Article — Prümmer, Manuale Theologiae Moralis
Article III. On Sacred Furnishings
297. The sacred furnishings necessary in Mass comprise three things: 1. the ornamentation of the altar; 2. the vesture of the priest; 3. the sacred vessels.
1. In the ornamentation of the altar479 the following are comprised:
a) Three cloths (or altar cloths) made of linen or hemp. These cloths must be blessed by the bishop or by the pastor or by others having the legitimate faculty. Omission of the blessing would be unbecoming and a venial sin.480 To celebrate Mass upon an altar adorned with no cloth seems to be grave irreverence and a grave sin.
b) A Missal with a cushion or small bookstand. To celebrate Mass without a Missal is considered grave irreverence because of the danger of error. If someone, however, cannot have a Missal and knows the Mass by memory, the lack of a Missal does not seem gravely irreverent.481
c) Two lighted candles. It would be a grave sin to celebrate Mass without any light. Hence, if the light fails before the consecration and another cannot be had, the priest must break off the Mass; but if this occurs after the consecration, the sacrifice can and must be completed, nor ought it to be interrupted for a long time, that is, for a quarter or half an hour. To celebrate Mass with only one candle is held to be a venial sin.482 The candles must be made of wax, at least for the greater part, unless an apostolic indult is present.483 Génicot,484 however, deservedly teaches that it is not a grave sin to use candles made of stearin and other vegetable substances, since they are scarcely distinguished from those which are made of beeswax. By reason of the celebrant, if he is lower than a bishop, it is not lawful to have more than two lighted candles at a strictly private Mass. I say, however, at a strictly private Mass; for if even a read Mass is celebrated by reason of some solemnity, nothing seems to prevent several candles from then being lighted upon the altar, not by reason of the Mass but by reason of the solemnity.485 Certain regular prelates can have four lighted candles at their read Masses, custom thus permitting. Electric light and gas cannot be employed for worship, but only for splendid illumination.486
d) An image of the Crucified must stand out between the candlesticks or above the tabernacle, but not in the throne of the Most Holy Sacrament,487 so that it can easily be seen not only by the celebrant but also by others. It is a light obligation.488
The cards which are customarily placed on each side of the altar are not strictly prescribed; but they are fittingly employed for the convenience of the priest.489 An antependium, which is an artistically made hanging suspended before the mensa of the altar, contributes greatly to the ornamentation of the altar. The color of the antependium is changed according to the feasts occurring each day. But the antependium is now not in use in most regions.
479 Concerning the ornamentation of the altar, the General Rubrics of the Missal, title 20, prescribe: "The altar upon which the sacrifice of the Most Holy Mass is to be celebrated must be of stone and consecrated by the bishop ...; or at least a stone altar similarly consecrated by the bishop ... is to be inserted into it, which is to be so large that it can hold the host and the greater part of the chalice. This altar is to be covered with three clean cloths or altar cloths blessed by the bishop or by another having the power: the upper one at least is to be oblong and to reach to the ground, the other two shorter, or one doubled. It is also to be adorned with a frontal of a color corresponding, insofar as this can be done, to the feast of the day or to the office. Upon the altar a cross is to be placed in the middle and at least two candlesticks with lighted candles, one on each side of it. At the foot of the cross is to be placed the card called the card of the secret prayers. On the Epistle side a cushion is to be placed under the Missal; and on the same Epistle side there are to be prepared a candle to be lighted at the elevation of the sacrament, a small bell, glass cruets of wine and water with a basin and a clean towel in a niche or upon a small table prepared for these things. Absolutely nothing is to be placed upon the altar which does not pertain to the sacrifice of the Mass or to the ornamentation of the altar itself."
480 Cf. St. Alphonsus, Theol. mor. l. 6, n. 375, dub. 2. Pastors and religious superiors can bless sacred furnishings only for their own churches. Code of Canon Law, c. 1304.
