dinner party where the guests easily enjoy one another and the meal; where all the details, large and small alike, contribute to the whole event; where the graciousness of the evening covers any breach of etiquette; where the host is responisble for everything and yet appears to be concerned only with enjoying the repast with gathered friends. While the title prearing for liturgy may focus more clearly on the work that is ours and channel more effectively the time and energy we invest, it also challenges us to a deeper level of involvement. Preparing for liturgy is not merely a skill to be learned; it is an art whose subtle craft is intuited, discovered and matured in the context of the Church s life and prayer. Knowledge of, and an appreciation for, the tradition of that prayer s history is the indispensible honing of this craft. This is the tradition that the contemporary community with fidelity, celebrates with freshness and hands on to the next generation with hope. Worship and its preparation flourish in the hands of artists and die in the hands of practitioners. 1 In light of this deeper understanding of the call of ministers of the altar, the following guidelines are meant to guide and support those who prepare for and help execute daily Mass at Old St. Joseph s. They are meant to encourage consistency in ritual practice which helps to foster unity and full, conscious and active prayer among those who gather with us for prayer daily. 1 Fleming, Austin, Preparaing for Liturgy: A Theology and Spirituality (Liturgy Training Publications, Inc., Chicago, Il, 1997), pgs

3 Before departing the sacristy for the entrance procession the presider and ministers to gather for a brief prayer led by the presider. Introductory Rites 1. Ring the bell and then lead the procession from the sacristy. Bow to the altar at the center gate. 2. Move immediately to your place in the front pew. LITURGY OF THE EUCHARIST Order of Mass Preparation of the Altar and the Gifts 1. After the general intercessions, proceed to the altar. Take the Sacramentary from the small table near the presider s chair and place it to the left of the corporal or, for Father McAndrews, on the bookstand. 2. Put both chalices on the right of the corporal, one chalice in front of the other. Put a purificator to the right of each chalice. 3. Return to the credence table, and remain standing until the presider moves to receive the gifts. 4. Once the gifts are brought forward, join the presider at the center gate. 5. The presider will take the paten to the altar. Take the cruet of wine and proceed to the credence table. 6. Take the cruets of water and wine and hand them to the presider with the handles facing outward. 7. Receive the empty cruets from the presider. Put the empty cruet of wine on the credence table. 8. Present the cruet of water, the bowl, and the towel to the presider for the washing of the hands. Return the cruet of water, the bowl, and the towel to the credence table. Do not put the towel in the bowl. 9. Return to your seat in the front pew for the Eucharistic Prayer. 3

4 Communion Rite 1. Throughout the Lord s Prayer, please stand. 2. At the sign of peace, move to the altar along with the Eucharistic ministers, and offer the sign of peace to the presider. Take the ciborium from the credence table and put it on the altar for the fraction rite. 3. Remain standing to the side of the altar. 4. Once the presider has distributed Communion to all the ministers, the presider, the server, and the Eucharistic ministers move to their stations to distribute Communion. 5. After everyone has received Communion, the ministers return to the credence table. 6. The server moves to the altar, retrieves the ciborium from the tabernacle, and consolidates the remaining hosts in the ciborium. 7. The Eucharistic ministers consume the remaining Precious Blood, put the purificators in the chalices, and return by the side gate to their seats. 8. The server secures the lid on the ciborium, returns it to the tabernacle, locks the tabernacle, takes the key, and genuflects. The server removes all other items, including the corporal, from the altar and puts them on the credence table. 9. The server puts the Sacramentary on the small table near the presider s chair and returns to the front pew. Concluding Rite 1. After the blessing and the dismissal, the lector and the server join the presider at the center aisle. 2. All bow to the altar and proceed to the sacristy. 4

