[11] Council of Constantinople in Trullo, canon 101. 1396: In Baptism we have been called to form but one body. Basil the Great, 330-379 stated, "The right to receive Holy Communion in the hand is permitted only in times of persecution." This statement may very well have been made in response to St. Cyril of Jerusalem in 348. 2. It is simply reading too much into this practice, and it is not correct to support something one favors by denigrating another practice. The infamous coffee cup masses Dorothy Day describes in her book may have had good intentions behind them, but the way they appeared to trivialize the Holy Sacrifice of the mass lent no dignity to the then new Pauline mass. A: The answer to this question is somewhat complex. This is precisely why there are occasions when pastoral prudence can lead to suspend the permission. And some who do have lost their strength or nerve. Obviously, for better or worse, the NLM has an agenda. Thanks for this, Dennis. Monaco, 31 October 1969 A priest who is not directly responsible for the care of souls should be even more respectful of local practice. The bishop, however, might sometimes deal with the religious priest through his superior in these matters. Yugoslavia, 1971 Malaysia and Singapore, 3 October 1977, * * * * *. Your email address will not be published. If we follow the example of the Fathers, we will prioritize practices that prevent the dropping of the Eucharist and catechizing communicants not to receive in a state of mortal sin. [5] In Jerusalem, we have the mystagogical catecheses of Cyril of Jerusalem (or perhaps of his successor, John). However, it was a brief exchange with ones immediate neighbors and at a time when men and women occupied separate aisles in the church. The same Instruction contained a reminder that the laws of the Church and the writings of the Fathers give ample witness of a supreme reverence and utmost caution toward the Eucharist and that this must continue. Because there is one bread, we who are many are one body, for we all partake of the one bread (1 Cor 10:16-17). Maybe this is due to decades of poor or heterodox catechesis on the Sacraments. 5. Receiving communion in the hand was the common practice of the Church in both East and West for the first 800 years of Christianity, and it was certainly considered reverent by the Fathers. They would find many more areas we all need to work on than just their main focus. A. Christ instituted the Holy Eucharist: COVID-19 Additional Questions for Catholic Schools, COVID-19 Finance FAQ for Catholic Schools, COVID-19 Personnel FAQ for Catholic Schools, COVID-19 Remote Learning FAQ for Catholic Schools, COVID-19 International Students FAQ for Catholic Schools, Forming a New Prayer and Intercessory Team at Your Parish, Resources for Existing Intercessory Prayer Teams, Mooney Real Estate Holding Company and Parish Incorporations, Stewards for Tomorrow/Archdiocese of Detroit Endowment Foundation. Whatever procedure is adopted, care must be taken not to allow particles of the Eucharistic bread to fall or be scattered. When the bishops reassembled, Cardinal John Carberry of St. Louis, a determined opponent of Communion in the hand, was quick to get up to set things straight. Dear Patrick, Todd, yes, the Church as a whole is growing thanks to the great efforts of missionaries in Africa and Asia (many are now coming back here), and yes, more people are receiving the Sacraments now than ever. The communicant may choose whether to receive the Body of Christ in the hand or on the tongue. United States, 17 June 1977 How to Receive the Eucharist | Catholic Answers He can freely share with the faithful his reasons for preferring to adhere to the traditional practice and encourage the faithful to continue doing so. Required fields are marked *. The two ways of receiving communion can without question take place during the same liturgical service. Canada, 12 February 1970 Communion in the hand is no more hygienic than Communion in the mouth. Their decisions should be sent to Rome to receive the necessary confirmation, []. The document does not have numbered paragraphs to cite, but youll find it a few paragraphs after the tabulation of votes collected from bishops. When we receive Communion, we become members of Christ's Body, the Church. Jamaica, 12 March 1970 There is also evidence that this was a contested subject (i.e., about what sins prevent someone from receiving), as it would continue to be throughout the history of the Church. All the rites which use leavened bread are reverent but not obsessive. Communion in the hand is legitimate only where permitted, and it remains in the realm of a permission. The Communion Procession is an action of the Body of Christ. Now we feel our affluence threatened, and the Gospel gives no comfort on that front. It is a matter of particular seriousness that in places where the new practice is lawfully permitted every one of the faithful has the option of receiving communion on the tongue and even when other persons are receiving communion in the hand. The faithful must be taught that Jesus Christ is Lord and Savior and that therefore the worship of latria or adoration belonging to God is owed to Christ present in this sacrament. 