Q: I just started as pastor of a parish. In checking out the sacristy, I discovered in a back cabinet two ciboria with hosts. These included broken pieces of a large presider’s host, which makes me think they are consecrated. I’m guessing they ended up there after a Holy Thursday Mass. This church does not have a sacrarium, and the quantity of hosts would be large for one anyway. What am I supposed to do?
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A: To my knowledge, there is no clear instruction in this case. There are churches without a sacrarium, and the missal seems to understand that when it encourages their construction (GIRM 334). Based on the principle that a sacrarium is a sink that returns elements into the earth, I think you could reverently bury these hosts somewhere on the church grounds. I would not call attention to it. After all, their potentially consecrated state is unknown. Just do it privately, prayerfully, and respectfully.