I'm Trying To Come Up With A Letter To The Bishop

[Aloysius]

what do you think of this?

[quote]Your Excellency,
I wanted to write to you to express a concern of mine that our diocese is not complying to the fullest extent possible to the norms instituted by the Holy See.  In the recent document which I am sure you are aware of (Redemptionis Sacramentum, hereafter refered to as R.S.), The Holy See reiterated many norms which are not being followed currently but are ignored by the majority of the Church.  In my opinion, the biggest concern should be that certain exceptions have been taken out of context and taken as norms, where they are in actually but mere exceptions to the norm.  For example, The Code of Canon Law 230 §3 States:
“Where the needs of the Church require and ministers are not available, lay people, even though they are not lectors or acolytes, can supply certain of their functions, that is, exercise the ministry of the word, preside over liturgical prayers, confer baptism and distribute Holy Communion, in accordance with the provisions of the law.”
According to the Holy See, “Only when there is necessity may extraordinary ministers assist the priest celebrant in accordance with the norm of the law” (R.S. # 88).  But back to Canon 230, it is clearly not a common practice anywhere in the Catholic World for lay people to confer baptisms or preside over liturgical prayers.  Canon Law makes exceptions for these cases, but does not make them norm.  However, it is common practice for lay people to distribute Holy Communion.  In my opinion, this seems to be an abuse of the allowance of Extraordinary Ministers of Holy Communion.  This canon makes this allowance “where… ministers are not available.”  This clearly puts any Church in a predicament, for with the small proportion of priests to lay people it seems as if at every Sunday mass there are not enough ministers available.  However, if we back up in Canon 230 to Canon 230 §1:
“Lay men whose age and talents meet the requirements prescribed by decree of the Episcopal Conference, can be given the stable ministry of lector and of acolyte, through the prescribed liturgical rite. This conferral of ministry does not, however, give them a right to sustenance or remuneration from the Church.”
Clearly the Church intends that a stable ministry be in place, not a flimsy allowance for ministry on the part of lay people.  A common misconception is that the role of acolyte is only for those on their way to the priesthood.  This, however, is not the case.  The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops has set the requirements for the United States:
“The National Conference of Catholic Bishops, in accord with the prescriptions of canon 230 § 1, hereby decrees that a layman who is to be installed in the ministries of lector or acolyte on a stable basis must have completed his twenty-first (21) year of age. The candidate must also possess the skills necessary for an effective proclamation of the Word or service at the altar, be a fully initiated member of the Catholic Church, be free of any canonical penalty, and live a life which befits the ministry to be undertaken.”

Also, Pope Paul VI, in his Motu Proprio Ministeria Quaedam, the document by which he suppressed the minor orders and created the two instituted ministries of the Acolyte and the Lectorate, said “Ministries may be assigned to lay Christians; hence they are no longer to be considered as reserved to candidates for the sacrament of orders.”  Therefore, it appears evident that the Holy See would approve more of an increase of the stable ministry of the Acolyte to replace making the temporary ministry of an Extraordinary Minister of Holy Communion seem stable.  I have never met a permanent acolyte in the Diocese of Pittsburgh, nor a permanent Lecotorate.  It would seem that if such was the norm, they would be more common.  I propose to you that our diocese begin a program to call out faithful Christian men to answer the need of the Church in the ministry of the Acolyte and slowly abolish the ordinary weekly practice of Extraordinary Ministers of Holy Communion.  This would be most keeping with the laws of the Universal Church and the intentions of Pope Paul VI. 

At the very least, in my humble opinion, there must be a serious change to the use of Extraordinary Ministers of Holy Communion.  They are called Extraordinary for a reason, they are not intended to be ordinary to the celebration of every Sunday Mass.  In my parish, they have a sign in sheet that says at the top “Eucharistic Minister Sign In”!  How contrary to the liturgical norms is that statement alone?  Let alone that having such a sheet indicates that these are ordinary, they are made to sound ordinary by their very title.  In The Holy Mass, there can be but only one type of “Eucharistic Minister” and that is the priest.  The term Eucharistic Minister indicates that they are a minister through which the Eucharist is consecrated.  While it may be a slight inconvenience, it appears necessary to me that the term “Extraordinary Ministers of Holy Communion” be promoted while the term “Eucharistic Ministers” is repressed from use in referring to the lay people.

