This 'private Mass' thingy, with only the priest celebrating, was against Canon Law in the C of E, I thought, and I also understood that the RCC had done away with it.
Horses for courses, I guess, and in these strange times, it might be necessary, if only for the spiritual health of the priest. But 'private' should mean just that - no congregation, and no public notice of the time...
Were leaving the church open for prayer, and I’m praying at 9 and at 12 and ringing the bell. If I can get everything to work I’ll Livestream the midday.
This 'private Mass' thingy, with only the priest celebrating, was against Canon Law in the C of E, I thought, and I also understood that the RCC had done away with it.
I heard (rumour) that the priest in the Italian village of Codogno was doing it. There are some times it's ok to break the law.
This 'private Mass' thingy, with only the priest celebrating, was against Canon Law in the C of E, I thought, and I also understood that the RCC had done away with it.
I heard (rumour) that the priest in the Italian village of Codogno was doing it. There are some times it's ok to break the law.
Yes, but what's the point, if there's no-one else there?
My theology is about as far from Catholic as Christian theology can be, but if one believes in the important thing being the collective faith of the church as an institution, and that the priest can stand as a representative of the congregation, and the church in question happens to have an infrastructure covering the entire national territory, with bells that can be rung out, it seems like an absolute master stroke to me*.
(Our current solution, meanwhile, is to have everyone grab whatever most closely resembles bread and wine to hand, and take communion at the same time during our FB live session).
Yesterday evening we had one of our best-attended prayer meetings in a long time! We started and ended on FB live: intro was one song, a Scripture reading, and opening prayer. Then we ended the live and got people into groups to do 4-way voice calls using FB Messenger for prayer together, before reconvening about 20 minutes later for another FB live session where we read a prayer together and sang another song.
*I've just remembered Terry Waite describing his time as a hostage in Beirut and how he would pray when he heard the muzzein call in the morning.
One of our larger Catholic churches serving rural parishes is planning to livestream Mass this coming Sunday, quite exciting. Many blips and glitches to be expected, but a leap in the right direction!
Our Cathedral livestreams sunday Mass already - though the (lack of) quality of the choir means that I usually have the volume right down low.
Indeed "private" masses have long been banned in the RCC since well before Vat 2, but these are strange times. I find it comforting that there are priests all over town offering Mass for the well-being of their communities and the wider community.
This 'private Mass' thingy, with only the priest celebrating, was against Canon Law in the C of E, I thought, and I also understood that the RCC had done away with it.
I heard (rumour) that the priest in the Italian village of Codogno was doing it. There are some times it's ok to break the law.
Yes, but what's the point, if there's no-one else there?
The thought of all churches cold and empty with even the priests gone away could be disconcerting. For some people, simply knowing that someone is carrying things on in some form can be a comfort.
This 'private Mass' thingy, with only the priest celebrating, was against Canon Law in the C of E, I thought, and I also understood that the RCC had done away with it.
I heard (rumour) that the priest in the Italian village of Codogno was doing it. There are some times it's ok to break the law.
Yes, but what's the point, if there's no-one else there?
I'd get the churchwardens to lock your priest out. He's a one man walking disaster. Suggest that he isn't in the right frame of mind for the role and find another
A local priest here, who's a sweet guy personally although I have never worshipped with or under him, is mad as hell they're closing the churches, and has what I consider a magical-thinking faith in nobody possibly getting sick by going to church. "Are we not a hospital?" (for those not familiar, one of our tropes is that the church is the "hospital of souls"). I told him more people die of nosocomial infection than what they went to the hospital for. Which is probably not true but hell.
This 'private Mass' thingy, with only the priest celebrating, was against Canon Law in the C of E, I thought, and I also understood that the RCC had done away with it.
I heard (rumour) that the priest in the Italian village of Codogno was doing it. There are some times it's ok to break the law.
Yes, but what's the point, if there's no-one else there?
The thought of all churches cold and empty with even the priests gone away could be disconcerting. For some people, simply knowing that someone is carrying things on in some form can be a comfort.
Point taken - which is why we (and other local churches) are currently seeking ways of keeping the churches open for private prayer.