481 Thus also Noldin-Schmitt, De sacr., n. 213.
482 Cf. St. Alphonsus, loc. cit., n. 394.
483 Cf. Sacred Congregation of Rites, September 7, 1850; December 14, 1904 (Decr. auth., nn. 2985 and 4147).
484 Theol. mor. II, 246.
485 Sacred Congregation of Rites, September 12, 1857 (Decr. auth., n. 3059 ad 9).
486 Cf., however, above, n. 224.
487 Sacred Congregation of Rites, June 11, 1904 (Decr. auth., n. 4136).
488 Cf. St. Alphonsus, loc. cit., n. 393.
489 Ibid., n. 390.
298. 2. The vesture of the priest saying Mass consists of the amice or humeral, alb, cincture, maniple, stole, and chasuble. All these vestments must be blessed by the bishop or by one having the faculty. Such a faculty is possessed, besides Cardinals and all bishops, by religious superiors, pastors, and rectors of churches, but these last three only for their own churches.490 Although the chasuble, stole, and maniple need not absolutely be made of silk, precious material is nevertheless required, and those vestments made entirely of cotton, linen, or wool are unlawful.491 The cincture is more fittingly made of white linen, but neither another material nor another color is prohibited. Thus, for example, red silk cinctures are employed in some churches. It is considered a grave sin to celebrate Mass without any sacred vestment. The same applies to the lack of the chasuble or alb.492 The remaining sacred vestments, however, do not seem to be of such necessity. Hence, in order to confect Viaticum, or if otherwise the people could not satisfy the Sunday precept, it would be lawful to say Mass without those vestments.
The color of the vestments must indeed be observed according to the diverse offices and feasts, but it does not bind under grave sin. Hence Sporer493 rightly says that it is better on any day to offer the Sacred Rite in any color than to omit it, and that every reasonable cause excuses, as if vestments of the due color would not suffice for a gathering of priests. Gold color cannot serve in place of the colors white, green, and red; but if cloth truly of gold494 was used, then vestments so made can, because of their preciousness, serve in place of the colors white, green, and red,495 but not in place of violet or black.
The General Rubric likewise prescribes that the priest, before putting on the sacred vestments, be in an ankle-length garment, according to the prescription of c. 811, § 1: "A priest who is to celebrate Mass is to wear a becoming garment which reaches to the ankles."495a Hence, if in some regions a priest does not always wear an ankle-length garment, he must put it on in the sacristy. It is altogether unbecoming to put sacred vestments on over clothing of any color other than black, except in a case of necessity. It seems that a celebrating priest cannot wear a wig, commonly Perücke, unless he has the permission of the Holy See, which, however, Apostolic Nuncios also can grant.496
490 Code of Canon Law, c. 1304.
491 Sacred Congregation of Rites, September 23, 1837; June 23, 1892 (Decr. auth., n. 2769, dub. 5; n. 3779, dub. 1).
492 Cf. St. Alphonsus, Theol. mor. l. 6, n. 377.
493 Theol. mor. P. 2, c. 6, n. 414.
494 Goldbrokat.
495 Sacred Congregation of Rites, March 29, 1851; November 20, 1885 (Decr. auth., n. 2986 ad 5; n. 3646 ad 2).
495a Cf. Sacred Congregation of the Council, July 28, 1931 (Acta Apostolicae Sedis XXIII, 336).
496 Facultates Nuntiorum, n. 35.
299. 3. The sacred vessels required for Mass are the chalice with the paten and the cruets of wine and water. Added to the sacred vessels are the corporal, pall, purificator, chalice veil, and burse for the corporal.
The paten and cup of the chalice must be of gold, or, if they are of silver, tin, or aluminum, they must be gilded within.497 Another material is not admitted according to the present discipline; the paten, however, can also be made of another solid material.498 Gilding is required under grave sin for the interior part of the cup of the chalice and the upper part of the paten.499 The Sacred Congregation of Rites on August 31, 1867, replied "Affirmative" to the question: "Can a ciborium of gilded copper, likewise a monstrance and lunula, be permitted?" Therefore the cup of the chalice must be of silver, tin, or aluminum; but another solid material is also permitted for other sacred vessels. The chalice and paten are execrated: 1. through loss of form, for example, if the foot is separated from the cup by breaking, but not if the foot is screw-threaded and can easily be separated from the cup; nor through new gilding.500 If, however, through long use the gilding has been worn away, the chalice indeed remains consecrated, but the gilding must be renewed. 2. If they have been employed for unbecoming uses or exposed for public sale.501 Since no layman can touch a consecrated chalice, and since its consecration remains even if the gilding has been worn away, the permission of the bishop or regular prelate seems to be required for a consecrated chalice which is to be gilded anew to be handed over to an artisan; but the chalice must not first be execrated.502 The use of a small spoon for pouring water into the wine is not prohibited,503 as was already stated above, but such a spoon is not blessed.
