ST. GABRIEL THE ARCHANGEL CATHOLIC CHURCH EXTRAORDINARY MINISTERS OF HOLY COMMUNION GENERAL GUIDELINES

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1 PROCEDURES ST. GABRIEL THE ARCHANGEL CATHOLIC CHURCH GENERAL GUIDELINES These guidelines are being provided to acquaint you with the miscellaneous procedures St. Gabriel s has in place for liturgical ministers. Please feel free to contact the Ministry Coordinator at the address listed in the bulletin if you have any questions. PROPER DRESS The attire of a liturgical minister should be in keeping with their sacred ministry and in harmony with the atmosphere and environment of the worshipping community. The style of dress in Arizona is casual and you may dress casually when serving as an EM but please do not dress too casually. As liturgical ministers you are looked upon by your peers as leaders what you wear is interpreted as being proper church attire. With this in mind, St. Gabriel s has a suggested dress code to be followed when serving in any liturgical ministry. Ladies/Girls No low cut tops--no cleavage showing No bare shoulders No sleeveless tops No exposed midriffs No shorts No short skirts or dresses (length should be no shorter than 3 inches above the knee). Long skirts and dresses are permitted. No skin tight slacks, skirts, or dresses No jeans of any color or style No flip flops No heavy perfumes No large hair bows, clips, etc. No large, gaudy jewelry Gentlemen/Boys No T-shirts--shirts need to have a collar (golf shirt) Button shirts must be buttoned up to second button from the top Slacks must be worn with the waist band positioned on the waist Trousers designed for a belt must be worn with a belt. No shorts No jeans of any color or style No flip flop No heavily scented shaving lotions, etc. No gaudy jewelry 1

2 BEHAVIOR Again because liturgical ministers set an example they should be reverent at all times when in church. Talking before and after Mass is fine but certainly no conversation should be taking place during the celebration of Mass. To help set a good example, a liturgical minister never chews gum, eats, or even drinks water inside the church. There is absolutely no cell phone use in the building once you have entered the church, including during the practices. CALLED TO PROTECT All liturgical ministers 18 years of age or older are required to take the Called to Protect training. Called to Protect training, often referred to as Safe Environment Training, is the training that the Diocese has in place to safeguard youth. You must sit for an initial 3-hour SET training which is offered both at St. Gabriel s and also at many parishes through the diocese. Please watch the parish bulletin for announcements regarding the time and place when the initial training will be offered at St. Gabriel s. The Diocese of Phoenix has established a web site devoted to Safe Environment. This site, will have a listing of the classes offered at all parishes diocese wide, including those offered at St. Gabriel s. You can register on line to attend a class at any parish by clicking on the above link and following the directions. After your initial training your renewal requirements can be satisfied through dioceseoffered on-line training sessions by logging in to the above site, click on Obligations and follow the directions.. For lectors the renewal is required every two years. If you have any questions regarding the training please contact our Called to Protect Coordinator, Cathy Rogers (rcia@stgacc.org). She may also be reached at the parish office SCHEDULING The Ministry Schedule is currently issued for no less than a month; it contains the assignments for all the liturgical ministers, i.e., EM s, lectors, altar servers, ushers, children s liturgists, etc., and for the gift card sellers. St. Gabriel s uses an interactive, real time scheduling program which allows those serving in ministry to maintain their contact information and enter their can t serve dates, request subs, respond to sub requests and use sub lists (rosters). Assignments are made randomly. All new liturgical ministers will receive an introductory containing their user name and password and explaining how to use the scheduling program. The ministry coordinator will send an containing a link for the Home Page from which all ministers, once logged in, will be able to view a list of their assignments, the complete schedules for both weekend and daily Masses, individual profiles, rosters and a tutorial. In order to protect all contact information MSP now requires a password at login. Once you set your password you should no longer find it necessary to enter it each time to log onto MSP. 2

