Eucharistic Ministers
- Eucharistic Ministers of Communion (more properly known as Extraordinary Ministers of Holy Communion) should be adult (18) practicing Catholics in good standing with the Church, members of St. Martin Parish and living a good Christian life. They should have a general understanding of and reverence for the Real Presence.
- Eucharistic Ministers, along with the priest and deacon, minister the Body and Blood of Christ to the assembly during the Communion Rite of the Liturgy and can also take Communion to the sick and shut-ins of our parish. They serve at the Lord’s Table by offering the gifts of His Body and Blood to our Church community.
- Dress appropriately –DO NOT wear shorts, t-shirts – tank tops, flip-flops, tight fitting or low-cut clothes or work pants. Be professional, but comfortable.
- Before Mass: (1) Please plan to arrive at the church at least 10 minutes before the Mass starts. There may some differences to learn about. (2) Please check that the servers have taken the 2 pre-filled communion cups and the chalice out to the credence table (with purificators). (3) Decide who is distributing the Body and who the Blood for the Mass.
- Try to sit in the pews nearest to the tabernacle.
- At the Lamb of God, come to the bottom step of the sanctuary. Wait for the priest to receive Holy Communion under both species, then approach the rear of the altar to receive your Communion. The deacon will already be behind the priest.
- After your Communion, take the Body or Blood (as the case may be) and go to your station to distribute. If, during Communion distribution, you should drop a host, immediately stop, pick it up and consume it yourself. If you are distributing the Precious Blood and some should spill, stop and go and get a purificator, wet it with water from the lavabo pitcher and try to soak up as much of the liquid in the purificator as you can. The, leaving the purificator to cover the damp area, resume distributing Communion.
- If you are distributing on the tabernacle side, after finishing there, move to the pews on the right. First, move to any handicapped or frail people and distribute to them first. Then return to a station with easy accessibility for the people. After finished distributing the Precious Blood, consume any remaining and return all items to the credence table. The deacon will purify the vessels at this time.
- After Mass, take the cups and chalice into the sink in the sacristy and these should be washed with hot, soapy water. The vessels should be dried and put away in the proper location.
