(ZENIT News / Rome, 15.04.2025).- On Sunday, April 13, the Dicastery for the Clergy issued a Decree, with the Pope’s authorization, on Mass intentions. The new dispositions come into force on Easter Sunday 2025, namely, April 20.
Following is a translation of the Decree in English.
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“Secundum probatum Ecclesiae morem, sacerdoti cuilibet Missam celebranti aut concelebranti licei stipem oblatam recipere, it iuxta certam intentionem Missam applicet” – «According to the approved usage of the Church, it is lawful for every priest who celebrates Mass to receive the offering given in order that he may apply the Mass according to a determined intention» (c. 945 § 1 CCC).
Although the Eucharist constitutes the fullness of sacramental life, it is not a reward for the perfect, but a generous remedy and nourishment for the weak. These convictions also have pastoral consequences that we are called to consider with prudence and boldness. We often act as controllers of grace and not as facilitators. But the Church is not a customs house, it is the paternal house where there is room for each person with his or her laboured life»[1].
Aware of this grace, the faithful, through their offering, desire to unite themselves more closely to the Eucharistic Sacrifice, adding their own sacrifice and collaborating in the needs of the Church and, in particular, contributing to the maintenance of its sacred ministers.
In this way, the faithful are united more intimately to Christ who offers Himself and, in a certain sense, are inserted even more deeply into communion with Him. This use is not only approved by the Church, but is promoted by her [2].
The Apostle Paul writes that those who serve at the altar also have the right to live off the altar (cf. 1 Cor 9:13-14; 1 Tim 5:18; Lk 10:7). The norms compiled in the early centuries inform us about the gifts offered voluntarily in the celebration of the Eucharist. Of these, one part was destined for the poor, another for the «mensa episcopalis,» another for those to whom the Bishop offered hospitality, another for worship, and another for the celebrating or assisting clerics, according to a pre-established distribution criterion [3].
Thus those who made offerings participated in a special way in the Eucharistic Sacrifice. Offerings offered during the Eucharist, and later also outside of it, were considered a reward to a benefactor, a gift in honour of the service (occasione serviti) rendered by the priest, a charity, and never a «sale price» for something sacred; this would, in fact, become an act of simony.
During this period, Mass was celebrated at the request of the faithful for a specific intention, even if it was not accompanied by a gift. Later, the custom developed of offering alms for the celebration of Mass and of offering gifts to the priest or the Church. This same practice constitutes the precedent for the offering for the celebration of Mass. From the end of the 10th century, commemorative gifts were offered to request the celebration of Mass for a specific intention. During this same period, Mass foundations arose, that is, the obligation to celebrate Masses for predefined intentions. From this arose the custom of giving an offering at Mass, a custom that the Church not only approves but also recommends and encourages.
Secular custom and Church discipline insist that each individual offering correspond to a distinct application by the priest of a Mass he has celebrated. Furthermore, Catholic doctrine, also expressed by the sensus fidelium, teaches the spiritual benefit and utility, in the economy of grace, for the persons and ends to which the priest applies the Masses he celebrates, and, in this same perspective, the value of repeated application to the same persons or ends.
Regarding the application in relation to an offering received, in the sense indicated above, the prohibition of applying the same Mass to several intentions, for which several offerings have been accepted, has been repeatedly expressed.
This practice, as well as the non-application of the Mass in relation to the accepted offering, has been judged contrary to justice, as has been repeatedly expressed in ecclesiastical documents [4].
No less illicit would be the substitution of the promised application in the Mass for a mere «prayerful intention» during a celebration of the Word or for a simple mention at certain moments of the Eucharistic celebration.
The Church’s discipline in this matter, even leaving aside purely theological discourses, is clearly inspired by two orders of consideration: justice toward the offerers, that is, the preservation of the word given to the offerers, and the duty to avoid even the mere appearance of «trading» in sacred things (cf. canons 947; 945 § 2 CCC).
In more recent times, however, situations and requests have arisen that have suggested adapting some details of the discipline, creating an exception to the universal law, precisely to safeguard all that is essential.
