Q. The other day, our priest used a Eucharistic Prayer I never heard of. I thought he was ad-libbing the Mass. He told me there are Eucharistic Prayers approved by the Church he can use. Why have we never heard of this? Are these OK for use in the Diocese of Lincoln?
A. I have recently made it my personal mission at Masses that I celebrate to use the second option of the Penitential Act. I have gotten some pushback when I use it because “people don’t know that one.” But the only way for people to learn it is for it to be used. Therefore, I use it, so people learn it.
I bring this up because—in my experience—whenever a priest makes use of an option within the Roman Missal that people are not familiar with, it causes a degree of consternation. As Catholics, we are taught to be on the lookout for anything that seems like a novelty being introduced in the Mass. After all, abuses being introduced into the Mass are very real and should not be tolerated on any level.
This vigilance can go to the other extreme though, where legitimate options are immediately pounced upon as being an invention outside what the Church has established for Her liturgy because a person might not be familiar with it. After all, how can people go to Mass their whole lives and then hear a Eucharistic prayer they have never heard before?
It is actually very easy for this to happen, which is (I suspect) the origin of this question. It should be noted first that, even though we use the term Eucharistic Prayer for the prayer that follows the Sanctus and concludes with the Final Doxology, the term Eucharistic Prayer actually encompasses the Preface as well. Already in the Preface you see multiple options that can be used, depending on the nature of the Mass. For example, there are four different Prefaces that can be used during Lent and seven that can be used on Sundays during Ordinary Time.
There are four “mainline” Eucharistic Prayers that can be used for most Masses. Eucharistic Prayer I, often referred to as the Roman Canon, can be used for any Mass but “is especially suited to be sung or said on days when there is a proper text for the Communicantes or in Masses endowed with a proper form of the Hanc igitur and also in the celebrations of the Apostles and of the saints mentioned in the Prayer itself; it is likewise especially appropriate for Sundays” (GIRM 365,a). Communicates refers to the “insert” into the prayer that occurs on the significant Solemnities of the Church, such as the Easter Octave or Pentecost. The Hanc igitur refers to the specific prayer used during the Easter Vigil until the Second Sunday of Easter. Essentially, what the GIRM is getting at is that Eucharistic Prayer I, while it can be used on any day, is most appropriately used on solemnities for the Mass in honor of those saints listed in the Roman Canon and on Sundays.
Eucharistic Prayer II, in contrast, is “more appropriately used on weekdays or in special circumstances” (GIRM 365,b). This is because of its “particular features,” which is the GIRM’s nice way of saying it is the shortest Eucharistic Prayer and therefore makes sense to use on a weekday, when people attending Mass need to get to work.
Eucharistic Prayer III is preferred to be used on Sundays (if, for pastoral reasons, Eucharistic Prayer I is not used) and feast days.
The rarest of the four mainline Eucharistic Prayers is IV. This is due to the fact that it has a Preface that is proper to it. The other three can be used with any Preface, but IV cannot. This means that in practice, it can be used only during Ordinary Time, on days that do not have an obligatory memorial. Because of this requirement, it is often times not used, even when it could be, simply because even priests are not used to using it.
Outside of these four, the Roman Missal contains six other Eucharistic Prayers that can be used. These Eucharistic Prayers are to be used in certain circumstances but are perfectly legitimate. I am guessing it was a priest using one of these that prompted this question because these are far, far less common than the four main Eucharistic Prayers.
Two of the less-known prayers are Eucharistic Prayers for Reconciliation. These may be used “in Masses in which the mystery of reconciliation is conveyed to the faithful in a special way” (Roman Missal). The Missal goes on to list many Masses for Various Needs in which these prayers are especially appropriate but also states that these Eucharistic Prayers are appropriate for use during Lent.
In addition to these two Eucharistic Prayers for Reconciliation, there are four Eucharistic Prayers for Use in Masses for Various Needs. Unsurprisingly, these can be used when celebrating a Mass for Various Needs. These are even less commonly used than the Eucharistic Prayers for Reconciliation, so hearing one could confuse even the most devout of Catholics.
This question was answered by Father Caleb La Rue, chancellor of the Diocese of Lincoln. Write to Ask the Register using our online form, or write to 3700 Sheridan Blvd., Suite 10, Lincoln NE 68506-6100. All questions are subject to editing. Editors decide which questions to publish. Personal questions cannot be answered. People with such questions are urged to take them to their nearest Catholic priest.
