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Why a Deacon Doesn’t Wash His Hands at Mass

Question:

Why doesn’t the deacon wash his hands like the priest during the Mass?

Answer:

General Instruction of the Roman Missal:

76. The priest then washes his hands at the side of the altar, a rite that is an expression of his desire for interior purification.

145. . . . The priest washes his hands standing at the side of the altar and, as the minister pours the water, says quietly, Lava me, Domine (Lord, wash away my iniquity).

The priest washes his hands as a symbol of his unworthiness to offer the sacrifice of the Mass and his need for purification. This is symbolic because the hands that are “washed” are the hands that will hold the host and the chalice for the consecration.

The deacon is not the one offering the sacrifice of the Mass and therefore the symbolic action does not apply to him.

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