With regard to the second, we have many early witnesses including Paul (see 1 Cor 11:27) and the Didache (seechapter 14). It is therefore difficult in the context of this present letter not to mention the sad phenomena previously referred to. For real reception of the Blessed Eucharist it is required that the sacred species be received into the stomach. Japan, 27 June 1970 This norm is supported by an Instruction by the Holy See regarding the Eucharist: "In distributing Holy Communion it is to be remembered that 'sacred ministers may not deny the sacraments to those who seek them in a reasonable manner, are rightly disposed, and are not prohibited by law from receiving them'(Code of Canon Law, can. The Communion Procession is an action of the Body of Christ. But is the impression they give generally correct? The communicant should audibly respond, "Amen," indicating by that response his or her belief that this small wafer of bread, the wine in this chalice are in reality the body and blood of Christ the Lord. However, this is likely to lead to many embarrassing instances for the faithful who approach communion unaware of the situation. After receiving Communion our bodies become holy chalices. We are encouraged to receive Communion devoutly and frequently. 2. If our reader had said that he believed that Communion in the hand was more prone to dangers of accidents and profanation, I would accept the argument. Sacrilege is at an all-time high, yet use of the Sacrament of Confession is at an all-time low. To signify, seal, and apply to believers all the benefits of the new covenant. In fact, each time we move forward together to receive the Body and Blood of the Lord, we join the countless ranks of all the baptized who have gone before us, our loved ones, the canonized and uncanonized saints down through the ages, who at their time in history formed a part of this mighty stream of believers. Our procession should move with dignity; our bearing should be that of those who know they have been redeemed by Christ and are coming to receive their God! St. [26] Augustine, Letter 54.3.4, trans. No wonder so many people there have given up on Christianity. [23], The great and divine Apostle Paul with loud voice calls man created in the image of God, the body and temple of Christ. Of note for the modern debate, both John Chrysostom and the Council of Constantinople in Trullo argue that human beings, made in the image of God and capable of communing with him, are more worthy to touch the Eucharist than vessels of gold and silver. It must also increase their faith in the sublime reality of the Lords body and blood, which they touch with their hand. And having hollowed your palm, receive the Body of Christ, saying over it, Amen. Maybe this is part of a grand conspiracy by . 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. We also welcome to this celebration those who do not share our faith in Jesus Christ. The guidelines, which are to be included in missalettes and other participation aids published in the United States, seek to remind all those who may attend Catholic liturgies of the present discipline of the Church with regard to the sharing of Eucharistic Communion. Christ himself at the Last Supper pleaded with his Father: "Holy Father, keep them in your name that you have given me, so that they may be one just as we are as you, Father, are in me and I in you, that they also may be in us" (John 17:11, 21).Baptism has joined us to Christ and to one another as the vine and its branches. Communion received on the tongue and while kneeling. 2023 United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, United States Conference of Catholic Bishops is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization. Q. From the point of view of liturgical law, the relevant documents are the following. The General Instruction of the Roman Missal says the following: 160. | Irondale, AL 35210 |. This is more a question of moral theology than of liturgy. Communion in the hand was officially permitted in the United States in 1977, following an indult that is, special permission given by the Congregation for Divine Sacraments in 1969. As further documentation,Pray Tell provides this excerpt from the 2002General Instruction of the Roman Missal in Latin and English on the reception of Communion. Take this from someone who receives in the hand sometimes, I would never do it if I thought it was enabling Lucifer to corrupt my soul. Gross Alexander NPNF 13, ed. Take a step or two to the side to make way for the next communicant, then receive our Lord. The cultural backing. 91). How should this evidence be brought to bear on the modern conversation? The way you put it, it doesnt sound obsessive-compulsive but salutary. Q: When the bishop in a diocese allows the faithful to receive Communion in the hand or on the tongue, can a priest, who objects on the grounds of conscience, refuse to give the faithful holy Communion in the hand? Communion in the hand is legitimate only where permitted, and it remains in the realm of a permission. Entries (RSS) and Comments (RSS) TOP In the context of the reception of Communion, this means a cognizance of both Church history and contemporary cultural nuances. The rite of communion in the hand must not be put into practice indiscriminately. A situation that, in the US certainly, was not necessarily governed by external uniformity (given the varieties of ethnic piety and cultural practices). Aaron, this describes what the countries are to do where Communion in the hand was being practiced. 