[Question:]{.underline} Can I purchase a used chalice on e-bay to have Mass celebrated in my home?
[Answer:]{.underline} There are two separate questions here. The first concerns liturgical items that were at one time blessed or consecrated. The purchase of such items on public auction or public sale is permissible. This is precisely the case with e-bay. Canon 1510 of the 1917 Code states that such items, having lost their consecration or blessing, may be freely acquired by lay persons and used for honest purposes, such as museum pieces. However, since the chalice loses its consecration in such instances, it must be re-consecrated by a bishop if it is to be put to sacred use.
In normal circumstances in the Church, it would not be permissible for persons to set up chapels in private homes, together with all the liturgical requirements for the celebration of Mass, such as a chalice and vestments. In fact, the 1917 Code of Canon Law forbad priests from celebrating Mass outside a blessed or consecrated church, chapel or oratory, except with the permission of their major superior or local Ordinary and for a just and unreasonable cause as an exception in extraordinary situations (Canon 822, 4). Clearly, the situation is different at the present time, at which most Catholics churches are either closed to traditional Catholics, or desecrated by the sacrilegious ceremonies. Nevertheless, the mind of the Church is to only celebrate Mass in private homes
generally exist when a traditional church or chapel is close by. A priest ought to consult his superior for special cases. Consequently, the setting up of private chapels by laypersons should be limited to those places and situations in which a traditional church or chapel is not easily accessible.
Answered by Father Peter Scott, SSPX.