Q1: I recently received notice from a local parish that since the state has ordered that no more than ten people may attend any religious service, there will only be one Mass on Sunday. It said a priest can only offer a second Mass the same day if at least 20 will be assisting.
The exact words in the notice are “…by Church law, priests are not allowed to binate or trinate (that is to say a 2nd or a 3rd Mass on the same day) for less than 20 faithful. Thus we cannot put more than one Mass on Sunday.”
I looked online and only found this:
Can. 905.1. A priest is not permitted to celebrate the Eucharist more than once a day except in cases where the law permits him to celebrate or concelebrate more than once on the same day.
Can. 905.2. If there is a shortage of priests, the local ordinary can allow priests to celebrate twice a day for a just cause, or if pastoral necessity requires it, even three times on Sundays and holy days of obligation.
? Thank you for any assistance. –Astrid
Q2: Thank you for your articles regarding the limiting of the Sacraments in the time of COVID. It was exactly what my soul needed after a night of weeping when my parish announced it would have a lottery for seats at Christmas Masses.
I have a follow-up question on your response to the question from Philip in this article. I understand that signing up for Masses is one way to mitigate crowds. However, once all of those spots are filled week after week, and many of the faithful are essentially shut out from the celebration of the Eucharist time and again, shouldn’t the clergy have some obligation to add opportunities for Mass?
My parish is the cathedral, and we have only five Masses, all at 30% capacity and we have three priests, two deacons, and the Bishop available. I’m sincerely devastated by the response of our churches here in the US… –Laina Continue reading