3 The schedule for all Masses will also be available on the St. Gabriel s web site, Additional, direct access to the scheduling program is available through the following link Both of these links provide password protected access to the scheduling program; you will need to know your user name and password, though, to gain access the program. Once signed in you are able to request subs, accept sub requests and view rosters (sub lists), etc. And, MSP does have a cell phone app for both I-phones and Androids. Go to your applicable app store to download this free app. From the app you will be able to view your assignments, request subs, respond to sub requests and enter your availability status. CHECK IN All liturgical ministers must sign in 15 minutes before Mass begins. The sign in sheet is located in the sacristy. By signing in you are letting the presider, the deacon and the Mass captain (who is responsible for assuring that a full liturgical team for the Mass is in place) know that you are present.. COMMITMENT When you join a liturgical ministry the entire parish community relies on you to serve at the Masses for which you have been scheduled and to attend those practice sessions you have committed to attend. If a liturgical minister is unable to serve he or she is responsible for entering the dates they are not available (interactive scheduling). You will then not be scheduled for those time periods. SUBSTITUTION LISTS As mentioned above serving in a liturgical ministry requires a commitment to serve when scheduled or to find a substitute if you cannot attend the Mass for which you have been scheduled. Sub requests are made through our interactive scheduling program. Substitution lists (called rosters) are also available through the scheduling program. If no response is received to a sub request an EM can use this roster to get in touch directly with another EM asking if he or she could sub. The ministry coordinator also monitors all sub requests. The goal is to have all liturgical positions filled so that replacing before Mass is used only for unexpected reasons. 3

4 PROCEDURES GIRM The General Instruction of the Roman Missal (GIRM) pronounced GERM" governs these procedures What is an Extraordinary Minister An Extraordinary Minister of the Eucharist is a member of the laity who has been recommended by their parish and commissioned by the Diocese to assist at that parish with the distribution of Holy Communion during Mass. This is allowed only in specific instances: The presider is ill or too infirmed to distribute the Eucharistic. The number of people in attendance is so great that not using extraordinary ministers would cause the celebration of the mass to become unduly long. Qualifications Certification To be accepted by St, Gabriel s to train as an EM a person must be registered at St. Gabriel s and be in full communion with the church, that is, be baptized, confirmed and have made their first holy communion. An EM must also be 16 years of age or older. The Diocese of Phoenix, upon the recommendation of the prospective EM s pastor, commissions an extraordinary minister. The certification memorializing this commission is issued for a period of three years. It is worth noting that the Diocese and St. Gabriel s requires that commissioned EM s receive catechetical training annually. Logistical (how to s) formal training is presented on an as needed basis. This provides the opportunity for EM s to refresh their skills, to ask questions, and to be made aware of any new procedures. Annual catechetical training is also a prerequisite for St. Gabriel s to recommend to the Diocese that an EM commission be continued from year to year or for the commission to be renewed for another three years. EM Crosses and Stations Extraordinary Ministers at St. Gabriel s wear an EM Cross. On the back of each of these crosses is an EM Station number, i.e., 2H, 2C, etc. The Mass Captain usually allows you to pick a station but there may be times that the captain will assign the station location where you will be serving. 4

5 The Mass Captain will be happy to explain the Station number locations both where you stand when you come forward and enter the sanctuary and where you stand to distribute the Eucharist. There is also a diagram in the sacristy that you are encouraged to review before you go to your seat. This diagram clearly illustrates these locations. This diagram is also included at the end of these procedures. Prayer Before Serving All the liturgical ministers serving at a Mass meet in the sacristy to pray before the start of Mass. It is fitting that they join together to ask Our Lord to open their minds and hearts to serve Him through serving the members of our faith worshipping community. Therefore all liturgical ministers are requested to be in the sacristy 10 minutes before the start of Mass (20 minutes after the hour for all of our Masses) to join together in prayer. The choir also prays before Mass; logistically it would be difficult to have them join the rest of the liturgical ministers in the sacristy so they share a prayer before Mass in the choir area. This is a very busy time for the ushers but if any of them are able to they are invited to join the other liturgical ministers in the sacristy for this prayer. Participation in the Mass Unification Serving as an EM places a person in a leadership position and because other members of the congregation look upon what an EM does as being proper, it is important that EM s fully and actively participate in the celebration of Mass. This includes praying aloud all the prayers, singing all the songs, bowing through the creed, sharing the Sign of Peace, etc in other words full, conscious and active participation during Mass. Remember, the Mass is a public form of prayer, the biggest, most powerful prayer of the Catholic Church. Liturgical ministers set the example for the congregation. As mentioned in the General Instructions what liturgical ministers do is what members of the congregation interpret as being correct. When serving as EM s ministerial unity takes precedence over personal piety. Procedure unification is necessary; this does mean EM s are requested not to practice a particular devotion that conflicts with the ministerial procedures when they serve as extraordinary ministers. This often requires sacrifice serving is a sacrifice sacrifice is a prayer. Once again we are challenged to see that the Liturgy of the Eucharist is public prayer not private devotion. 5