This 'private Mass' thingy, with only the priest celebrating, was against Canon Law in the C of E, I thought, and I also understood that the RCC had done away with it.
I heard (rumour) that the priest in the Italian village of Codogno was doing it. There are some times it's ok to break the law.
Yes, but what's the point, if there's no-one else there?
I'd get the churchwardens to lock your priest out. He's a one man walking disaster. Suggest that he isn't in the right frame of mind for the role and find another
Our priest has been Spoken To by our Bishop. I wait to hear what has transpired, but our churchwardens and PCC are supporting me in trying to find a positive solution. One churchwarden says he thinks our priest is on some sort of one man anti-coronavirus crusade....
Scottish Catholic bishops have suspended all public celebrations of Mass and other devotions until further notice. However baptisms, weddings and funerals may be celebrated only with close family present. The bishops have said that those entering the church at Easter should have again severely shortened rites with only those absolutely necessary present. Given that there may be complete lockdown by that time we are going ahead with Easter baptisms as soon as possible.
There is in one sense no such thing as a 'private' Mass. Whether there is only one person (the celebrant) or twentythousand physically present,the Holy Sacrifice is offered at the hands of the priest for the praise and glory of God's name,for the good of all the faithful as well as the good of all God's holy Church. It is exactly the same with Anglican Morning and Evening prayer recited for the same reasons sometimes by the clergy alone.
I would assume that clergy and other members of other churches similarly pray for the good of all.
FatherInCharge has been Spoken To by our Bishop, and we are to be open for private prayer twice a day (morning and evening), including Sundays. The Office may be said during those times, but not publicly advertised, as may Mass - but with only the priest receiving Communion, even though there might be others in the church.
Well, fair enough - but the times of opening have been Decreed Without Consultation by FInC, and I should have thought (albeit perhaps selfishly) that one or two midday-ish slots would have been helpful. A prior chat with his Wardens and Readers might have been a good idea, as the slots are really rather too early, or too late, in the day for me.
This is another issue entirely, and which has not so far been of any real concern, but he does seem to rule by the 'Father Knows Best' method of diktat...
Meanwhile, somewhat ironically, in view of what I've just said, FatherInCharge is inviting individuals to a 'Private Mass' in church tomorrow, to celebrate the Feast of St Joseph.
My patience is exhausted, so I have snitched on FInC to our Diocesan (also to the Archdeacon, but he's n/a for a few days...).
That really is a bit much. I am glad you snitched. I think if I were in the UK at the moment I would have a notice on the door saying, 'Services suspended due to Covid-19' but would still be popping in to read MP/EP and say Mass on Sundays and Holydays. When he have snowy/icy weather here I usually say 'Mass will be at 11am, but do not come unless it is safe to do so. I see this event in much the same light.
Our ecclesiology strictly forbids having a Divine Liturgy (equiv. = Mass) without a layperson present.
. Yes, and that makes sense to me -- to celebrate alone is, well, a selfish act when it should be honoring the self-less love of God. Last Sunday, with most churches not open, Eucharist was celebrated at the National Cathedral in Washington with several persons present (about 5 I think), all maintaining the appropriate social distance. That was available on line in real time. So it was not a priest-only celebration, but one that those of us at home could at least watch and make (falling back here to language from my old RCC roots) a "spiritual communion".
As I said earlier, our Bishop has issued advice (or instructions), and I'm glad we will be open every day, even though I take issue with FatherInCharge about the actual times of opening.
It'll be interesting to find out how many people do drop in - we may be pleasantly surprised, but we are a bit off the beaten track, with very little passing trade.
Our ecclesiology strictly forbids having a Divine Liturgy (equiv. = Mass) without a layperson present.
. Yes, and that makes sense to me -- to celebrate alone is, well, a selfish act when it should be honoring the self-less love of God. Last Sunday, with most churches not open, Eucharist was celebrated at the National Cathedral in Washington with several persons present (about 5 I think), all maintaining the appropriate social distance. That was available on line in real time. So it was not a priest-only celebration, but one that those of us at home could at least watch and make (falling back here to language from my old RCC roots) a "spiritual communion".