Among these are the shortage of clergy capable of fulfilling requests for Masses, the duty not to «frustrate the pious will of the offerers by distracting them from the good end» [5], together with the observation that the use of the so-called «collective» Masses «if it were to become excessively extensive […] must be considered an abuse and could gradually engender among the faithful the disuse of offering alms for the celebration of Masses according to individual intentions, extinguishing a very ancient custom that is salutary for individual souls and for the whole Church» [6], are just some of the reasons for the innovations.
In this context, on February 22, 1991, the then Congregation for the Clergy published the Decree Mos Iugiter [7].
The Decree, reaffirming the doctrinal cornerstones and fundamental norms of discipline already accepted by the Codex Iuris Canonici, establishes that, under certain conditions, and only in such cases, the priest may nevertheless apply a single Mass for several intentions, in relation to which he has received separate offerings.
The conditions formulated were precisely intended, on the one hand, to guarantee justice, that is, the preservation of the word given to the offerors and, on the other, to combat the danger, or even the appearance, of «trade» with sacred things.
It was precisely the desire to eliminate this danger that made it possible to adopt such disciplinary changes. Specifically, from this perspective, the Decree establishes first of all that, only if the donors of the offering have been duly informed and have expressed their agreement [explicit consent], may several offerings be collected for a single celebration of Mass, and that this celebration should not be daily, to avoid the creation of a common practice and to maintain the character of exceptionality.
More than thirty-four years after the entry into force of the Decree Mos Iugiter, on the basis of the experience accumulated since then, in response to the observations, questions and requests received from various parts of the world, from Bishops, but also from members of the clergy, lay faithful and individuals and communities of consecrated life, this Dicastery, having examined in depth all aspects of the question, and after extensive consultation with the other Dicasteries concerned, sive ratione materiae sive alia ratione, has reached the conviction that new norms are needed to regulate the matter, adjusting it accordingly.
Considering the convenience of updating the regulations and, at the same time, of making them more explicit in the exclusion of certain practices that have been abusively carried out in various places, this Dicastery has ordered the promulgation, and now promulgates, the following regulations to complete those currently in force on the matter:
Art. 1 § 1 Without prejudice to canon 945 CCC, if the Provincial Council or the Assembly of the Bishops of the Province, taking into account conditions such as, for example, the number of priests in relation to the number of requests for intentions or the social and ecclesial context, within the limits of their jurisdiction, decrees that the priests may accept several offerings from different offerers, accumulating them with others and satisfying them with a single Mass, celebrated according to a single «collective» intention, if – and only if – all the offerers have been informed and have freely consented.
§ 2 The intention of the offerers can never be presumed; furthermore, in the absence of an explicit offering, it is always presumed that none has been given.
§ 3 In the case mentioned in § 1, the celebrant is permitted to retain the offering of a single intention (cf. cc. 950-952 CCC).
§ 4 Each Christian community should endeavour to offer the possibility of celebrating daily Masses for a single intention, for which the Provincial Council or the Assembly of the Bishops of the Province establishes the established stipend (cf. cc. 952 CCC).
Art. 2 Without prejudice to the provisions of can. 905 CCC, when the priest legitimately celebrates the Eucharist more than once on the same day, if necessary and the true good of the faithful demands it, he may celebrate different Masses even according to «collective» intentions, it being understood that he is permitted to retain only one offering per day for a single intention among those accepted (cf. cc. 950-952 CCC).
Art. 3 § 1 It is especially necessary to keep in mind the provisions of canon 848 CCC, which establishes that the minister, besides the offerings determined by the competent authority, is to ask nothing for the administration of the Sacraments, always avoiding that the most needy be deprived of the help of the Sacraments because of poverty. Furthermore, the strong recommendation of canon 945 § 2 CCC must be observed, namely, «to celebrate Mass for the intentions of the faithful, especially the poorest, even without receiving any offering.»
§ 2 For the destination of the offerings, the rule of canon 951 CCC must be applied, congrua congruis referendo.