A corporal made of linen or hemp is to be placed beneath the chalice. He sins gravely who, outside a case of great necessity, celebrates without a corporal, and one that has been blessed.504
The purificator likewise must be of linen or hemp, but it is not to be blessed,505 nor is any blessing of it found in the Roman Ritual. Therefore the purificator can be supplied by a clean handkerchief, which, however, afterward is not again to be employed for profane uses.
The pall must be made of linen or hemp, at least on that part by which it touches the chalice. On the other side it can be covered with gold or silk ornaments, provided that the cloth is not black and does not bear any signs of death.506 The pall is to be blessed just like the corporal.
The cruets of water and wine are better made of glass; those made of gold, silver, or tin are nevertheless also permitted.507
497 Cf. St. Thomas, S. theol. 3, q. 83, a. 3 ad 6; Benedict XIV, Constitution Etsi pastoralis, May 26, 1742 (§ VI, 20); Sacred Congregation for the Propagation of the Faith, January 16, 1797.
498 Cf. Génicot, Theol. mor. II, n. 247.
499 This seems to follow from c. 1305, § 2, where it is established: "The chalice and paten do not lose their consecration through the wearing away or renewal of the gilding, with the grave obligation, however, in the former case of gilding them again remaining intact."
500 Ibid.
501 Code of Canon Law, c. 1305, § 1, n. 2.
502 Sacred Congregation of Rites, April 20, 1822 (Decr. auth., n. 2620).
503 Sacred Congregation of Rites, February 6, 1858 (Decr. auth., n. 3064).
504 St. Alphonsus, Theol. mor. l. 6, n. 387.
505 Sacred Congregation of Rites, September 7, 1816 (Decr. auth., n. 2527 ad XII).
506 Sacred Congregation of Rites, July 17, 1894 (Decr. auth., n. 3832 ad 4).
507 Sacred Congregation of Rites, August 28, 1866 (Decr. auth., n. 3149).
300. The first washing of corporals, palls, and purificators which have been used in Mass must be performed by a cleric in major orders.508 The water of the first washing is to be poured into the sacrarium; if this is lacking, into the fire. Nuns require the special permission of the Sacred Congregation of Rites in order to be able to perform this first washing. Therefore the discipline in force regarding the first washing is stricter than regarding simple touching. For the chalice with the paten and, before washing, the purificators, palls, and corporals which have been used in the sacrifice of the Mass can be touched even by simple clerics or by those who have custody of them.509
The Sacred Congregation of Rites on March 14, 1900, established the following concerning a cleric ministering in place of a subdeacon at Mass:
"A cleric is never to be deputed to undertake the office of subdeacon at a solemn Mass unless there is a reasonable cause and he has been constituted in minor orders or at least initiated by sacred tonsure."
"A cleric serving in place of a subdeacon is to be vested in an alb over the amice, a cincture, and a tunic without a maniple, and he is duly to fulfill all the things which according to the rubrics pertain to the subdeacon, with these exceptions, however: a) he is not to pour water into the chalice before the offertory, which in this case the deacon will do; b) he is never to touch the chalice itself during the Action, that is, during the Canon, nor remove the pall from it or replace it upon it; c) after the ablution he is not to wipe the chalice, the celebrant himself wiping it, but is only to arrange it in the customary manner, cover it with the veil and burse, and carry it to the table."510
508 Code of Canon Law, c. 1306, § 2.
509 Ibid., § 1.
510 Analecta ecclesiastica XIV (1906), 166.
301. Scholion. How blessed or consecrated things lose their blessing. All things, whether vessels or vestments, which require consecration or blessing for the use of the altar lose it in three cases: 1. if they notably lose their original form, so that they become wholly unfit for the use intended; 2. if new material is added in a great or at least an essential part; 3. if they have been employed for unbecoming uses or exposed for public sale.510a
How a chalice is execrated has already been stated above. A corporal loses its blessing if it is so torn that it can no longer be placed beneath the chalice and host. A cincture loses its blessing if it is broken into such parts that none of them is any longer fit for girding. An alb loses its blessing if new sleeves are added. Finally, a chasuble must be blessed again when the new part sewn on exceeds the part retained. The same seems to apply to the maniple and stole.
510a Code of Canon Law, c. 1305.