Unless you believe there is a spiritual communion between members of the church .... "One Body" and all that, so that none of us ever acts in isolation for good or ill.
I gave my (rural predominantly elderly non-techno) congregations a 6 page booklet of a simple morning prayer, some hymns, and a list of worship on radio & TV, and a separate list of collects and readings. We're going to say it together at the time of our normal service on Sundays. If it's potentially useful to anyone else PM me.
As I said earlier, just a few hours before the archbishops statement on Tuesday, we had already decided to stop all midweek worship. Our original idea was to try and continue Sunday Mass for as long as possible, as we only have a small congregation of no more than 15, who would be asked to spread out inside our relatively large Victorian church.
We will, of course, now not do this, and will follow the official directions of the C of E to suspend all public worship until further notice.
Our congregation are mainly elderly and over the age of 70 and many of them have underlying health issues. There are actually only 2 of us under 70, myself at 63, and one of our churchwardens, who although in her 50’s has quite significant underlying health issues. I’m quite fit and healthy for my age but do have my 85 year old mother with dementia living with me and so I am now seriously trying to socially isolate myself as much as possible.
We haven’t had a resident priest for almost 10 years and our four retired priests who take our services, and pastorally care for us wonderfully, are aged 76, 78, 81 and 86.
Perhaps you can now see our problem. It is not going to be easy to open our church on any regular basis for private prayer when almost everyone needs to be very careful about what they do and where they go during the coming months.
It has been suggested by a few people that one of our opening times should be on a Sunday morning at the usual Parish Mass time of 11am for an hour of private prayer before the Blessed Sacrament concluding with saying the angelus at 12. However, is that really very much different from our original plan of spacing ourselves out around the building? All these ideas of priests saying mass and the offices privately whilst people gather in the buildings, although perhaps not advertised, does seem partly like public worship, especially if the church opening time is to be advertised. It just worries me in our situation that too many of our very faithful vulnerable congregation will turn out on Sunday morning, out of duty, when they should be self isolating.
As I said earlier, just a few hours before the archbishops statement on Tuesday, we had already decided to stop all midweek worship. Our original idea was to try and continue Sunday Mass for as long as possible, as we only have a small congregation of no more than 15, who would be asked to spread out inside our relatively large Victorian church.
We will, of course, now not do this, and will follow the official directions of the C of E to suspend all public worship until further notice.
Our congregation are mainly elderly and over the age of 70 and many of them have underlying health issues. There are actually only 2 of us under 70, myself at 63, and one of our churchwardens, who although in her 50’s has quite significant underlying health issues. I’m quite fit and healthy for my age but do have my 85 year old mother with dementia living with me and so I am now seriously trying to socially isolate myself as much as possible.
We haven’t had a resident priest for almost 10 years and our four retired priests who take our services, and pastorally care for us wonderfully, are aged 76, 78, 81 and 86.
Perhaps you can now see our problem. It is not going to be easy to open our church on any regular basis for private prayer when almost everyone needs to be very careful about what they do and where they go during the coming months.
It has been suggested by a few people that one of our opening times should be on a Sunday morning at the usual Parish Mass time of 11am for an hour of private prayer before the Blessed Sacrament concluding with saying the angelus at 12. However, is that really very much different from our original plan of spacing ourselves out around the building? All these ideas of priests saying mass and the offices privately whilst people gather in the buildings, although perhaps not advertised, does seem partly like public worship, especially if the church opening time is to be advertised. It just worries me in our situation that too many of our very faithful vulnerable congregation will turn out on Sunday morning, out of duty, when they should be self isolating.
Can you say these things privately? I have always felt that when offered in a church all worship must be public and corporate
Our ecclesiology strictly forbids having a Divine Liturgy (equiv. = Mass) without a layperson present.
. Yes, and that makes sense to me -- to celebrate alone is, well, a selfish act when it should be honoring the self-less love of God. Last Sunday, with most churches not open, Eucharist was celebrated at the National Cathedral in Washington with several persons present (about 5 I think), all maintaining the appropriate social distance. That was available on line in real time. So it was not a priest-only celebration, but one that those of us at home could at least watch and make (falling back here to language from my old RCC roots) a "spiritual communion".
