CONGREGATION FOR DIVINE WORSHIP
AND THE DISCIPLINE OF THE SACRAMENT
INSTRUCTION

Redemptionis Sacramentum

On certain matters to be observed or to be avoided
regarding the Most Holy Eucharist

Preamble

[1.] In the Most Holy Eucharist, Mother Church with steadfast faith acknowledges the Sacrament of redemption,[1] joyfully takes it to herself, celebrates it and reveres it in adoration, proclaiming the death of Christ Jesus and confessing his Resurrection until he comes in glory[2] to hand over, as unconquered Lord and Ruler, eternal Priest and King of the Universe, a kingdom of truth and life to the immense majesty of the Almighty Father.[3]

[2.] The Church’s doctrine regarding the Most Holy Eucharist, in which the whole spiritual wealth of the Church is contained - namely Christ, our Paschal Lamb[4] - the Eucharist which is the source and summit of the whole of Christian life,[5] and which lies as a causative force behind the very origins of the Church,[6] has been expounded with thoughtful care and with great authority over the course of the centuries in the writings of the Councils and the Supreme Pontiffs. Most recently, in fact, the Supreme Pontiff John Paul II, in the Encyclical Letter Ecclesia de Eucharistia, set forth afresh certain elements of great importance on this subject in view of the ecclesial circumstances of our times.[7]

In order that especially in the celebration of the Sacred Liturgy the Church might duly safeguard so great a mystery in our own time as well, the Supreme Pontiff has mandated that this Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments,[8] in collaboration with the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, should prepare this Instruction treating of certain matters pertaining to the discipline of the Sacrament of the Eucharist. Those things found in this Instruction are therefore to be read in the continuity with the above-mentioned Encyclical Letter, Ecclesia de Eucharistia.

It is not at all the intention here to prepare a compendium of the norms regarding the Most Holy Eucharist, but rather, to take up within this Instruction some elements of liturgical norms that have been previously expounded or laid down and even today remain in force in order to assure a deeper appreciation of the liturgical norms;[9] to establish certain norms by which those earlier ones are explained and complemented; and also to set forth for Bishops, as well as for Priests, Deacons and all the lay Christian faithful, how each should carry them out in accordance with his own responsibilities and the means at his disposal.

[3.] The norms contained in the present Instruction are to be understood as pertaining to liturgical matters in the Roman Rite, and, mutatis mutandis, in the other Rites of the Latin Church that are duly acknowledged by law.

[4.] “Certainly the liturgical reform inaugurated by the Council has greatly contributed to a more conscious, active and fruitful participation in the Holy Sacrifice of the Altar on the part of the faithful.”[10] Even so, “shadows are not lacking”.[11] In this regard it is not possible to be silent about the abuses, even quite grave ones, against the nature of the Liturgy and the Sacraments as well as the tradition and the authority of the Church, which in our day not infrequently plague liturgical celebrations in one ecclesial environment or another. In some places the perpetration of liturgical abuses has become almost habitual, a fact which obviously cannot be allowed and must cease.

[5.] The observance of the norms published by the authority of the Church requires conformity of thought and of word, of external action and of the application of the heart. A merely external observation of norms would obviously be contrary to the nature of the Sacred Liturgy, in which Christ himself wishes to gather his Church, so that together with himself she will be “one body and one spirit”.[12] For this reason, external action must be illuminated by faith and charity, which unite us with Christ and with one another and engender love for the poor and the abandoned. The liturgical words and rites, moreover, are a faithful expression, matured over the centuries, of the understanding of Christ, and they teach us to think as he himself does;[13] by conforming our minds to these words, we raise our hearts to the Lord. All that is said in this Instruction is directed toward such a conformity of our own understanding with that of Christ, as expressed in the words and the rites of the Liturgy.

