Q. Sometimes I am late to Mass. Should I not be receiving Communion? I’ve heard that as long as I make it before the Gospel it's OK. Is that true?
A. The question of how late can I be to Mass and still receive Communion is a common one, and for most of my life I would have given the same answer as the person who submitted this question, namely, so long as you make it in time for the Gospel, you can receive Communion.
While this is, I believe, the common understanding, it is incorrect.
Ed Peters, one of the preeminent American canon lawyers, lays out in a succinct way the criteria for receiving Communion: “A Catholic who is not conscious of being in grave sin (cc. 915-916), has fasted for an hour (c. 919), seeks the sacrament at a reasonable time (c. 843), and has not already received (c. 917), is eligible for Communion (c. 844)” (In the Light of the Law).
You will notice “arrived on time to Mass” or “was present at Mass for the Gospel” is not in this list. There is no legal requirement to attend X amount of Mass in order to receive Communion.
In doing research to answer this question, the sources I consulted tie this question into the larger question of how late can I be to a Sunday Mass or Holy Day of Obligation Mass and still have it “count”? This seems reasonable to me, so I’d like to shift gears and address that question, even though it's not the one that was asked.
First, it is important to keep in mind that receiving Communion and fulfilling the obligation to attend Mass on Sundays and Holy Days of Obligation are two different things. You can fulfill your obligation to attend Mass and not receive Communion. If someone is in the state of grave sin but cannot get to confession, or is unable to receive Communion for another reason, they can and should still attend Sunday Mass. In fact, they are obligated to.
But as far as how late is too late to fulfill the Sunday Obligation, the Church does not say. There is no authoritative cut-off time. The liturgy of Mass is a unified whole and to miss part of it is to miss out on the fullness of the liturgical celebration. On a practical level, since we are all fallen human beings, the Church knows that if She said you can arrive late to Mass and it is okay, there is a good chance that more people would become comfortable with the idea of being late to Mass. So because it is important to be present for all of Mass, the Church remains silent on a definitive cut-off.
While it is important to be on time for Mass, circumstances sometimes lead to people being late through no fault of their own. I remember once celebrating Mass and seeing a mom come into the Church just as I was beginning to proclaim the Gospel. She had four kids under the age of 6 that she was trying to wrangle. As a celibate man, I can only imagine how hard it can be to get places on time with little kids. To see her and to think she didn’t fulfill the Sunday Obligation because she was late would be pharisaical. Sometimes even the best-laid plans fall apart.
For those who are habitually late, it is worth putting the extra effort in to work on being on time. In fact, it is worth trying to get to Mass early, to have the time to prayerfully enter into the liturgy. But sometimes this is not possible, and people are late. It happens and, when it does, they can still receive Communion and fulfill their obligation.
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.