In my opinion, the reason Acolytes have not been widely seen as the answer to the predicament of Extraordinary Ministers of Holy Communion is plain, simple, and pointless: political correctness.  But do we fear men more than we fear God (I use the term men to mean humanity)?  If this is what our Church calls us to do, if these are the norms she lays out, should we not follow them even if we step on a few toes here and there?  In my humble opinion, which I yield to your Apostolic ministry and authority, I believe we should act as the salt of the earth and not the sugar of the earth by organizing our Church the way it is intended to be organized.  Normalizing temporary ministries of lay people blurs the line between the clergy regardless of how politically correct it is to allow women to distribute Holy Communion.    Such normalization causes the ministry of the laypeople tends to go under a “clericalization” which should be avoided (R.S. #45).  Such a clericalization slowly eats away at any lay person’s desire to be ordained as they could carry out nearly all the same functions if they are not ordained without the sacrifice  If we continue to make Extraordinary Ministers of Holy Communion the norm, cannot Cannon 230 §1 be taken even farther?  Why not make Extraordinary Ministers of Baptism the norm?  You can clearly see how dangerous this is and how detrimental it could be to the already fragile vocation status in the world.  I ask you to take a stand here and enforce the norms so that the Church may be protected and more in communion throughout the entire world.  Acolytes are the only lawful solution to the problem that we do not have enough ministers to hand out Holy Communion to all of the faithful (canonically speaking).  If Acolytes were to be used more common, it is clear that those who have already taken it upon them as their rightful place to be “Eucharistic Ministers” (through their extraordinary role in distributing Holy Communion) would be upset if their ability to participate through a role on the Altar was diminished.  I believe, however, a clear solution to this problem can be instituted.  R.S. #93 says “The Communion-plate for the Communion of the faithful should be retained, so as to avoid the danger of the sacred host or some fragment of it falling.”  Perhaps, and again I am simply making suggestions for how I feel the norms of the Church can be better followed, those who are now ordinary Extraordinary Ministers of Holy Communion could provide an ordinary service weekly of holding the Communion-plate.  In a spirit of humility, I am sure those who truly want to retain a weekly role of ministry in the Mass would gladly accept the position.
In conclusion, the ministry of the Acolyte must be promoted, in my opinion which I believe is supported by the Church’s norms, while Ordinary use of Extraordinary Ministers of Holy Communion must be suppressed.  This is of course, your decision.  However, I realized that I not only had the right to lodge a complaint about the matter (R.S. #184) But I also have a most serious duty incumbent upon me (R.S. #183).  Therefore, this is my official complaint that our diocese, though it may be better than most in the United States, perpetuates an abuse of the Extraordinary Ministers of Holy Communion.
[/quote]

I used Apotheon's posts in the Debate Table for many of my ideas.

so
#1 do you think Acolytes are a good idea
#2 if you answered #1 yes, did i make the case that Acolytes are necessary succesfully and respectfully?
#3 do you agree with my idea that current Extraordinary Ministers of Holy Communion, if they miss their current weekly position, should be given the job of holding the communion plate (which we don't use now though we should)?
#4 you're supposed to address a letter to a bishop "Your Excellency," right?

and any other comments you might have. This will surely not be the final draft, but perhaps you can all pick it apart and make it better and perhaps form it into a form letter that dUSt wanted anyway so everyone can print it off PhatMass and send it to their bishop. you can leave out my objections to the "Eucharistic Minister Sign In Sheet"

I'm gonna talk to my priest about that part first, though.

pAx

[master_alterserver]

These are very interesting points. I hope all goes well. Maybe you should invite hm to lunch...jk

[Aloysius]

doesn't something somewhere say that the best form of the hierarchy is that it be accessable to the faithful? maybe i should invite him to dinner! lol

[homeschoolmom]

what are alcolytes? Where i grew up, in the Methodist church alcolytes were alter servers (ie, teens who helped with communion)...

