[Propertalk] Vatican \ Documents- Letter to Bishops on the bread and wine for the Eucharist

[Joe Parrish]

In case you wondered if there are standards, for the Vatican:

 

Vatican \ Documents

Letter to Bishops on the bread and wine for the Eucharist

 

Pope Francis rises the holy host during a Mass prior to the Corpus Domini
procession from St. John at the Lateran Basilica to St. Mary Major Basilica.
- AP

08/07/2017 11:17

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(Vatican Radio) At the request of Pope Francis, the Congregation for Divine
Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments is writing to Diocesan Bishops
to remind them that it falls to them above all to duly provide for all that
is required for the celebration of the Lord’s Supper. 

 

Below find the English language translation of Circular letter to Bishops on
the bread and wine for the Eucharist

 

CONGREGATION FOR DIVINE WORSHIP

AND THE DISCIPLINE OF THE SACRAMENTS

 

 

 

Prot. N. 320/17

 

 

Circular letter to Bishops

on the bread and wine for the Eucharist

 

 

At the request of the Holy Father, Pope Francis, the Congregation for Divine
Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments is writing to Diocesan Bishops
(and to those who are their equivalents in law) to remind them that it falls
to them above all to duly provide for all that is required for the
celebration of the Lord’s Supper (cf. Lk 22: 8,13).  It is for the Bishop as
principal dispenser of the mysteries of God, moderator, promoter and
guardian of the liturgical life in the Church entrusted to his care (Cf. CIC
can. 835 § 1), to watch over the quality of the bread and wine to be used at
the Eucharist and also those who prepare these materials.  In order to be of
assistance we recall the existing regulations and offer some practical
suggestions.

 

Until recently it was certain religious communities who took care of baking
the bread and making the wine for the celebration of the Eucharist.  Today,
however, these materials are also sold in supermarkets and other stores and
even over the internet.  In order to remove any doubt about the validity of
the matter for the Eucharist, this Dicastery suggests that Ordinaries should
give guidance in this regard by, for example, guaranteeing the Eucharistic
matter through special certification.

The Ordinary is bound to remind priests, especially parish priests and
rectors of churches, of their responsibility to verify those who provide the
bread and wine for the celebration and the worthiness of the material.

It is also for the Ordinary to provide information to the producers of the
bread and wine for the Eucharist and to remind them of the absolute respect
that is due to the norms.

 

The norms about the Eucharistic matter are given in can. 924 of the CIC and
in numbers 319 – 323 of the Institutio generalis Missalis Romani  and have
already been explained in the Instruction Redemptionis Sacramentum issued by
this Congregation (25 March 2004):

 

“The bread used in the celebration of the Most Holy Eucharistic Sacrifice
must be unleavened, purely of wheat, and recently made so that there is no
danger of decomposition.  It follows therefore that bread made from another
substance, even if it is grain, or if it is mixed with another substance
different from wheat to such an extent that it would not commonly be
considered wheat bread, does not constitute valid matter for confecting the
Sacrifice and the Eucharistic Sacrament.  It is a grave abuse to introduce
other substances, such as fruit or sugar or honey, into the bread for
confecting the Eucharist. Hosts should obviously be made by those who are
not only distinguished by their integrity, but also skilled in making them
and furnished with suitable tools” (n. 48).

 

“The wine that is used in the most sacred celebration of the Eucharistic
Sacrifice must be natural, from the fruit of the grape, pure and incorrupt,
not mixed with other substances.  [
]  Great care should be taken so that
the wine intended for the celebration of the Eucharist is well conserved and
has not soured.  It is altogether forbidden to use wine of doubtful
authenticity or provenance, for the Church requires certainty regarding the
conditions necessary for the validity of the sacraments. Nor are other
drinks of any kind to be admitted for any reason, as they do not constitute
valid matter” (n. 50).

 

In its Circular Letter to the Presidents of the Episcopal Conferences
regarding legitimate variations in the use of bread with a small quantity of
gluten and the use of mustum as Eucharistic matter (24 July 2003, Prot. N.
89/78 – 17498), the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith published the
norms for the celebration of the Eucharist by persons who, for varying and
grave reasons, cannot consume bread made in the usual manner nor wine
fermented in the normal manner:

 

“Hosts that are completely gluten-free are invalid matter for the
celebration of the Eucharist.  Low-gluten hosts (partially gluten-free) are
valid matter, provided they contain a sufficient amount of gluten to obtain
the confection of bread without the addition of foreign materials and
without the use of procedures that would alter the nature of bread” (A.
1-2).

 

“Mustum, which is grape juice that is either fresh or preserved by methods
that suspend its fermentation without altering its nature (for example,
freezing), is valid matter for the celebration of the Eucharist” (A. 3).

 

“The Ordinary is competent to give permission for an individual priest or
layperson to use low-gluten hosts or mustum for the celebration of the
Eucharist. Permission can be granted habitually, for as long as the
situation continues which occasioned the granting of permission” (C. 1).

 

The same Congregation also decided that Eucharistic matter made with
genetically modified organisms can be considered valid matter (cf. Letter to
the Prefect of the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the
Sacraments, 9 December 2013, Prot. N. 89/78 – 44897).

 

Those who make bread and produce wine for use in the Mass must be aware that
their work is directed towards the Eucharistic Sacrifice and that this
demands their honesty, responsibility and competence.

 

In order to facilitate the observance of the general norms Ordinaries can
usefully reach agreement at the level of the Episcopal Conference by
establishing concrete regulations.  Given the complexity of situations and
circumstances, such as a decrease in respect for the sacred, it may be
useful to mandate a competent authority to have oversight in actually
guaranteeing the genuineness of the Eucharistic matter by producers as well
as those responsible for its distribution and sale.

It is suggested, for example, that an Episcopal Conference could mandate one
or more Religious Congregations or another body capable of carrying out the
necessary checks on production, conservation and sale of the Eucharistic
bread and wine in a given country and for other countries to which they are
exported.  It is recommended that the bread and wine to be used in the
Eucharist be treated accordingly in the places where they are sold.

 

>From the offices of the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline
of the  Sacraments, 15 June 2017, Solemnity of the Most Holy Body and Blood
of Christ.

 

 

Robert Card. Sarah

Prefect

 

 

 
X Arthur Roche

 
Archbishop Secretary

 

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