Sunday Celebrations in the Absence of a Priest Leader's Edition
In light of the need for the provision of liturgical celebrations for those places where a priest is not available to celebrate the Eucharist each Sunday, the Congregation for Divine Worship published in 1988 a Directory for Sunday Celebrations in the Absence of a Priest. It recalled the Church's teaching on the meaning of Sunday, indicated the conditions when such celebrations may legitimately take place, and provided guidelines for carrying out such celebrations correctly. To determine these norms in greater detail and to adapt them to the culture and conditions of their people, the National Conference of Catholic Bishops has since prepared Sunday Celebrations in the Absence of a Priest: Leader's Edition for use by deacons and laypersons who will lead such celebrations.
In the process of preparing Sunday Celebrations in the Absence of a Priest: Leader's Edition, the Bishops' Committee on the Liturgy surveyed the dioceses of the United States to determine the need for Sunday celebrations in the absence of a priest and the frequency of such celebrations—discovering that such services are needed in many dioceses and may become even more necessary in the coming years.
Sunday Celebrations in the Absence of a Priest: Leader's Edition stresses that before Sunday celebrations in the absence of a priest are begun in any diocese or parish, it is essential that there be diocesan-wide catechesis on the nature of these celebrations and the necessity of fostering vocations to the priesthood so that eventually no community will be denied the Sunday celebration of the Mass.
Morning and Evening Prayer and the Celebration of the Liturgy of the Word are the focus of the first part of the book. Appendices follow for the General Intercessions; Acts of Thanksgiving; Prayers of the Day and Prayers after Communion for Sundays, Solemnities, and Feasts of the Lord; Additional Prayers after Communion, and Blessings. Spanish text accompanies English text throughout. The Directory for Sunday Celebrations in the Absence of a Priest is included in English only.
Beautifully bound, the book's design makes it appropriate for use in the sanctuary. Two-color printing and two ribbon markers assure easy use.
