Guidelines for Administering the Sacraments
Sacramental Registers
Requests for Information
The USCCB Office of the General Secretary recently reaffirmed its decision of April 5, 2008 (Prot. #20080365) and reminded all bishops that requests from the Mormons (the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints) and their Genealogical Society of Utah for access to our sacramental registers are to be denied; all information contained therein is considered confidential and not for viewing or duplication by any and all parties outside of the Catholic Church. For more information, contact either Sr. Rita-Mae Bissonnette, Chancellor, or Msgr. Marc Caron, Vicar General/Moderator of the Curia, at the Chancery
Sacraments Celebrated in Institutions
Hospitals
When baptisms and other sacraments that require recording in official registers occur at local hospitals, they are to be recorded in the sacramental books of the local parish.
Colleges
All sacraments celebrated for college students are to be recorded in the sacramental books of the local parish. In particular, all weddings on college campuses are now recorded in the marriage register of the local parish and the PMI file is to be kept in the parish files.
Recording Sacraments for Joint Celebrations
With more and more parishes holding joint celebrations of the Easter Vigil as well as joint celebrations of the sacraments of confirmation and first Communion, the Bishop’s Office regularly receives inquiries about the proper procedure(s) for recording the sacraments involving individuals from multiple parishes. The Code of Canon Law requires the sacraments to be recorded in the register of the parish where the sacrament is celebrated, and the parish where each individual was baptized must be notified. Note that in parishes where the celebration of the initiation sacraments did not take place, a notation is to be made in the register of the date and place where the sacrament was celebrated for that year. For example, “On June 3, 2009, the sacraments of confirmation and first Communion were administered at St. Mary Major Parish, East Hampton, ME, for the following parishioners: X, Y, Z, etc.” When multiple parishes have merged into a new canonical parish:
• A new, single set of official sacramental registers, regardless of the number of locations (i.e., churches) within the new parish, must be used.
• Old/previous registers are no longer to be used for recording but must be retained and safeguarded along with the records of the newly erected parish.
Death Registers
Recommendation: Death registers should include all funerals that are done in the parish, whether the ministry includes the entire Rite of Christian Burial (Vigil/Wake Service, Mass of Christian Burial, Committals/Burials), or simply one or more parts of the entire rite. The death register should include the names of all the deceased on whose behalf the parish has exercised this ministry, not only for registered parishioners. If a deceased had a funeral in another parish or diocese and is being brought home to your parish or back to Maine for burial, then the presumption is that the deceased’s name is already recorded in the death register of another parish. On the other hand, if the deceased did not have any kind of funeral service elsewhere, then the committal service you perform should be recorded in your parish’s death register.
Marriage and Annulments
Requesting & Processing of Marriage Dispensations
All requests for marriage dispensations should be sent to the Department for Canonical Services. If you have any questions regarding a dispensation, please contact Shannon Fossett at (207) 773-6471, extension 7854.
When Annulments are Pending and/or Restrictions have been Imposed: Please remember that all weddings, including convalidations, may not be scheduled if there is an annulment pending for one or both of the parties. A wedding may not even be “penciled in” until the decree of nullity has been finalized. Occasionally, parties receive a restriction (vetitum) from remarriage. This is a medicinal measure aimed at preventing a repetition of serious problems that were present in a prior marriage. If there is a restriction, a party is not free to marry. A wedding may not be scheduled, even tentatively, unless a restriction has been lifted by the appropriate authority. Please contact the Tribunal with any questions about scheduling a wedding or lifting a restriction.
The Sacrament of Marriage
The definition of marriage as the union of one man and one woman has changed in Maine law. Priests and parish staff must express themselves accurately when discussing this subject. For example, sometimes we hear people say that every marriage celebrated in the Church is sacramental, which is not true. The theology on this matter was settled long ago. Only the marriage between two baptized persons is the sacrament of matrimony. The marriage of a baptized person with a non-baptized person is not a sacrament. Nonetheless, with the proper dispensation(s), a marriage between one baptized person and one non-baptized person can be recognized as valid, although not sacramental. All marriages, sacramental or not, must be exclusively between one man and one woman. This definition flows not from Church, sacramental or canon law but from the very nature of marriage in natural law.
For more information on or questions about:
• The celebration of marriage, contact the Department for Canonical Services at 207.773-6471, ext. 7854
• The promotion and defense of marriage, contact Suzanne Lafreniere in the Office of Public Policy at the Chancery (207) 773-6471, extension 7834.
Disposal of Old/Outdated Liturgical Books
With the promulgation of the new translation of the Third Typical Edition of the Roman Missal, parishes have asked about the proper disposal of old copies of books used exclusively for the celebration of Mass, the other sacraments, and other liturgical rites and rituals. Disposal of items used for sacred liturgy should be handled with respect. For example, such liturgical books should be burned and/or buried on church grounds/cemeteries. Parish archives are encouraged to retain a copy of old liturgical books.
Celiac Spruce Disease & Low-Gluten Hosts
The number of individuals suffering from celiac sprue disease is increasing, as are the number of requests for accommodations (i.e., low-gluten hosts). To facilitate such requests, two letters should be sent to the Bishop’s Office (510 Ocean Avenue, Portland, ME 04103-4936):
- the communicant should ask his/her physician to provide the Bishop's Office with a written testimony of the diagnosis and a recommendation for the use of low-gluten hosts, and
- the pastors of these individuals should write the Bishop’s Office and request permission to use low-gluten hosts.
Please make certain that you inform those seeking this dispensation that the hosts must be LOW-GLUTEN (that is, GLUTEN-FREE hosts are not permitted by the Holy See).
An excerpt from the USCCB website reads:
“….pastors and the faithful are reminded that for bread to be valid matter for the Eucharist, it must be made solely of wheat, contain enough gluten to effect the confection of bread, be free of foreign materials, and unaffected by any preparation or baking methods which would alter its nature.”
For more information about how to obtain permission to use or to contact vendors to purchase low-gluten hosts, please contact the Vicar General/Moderator of the Curia, the Chancellor, or the Bishop’s Executive Assistant, Mrs. Christine Pitteroff at (207) 773-6471, ext. 7821, or [email protected].
