Communion in the hand is legitimate only where permitted, and it remains in the realm of a permission. The traditional and preferred method is the reception of the Host on the tongue: Step forward and kneel at the Communion rail or station (if you stand, make a sign of reverencesuch as a bow or genuflection or Sign of the Crossbefore receiving the Host and take care not to disrupt the Communion line). They partake not of Him that is in them, they perceive Him not. Therefore, it is not licit to deny Holy Communion to any of Christ's faithful solely on the grounds, for example, that the person wishes to receive the Eucharist kneeling or standing" (Redemptionis Sacramentum, no. They are also to be instructed not to omit after communion the sincere and appropriate thanksgiving that is in keeping with their individual capacities, state, and occupation. I honestly get sick of it too. Jamaica, 12 March 1970 . Some may choose to receive the Lord on the tongue while others choose to receive in the hand. Maybe this is due to its similarity to practices in most Protestant churches, many of which (Anglicans and Lutherans notwithstanding) fundamentally dont believe in a sacramental Communion substance. R. E. Heine FotC 21 (Washington, DC: Catholic University of America Press, 1982). 161. We have no nets to cast deeply. This blog is not associated with Pray Tell: An open forum on faith in South Texas. 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. So it is not just tiresome traditionalists who worry about particles. But such as, instead of their hands, make vessels of gold or other materials for the reception of the divine gift, and by these receive the immaculate communion, we by no means allow to come, as preferring inanimate and inferior matter to the image of God.[24]. It must also increase their faith in the sublime reality of the Lords body and blood, which they touch with their hand. The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCBs) mission is to encounter the mercy of Christ and to accompany His people with joy. The custom of placing the Sacred Particle in the mouth, rather than in the hand of the communicant, dates in Rome from the sixth, and in Gaul from the ninth century (Van der Stappen, IV, 227; cf. Shapiro picked up an abused-looking iPhone from his desk. For example, although Communion in the hand is generally permitted at the Vatican, in recent years ministers administrating Communion at large at papal Masses have been enjoined to distribute Communion only on the tongue. 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. Obviously, for better or worse, the NLM has an agenda. By this symbolic action, their denial would be clear to all. The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCBs) mission is to encounter the mercy of Christ and to accompany His people with joy. . 51 (Feb), pg 62). When we receive Communion, we become members of Christ's Body, the Church. This action by Christ's body, the Church assembled for the Eucharist, is manifested and supported by the Communion Chant, a hymn in praise of Christ sung by the united voices of those who believe in him and share his life. Not only was Communion in the hand started in disobedience, it was perpetuated by deceit. Here in India Communion is distributed both on tongue and in hand. 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. I mean WHAT SPECIFIC REASONS were given for requesting it in the first place? This catechesis must succeed in excluding any suggestion that in the mind of the Church there is a lessening of faith in the Eucharistic presence and in excluding as well as any danger or hint of danger of profaning the Eucharist. Pray Tell here documents two statements of the Congregation for Divine Worship issued under Pope Paul VI. To be honest, I dont really belong to either camp on this, and like you, I think the polarization on this issue is doing more harm than good. [25] Origen of Alexandria, homily in Ex. Eucharistic sharing in exceptional circumstances by other Christians requires permission according to the directives of the diocesan bishop and the provisions of canon law (canon 844 4). Pakistan, 29 October 1976 All the rites which use leavened bread are reverent but not obsessive. 7. If Communion is given only under the species of bread, the Priest raises the host slightly and shows it to each, saying, The Body of Christ. The author claims that Communion in the hand could only be authorized in countries where it was an established practice but doesnt give a citation. To fit our bodies for a glorious resurrection. In the context of the reception of Communion, this means a cognizance of both Church history and contemporary cultural nuances. Monaco, 31 October 1969 The legitimacy of Communion in the hand is not in question. [6] Cyril of Jerusalem, Mystagogical Catecheses 5.13. Gross Alexander NPNF 13, ed. The Eucharist may not be received while a person has mortal sin in their soul. [24] Trans. A perception such as this is a dreadfully inaccurate and impoverished understanding of what is a significant religious action. Councils establish principles (and rarely go into specific points) and then leave it to a commission to carry out the detailed work after the Council. So when received unworthily, it is not only useless, but it is harmful to oneself (a lifestyle of sin continues), our neighbors (increase of violence, arson, looting, murders), and society in general (take a look at the condition of our country), and is extremely offensive to God (hence the wide-spread suffering). Our worship ought to create common unity under Christ, not destroy it. Pope Benedict was asked why he chose to distribute Communion only to those kneeling and on the tongue and he responded, because it highlights "the truth of the real presence [of Christ] in the Eucharist, helps the devotion . 