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FOR SPECIAL GATHERINGS

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Congregation for Divine Worship

May 15, 1969
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INSTRUCTION ON THE

MANNER OF

ADMINISTERING

HOLY COMMUNION

Congregation for Divine Worship

May 29, 1969

UNITED STATES CATHOLIC CONFERENCE



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INSTRUCTION ON MASSES

FOR SPECIAL GATHERINGS

Congregation for Divine Worship

May 15, 1969

One of the principal objectives of the Church’s pastoral activity

is educating the faithful to insert themselves into the ecclesial com-

munity so that everyone, above all in liturgical celebrations, will feel

united with his brother in communion with the universal and local

Church. The liturgical assembly, presided over by the one who is

invested with the power to reunite, direct, and instruct and sanctify

God’s People, is a sign and instrument of the unity of all men, and

above all of the Church with Christ (cf. Constitution on the Liturgy,

n. 83).

This is realized chiefly in the communitarian celebration of the

Eucharist, especially on Sunday, with the bishop or in the parochial

assembly where the pastor takes the place of the bishop (cf. Consti-

tution on the Church, n. 1; Constitution on the Liturgy, nn. 41-42;

Instruction on Eucharistic Worship, May 25, 1967, nn. 26-27).

Pastoral care is directed also to special gatherings, not with the

scope of engendering a tendency towards a separate or privileged

class but with the hope of meeting special needs and of deepening

and intensifying the Christian life according to the needs and the

preparation of the persons in these gatherings. It achieves this by

taking advantage of the opportunities which emanate from a common

spiritual or apostolic commitment and from the desire for mutual

edification.

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Experience shows the efiftcacy of pastoral activity in these

gatherings. If they are directed well and thought out, rather than

damaging the unity of the parish, they benefit its missionary action

by bringing some people closer and by deepening the formation of

others.

Their vitality stems from the fact that the common study of

Christian truth and the equally common effort to conform one’s

own existence and behavior to this are joined in this coming-together

in prayer. These prayer reunions are carried out in a manner and

form consonant with the gathering, especially in the reading and

meditating on the Word of God and often in the Eucharistic cele-

bration, which becomes the culmen and crowning point of the

reunion.

The desire to have the Eucharistic celebration at these gatherings

is particularly felt today. Therefore, it seemed appropriate to give

some norms which may regulate such a celebration, so that it may

be carried out with order, propriety and serenity, with a spiritual

advantage for the participants and with respect for its essential

character of sacred and religious worship.

1. It pertains to the bishop to examine accurately the circum-

stances in order to judge whether in each case pastoral reasons dictate

a Eucharistic celebration, or if instead it would be better to suggest

another religious celebration.

2. The special gatherings for which permission can be given

to celebrate the Eucharist are:

a) Gatherings for retreat, religious or pastoral studies, for

one or more days, or for meetings of the lay apostolate or similar

associations.

b) Meetings for pastoral motives in certain sections of the

parish.

c) Gatherings of the faithful who live far from the parish

church and who periodically come together to enrich their

religious formation.

d) Gatherings of young people or of persons of the same

condition or formation, who periodically come together for

religious formation or instruction adapted to their mentality.

e) Family gatherings around the sick or aged who cannot

leave their house and who otherwise would never participate in

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the Eucharistic celebration. Included with these are friends and

those who look after the sick.

f) Those gathered together for a wake or for some other

exceptional religious occasion.

3. Normally, the Eucharist for special gatherings is celebrated

in a sacred place.

4. The norm in Canon 822, paragraph 4, of the Code of Canon

Law and number 7 of the first part of the Motu Proprio Pastorale

Munus, Nov. 30, 1963, still hold. The permission to celebrate the

Eucharist for special gatherings, outside of a sacred place, can be

given only by the local Ordinary. In cases of celebrations in private

houses or institutes, he will give this permission only if the group

gathers where there is no chapel or oratory and only if this is a

fitting place for such a celebration. Celebrations in bedrooms are

always excluded.

However, in searching for spacious and decorous places, some

families should not be preferred towards others. This would only

resuscitate, under another form, the privilege class system which

was disapproved of in the liturgical constitution (n. 32).

5. The basic principles, delineated in the Instruction on

Eucharistic Worship (n. 3), should be kept in mind, especially the

following:

a) The sacrifice and the sacred Meal belong to the same

mystery, to such an extent that they are linked to one another by

a very close theological and sacramental bond.

b) No Mass may be considered as an exclusive action of a

particular group, but as a celebration of the Church, in which

the priest, exercising his office, presides as a minister of the

Church over the entire liturgical action.

c) Everything should be disposed in such a way that, in the

selection of a place, in the attitude of the persons and in the

use of things, true worship is rendered to the Sacrament of

the Eucharist.