[6.] For abuses “contribute to the obscuring of the Catholic faith and doctrine concerning this wonderful sacrament”.[14] Thus, they also hinder the faithful from “re-living in a certain way the experience of the two disciples of Emmaus: ‘and their eyes were opened, and they recognized him’”.[15] For in the presence of God’s power and divinity[16] and the splendor of his goodness, made manifest especially in the Sacrament of the Eucharist, it is fitting that all the faithful should have and put into practice that power of acknowledging God’s majesty that they have received through the saving Passion of the Only-Begotten Son.[17]

[7.] Not infrequently, abuses are rooted in a false understanding of liberty. Yet God has not granted us in Christ an illusory liberty by which we may do what we wish, but a liberty by which we may do that which is fitting and right.[18] This is true not only of precepts coming directly from God, but also of laws promulgated by the Church, with appropriate regard for the nature of each norm. For this reason, all should conform to the ordinances set forth by legitimate ecclesiastical authority.

[8.] It is therefore to be noted with great sadness that “ecumenical initiatives which are well-intentioned, nevertheless indulge at times in Eucharistic practices contrary to the discipline by which the Church expresses her faith”. Yet the Eucharist “is too great a gift to tolerate ambiguity or depreciation”. It is therefore necessary that some things be corrected or more clearly delineated so that in this respect as well “the Eucharist will continue to shine forth in all its radiant mystery”.[19]

[9.] Finally, abuses are often based on ignorance, in that they involve a rejection of those elements whose deeper meaning is not understood and whose antiquity is not recognized. For “the liturgical prayers, orations and songs are pervaded by the inspiration and impulse” of the Sacred Scriptures themselves, “and it is from these that the actions and signs receive their meaning”.[20] As for the visible signs “which the Sacred Liturgy uses in order to signify the invisible divine realities, they have been chosen by Christ or by the Church”.[21] Finally, the structures and forms of the sacred celebrations according to each of the Rites of both East and West are in harmony with the practice of the universal Church also as regards practices received universally from apostolic and unbroken tradition,[22] which it is the Church’s task to transmit faithfully and carefully to future generations. All these things are wisely safeguarded and protected by the liturgical norms.

[10.] The Church herself has no power over those things which were established by Christ himself and which constitute an unchangeable part of the Liturgy.[23] Indeed, if the bond were to be broken which the Sacraments have with Christ himself who instituted them, and with the events of the Church’s founding,[24] it would not be beneficial to the faithful but rather would do them grave harm. For the Sacred Liturgy is quite intimately connected with principles of doctrine,[25] so that the use of unapproved texts and rites necessarily leads either to the attenuation or to the disappearance of that necessary link between the lex orandi and the lex credendi.[26]

[11.] The Mystery of the Eucharist “is too great for anyone to permit himself to treat it according to his own whim, so that its sacredness and its universal ordering would be obscured”.[27] On the contrary, anyone who acts thus by giving free reign to his own inclinations, even if he is a Priest, injures the substantial unity of the Roman Rite, which ought to be vigorously preserved,[28] and becomes responsible for actions that are in no way consistent with the hunger and thirst for the living God that is experienced by the people today. Nor do such actions serve authentic pastoral care or proper liturgical renewal; instead, they deprive Christ’s faithful of their patrimony and their heritage. For arbitrary actions are not conducive to true renewal,[29] but are detrimental to the right of Christ’s faithful to a liturgical celebration that is an expression of the Church’s life in accordance with her tradition and discipline. In the end, they introduce elements of distortion and disharmony into the very celebration of the Eucharist, which is oriented in its own lofty way and by its very nature to signifying and wondrously bringing about the communion of divine life and the unity of the People of God.[30] The result is uncertainty in matters of doctrine, perplexity and scandal on the part of the People of God, and, almost as a necessary consequence, vigorous opposition, all of which greatly confuse and sadden many of Christ’s faithful in this age of ours when Christian life is often particularly difficult on account of the inroads of “secularization” as well.[31]

