Case LV: The Turning over of Mass Stipends

Case.—A certain priest received a communication from Southern Italy, the writer being a priest asking for Mass stipends. Another priest received from a distant diocese the petition of a confrater for Mass intentions; a recommendation of the bishop came with it.

Question.—Is it permissible to send Mass stipends to such petitioners?

Solution.—Recent legislation of the Church about Mass intentions (see the decrees of the S. C. C. “Ut debita” of May 11, 1904, and “Recenti” of May 22, 1907) opposes with severity and under threat of punishment any form of barter and gain, the undue accumulation, and the careless turning over of Mass stipends; these abuses are to be uprooted. In regard to the last-named impropriety, the decree “Recenti” says: “There have been found those who, departing from the law expressed in number 5 of the decree “Ut debita,” have entrusted Masses to be celebrated not only in greater number than it was permitted to assign to private persons, but also too heedlessly; since they entrusted those Masses to priests unknown to them, deceived by the appearance of some name or title, or moved by the recommendations of others who neither knew them thoroughly nor had sufficiently understood the gravity of the burden assumed.”

The Congregation of the Council then addresses itself to the bishops and all other ordinaries and superiors of regulars, exhorting them to exercise in these important matters great vigilance, that they should draw the attention of the clergy to the dangers that arise from disregard of Church precepts, which oblige strictly in conscience, and which are the result of bitter experience. What are the precepts to be observed regarding the passing on of Mass stipends? When the will of the person requesting the Masses, or the regulations of the Church, require that intentions be passed to another, they may be given either to another priest, or to the Ordinary. For in the former case it is prescribed (see Decree “Ut debita” n. 5. 6). 1. that the recipient be known personally, 2. that he is without doubt worthy of confidence and a conscientious priest, and, 3. that he give a verbal or written notice of performance of the Masses to the priest who passes on the intentions. For exact compliance with these precepts the priest who has transmitted the stipend is responsible in conscience and with his means. Thus the transmitting of stipends is very restricted. The law excludes the turning over of intentions to a strange priest, perhaps casually met in travelling, or to any strange priest without proper credentials. If one wishes to send Mass stipends to secular or regular priests outside the diocese, this must be done in the manner prescribed by the Congregation of the Council (Decree Recenti): “through their Ordinary, or at least after he has been consulted and has consented.” And if bishop or priest wishes to send Mass intentions to a bishop or priest in the Orient, he must do this through the Congregatio Propagandae Fidei (n. III) or through the apostolic delegate (answer of the S. C. C. of September 9, 1907). Superiors of Orders and of religious institutions may, according to the same answer of the S. C. C., transmit Mass intentions together with the stipend directly to members of their Order in the Orient.^* The priest who hands over intentions to another priest is himself responsible for their performance until he is informed that they have been said; by transmitting them, however, to a bishop or superior of an Order (or to the Holy See, the Congregation of the Propaganda, or the Apostolic Delegate) all responsibility ceases for the priest turning them over (S. C. C., February 27, 1905). For these reasons a priest wishing to send Mass stipends to one outside his own diocese, should do this through the recipient’s Ordinary; then the mere notice of receipt suffices (S. C. C., February 27, 1905).

^* The words “to the bishops or priests of churches which are situated in the East” in the decree are explained in a letter of the prefect of the Propaganda, Cardinal Gotti, to the Missionary Bishop Alois Benziger, on November 5, 1908. By those words are to be understood the bishops and priests of Oriental rites, not, however, the vicars apostolic, prefects and bishops of the Latin rite who have their Sees in the Orient. Since the decree says “Masses of which there is an abundant supply,” it is not against Church precept if some few Mass intentions are sent directly to an Oriental bishop or priest, provided

The simplest way for transmitting stipends is to send them to one’s own Bishop or the Superior of one’s Order. In both cases all obligation and responsibility cease, they being assumed by the Ordinary.

The Ordinary must keep two books; one in which Mass intentions received are noted with the amount of the stipend (“Ut debita” n. 7), and a second one in which are entered the priests who have received Mass intentions, and their number (“Recenti” II). This is to be done to avoid the undue accumulation of Mass stipends by one priest. The Ordinary must make sure of prompt performance of the Masses. From priests the Ordinary must require assurance of the celebration (“Ut debita”), in transmission to another Ordinary this is not required (S. C. C., February, 1910). It suffices if the Ordinary transmits Mass stipends with a general intention (ad intentionem dantium), and the priests then celebrate them according to the intentions of the Ordinary. “It is better, however, the latter be known and quite certainly will read the Masses and give notice thereof. According to an Instruction of the S. C. de Prop. Fide of July 15, 1908, it is further permitted to send to an actual Ordinary, (not a titular Bishop or Patriarchal Vicar or Superior of an Oriental Order) Mass stipends for his diocesan priests, but this must be done with the consent of the Apostolic Delegate having jurisdiction. if the prescribed intentions are disclosed to the priests,’ was the answer of the S. C. C. of February 17, 1905, to a question on this subject. The keeping of the two books, the inscribing and transmitting of intentions, the control and entering of confirmations concerning the celebration of the Masses, will occasion some work that will keep a secretary busy quite some time. Since the Archbishop of Tarragona received permission for five years to let his secretary in charge of intentions keep 3% of the Mass stipends as his remuneration (S. C. C., March 8, 1905), this concession may be granted to other dioceses upon application. That the expenses of transmission fall upon the recipient is evident.

The obligation regarding the time within which the Masses must be said begins with the day on which the intentions are received from the Ordinary (S. C. C. of February 17, 1905). From the precepts of the Church above cited, it is easy to answer the question whether the two priests referred to at the beginning may transmit Mass stipends to their petitioners. The first must not send Mass intentions to a priest wholly unknown to him and outside his diocese. It has happened that Mass stipends came thus into fraudulent hands, and condonation had to be sought in Rome, which was granted. The second is permitted to send intentions to the confrater if from the bishop’s recommendation it is plain that the petitioner is a conscientious priest; and if the bishop grants consent for the request of Mass stipends then the bishop assumes responsibility. Nevertheless assurance of the celebration of the Masses should be insisted on.