6 Assignments Bows: Genuflect All liturgical ministers are requested not to serve in more than one liturgical ministry per mass. This does mean that if you are serving as an EM, a lector, etc., and the ushers ask you to take up the gifts you politely decline explaining why. St. Gabriel s actually asks that you not serve in liturgical ministry more than one time per weekend. This gives other ministers not assigned that weekend a chance to serve. Remember, when you are serving someone else is not, Profound bow--bending from the waist This bow is proper during: The Profession of Faith when we pray the words, and by the Holy Spirit was incarnate of the Virgin Mary, and became man. After the consecration if standing (at St. Gabriel s we kneel). However, at those Masses we celebrate outdoors during the Christmas and Easter seasons we do stand. During these Masses we would make a profound bow after the consecration. Head bow When crossing in front of the altar to get to your sanctuary station. Before receiving the Eucharistic Bread as the person before you is receiving bow your head only as a gesture of respect. If you want to bow before receiving both of the species, that is fine. Upon arriving and entering the row in which you choose to sit. During the Creed instead of bowing on the feasts of Christmas and the Annunciation. this is in the new GIRM. Sign of the Cross The sign of the cross is made two times during mass, once as we begin mass and then again when mass is ended. Therefore, please do not make the sign of the cross before or after you have received communion 6

7 The Sign of Peace ST. GABRIEL THE ARCHANGEL CATHOLIC CHURCH The communion Rite starts with the recitation or singing of the Our Father. Then we are all invited to share a Sign of peace. The Lamb of God hymn is then sung. All EM s come forward when the choir starts leading us in the singing of the Lamb of God. Please note that you should be at your station in the sanctuary by the time this hymn is completed A Special Note: The Sign of Peace is shared with those around you before you come forward. Once you start walking toward the sanctuary and most especially when you are in the sanctuary please do not share a sign of peace with anyone including your fellow EM s. Why? The Sign of Peace is shared prior to the singing of the Lamb of God. Once we start singing the Lamb of God the Mass has proceeded to the fraction rite. Sharing the Sign of Peace during the fraction rite is inappropriate. Again, you are looked upon as a leader in our worshipping community. Therefore, what you do should be liturgically correct. NOTE: Do not bow before entering the sanctuary. Mass Sole Celebrant no deacon When the EM s come forward they enter the sanctuary and take their place as shown on the attached diagram. The Host EM s stand on the credence table side of the church with the captain standing closest to the tabernacle and the cup EM s stand on the choir side of the church with 1C standing closest to the tabernacle. Please refer to the Stations 2H through 4H in the attached diagram. Since Station 1H is the station from which the presider serves there is no 1H cross. Station 2H is the Captain s station. Station 3H serves with the presider and Station 4H serves with the captain All EM s stand during the Presider s communion. The presider will then offer both the Body and the Blood of Christ to the EM captain. The captain keeps the presider s chalice and purificator. The presider then offers the Eucharistic Bread to the extraordinary ministers. The captain will follow the presider offering the Precious Blood to the EM s. The Captain or any EM cannot take a vessel or a purificator directly from the altar. The presider will distribute the vessels and purificators to the EM s. Once all the EM s have their vessels/purificators the presider will pick up his ciborium. It is at this time that the servers are to come to the presider to receive the Eucharistic Bread. Cup EM s, please open your line so the servers can pass through it to get to the altar to receive communion. After the servers receive the Eucharistic Bread Server A will take the tray from the altar to the credence table. Server B will take the Roman Missal from the altar to the stand behind the presider s chair. The servers will proceed to EM 4C for the Precious Blood. 7