[12.] On the contrary, it is the right of all of Christ’s faithful that the Liturgy, and in particular the celebration of Holy Mass, should truly be as the Church wishes, according to her stipulations as prescribed in the liturgical books and in the other laws and norms. Likewise, the Catholic people have the right that the Sacrifice of the Holy Mass should be celebrated for them in an integral manner, according to the entire doctrine of the Church’s Magisterium. Finally, it is the Catholic community’s right that the celebration of the Most Holy Eucharist should be carried out for it in such a manner that it truly stands out as a sacrament of unity, to the exclusion of all blemishes and actions that might engender divisions and factions in the Church.[32]

[13.] All of the norms and exhortations set forth in this Instruction are connected, albeit in various ways, with the mission of the Church, whose task it is to be vigilant concerning the correct and worthy celebration of so great a mystery. The last chapter of the present Instruction will treat of the varying degrees to which the individual norms are bound up with the supreme norm of all ecclesiastical law, namely concern for the salvation of souls.[33]

Notes:

[1] Cf. Missale Romanum, ex decreto sacrosancti Oecumenici Concilii Vaticani II instauratum, auctoritate Pauli Pp. VI promulgatum, Ioannis Pauli Pp. II cura recognitum, editio typica tertia, diei 20 aprilis 2000, Typis Vaticanis, 2002, Missa votiva de Dei misericordia, oratio super oblata, p. 1159.

[2] Cf. 1 Cor 11, 26; Missale Romanum, Prex Eucharistica, acclamatio post consecrationem, p. 576; Pope John Paul II, Encyclical Letter, Ecclesia de Eucharistia, 17 April 2003, nn. 5, 11, 14, 18: AAS 95 (2003) pp. 436, 440-441, 442, 445.

[3] Cf. Is 10: 33; 51, 22; Missale Romanum, In sollemnitate Domini nostri Iesu Christi, universorum Regis, Praefatio, p. 499.

[4] Cf.1 Cor 5: 7; Second Vatican Ecumenical Council, Decree on the Ministry and Life of Priests, Presbyterorum ordinis, 7 December 1965, n. 5; John Paul II, Apostolic Exhortation., Ecclesia in Europa, n. 75: AAS 95 (2003) pp. 649-719, here p. 693.

[5] Cf. Second Vatican Ecumenical Council, Dogmatic Constitution on the Church, Lumen gentium, 21 November 1964, n. 11.

[6] Cf. Pope John Paul II, Encyclical Letter Ecclesia de Eucharistia, 17 April 2003, n. 21: AAS 95 (2003) p. 447.

[7] Ibidem: AAS 95 (2003) pp. 433-475.

[8] Ibidem, n. 52: AAS 95 (2003) p. 468.

[9] Ibidem.

[10] Ibidem, n. 10: AAS 95 (2003) p. 439.

[11] Ibidem; cf. Pope John Paul II, Apostolic Letter, Vicesimus quintus annus, 4 December 1988, nn. 12-13: AAS 81 (1989)pp. 909-910; cf. also Second Vatican Ecumenical Council, Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy, Sacrosanctum Concilium, 4 December 1963 n. 48.

[12] Missale Romanum, Prex Eucharistica III, p. 588; cf. 1 Cor 12: 12-13; Eph 4: 4.

[13] Cf. Phil 2,5.

[14] Pope John Paul II, Encyclical Letter Ecclesia de Eucharistia, n. 10: AAS 95 (2003), p. 439.

[15] Ibidem, n. 6: AAS 95 (2003) p. 437; cf. Lk 24: 31.

[16] Cf. Rom 1: 20.

[17] Cf. Missale Romanum, Praefatio I de Passione Domini, p. 528.

[18] Cf. Pope John Paul II, Encyclical Letter Veritatis splendor, 6 August 1993, n. 35: AAS 85 (1993) pp. 1161-1162; Homily given at Camden Yards, 9 October 1995, n. 7: Insegnamenti di Giovanni Paolo II, XVII, 2 (1995), Libreria Editrice Vaticana, 1998, p. 788.