895. Click herefor a handout that can be placed in your bulletin for your parishioner. Whether to receive Communion in the hand or on the tongue are liturgical disciplines, not dogmas. Still, while not the direction eventually taken, I believe restriction to be the more natural reading of the Vaticans intent at that moment in time. And why so? Yugoslavia, 1971 The fire of mercy has become for us a living sacrifice I dont think reception in the hand is destroying the Church like what some prominent leaders in the Church have implied, but this practice has still had wide ranging [and not entirely positive] ramifications in the Church over the last half century, far beyond the obvious choice of the individual communicant. [17] See Eusebius, Ecclesiastical History, 7.9.4. 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. They are also to be instructed not to omit after communion the sincere and appropriate thanksgiving that is in keeping with their individual capacities, state, and occupation. [5] John Climacus, Ladder of Divine Ascent 28. With regard to the second, we have many early witnesses including Paul (see 1 Cor 11:27) and the Didache (seechapter 14). The Church understands the Communion Procession, in fact every procession in liturgy, as a sign of the pilgrim Church, the body of those who believe in Christ, on their way to the Heavenly Jerusalem. [15] See the council of Auxerre, canon 36 (it directs women not to receive on their bare hands, but with their hand covered by a cloth). It also rules out arguing for an intrinsic link between a rejection of the true presence and communion in the handthe Fathers, on the whole, speak of Christs presence in the Eucharist in highly realistic terms and also received on the hand. I think proponents of tongue/kneeling will get a better hearing if they uphold all aspects of Communion. If Your Hand/Hands are Impeded . They would find many more areas we all need to work on than just their main focus. So the authors claim that he is exactly Vatican II is doubtful. 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. Whatever procedure is adopted, care must be taken not to allow particles of the eucharistic bread to fall or be scattered. I guess my point is that regardless of our internal reverence (or lack thereof), the way we verbally and literally communicate our faith to others, especially our children, is still very important. Some scholars claim that this part of the Mystical Catechesis is not originally from St. Cyril but a later interpolation into the text. Yet even here, the experts sometimes forgot the unrepeatable reality of original circumstances so that restoration is never quite the same. [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. 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. The life of Christ, the Holy Spirit, animates each of us individually, and all of us corporately and guides us together in our efforts to become one in Christ. To unite us to Himself and to nourish our soul with His SACRED CONGREGATION FOR THE DISCIPLINE OF THE SACRAMENTS, InstructionImmensae caritatis, on facilitating reception of Communion in certain circumstances, 29 January 1973: AAS 65 (1973) 264-271; Not 9 (1973) 157-164. Communion on the tongue is recommended and considered the most consonant way to receive the Eucharist, while Communion on the hand is permitted, provided that certain precautions are observed, such as checking to see if any fragments of the Host remain on the palm of the hand. The divine coal is a common image of the Eucharist in Syrian theology. They probably never foresaw its subsequent, and occasionally chaotic, development in some parts of the Church. So they reintroduced the practice of Communion in the hand (it had been originally introduced as a widespread practice by the Arian heretics of the Fourth Century to deny that Jesus is God). For example, there is ample evidence that the exchange of peace between the people was practiced well into the Middle Ages in several European countries. Finally, the fact that the Communion Procession is a profoundly religious action tells us something about the way in which we should participate in this procession. Pope Paul Vl calls attention to the purpose of the InstructionMemoriale Dominiof 29 May 1969, on retaining the traditional practice in use. However, since it is a permission, it does not generate an absolute right, and the pastors can rescind the permission, either generally or in particular circumstances if objective motives exist for doing so. There are many devout Catholics who find this practice helpful.
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