Unless you believe there is a spiritual communion between members of the church .... "One Body" and all that, so that none of us ever acts in isolation for good or ill.
All well and good but the point, the very point of the communion service is the union of the physical and the spiritual in the body and blood. It is a physical service. Watching it on TV is most assuredly NOT taking part.
My aunt's funeral is on Monday in a village church. I do want to go but it feels strange to be going to a church service when they have been forbidden. Guess we'll just all space ourselves out in the pews.
Our ecclesiology strictly forbids having a Divine Liturgy (equiv. = Mass) without a layperson present.
Man's rule, not God's rule.
Is it God's rule for one lone person to celebrate mass? Where is that laid out?
Whether God's rule or man's, the current Roman Missal provides rubrics for use by a priest saying Mass alone with no server. So how to do it is laid out there, which makes me wonder when reading that the RC Church has banned the practice. I'm not sure it has. I do think it's supposed to be an extraordinary occurrence and not a regular planned practice.
Our ecclesiology strictly forbids having a Divine Liturgy (equiv. = Mass) without a layperson present.
Man's rule, not God's rule.
Is it God's rule for one lone person to celebrate mass? Where is that laid out?
Whether God's rule or man's, the current Roman Missal provides rubrics for use by a priest saying Mass alone with no server. So how to do it is laid out there, which makes me wonder when reading that the RC Church has banned the practice. I'm not sure it has. I do think it's supposed to be an extraordinary occurrence and not a regular planned practice.
I was at a conference at whcih 3 RC priests were participants. I was surprised to learn that they were each separately saying Mass in their rooms each day.
Our ecclesiology strictly forbids having a Divine Liturgy (equiv. = Mass) without a layperson present.
. Yes, and that makes sense to me -- to celebrate alone is, well, a selfish act when it should be honoring the self-less love of God. Last Sunday, with most churches not open, Eucharist was celebrated at the National Cathedral in Washington with several persons present (about 5 I think), all maintaining the appropriate social distance. That was available on line in real time. So it was not a priest-only celebration, but one that those of us at home could at least watch and make (falling back here to language from my old RCC roots) a "spiritual communion".
Unless you believe there is a spiritual communion between members of the church .... "One Body" and all that, so that none of us ever acts in isolation for good or ill.
All well and good but the point, the very point of the communion service is the union of the physical and the spiritual in the body and blood. It is a physical service. Watching it on TV is most assuredly NOT taking part.
I think crises tend to reshape orthopraxy, if not orthodoxy. For more discussion of this in relation to Communion see this thread.
Our ecclesiology strictly forbids having a Divine Liturgy (equiv. = Mass) without a layperson present.
. Yes, and that makes sense to me -- to celebrate alone is, well, a selfish act when it should be honoring the self-less love of God. Last Sunday, with most churches not open, Eucharist was celebrated at the National Cathedral in Washington with several persons present (about 5 I think), all maintaining the appropriate social distance. That was available on line in real time. So it was not a priest-only celebration, but one that those of us at home could at least watch and make (falling back here to language from my old RCC roots) a "spiritual communion".
Unless you believe there is a spiritual communion between members of the church .... "One Body" and all that, so that none of us ever acts in isolation for good or ill.
All well and good but the point, the very point of the communion service is the union of the physical and the spiritual in the body and blood. It is a physical service. Watching it on TV is most assuredly NOT taking part.
Yes I do understand sacramental theology, but the physical aspect isn't the only aspect and at times other facets come more to the fore, one of which is keeping the whole body of the parish as healthy as possible. It may be that for some watching a live stream will help in that regard, while for others it won't.
Our ecclesiology strictly forbids having a Divine Liturgy (equiv. = Mass) without a layperson present.
Man's rule, not God's rule.
Is it God's rule for one lone person to celebrate mass? Where is that laid out?
Whether God's rule or man's, the current Roman Missal provides rubrics for use by a priest saying Mass alone with no server. So how to do it is laid out there, which makes me wonder when reading that the RC Church has banned the practice. I'm not sure it has. I do think it's supposed to be an extraordinary occurrence and not a regular planned practice.
I was at a conference at whcih 3 RC priests were participants. I was surprised to learn that they were each separately saying Mass in their rooms each day.