8 If the servers have not received the Eucharistic Bread from the presider the Mass captain will offer them the Body of Christ. Servers A & B will remove the tray and Roman Missal from the altar as explained above.. Once all EM s have their vessels of distribution they proceed to their distribution stations crossing between the altar and the tabernacle and begin offering communion to their fellow parishioners. Mass with Concelebrant Or Deacon When a concelebrant is present or when a deacon is assisting, after the presider and the concelebrant or deacon have received communion the concelebrant or deacon will assist the presider in offering the Precious Blood to the Extraordinary Ministers. For these Masses, the EM Captain will stand in line with the other Extraordinary Ministers. See the attached diagram The captain cannot take a vessel or a purificator directly from the altar. The celebrant will distribute the vessels and purificators to the EM s. Again, when the presider picks up his ciborium, cup EM s please open up your line so that the altar servers can get to the altar to receive the Eucharistic Bread from the presider. As mentioned above Server A will take the tray from the altar to the credence table. Server B will take the Roman Missal from the altar to the stand behind the presider s chair. The servers will proceed to EM 4C for the Precious Blood. If the presider does not offer the Eucharistic Bread to the servers the Mass Captain will offer them communion. Servers A & B will remove the tray and Roman Missal from the altar as explained above. The servers will go to EM 4C to receive the Precious Blood.. The EM Captain will still distribute communion from Station 2H when a deacon or acolyte is assisting. A concelebrant will distribute the Eucharistic Bread usually from the Captain s station. The captain will move to Host distribution station 4H. In these situations Cross No. 2H will not be used. The Mass captain will still be the communion minister offering the Eucharistic Bread to the seat bound. The captain will also be responsible for distributing communion to the choir. Captains, it will be necessary to coordinate this change with the ushers. 8

9 A deacon will always minister the cup for the celebrant; hence there is no Station 1C Cross for a Mass in which a deacon is assisting. The cross with the station number 1C will not be passed out. If there are too many EM s scheduled to serve at a Mass in which an ordinary minister (bishop, priest, deacon, acolyte) is concelebrating/assisting the last EM or EM s to sign in will not participate with communion distribution. Please keep in mind that by attending the Mass for which you have been scheduled to serve and checking in with the Mass captain you are serving in your ministry you are merely not being used for communion distribution. Communion Distribution: There is no need to cover your vessel when you are carrying it; please do not do so. Do not bow when crossing in front of the altar while you are carrying a vessel containing either of the sacred species. You are a tabernacle! Do not elevate the Host when you say: The Body of Christ. By doing so you actually single out only that Host as being the Body of Christ when actually the entire contents of the large ciborium is the Body of Christ. These contents have simply been divided among 4 smaller ciboria for ease in distributing. The GIRM says: lift slightly and say: The Body of Christ to the recipient. Do not elevate your cup hand the cup to the individual. For both species look the recipient in the eye as you say either The Body of Christ or The Blood of Christ. It is never allowed to refuse communion to an individual because of the person s personal devotion, i.e., genuflecting before receiving, receiving the Eucharistic Bread on the tongue, etc. Spiritual Communion Bishop Olmsted is reviewing the diocese procedure governing individuals coming forward in the communion line but not physically receiving the Eucharist. The proper attitude is that of spiritual communion. We don t even want to use the word blessing. This is not a proper time for a blessing, even if the blessing is given by a priest or deacon. Your role as an EM is to place your hand on either the head or shoulder of these individuals and to say nothing. Remember to switch to the hand holding the ciborium. The hand touching these individuals should not also be retrieving the Eucharistic Bread from your ciborium 9