§ 3 In view of the specific circumstances of the particular Church and its clergy, the diocesan Bishop can foresee, by special right, to provide for the allocation of such offerings to needy parishes in his own diocese or in others, especially in mission countries.
Art. 4 § 1 It is the duty of the Ordinaries to instruct their respective clergy and people on the content and meaning of these norms and to see that they are applied correctly, ensuring that the number of Masses to be celebrated, the intentions, the offerings, and the celebration are accurately recorded in the special register, and that these registers are inspected annually, either personally or through other persons (cf. can. 958 CCC).
§ 2 In a special way, both the Ordinaries and the other Pastors of the Church must ensure that the distinction between the request for a specific intention for the Mass, even if it is «collective,» and simple recollection during a celebration of the Word or at certain moments of the Eucharistic celebration, is eminently clear to all.
§ Art. 3 It is especially important to make it known to everyone that the solicitation or even the acceptance of offerings in connection with the last two cases is gravely illicit; where such practice is unduly widespread, the competent Ordinaries should not exclude recourse to disciplinary and/or penal measures to eradicate this deplorable phenomenon.
Art. 5 Taking into account the values, even supernatural ones, associated with the venerable and laudable practice of receiving the offering given for the celebration of a Mass according to a specific intention (Cf. canon 948 CCC), in order to foster also the praiseworthy custom of transferring to mission countries the Mass intentions that exceed the corresponding offerings, the Pastors of souls must suitably encourage the faithful to maintain it and, where it is weakened, to reinvigorate and promote it, also through adequate catechesis on the Last Things and on the Communion of Saints.
Art. 6 If the Provincial Council or the Assembly of Bishops of the Province do not take any measures in this regard, the provisions of the Decree Mos Iugiter of February 22, 1991, remain in force.
Ten years after the entry into force of these norms, the Dicastery for the Clergy will promote a study of the practice, as well as of the current norms on the matter, with a view to verifying their application and possible updating.
The Supreme Pontiff, on April 13, 2025, Palm Sunday, specifically approved this Decree and ordered its promulgation, ordering its entry into force on April 20, 2025, Easter Sunday, derogatis derogandis, contrariis quibuslibet minimeobstantibus.
Cardinal Lazarus You Heung-sik
Notes:
[1] Francis, Apostolic Exhortation Evangelii Gaudium, November 24, 2023, in AAS105 (2013), 1039-1040, n. 47. [2] Cf. Paul VI, Apostolic Letter in the form of Motu Proprio Firma in Traditione, June 13, 1974, in AASS66 (1974), 308; Congregation for the Clergy, Decree Mos Iugiter, February 22, 1991, in AAS83 (1991), 443. [3] Cf, for example, Constitutiones Apostolorum (± 380) II.28,5: “Si autem (diaconus) etlectorest, accipiat et ipse una cum prebyteris”; VIII.31, 2-3: “Eulogias, quae in mysticis oblationibus supersunt, diaconi ex voluntate episcopi aut presbyterorum distribuant clero . . . “ , in F.X. Funk, Didascalia et Constitutiones Aostolorum (Paderborn, 1905; anastatic reprint, 1964), vol. 1, pp. 108-109 and 532-533; Canones Apostolorum (5e eeuw) 41, in C. Kirch, Enchiridionfontium Historiae Ecclesiasticae Antiquae (Barcelona, 1965[9], n. 699. [4] Cf, for example, Holy Office, Decree, September 24, 1665, n. 10, in DH 2030; Sacra Penintenzieria Apostolica, Instruction Suprema Ecclesiae Bona, July 15, 1984, in Enchiridion Vaticanum S1, nr. 901-912; Congregation for the Clergy, Decree Mos Iugiter, cit. 444, art. 1 § 1. [5] Congregation for the Clergy, Decree Mos Iugiter, cit., 446, art. 5 § 1. [6] Ibidem, 445, art. 2 § 3. [7] Cf. Ibidem, 443-444.Translation of the Italian original into Spanish by ZENIT’s Editorial Director and, into English, by Virginia M. Forrester.
