The Diocese of Phoenix has recently announced that communion under both kinds will be restricted to special feast days and other important occasions (e.g, the Chrism Mass, Holy Thursday, the Feast of Corpus Christi, retreats, spiritual gatherings, weddings, and more).
The news release explains that from 1975, the United States, United Kingdom and Oceania were given experimental privileges for the distribution of Holy Communion under both kinds. These privileges expired in 2005 and were not renewed by the Holy See.
The Diocese stated that the new norms issued in June 2011 will now guide the liturgical practice today and in the future.
The statement acknowledges that the practice of reception from the chalice became frequent or even commonplace, but that the new norms call for the practice of less frequent distribution of Holy Communion under both kinds than the faithful may have been accustomed to.
The Diocese notes that these norms are for the universal Church, and that latitude is given to the local bishop to apply them for his particular diocese.
The statement continues by noting that in normal circumstances, only priests and deacons are to distribute Holy Communion, and that “when both forms of Communion are used frequently, ‘extraordinary’ ministers of Holy Communion are disproportionately multiplied.”
“The new norms will promote unity in the celebration of the Eucharist all around the world, and come from the revised General Instruction of the Roman Missal, 3rd Edition, together with the final edition of The Norms for the Distribution and Reception of Holy Communion Under Both Kinds for the Dioceses of the United States of America, published in June 2011.”
Full Statement: Diocese of Phoenix