I doubt that was in the heads of the people who drafted those rubrics.
Our ecclesiology strictly forbids having a Divine Liturgy (equiv. = Mass) without a layperson present.
How extreme do circumstances have to be before any derogation can be envisaged?
What would be the point?
And what's the reasoning?
Liturgy is the urgy (work) of the lit (laity). Without laity there is no liturgy. More or less.
I have always understood that we (Anglicans) should never celebrate communion without at least one other person present. However, I have always wondered about the phrase we often have in our consecration prayers which refer to 'with angels and archangels and all the company of heaven', usually concluding in references to praying with Mary, and the communion of saints, living and departed etc. So it does sound as if (our Lord excepted) one is never alone at the communion celebration.
Also, I was also taught that the ordained are still laity, in that they still remain the people of God. They merely have an extra level of function (or ontological function if preferred). They don't cease being theologically lay, though in ordinary definition terms 'lay' might be used to differentiate between who's ordained and who's not.
Our priest has been Spoken To by our Bishop. I wait to hear what has transpired, but our churchwardens and PCC are supporting me in trying to find a positive solution. One churchwarden says he thinks our priest is on some sort of one man anti-coronavirus crusade....
Quite out of nowhere I just heard Julie Covington's voice singing: 'No, Nathanael! Oh, no Nathanael!.....'
As a result of being Spoken To, FatherInCharge has compromised slightly by saying he will open the church for an hour each morning, and an hour each afternoon. He will say his Office at some point during those hours, and in the morning slot (I assume) will say a private Mass.
It's just possible that someone else will be in the church at that time, as all who wish are welcome to come in to light a candle, say a prayer, or just 'be still', but there will be no Communion (except for FInC).
On Sundays, he proposes to open the church at our usual time, and to expose the Blessed Sacrament on the altar, as is done at Benediction.
Our usual pew-sheet with news and the Sunday readings will be available for anyone to pick up and use whilst in the church, or to take home. This echoes what @Puzzler has said, and seems to me to be heading in the direction of 'public worship', although it is not being advertised other than as a time when the church is open, IYSWIM.
We shall see what happens...and whether anyone actually turns up on Sunday, or at any other time!
Also, I was also taught that the ordained are still laity, in that they still remain the people of God. They merely have an extra level of function (or ontological function if preferred). They don't cease being theologically lay, though in ordinary definition terms 'lay' might be used to differentiate between who's ordained and who's not.
When we say "there must be a member of the laity there" we specifically mean "there must be somebody there who is not ordained a priest, bishop, or deacon."
Yes I do understand sacramental theology, but the physical aspect isn't the only aspect and at times other facets come more to the fore, one of which is keeping the whole body of the parish as healthy as possible. It may be that for some watching a live stream will help in that regard, while for others it won't.
But this assumes that the priest is the only one standing in the whole congo, and nobody else could possibly make it to the church to participate. If one such person can do so (say, the priest's wife), then the whole one-person-mass thing is obviated.
Mousethief - are you saying that if five bishops, ten priests and two deacons were to be imprisoned together in a prison for clergy, that they would not be allowed to celebrate the Divine Liturgy together unless there was a non ordained person present . In the present circumstances we have to do what is possible. The Mass at which I participated live this morning was celebrated in a church where only the priest was physically present,but I know that there were hundreds participating in their own homes.
I have always admired the Orthodox idea of 'economy' understanding, perhaps wrongly, that this means that if circumstances indicate that it is necessary normal rules can be overridden..
I don't know why this sticks in people's craws so much. It's like everybody is jumping down my throat to defend something they simply despise. Why are you all so personally tied up in this? Why does it matter so much to you? Some introspection might be in order.
I think that when everything is so unnormal and we're feeling our way in the dark about how to worship for the next several months, especially those of us for whom the Eucharist is a central part of devotion, the minutiae of rubrics and cannons relating to how it's done will get blown out of all proportion, far more than is usual even for Ecclesiantics, as it's something tangible we can discuss, and which people have some control over.
Comments
Horses for courses, I guess, and in these strange times, it might be necessary, if only for the spiritual health of the priest. But 'private' should mean just that - no congregation, and no public notice of the time...