[19] Cf. Pope John Paul II, Encyclical Letter Ecclesia de Eucharistia, n. 10: AAS 95 (2003) p. 439.

[20] Second Vatican Ecumenical Council, Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy, Sacrosanctum Concilium, n. 24; cf. Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments, Instruction Varietates legitimae, 25 January 1994, nn. 19 and 23: AAS 87 (1995) pp. 295-296, 297.

[21] Second Vatican Ecumenical Council, Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy, Sacrosanctum Concilium, n. 33.

[22] Cf. St Irenaeus, Adversus Haereses, III, 2: SCh.., 211, 24-31; St Augustine, Epistula ad Ianuarium: 54,I: PL 33,200: «Illa autem quae non scripta, sed tradita custodimus, quae quidem toto terrarum orbe servantur, datur intellegi vel ab ipsis Apostolis, vel plenariis conciliis, quorum est Ecclesia saluberrima auctoritas, commendata atque statuta retineri.»; Pope John Paul II, Encyclical Letter Redemptoris missio, 7 December 1990, nn. 53-54: AAS 83 (1991) pp. 300-302; Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, Letter to the Bishops of the Catholic Church on Certain Aspects of the Church as Communion, Communionis notio, 28 May 1992, nn. 7-10: AAS 85 (1993) pp. 842-844; Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments, Instruction Varietates legitimae, n. 26: AAS 87 (1995) pp. 298-299.

[23] Cf. Second Vatican Ecumenical Council, Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy, Sacrosanctum Concilium, n. 21.

[24] Cf. Pope Pius XII, Apostolic Constitution Sacramentum Ordinis, 30 November 1947: AAS 40 (1948) p. 5; Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, Declaration Inter insigniores, 15 October 1976, part IV: AAS 69 (1977) pp. 107-108; Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments, Instruction Varietates legitimae, n. 25: AAS 87 (1995) p. 298.

[25] Cf. Pope Pius XII, Encyclical Letter Mediator Dei, 20 November 1947: AAS 39 (1947) p. 540.

[26] Cf. S. Congregation for the Sacraments and Divine Worship, Instruction Inaestimabile donum, 3 April 1980: AAS 72 (1980) p. 333.

[27] Pope John Paul II, Encyclical Letter Ecclesia de Eucharistia, n. 52: AAS 95 (2003), p. 468.

[28] Second Vatican Ecumenical Council, Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy, Sacrosanctum Concilium, nn. 4,38; Decree on the Catholic Eastern Churches, Orientalium Ecclesiarum, 21 November 1964, nn. 1,2,6; Pope Paul VI, Apostolic Constitution Missale Romanum: AAS 61 (1969) pp. 217-222; Missale Romanum, Institutio Generalis, n. 399; Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments, Instruction Liturgiam authenticam, 28 March 2001, n. 4: AAS 93 (2001) pp. 685-726, here p. 686.

[29] Cf. Pope John Paul II, Apostolic Exhortation Ecclesia in Europa, n. 72: AAS 95 (2003) p. 000.

[30] Cf. Pope John Paul II, Encyclical Letter Ecclesia de Eucharistia, n. 23: AAS 95 (2003) pp. 448-449; S. Congregation of Rites, Instruction Eucharisticum mysterium, 25 May 1967, n. 6: AAS 59 (1967) p. 545.

[31] S. Congregation for the Sacraments and Divine Worship, Instruction Inaestimabile donum: AAS 72 (1980) pp. 332-333.

[32] Cf. 1 Cor 11,17-34; Pope John Paul II, Encyclical Letter, Ecclesia de Eucharistia, n. 52: AAS 95 (2003) pp. 467-468.

[33] Cf. Code of C anon Law, 25 January 1983, can. 1752.

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