10 Host EM s If someone does not consume their Host immediately do not follow them. Try to see where they are sitting and after Mass explain the proper reception of the Eucharist to them. It should never be necessary to break Hosts. If you run out of Eucharistic Bread ask the EM nearest you for more. If you have completed distribution of the Eucharistic Bread and you have Hosts remaining in your ciborium please check to see if the Host EM nearest you needs your remaining Hosts. If you do not have enough hosts the presider and the captain are the two communion ministers who will cross over to ask for more hosts from the other side. EM 4H Before you offer communion to the choir please transfer your remaining Hosts, except those you will need for the choir, into EM 2H s ciborium (the captain). In order to keep all hosts up front until everyone in all four communion lines has received: EM 3H Once both the presider s line and your line is completed the presider will transfer any Hosts remaining in his ciborium to yours and then hand you his ciborium. Take both ciboria to the sacristy passing across the front of the church and stopping at the captain s station to transfer all the remaining hosts from both ciboria into the captain's ciborium. The captain would then bring all remaining hosts to the sacristy after completing communion to the seat bound. And if the captain and 4 H finish distributing first once 4H will give all hosts remaining in his or her ciborium to the captain making sure to keep what is necessary for communion to the choir. The captain then crosses over to give the presider those hosts remaining in his or her ciborium minus what will be needed for the seat bound communion. 3H would then bring all remaining hosts, except those being used for the seat bound communion, back to the sacristy. Only the presider or the deacon will open the tabernacle should it become necessary to use the Hosts reserved in it. To avoid having a member of the laity, including the seat bound, request that you give them the Eucharistic Bread please do not carry a ciborium down an aisle and across the back of the church. Return to the sacristy using only the one aisle closest to the sacristy. This will make it necessary for an EM to cross through the front of the church. 10

11 Cup EM s Please stand at least 8 feet away from your host team mate. It take about three times as long for someone to receive the Precious Blood as it does for them to receive the Eucharistic Bread if you do not stand far enough away from your host team mate the faithful standing in your line to receive the Precious Blood will cause a traffic jam which will result in no room for anyone to come forward and receive the Eucharistic Bread from your team mate. It is not necessary to wipe the inside and the outside of your cup just wipe the outside and turn the cup slightly before the next person in line receives from it. If you like, open your purificator but it is not necessary to do so. There is little chance that any of the Precious Blood will run down the outside of the cup. Worth noting The CDC has conducted numerous tests on the cups used during communal reception of the Precious Blood and found little or no contagions remaining on the cups when individuals drank from the same cup. If you run out of Precious Blood take your empty cup and your purificator, to the sacristy and place them on the opened corporal. Do not cover your cup as you are walking with it. Do not cover the cup with your purificator. And if everyone in your line has received and you have some Precious Blood remaining in your cup please consume It standing at your station of distribution facing the congregation and then take your cup and purificator to the sacristy and place them on the opened corporal.. The EM serving as cup 3H will take the Deacon s cup & purificator to the sacristy. These will be on the credence table if he finishes before you or he will hand them to you once he is finished. Both the deacon and EM 3H should finish at just about the same time unless one of the other of them has no Precious Blood remaining in his/her cup although communicants are still coming forward. The Precious Blood is offered from only 2 cups at the 7 AM Mass. When one of these two cups is ministered by a deacon the other cup minister will take the deacon s cup and purificator to the sacristy. If you are not able to consume any Precious Blood which may be remaining in your cup please ask the Mass captain to assign you to a Host station. Please remain in the sacristy to offer any assistance that may be needed when the host EM s return with their ciboria. 11