Watch this space.
(Our current solution, meanwhile, is to have everyone grab whatever most closely resembles bread and wine to hand, and take communion at the same time during our FB live session).
Yesterday evening we had one of our best-attended prayer meetings in a long time! We started and ended on FB live: intro was one song, a Scripture reading, and opening prayer. Then we ended the live and got people into groups to do 4-way voice calls using FB Messenger for prayer together, before reconvening about 20 minutes later for another FB live session where we read a prayer together and sang another song.
*I've just remembered Terry Waite describing his time as a hostage in Beirut and how he would pray when he heard the muzzein call in the morning.
Indeed "private" masses have long been banned in the RCC since well before Vat 2, but these are strange times. I find it comforting that there are priests all over town offering Mass for the well-being of their communities and the wider community.
It is indeed comforting to think of clergy praying for their people in this way.
The thought of all churches cold and empty with even the priests gone away could be disconcerting. For some people, simply knowing that someone is carrying things on in some form can be a comfort.
I'd get the churchwardens to lock your priest out. He's a one man walking disaster. Suggest that he isn't in the right frame of mind for the role and find another
Point taken - which is why we (and other local churches) are currently seeking ways of keeping the churches open for private prayer.
Our priest has been Spoken To by our Bishop. I wait to hear what has transpired, but our churchwardens and PCC are supporting me in trying to find a positive solution. One churchwarden says he thinks our priest is on some sort of one man anti-coronavirus crusade....
How extreme do circumstances have to be before any derogation can be envisaged?
And what's the reasoning?
There is in one sense no such thing as a 'private' Mass. Whether there is only one person (the celebrant) or twentythousand physically present,the Holy Sacrifice is offered at the hands of the priest for the praise and glory of God's name,for the good of all the faithful as well as the good of all God's holy Church. It is exactly the same with Anglican Morning and Evening prayer recited for the same reasons sometimes by the clergy alone.
I would assume that clergy and other members of other churches similarly pray for the good of all.
through and including Easter. Online worship is encouraged if possible. Link here:
https://www.episcopalnewsservice.org/pressreleases/presiding-bishop-michael-curry-online-worship-encouraged-including-holy-week-and-easter/
Man's rule, not God's rule.
Well, fair enough - but the times of opening have been Decreed Without Consultation by FInC, and I should have thought (albeit perhaps selfishly) that one or two midday-ish slots would have been helpful. A prior chat with his Wardens and Readers might have been a good idea, as the slots are really rather too early, or too late, in the day for me.
This is another issue entirely, and which has not so far been of any real concern, but he does seem to rule by the 'Father Knows Best' method of diktat...
That really is a bit much. I am glad you snitched. I think if I were in the UK at the moment I would have a notice on the door saying, 'Services suspended due to Covid-19' but would still be popping in to read MP/EP and say Mass on Sundays and Holydays. When he have snowy/icy weather here I usually say 'Mass will be at 11am, but do not come unless it is safe to do so. I see this event in much the same light.
It'll be interesting to find out how many people do drop in - we may be pleasantly surprised, but we are a bit off the beaten track, with very little passing trade.
Unless you believe there is a spiritual communion between members of the church .... "One Body" and all that, so that none of us ever acts in isolation for good or ill.
We will, of course, now not do this, and will follow the official directions of the C of E to suspend all public worship until further notice.
Our congregation are mainly elderly and over the age of 70 and many of them have underlying health issues. There are actually only 2 of us under 70, myself at 63, and one of our churchwardens, who although in her 50’s has quite significant underlying health issues. I’m quite fit and healthy for my age but do have my 85 year old mother with dementia living with me and so I am now seriously trying to socially isolate myself as much as possible.
We haven’t had a resident priest for almost 10 years and our four retired priests who take our services, and pastorally care for us wonderfully, are aged 76, 78, 81 and 86.
Perhaps you can now see our problem. It is not going to be easy to open our church on any regular basis for private prayer when almost everyone needs to be very careful about what they do and where they go during the coming months.