6. In order to achieve a celebration corresponding to circum-

stances and environment, the single parts should be well organized,

keeping in mind the following general norms and principles:

a) In the fullest way possible, participation of the faithful

should be encouraged, according to the particular circumstances.

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b) The celebration can be preceded by a period of meditation

on Holy Scripture or of instruction on spiritual things, adapted

to the characteristics of the gathering.

c) Besides an initial admonition, the celebrant can briefly

introduce the liturgy of the Word before the readings and the

Eucharistic liturgy before the preface, and also intervene again

before the dismissal. Any other interruption is excluded during

the Eucharistic liturgy.

d) With the exception of the following norms (cf. f and h

below) and the role of the commentator during the celebration,

the faithful will refrain from any interventions in the way of

reflections, exhortations and the like.

e) In the liturgy of the Word readings adapted to the par-

ticular celebration can be chosen from approved lectionaries.

f) The readings which precede the Gospel should be read

by one of the participants (man or woman); the Gospel, how-

ever, must be proclaimed by the priest or deacon.

g) In the homily the priest should recall the particular

character of the celebration, and its link with the local and

universal Church.

h) The prayer of the faithful can be adapted to the circum-

stances. The general intentions for the Church, the world,

brothers in need and the assembly should not be entirely omitted.

A particular intention, properly prepared, can be proposed by

the participants.

7. A more complete and perfect participation in the celebration

is had with Eucharistic communion. For communion under both

species the disposition in the Instruction on Eucharistic Worship must

be adhered to (cf. n. 32). This type of communion is excluded when

Mass is celebrated in houses. Giving communion to oneself and

receiving it in the hand are likewise excluded.

8. In order to favor the participation of those present the use

of song, in some circumstances, could be useful. Also in this regard,

the norms regarding song and music in sacred celebrations should be

observed, avoiding that which is contrary to the holiness of the rite

and to the piety of the participants.

9. The above indicated adaptations, introduced exclusively for

these cases, are not to be introduced in celebrations done in Church

for the entire community of the faithful.

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10. For celebrations of the Eucharist for special gatherings

outside of a sacred place, especially in private houses, these conditions

are required:

a) The faculty (cf. n. 4 above) may not be given for Sundays

and holy days of obligation.

b) The necessity of obtaining the permission of the local

Ordinary should always be kept in mind. If the celebrant is

not the pastor, the pastor should be notified. These, then, will

give a report to the bishop concerning the celebrations.

c) The norms for Eucharistic fast should be observed; in

no way can the Eucharist be preceded by an agape. If one should

follow, it will not be at the same table on which the Eucharist is

celebrated.

d) Bread for the Eucharist remains unleavened bread, the

only kind permitted in the Latin Church and not without grave

reasons. It will be confected in the customary form.

e) The celebration should not occur late in the night.

f) Even in gatherings with family ties no one is to be ex-

cluded who desires to participate.

11. To safeguard the success of these celebrations and to obtain

a greater spiritual efficaciousness, they should be well prepared and

always celebrated with dignity and sacredness. Attention must be

given to the form, and the more fitting elements should be chosen

with respect for liturgical forms. Therefore:

a) The texts of the Mass should be taken from the Missal

or from approved supplements. Every change (except for what

has been said in n. 6h) is arbitrary and therefore rejected.

b) The furnishings of the altar (cross, altar cloth, candles.

Missal, purificator, corporal, hand towel and communion plate),

the sacred vessels (chalice, paten, pyx), the vestments (amice,

alb, cincture, stole and chasuble) should be, in number, form

and quality, as desired by present legislation.

c) The ritual gestures and the ceremonies of the celebrant,

as well as the attitude of the participants, should be those pre-

scribed for the normal Eucharistic celebration.

Pastors in charge of the faithful are encouraged to consider and

deepen the spiritual and formative value of these celebrations. They

are valid only if they direct the participants to a greater awareness of

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the Christian mystery, to an insertion in the ecclesial community

and its worship and to the faithful exercise of charity and the

apostolate.

In our day and age there are those who think they are up-to-date

only when they can show off novelty, often bizarre, or devise arbitrary

forms of liturgical celebrations. Priests, Religious and diocesan, con-

siderate of the true welfare of the faithful, realize that only in a

generous and unyielding fidelity to the will of the Church, expressed

in its directive, norms and structures, lies the secret of a lasting and

sanctifying pastoral success.

Those who wander from this line, even if it is alluring, finish in

creating bewilderment in the faithful. At the same time they are

killing and rendering sterile their sacerdotal ministry.