48 (Sept/Oct), pg 361. Instead, this option must increase in them a consciousness of the dignity of the members of Christs Mystical Body, into which they are incorporated by baptism and by the grace of the Eucharist. St. So the authors claim that he is exactly Vatican II is doubtful. If you are the body and members of Christ, then it is your sacrament that is placed on the table of the Lord; it is your sacrament that you receive. Instruction on the Manner of Distributing Holy Communion Part 4. To increase sanctifying grace and all virtues in our soul. Bishops who have been permitted to introduce the new rite of communion are asked to send a report to the congregation, six months hence, on the outcome. The usage of communion in the hand must be accompanied by relevant instruction or catechesis on Catholic teaching regarding Christs real and permanent presence under the eucharistic elements and the proper reverence toward this sacrament. Sacrilege is at an all-time high, yet use of the Sacrament of Confession is at an all-time low. It must also increase their faith in the sublime reality of the Lords body and blood, which they touch with their hand. Papua and New Guinea, 28 April 1976 From the historical point of view, we can say that there is strong evidence that the practice existed in early centuries in some areas of the Church. June 29, 2021 | One could have perfect adoration of Real Presence in humble posture and, at least in theory, miss the point of Communion. Among Catholics, there is a sincere difference of opinion with respect to the opportunity of this practice, as to its possible spiritual benefits or detriments. However, this is likely to lead to many embarrassing instances for the faithful who approach communion unaware of the situation. They probably never foresaw its subsequent, and occasionally chaotic, development in some parts of the Church. Its just BREAD!!. Pope Benedict XVI 1927-2022 tribute page and access to resources here. For some, however, the singing of this hymn is perceived as an intrusion on their own prayer, their private thanksgiving after Communion. Who holds the wind in the palm of his hand? The usage of communion in the hand must be accompanied by relevant instruction or catechesis on Catholic teaching regarding Christs real and permanent presence under the eucharistic elements and the proper reverence toward this sacrament. It is adoration of Christ, meal of fellowship, union with other communicants (hence the Church wants us to sing during reception), sharing in Christs self-sacrifice, mystical union with angels & saints, sharing even now in the heavenly banquet, having the life of the Risen Christ in oneself, a call to charity and works of justice and making real on earth the peace foreshadowed in Communion, etc. Ive updated the post. Our worship ought to create common unity under Christ, not destroy it. Cardinals Thorne (Peru) and Caffarra (Bologna) have banned Communion in the hand, citing reasons of abuse and disrespect. Pope Paul Vl approved this Instruction, confirmed it with his authority, and ordered its publication, setting the day of publication as its effective date. On the part of both the minister and the recipient, whenever the host is placed in the hand of a communicant there must be careful concern and caution, especially about particles that might fall from the hosts. Battered Gargoyles & The Human Future - Rod Dreher's Diary Ever since the InstructionMemoriale Dominithree years ago, some of the conferences of bishops have been requesting the Apostolic See for the faculty to allow ministers distributing communion to place the eucharistic bread in the hand of the faithful. I happen to accept the role of darkness within the Church, but it strikes me as being perpetrated all too often by those who style themselves the most faithful or loyal to God. As soon as the communicant receives the host, he or she consumes the whole of it. Eccl., VII, ix). [19] This list is by no means exhaustive, and it would be tedious to cite all of these references as a catalog, but let us turn to a few of them to see what the Fathers have to say about the meaning of this practice. divine life. Not only was Communion in the hand started in disobedience, it was perpetuated by deceit. Communion on the Tongue Is an Apostolic Tradition Entries (RSS) and Comments (RSS) TOP ADOM :: Communion: in the hand or the tongue We pray that these will lessen and finally disappear, in keeping with Christ's prayer for us "that they may all be one" (Jn 17:21). 895. 6. Hard to believe that Catechesis has never been better if that fundamental is misunderstood. 915). When permitted, the choice as to the form of reception falls upon the communicant and not upon the priest. Copyright 2023 Eternal Word Television Network, Inc. Irondale, Alabama. Copyright PrayTellBlog.com To continue the sacrifice of the Cross in His Church. A passage from St. Cyril of Jerusalem is used to persuade Catholics that Communion in the hand is an ancient practice legitimately restored after Vatican II. The list obviously is not complete, for this article says that Germany and France both received permission from the Holy See on the same day in 1969: The General Instruction of the Roman Missal takes this hymn very seriously, mandating that it should begin at the Communion of the priest and extend until the last person has received Communion. A Journal of the McGrath Institute for Church Life, by Elizabeth Klein The divine coal is a common image of the Eucharist in Syrian theology. St. So whats missing? Catholics use birth control, get divorced and fornicate at the same rate as society in general, with the sin of using birth control rarely confessed. Receiving the Host in the Hand | Franciscan Media The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCBs) mission is to encounter the mercy of Christ and to accompany His people with joy. Bishops Cannot Mandate Communion on the Hand or Forbid Communion on the Pope Paul Vl calls attention to the purpose of the InstructionMemoriale Dominiof 29 May 1969, on retaining the traditional practice in use. The person distributing Communion says audibly to each person approaching, "The Body of Christ." 