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). All of us should receive with great reverence and respect. As seen above, the U.S. bishops were not among the first to permit Communion in the hand. Fire and Spirit, contrary to nature So the authors claim that he is exactly Vatican II is doubtful. When we move in procession, particularly the procession to receive the Body and Blood of Christ in Communion, we are a sign, a symbol of that pilgrim Church "on the way.". [2] Cyprian, On the Good of Patience 14, On the Lapsed 16 and 26,and Letter 55.9. awr. It must also increase their faith in the sublime reality of the Lords body and blood, which they touch with their hand. For example, to say that Communion in the hand is a sign of spiritual maturity, or that Communion on the tongue reduces the lay faithful to infancy, is belied by centuries of lay saints who received in this manner. All our lives we who believe in Christ are moving in time toward that moment when we will be taken by death from this world and enter into the joy of the Lord in the eternal Kingdom he has prepared for us. My overarching point in all this (as someone who receives comfortably in both manners) is that I dont think common concerns with reception in the hand have been treated with adequate seriousness by many its defenders. (I dont direct this at you, I mean it to everyone on all sides.). Pray Tell here documents two statements of the Congregation for Divine Worship issued under Pope Paul VI. In the United States, the body of Bishops has determined that "[t]he norm is that Holy Communion is to be received standing, unless an individual member of the faithful wishes to receive Communion while kneeling"and that a bow is the act of reverence made by those receiving (no. awr. North Africa,October 15 1969 Many pathogens are transmitted through the hands. Blog Staff and Editorial Advisory Committee, http://www.kathpedia.com/index.php?title=Handkommunion, http://www.cultodivino.va/content/cultodivino/it/rivista-notitiae/indici-annate.html, From the Wires: U.S. Catholic Priests Are Increasingly Conservative as Faithful Grow More Liberal, Yale Organ Week: Now Accepting Applications, The North American Academy of Liturgy, 2023, New Open-Access, Ecumenical Journal Powered by the University of Vienna, Is the Eucharistic Revival a Liturgical Revival (Part 2), What Did Jesus Know? 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. 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. Communion in the hand is legitimate only where permitted, and it remains in the realm of a permission. Some of the online advocates of kneeling/tongue seem to focus only on adoration of the Real Presence and now a cardinal has said that those who receive standing in the hand most Catholics by far! Most often when speaking of reverence, however, the Fathers emphasize two main things: 1) that every precaution should be taken lest the Eucharist fall to the ground and 2) that communicants should be from serious sin and quarrels with other Christians. Fr. 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. So Indian Bishop conference have not got any Indult for communion in hand? Malaysia and Singapore, 3 October 1977, * * * * *. Fire consumed the offering Think of what you receive in your hand and keep it clean of all greed and theft. This helps explain why this line of thought isnt gaining much traction except on the right fringe. God has come to live in us. It was proved that belief in the Real Presence is abysmal. To increase sanctifying grace and all virtues in our soul. Germany, 6 June 1969 Click herefor a handout that can be placed in your bulletin for your parishioner. 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. Communion in the hand is allowed in the United States by decision of the American Bishops. First, Cyril: Coming up to receive, therefore, do not approach with your wrists extended or your fingers splayed, but making your left hand a throne for the right (for it is about to receive a King) and cupping your palm, so receive the Body of Christ; and answer: "Amen." [20] Here is what Theodore says: 2023 United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, United States Conference of Catholic Bishops is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization. This means that Jesus has no eyes but our eyes, no feet . 51 (Feb), pg 62). The legitimacy of Communion in the hand is not in question. OF THE SUPREME PONTIFF. Eccl., VII, ix). (Catholic Encyclopedia: Genuflexion) Jeffrey T. Wickes FotC 130 (Washington, DC: Catholic University of America Press, 2015). Finally, ensuring the application of liturgical law is above all the responsibility of the bishop and only indirectly the religious superior. They partake not of Him that is in them, they perceive Him not. SACRED CONGREGATION FOR DIVINE WORSHIP, Letter En reponse a la demande, to presidents of those conferences of bishops petitioning the indult for communion in the hand, 29 May 1969: Acta Apostolicae Sedis 61 (1969) 546-547; Notitiae 5 (1969) 351-353. And having hollowed your palm, receive the Body of Christ, saying over it, Amen. Other way round, it was in the hand and changed to the tongue circa 900 in the west. On November 14, 1996, the National Conference of Catholic Bishops approved the following guidelines on the reception of Communion.