This Instruction, prepared at the request of higher authority

by the Sacred Congregation for Divine Worship, will regulate every

type of Mass celebrated in special gatherings until the Apostolic See

disposes otherwise.

Vatican City, May 15, 1969, Feast of the Ascension of Our Lord

BENNO CARDINAL GUT

Prefect

A. BUGNINI

Secretary

6



INSTRUCTION ON THE

MANNER OF

ADMINISTERING

HOLY COMMUNION

Congregation for Divine Worship

May 29, 1969

When it celebrates the memorial of the Lord, by that rite the

Church witnesses to its faith and adoration of Christ, who is present

in the sacrifice and who is given as food to those who share in the

Eucharistic table.

For this reason it is of great concern that the Eucharist be

celebrated and shared in most worthily and fruitfully, by observing

unchanged the tradition that has reached us step by step, the tradition

whose riches have been poured into the practice and life of the Church.

The documents of history demonstrate that the ways of celebrating

and receiving the holy Eucharist have been diverse. Even in our

time many and important ritual changes have been introduced into

the celebration of the Eucharist in order to bring it into accord with

the spiritual and psychological needs of men today. Because of

circumstances, communion under both kinds, bread and wine, which

was once common in the Latin rite but had fallen into disuse little by

little, has again been made a part of the discipline governing the faith-

ful’s mode of receiving the holy sacrament. At the time of the Council

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of Trent a different situation had arisen and was in effect everywhere;

the Council approved and defended it as suited to the conditions of

that period.
^

With the renewal in the modes of communicating, however, the

sign of the Eucharistic meal and the complete fulfillment of Christ’s

mandate have been effected more clearly and vividly. At the same

time a full sharing in the celebration of the Eucharist, expressed

through sacramental communion, has recently stirred up in some

places the desire to return to the practice by which the Eucharistic

bread is placed in the hand of the faithful who communicates himself

by putting it in his mouth.

In some communities and localities this rite has even been per-

formed without obtaining the prior approval of the Apostolic See and

occasionally without appropriate preparation for the people.

It is true that, according to ancient usage, it was once permitted

for the faithful to take the sacred food in their hands and themselves

to place it in their mouths and even, in the earliest period, to carry the

holy sacrament with them from the place of celebration, especially

in order to receive it as viaticum if they should have to suffer for the

profession of the faith.

Nevertheless the precepts of the Church and the writings of the

Fathers give abundant witness to the great reverence and prudence

shown to the holy Eucharist. For “no one . . . eats this flesh unless

first he adores,” ^ and each recipient is warned: “. . . receive it and

take care that none of it be lost to you” “for it is the body of

Christ.”
4

In the meantime the care and ministry of the body and blood of

the Lord was entrusted in a quite special way to sacred ministers

or to persons assigned to this function: “After the president has

completed the prayers and all the people have made the acclamation,

those among us whom we call deacons distribute a part of the bread

and wine and water, in which the thanksgiving has been made, to

each one present and bring them to those who are absent.” ®

The office of bringing the Eucharist to those who were absent

was soon entrusted to sacred ministers alone, for the reason that

greater care might be shown for the reverence due to the body of

Christ as well as for the needs of the people. In the following period,

after the true meaning of the Eucharistic mystery, its effect, and the

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presence of Christ in it had been profoundly investigated, from a

pressing sense of reverence toward this holy sacrament and of the

humility which its reception demands, the custom was introduced by

which the minister himself would place the piece of consecrated

bread on the tongue of the communicants.

In view of the state of the Church as a whole today, this manner

of distributing Holy Communion must be observed, not only because

it rests upon a tradition of many centuries but especially because it

is a sign of the reverence of the faithful toward the Eucharist. . The

practice in no way detracts from the personal dignity of those who

approach this great sacrament, and it is a part of the preparation

needed for the most fruitful reception of the Lord’s body. ®

This reverence is a sign of communion not in “common bread

and drink” ^ but in the body and blood of the Lord. By it “the people

of God shares in the blessings of the paschal sacrifice, renews the

new covenant once made by God with man in the blood of Christ, and

in faith and hope prefigures and anticipates the eschatological banquet

in the kingdom of the Father.” ®

In addition, this manner of communicating, which is now to be

considered as prescribed by custom, gives more effective assurance

that Holy Communion will be distributed with the appropriate

reverence, decorum, and dignity; that any danger of profaning the

Eucharistic species, in which “the whole and entire Christ, God and

man, is substantially contained and permanently present in a unique

way,” 9 will be avoided; and finally that the diligent care which the

Church has always commended for the very fragments of the conse-

crated bread will be maintained: “If you have allowed anything to

be lost, consider this a lessening of your own members.”