5 Distributing Eucharist Consecrated at Mass The fundamental dynamic of the Eucharistic celebration is that we offer gifts to God, Who transforms them into Himself and gives them back to us. These gifts also symbolize each participant s giving of the whole self to God together with the offering of bread and wine. This dynamic is manifested most powerfully when, at each Mass, the assembly receives only the hosts its representatives brought to the altar, which the presider consecrated in the presence of this assembly. When hosts consecrated at an earlier Mass and then reserved in the tabernacle to be received by the sick are distributed to the assembly at Mass, this fundamental dynamic is severely compromised. It is most desirable that the faithful, just as the priest himself is bound to do, receive the Lord s Body from hosts consecrated at the same Mass and that, in the instances when it is permitted, they partake of the chalice, so that even by means of the signs Communion will stand out more clearly as a participation in the sacrifice actually being celebrated. (General Instruction on the Roman Missal, 2001, No. 73) Please take care to put out before Mass, just enough hosts for each member of the assembly. Hosts from the tabernacle may be distributed only when extremely necessary or when so many consecrated hosts have accumulated in the tabernacle that they are not needed for the sick and the homebound. Thus, to avoid distributing at one celebration of the Mass hosts consecrated at another, be sure not to put out too few hosts. But be careful not to put out too many, for that would add to the buildup of consecrated hosts. 5

6 Pre-Mass Setup Review the Weekly Ordo and touch base with the presider about any special prayers or rites for the celebration. 1. Place vestments on the counter (appropriate to the season). 2. Check the number of hosts in the paten to make sure there are enough for distribution at Communion. 3. Set up the credence table (2 chalices, purificator, corporal, extra ciborium, bowl, towel, and cruet filled ½ way with water, key for the tabernacle). 4. Set up the table for the offertory. (Brass paten and cruet of wine) 5. Place the correct markers in the Sacramentary and place on the table near the presider s chair minutes before Mass light the two candles to the right and left of the altar. (The Paschal Candle is lit as well throughout the Easter season). 7. Make sure the lights are all on and the sound system is turned on. 8. Check to see if there are enough ministers selected before Mass. 6

7 After Mass 1. Purify all vessels and return to them to the cabinets. 2. Turn off all the lights except the ones marked with a red star. 3. Place all liturgical books back in the vesting case. 4. Hang or fold the presider s vestment and return it to its assigned location. 5. Make sure the tabernacle key is returned to the hook in the main cabinet. 6. Turn off the lights to the sacristy and lock the doors. Reminders to Sacristans 1. Be in sacristy and dressed in alb 15 minutes before the start of Mass. 2. Check to see that everything is set up correctly before Mass. 3. Always wear shoes to serve (no sneakers or flip-flops). 4. Review roles and guidelines before Mass. 5. If you are unsure about something, ask the presider. 6. When on the altar, always move reverently and confidently. 7. Do not place anything on the corporal. (The square cloth on the center of the altar). 8. Hand cruets to the presider with the handle facing out. 9. Keep patens level at all times. 10. If you are unable to serve a Mass please make sure to secure a substitute. 11. Be patient with yourself. All ministers forget things now and then. Review and ask questions after Mass if you were unsure of something. Remember, 12. Please maintain a spirit of reverence in the sacristy before Mass and pray before you serve. 7

8 Special Instructions for Holy Days of Obligation and Special Liturgies During holy days of obligation and special liturgies throughout the liturgical year such as the Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception (Dec. 8), Ash Wednesday, and the Solemnity of the Ascension of our Lord attendance at Mass often exceeds 300 people. Thus, for these Masses extra liturgical ministers will be need to be scheduled. A minimum of two ushers will be needed to greet members of the assembly, to help with the offertory collection and offertory procession and to facilitate the procession during communion. Two lectors will need to be scheduled since there are readings from both the Old Testament and the New testament on these days. A total of seven Eucharistic ministers, (eleven if the balcony is used*) will be needed to ensure a steady flow during the communion procession. Please refer to the diagram below. The communion procession will follow the same pattern as on Sundays. Those seated in the front pews of the side sections will be invited to come forward first proceeding down the center aisle and returning to their seats by the side aisles. C1 C2 B2 B1 Priest B3 C3 C4 8 * A bread minister and cup minister will need to be assigned to the right and left sections of the balcony.