As we Anglicans increasingly make use of lay service leaders, as we will this coming Sunday at St George’s, it was interesting to read the Vatican’s answer to a question posed by the German bishops, as to whether qualified laypeople can deliver the homily at the eucharist in exceptional cases.
The Vatican Dicastery for Divine Worship and Sacramental Discipline, said a very clear No. In their eyes the proclamation of the Word in the liturgical celebration of the Eucharist is inseparable from the mission received sacramentally and from the unity that links Word and Sacrament.
But in fact the Vatican’s position is more open than it appears. Their response to the German bishops recognises that, outside of the Eucharist, Roman Catholic Church discipline allows for numerous forms of proclamation of the Word entrusted to lay people. So it appears that, what we propose to do here this Sunday and from time to time, would be acceptable in Roman Catholic eyes because the preaching by a layperson takes place in a non-eucharistic act of worship.
Read the full article here.