On this account, since some few episcopal conferences and indi-

vidual bishops had asked that the usage of placing the consecrated

bread in the hand of the faithful be admitted in their territories, the

Supreme Pontiff decreed that each bishop of the entire Latin Church

should be asked his opinion concerning the appropriateness of intro-

ducing this rite. A change in a matter of such importance, which rests
on a very ancient and venerable tradition, besides touching upon

discipline can also include dangers. These may be feared from a new

manner of administering Holy Communion; they are a lessening of

reverence toward the noble sacrament of the altar, its profanation,

or the adulteration of correct doctrine.

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Three questions were therefore proposed to the bishops. Up

to March 12 the following responses had been received:

1 . Does it seem that the proposal should be accepted by which,

besides the traditional mode, the rite of receiving Holy Communion

in the hand would be permitted?

Yes: 567

No: 1,233

Yes, with reservations: 315

Invalid votes: 20

2. Should experiments with this new rite first take place in small

communities, with the assent of the local Ordinary?

Yes: 751

No: 1,215

Invalid votes: 70

3. Do you think that the faithful, after a well planned cate-

chetical preparation, would accept this new rite willingly?

Yes: 835

No: 1,185

Invalid votes: 128

From the responses received it is thus clear that by far the

greater number of bishops feel that the present discipline should not

be changed at all, indeed that if it were changed, this would be offen-

sive to the sensibilities and spiritual appreciation of these bishops and

of most of the faithful.

After he had considered the observations and the counsel of

those whom “the Holy Spirit has placed as bishops to rule” the

Churches, in view of the seriousness of the matter and the importance

of the arguments proposed, the Supreme Pontiff judged that the long

received manner of ministering Holy Communion to the faithful

should not be changed.

The Apostolic See therefore strongly urges bishops, priests, and

people to observe zealously this law, valid and again confirmed,

according to the judgment of the majority of the Catholic episcopate.

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in the form which the present rite of the sacred liturgy employs, and

out of concern for the common good of the Church.

If the contrary usage, namely, of placing Holy Communion in

the hand, has already developed in any place, in order to help the

episcopal conference fulfill their pastoral office in today’s often dif-

ficult situation, the Apostolic See entrusts to the conferences the duty

and function of judging particular circumstances, if any. They may

make this judgment provided that any danger is avoided of insuf-

ficient reverence or false opinions of the holy Eucharist arising in

the minds of the faithful and that any other improprieties be care-

fully removed.

In these cares, moreover, in order to govern this usage properly,

the episcopal conferences should undertake the appropriate delibera-

tions after prudent study; the decision is to be made by a two-thirds

majority by secret ballot.

These deliberations should then be proposed to the Holy See

for the necessary confirmation, together with an accurate explanation

of the reasons which moved the conferences to take this action. The

Holy See will weigh the individual cases with care, remembering

the bonds which exist between the several local Churches among

themselves and with the entire Church, in order to promote the

common good and edification and the increase of faith and piety

which flow from mutual good example.

This Instruction, prepared at the special mandate of the Supreme

Pontiff Paul VI, was duly approved by him, in virtue of apostolic

authority, on May 28, 1969. Pope Paul also decreed that it be

brought to the attention of the bishops through the presidents of the

episcopal conferences.

Anything to the contrary notwithstanding.

Rome, May 29, 1969.

BENNO CARD. GUT

Prefect

A. BUGNINI

Secretary

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FOOTNOTES

1 Cf. Council of Trent, session XXI, doctrine concerning communion

under both kinds and communion of children: Denz. 1726-1717 (930); session

XXII, decree on the petition for the concession of the cup: Denz. 1760.

2 Augustine, Enarrationes in Psalmos, 98, 9: PL 37, 1264.
3 Cf . Cyril of Jerusalem, Catecheses Mystagogicae, V, 21: PG 33, 1126.
4 Hippolytus, Traditio Apostolica, n. 37; ed. B. Botte, 1963, p. 84.

*> Justin, Apologia I, 65: PG 6, 427.
® Cf. Augustine, Enarrationes in Psalmos, 98, 9: PL 37, 1264-1265.

Cf. Justin, Apologia I, 66: PG 6, 427; cf. Irenaeus, Adversus Haereses,
1. 4, c. 18, n. 5: PG 7, 1028-1029.

8 S. Congregation of Rites, instruction Eucharisticum Mysterium, n. 3a:

AAS 59 (1967) 541.
9 Cf. ibid. n. 9, p. 547.

19 Cyril of Jerusalem, Catecheses Mystagogicae, V. 21: PG 33, 1126.
11 Cf. Acts 20: 28.

12 Cf. II Vatican Council, decree Christas Dominus, n. 38, 4: AAS 58

(1966) 693.

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