12 Intinction Only a priest can offer communion by Intinction, the dipping of the host into the chalice containing the Precious Blood and then placing the host on the communicant s tongue. Intinction is not allowed by the Diocese of Phoenix. There are times when a visitor at St. Gabriel s will take the host and proceed to the cup EM with the intention of dipping the host into the cup containing the Precious Blood. And very often this is referred to as Intinction. It is not Intinction and it definitely is never allowed. If you are serving as a cup EM and someone approaches you carrying a Host simply cover your cup with your hand and explain to that communicant that he or she must consume the Eucharistic Bread before you can offer them the Precious Blood. If they choose not to receive from the cup watch, but do not follow, the person to be sure that they consume the Host. Keep an eye on them and talk to them after Mass. Also report this attempt to the Mass captain. Communion to the Choir At all Masses the music ministers will receive Holy Communion after the first communion hymn. They will proceed to EM s 4H and 4C both of whom are located closest to the choir. This will interrupt the flow of the communion line for EM s 4H and 4C; that is fine. Once all music musicians who can come forward have received Communion these EM s will continue to distribute communion to the faithful coming forward. The ushers guide the flow of the communion lines so there is no special action these EM s will need to take. After Host EM 4H has completed distributing to everyone coming forward to receive he or she will always be the EM responsible for offering the Eucharistic Bread to those musicians unable to come forward to receive due to the nature of the instruments they play. These musicians are offered the Eucharistic Bread only; the Precious Blood is not offered to them because they cannot hold the cup to drink from it. Occasionally the first communion hymn being sung lasts longer that it takes for 4H to complete distributing communion to those coming forward. When this happens 4H will be responsible for offering communion to the entire choir. It will be necessary for 4H to go to the choir and wait until they are free to receive. 12

13 Accidents If you drop a Host pick it up immediately; you can consume the Host or you can hold it under your thumb until such time that the ciborium and Host can be returned to the sacristy where the host can be consumed. Be sure to report this to the Mass captain. If necessary the captain will consume the host. Should an accident occur with the Precious Blood take a step forward so that you are standing over the spill thereby eliminating the chance that someone may step on the Precious Blood. Then once you have completed offering the Precious Blood cover the spill with your purificator and return your cup to the credence table. The assisting deacon will immediately clean up the spill. If there is no deacon assisting, the mass captain will clean up the spill immediately after mass. Once you have returned your cup to the credence table stay near the spot marked with your purificator to assure that the purificator is not removed. No matter which of the sacred species is involved if you have an accident please let the captain know. Communion Distribution to the Infirmed Only the Mass Captain is to offer the Eucharistic Bread to the seat bound. An usher will escort the captain to each seat bound individual Consuming the Sacred Species After everyone has received Holy Communion the Host EM s bring their ciborium to the sacristy, place it on an opened corporal and wait for the captain. All serving EM s, cup and host, are requested to go to the sacristy to lend any assistance that may be necessary. The captain, remaining silent, will place 2 or more hosts into each EM s hands for the EM to consume. Water is available, if needed. Out of reverence please consume Hosts in prayerful silence. GIRM citation Structure of the Mass, Chapter II, Paragraph 85, 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... The Norms also specifically mention that As a general rule, Holy Communion is given from hosts consecrated at that same Mass and not from those reserved in the tabernacle. Norms, Paragraph

14 In order to assure that a sufficient number of hosts are consecrated it is necessary that more hosts than what the attendance count dictates are sent up to be consecrated. This will result in hosts remaining, hopefully in each of the four ciboria. If these remaining consecrated hosts are not consumed the tabernacle would soon be overflowing with unused consecrated hosts. Hence, the captain will ask for your help to consume any reasonable number of consecrated Hosts remaining after communion is completed. The Eucharistic Bread is consumed in the sacristy, and should be done in a prayerful way. Again, the GIRM states that everyone, including all EM s and the captain should try to be in their seats for the closing prayer. The act of consuming consecrated hosts is in itself a prayer of the highest form. Homebound Ministers St. Gabriel s EM s do not place a host in a pyx if asked to do so by someone coming forward in a communion line. The Mass Captain will give any Homebound Minister the Eucharist after Mass as long as the Homebound Minister can show identification that he or she is a St. Gabriel s Homebound Minister and has a pyx in which to place the Eucharistic Bread. 14

15 CHARTS OF EM SANCTUARY STATIONS Without Deacon With Deacon : 15

16 Revisions and Corrections 16