It has been suggested by a few people that one of our opening times should be on a Sunday morning at the usual Parish Mass time of 11am for an hour of private prayer before the Blessed Sacrament concluding with saying the angelus at 12. However, is that really very much different from our original plan of spacing ourselves out around the building? All these ideas of priests saying mass and the offices privately whilst people gather in the buildings, although perhaps not advertised, does seem partly like public worship, especially if the church opening time is to be advertised. It just worries me in our situation that too many of our very faithful vulnerable congregation will turn out on Sunday morning, out of duty, when they should be self isolating.
Can you say these things privately? I have always felt that when offered in a church all worship must be public and corporate
What would be the point?
Liturgy is the urgy (work) of the lit (laity). Without laity there is no liturgy. More or less.
Is it God's rule for one lone person to celebrate mass? Where is that laid out?
All well and good but the point, the very point of the communion service is the union of the physical and the spiritual in the body and blood. It is a physical service. Watching it on TV is most assuredly NOT taking part.
Did Miss Amanda say it was?
Whether God's rule or man's, the current Roman Missal provides rubrics for use by a priest saying Mass alone with no server. So how to do it is laid out there, which makes me wonder when reading that the RC Church has banned the practice. I'm not sure it has. I do think it's supposed to be an extraordinary occurrence and not a regular planned practice.
Does Mrs. Priest qualify as a layperson?
(Biretta or Derby Day straw floral)
I was at a conference at whcih 3 RC priests were participants. I was surprised to learn that they were each separately saying Mass in their rooms each day.
Yes I do understand sacramental theology, but the physical aspect isn't the only aspect and at times other facets come more to the fore, one of which is keeping the whole body of the parish as healthy as possible. It may be that for some watching a live stream will help in that regard, while for others it won't.
I doubt that was in the heads of the people who drafted those rubrics.
This one starts from the premise that they are "wrong"
https://praytellblog.com/index.php/2020/03/18/private-masses-do-not-fit-with-a-contemporary-understanding-of-eucharist/
and this one is a response
https://praytellblog.com/index.php/2020/03/19/response-mass-without-the-people-is-legitimate/
There are valuable contributions on both sides.
I have always understood that we (Anglicans) should never celebrate communion without at least one other person present. However, I have always wondered about the phrase we often have in our consecration prayers which refer to 'with angels and archangels and all the company of heaven', usually concluding in references to praying with Mary, and the communion of saints, living and departed etc. So it does sound as if (our Lord excepted) one is never alone at the communion celebration.
Also, I was also taught that the ordained are still laity, in that they still remain the people of God. They merely have an extra level of function (or ontological function if preferred). They don't cease being theologically lay, though in ordinary definition terms 'lay' might be used to differentiate between who's ordained and who's not.
Quite out of nowhere I just heard Julie Covington's voice singing: 'No, Nathanael! Oh, no Nathanael!.....'
As a result of being Spoken To, FatherInCharge has compromised slightly by saying he will open the church for an hour each morning, and an hour each afternoon. He will say his Office at some point during those hours, and in the morning slot (I assume) will say a private Mass.
It's just possible that someone else will be in the church at that time, as all who wish are welcome to come in to light a candle, say a prayer, or just 'be still', but there will be no Communion (except for FInC).
On Sundays, he proposes to open the church at our usual time, and to expose the Blessed Sacrament on the altar, as is done at Benediction.
Our usual pew-sheet with news and the Sunday readings will be available for anyone to pick up and use whilst in the church, or to take home. This echoes what @Puzzler has said, and seems to me to be heading in the direction of 'public worship', although it is not being advertised other than as a time when the church is open, IYSWIM.
We shall see what happens...and whether anyone actually turns up on Sunday, or at any other time!
When we say "there must be a member of the laity there" we specifically mean "there must be somebody there who is not ordained a priest, bishop, or deacon."
But this assumes that the priest is the only one standing in the whole congo, and nobody else could possibly make it to the church to participate. If one such person can do so (say, the priest's wife), then the whole one-person-mass thing is obviated.
Miss Amanda is being coy.
I have always admired the Orthodox idea of 'economy' understanding, perhaps wrongly, that this means that if circumstances indicate that it is necessary normal rules can be overridden..