96). Your fire, O, Our Lord we have eaten in your offering There is so much to Communion. Because, he says, one should choose the days on which one lives with more purity and self-control in order to approach so great a sacrament worthily. When the communion is distributed under both kinds, it is never permitted to place in the hands of the communicants hosts which have first been placed in the Blood of the Lord. Personally, I think that when a priest with the care of souls holds the view that Communion on the tongue is preferable to the alternative practice, then the best thing he can do is inform the faithful of the bishops permission. Devotion and reverence toward the Eucharist in the case of communion in the hand. 284-287 is to be followed.. As seen above, the U.S. bishops were not among the first to permit Communion in the hand. At the same time, it is not justified to claim that Communion in the hand is necessarily less reverent or inevitably leads to abuses. On the one hand, I think this evidence precludes describing communion in the hand as intrinsically irreverent. Basil the Great considered Communion in the hand so irregular that he did not hesitate to consider it a grave fault. The Council of Saragossa (380): Excommunicated anyone who dared continue . In approaching therefore, come not with your wrists extended, or your fingers spread; but make your left hand a throne for the right, as for that which is to receive a King. I suspect that Christ can cope with particles that get dropped but the care we show, or the lack of care, is what counts. For pastoral reasons this manner of receiving communion has been legitimately established as the most common form in the Latin rite. Pakistan, 29 October 1976 The liturgical renewal of St. Pius X which promoted the frequent reception of Communion were still quite young. Cyril of Jerusalem [c. 313-386], Catechetical Lectures, 23:21-22) Several more but no room here. We should weigh very well the matters in which we appeal to conscience. July 2, 2020 ( LifeSiteNews) Many bishops around the world are attempting to compel Catholics, who are in the right dispositions to approach the Holy Eucharist, to receive Our Lord in the. [18] Moreover, an early illuminated gospel, the Rosanno Gospels, depicts the last supper as a communion line, where the disciples receive in cupped hands while bowed. [27] John Chrysostom, Baptismal Instruction, 12.15-16, trans. From a hygienic point of view, the hand carries a huge amount of bacteria. My sense is that if theres something demonic in all this it is the Galatians moment in which many Catholics find themselves, especially those on the traditional side. When receiving in the hand, the communicant should be guided by the words of St. Cyril of Jerusalem . ODonaghues post, I note with interest that the countries in which Communion in the hand is alleged to have been most prevalent either did not apply for or at any rate receive an indult in these first 8 years of results. Several readers pointed out that I made no mention of a text of St. Cyril when mentioning the historical foundations of the practice. Q. Pray Tell here documents two statements of the Congregation for Divine Worship issued under Pope Paul VI. Archbishop Anthony Fisher, OP, of Sydney published an excellent paper on the topic of conscience and authority which can be found at:https://www.catholicculture.org/culture/library/view.cfm?recnum=7833or, in a slightly briefer form athttps://zenit.org/articles/bishop-fisher-on-conscience-and-authority/. Other way round, it was in the hand and changed to the tongue circa 900 in the west. If a priest has great personal difficulty due to deeply and sincerely held views regarding this practice, he can always petition the bishop for a personal exemption or a permission to not apply this permission to his parish. Australia, 26 September 1975 The history of the liturgy, however, makes clear that rather early on a . Receiving Communion The Sacrament of Holy Communion (also known as The Lord's Supper or Eucharist) has been precious and life-giving to Christians for 2,000 years. In order to be properly disposed to . All of us should receive with great reverence and respect. Your email address will not be published. Abuse. Blasphemy. Communion in the hand? Catholic Insight The [Seraph] did not hold it, and [Isaiah] did not eat it At the same time he has taken into account the reasons given to support your request and the outcome of the vote taken on this matter. O Solomon, the thing which the Lord of your father

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