I thank all those who attended our Parish Town Hall. We had close to 100 who were in attendance. These are the perfect opportunity for us to come together unified in our faith in order to work together for the common good of our parish. At the next pastoral council meeting we will discuss everything which was discussed as well as set the date for a of Parish Town Hall. I will include a summary on our discussion in next week’s bulletin.
Lastly, a question has arisen to what is proper for an Extraordinary Minister of Holy Communion to do when it comes to giving a blessing. The Congregation of the Doctrine of Faith stated in 2008 to this question: “The liturgical blessing of the Holy Mass is properly given to each and to all at the conclusion of the Mass, just a few moments subsequent to the distribution of Holy Communion.” They went on to state: “Lay people, within the context of Holy Mass, are unable to confer blessings. These blessings, rather, are the competence of the priest.” Here I think it is important that we understand the use of this word “blessing.” At the end of Mass the priest blesses in the Person of Christ which is far different from simply inviting God to bless you.
With this in mind I have directed them to simply say “Receive Jesus in your heart,” “May God bless you,” or something similar. We must also remember that when we touch the Sacred Host that every particle (crumb) of it is Christ’s Body, Blood, Soul, and Divinity. I have thus asked that they refrain from making the sign of the cross on the forehead of the individual as this wipes Christ on their forehead. If they discern touch to be prudent they can either touch the head of the individual or their shoulder while stating one of the options given above.
In Christ,
Fr. Dustin Collins
