Is anybody here an Extraordinary Minister? There are so many elderly in my family- to bring Communion would be such a blessing all the way around. Yet, I wrestle with the idea for a number of reasons. I can’t get around much anymore, I have to use a cane. But that aside, I have qualms about it. I don’t take Communion in my hand- it was so ingrained in me not to. I also am deeply troubled by an experience as a patient in the hospital. Because of Universal Precautions Against The Spread Of Disease, my EM wore gloves- vinyl- to distribute the Eucharist. Worse yet, the gloves are disposed of in the garbage or the Hazardous Waste containers. Thank God the gloves usually come off inside-out, but that’s little consolation. Any thoughts?
I no longer am a Extraordinary Minister of Holy Communion.
Reading one book, changed my mind. Also receive Jesus on my tongue — not in my hand.
“Get Us Out of Here” by Maria Simma
Yes. I recently volunteered as a Eucharistic Minister to take Communion to a local hospital. We follow the hospital protocols. We would put on protective garments if someone was infectious. This would be voluntary and our choice. This would be to protect ourselves as well as the patients.
I understand the feeling of wanting to only receive from a priest or a deacon, but I do not agree that only a priest or deacon should give Communion.
We are all members of the Body of Christ and we should all participate in bringing Jesus to Catholics and spreading the Truth of God to all.
In our diocese at the next change of priests, we will share a priest with our neighbor church. Some are clusters of 3-4 parishes. Our priest is very busy with over 6000 members and still growing parish, and the committees are very active. We would be a different parish if we did not have significant participation by many including the Extraordinary Eucharistic ministers.
Perhaps we need to continue to change the ways things are done without affecting the Truth that Jesus taught us, so that we can continue to bring others to Jesus.
I am more concerned about the percentage of Catholics that do not believe in the Real Presence of Jesus Christ in the Eucharist. From a 2011 survey 37%.
“To explore the implications of this gap, we asked both a knowledge question and a belief question in our 2011 survey. We found that half of adult Catholics (50 percent) know the church’s teaching regarding the real presence and half do not. We also found that close to two-thirds of adult Catholics (63 percent) believe that “at the consecration during a Catholic Mass, the bread and wine really become the body and blood of Jesus Christ.”
Therefore, more adult Catholics believe the statement than understand its source. But how are these two items related?”
http://ncronline.org/news/catholics-america/knowledge-and-belief-about-real-presence
An interesting aside. While getting a tour of the hospital, we sat in the Chaplin’s office and the assistant Chaplin stated that he had “consecrated hosts” if we ever ran out. While we were puzzled that consecrated hosts would be kept at a hospital, the Head Chaplin later told us that they were “Episcopal hosts”. So we learned early to take hosts from a Catholic Church.
I do feel privileged to take Communion to the sick.