[master_alterserver]

acolytes are just another word for altar boys/ altar servers

[homeschoolmom]

okay, so basically the same idea...

[Aloysius]

no they're more than that. to be an acolyte in the United States you must be at least 21 years old. They also help out in distributing Holy Communion (if they are needed to do so, it is a part of their stable ministry to do so)

altar boys serve the altar "after the manner of the Acolytes" (Redemptionis 47): [quote] It is altogether laudable to maintain the noble custom by which boys or youths, customarily termed servers, provide service of the altar after the manner of acolytes, and receive catechesis regarding their function in accordance with their power of comprehension.[/quote]

[RandomProddy]

Edit:

Bishop (Diocesan)
CORRESPONDENCE: On the envelope, formally "The Rt Rev the Lord Bishop of_____" though modern usage drops "Lord" from the superscription according to preference. Commencement, "Dear Bishop".
PERSONAL ADDRESS: "Bishop".

Bishop (retired)
Letters commence "Dear Bishop", and are addressed "The Rt Rev [John Smith], DD".

Edited June 22, 2004 by RandomProddy

[Aloysius]

perhaps that's why we need the bright red warning signs!

[RandomProddy]

[quote name='Aloysius' date='Jun 22 2004, 06:42 PM'] perhaps that's why we need the bright red warning signs! [/quote]
Huh?

Oh, lol

These pre-date the Reformation I think. The British have been busy being polite for hundreds and hundreds of years so it's kinda our turf

Edit: Actually, I [i]was[/i] right.

Two forms are acceptable.

{
EITHER

"The Rt Rev the Bishop of (diocese)" OR "The Most Rev the Archbishop of (archdiocese)"


OR

"The (Rt/Most) Rev (Name)" i.e. The Rt Rev Bob Smith"

}

THEN

Commencement, "Dear Bishop".
PERSONAL ADDRESS: "Bishop".

[url="http://www.debretts.co.uk/etiquette/correct_forms_of_address.html"]http://www.debretts.co.uk/etiquette/correc...of_address.html[/url]

Edited June 22, 2004 by RandomProddy

[homeschoolmom]

[quote name='Aloysius' date='Jun 22 2004, 11:39 AM'] no they're more than that. to be an acolyte in the United States you must be at least 21 years old. They also help out in distributing Holy Communion (if they are needed to do so, it is a part of their stable ministry to do so)

altar boys serve the altar "after the manner of the Acolytes" (Redemptionis 47): [/quote]
so when i've seen grown men serving at the alter, these were alcolytes? i've only seen this once.

[Aloysius]

possibly. they have to be instituted by the Bishop i believe

[Aloysius]

reiterating the questions:

[quote]#1 do you think Acolytes are a good idea
#2 if you answered #1 yes, did i make the case that Acolytes are necessary succesfully and respectfully?
#3 do you agree with my idea that current Extraordinary Ministers of Holy Communion, if they miss their current weekly position, should be given the job of holding the communion plate (which we don't use now though we should)?
#4 you're supposed to address a letter to a bishop "Your Excellency," right?
[/quote]
Random Proddy i guess was answering #4, but i didn't understand his answer

[RandomProddy]

[quote name='Aloysius' date='Jun 22 2004, 06:54 PM'] Random Proddy i guess was answering #4, but i didn't understand his answer [/quote]
Ok, say he is Bishop John Smith of Utopia.

Either:

"The Rt Rev the Bishop of Utopia"

Or

"The Rt Rev Bishop John Smith"

Start the letter "Dear Bishop".
When talking to them, title them "Bishop."

(Rt is an abbreviation of "Right")

Edited June 22, 2004 by RandomProddy

[Lil Red]

you need paragraphs, al. majorly! and triple check your spelling and grammar.