Viaticum under both species for the dying?

    Q. I am aware of a dying man in a city not far from me. A devout Catholic, he is on his deathbed and wishes to receive holy Communion under both species. The priest in his parish has apparently determined that Communion may not be brought to him in the form of wine, and the priest notes that the host alone suffices in order to receive Christ completely. I know this is theologically true, but I’m not sure that the dying man is able to understand it and he dearly wants to receive the Eucharist under both forms. Isn’t there a way to consecrate wine at Mass and have a priest or lay minister bring it to the man? (Eldon, Mo.)
    A. Ordinarily, only the host is given in Communion to the sick because of the danger of spilling the precious blood. However, church guidelines do allow an exception in a case where, as sometimes happens near death, the person is unable to consume even a small piece of the host.
    The situation that you present, where the dying person is unable to understand that the host alone suffices, would seem to me to warrant a similar exception. (It might be helpful to ask oneself, “What would Jesus do?”)
    Here is what I would do. I have a compact Mass kit that I use when traveling. In that kit are two small glass vials, with secure caps, for transporting the water and the wine. I would put an ounce of wine into that vial and consecrate it at Mass at the same time I was consecrating the wine in the chalice. Later I (or an extraordinary minister of holy Communion) would bring that vial along with the host so that the man could receive under both species.