A more sanitary communion?

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SFisher

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Hi all,

With all the recent concerns about H1N1 and public health in general, do we need to think about implementing new procedures that make the administration of the sacraments more sanitary? Any thoughts or concerns?🤷 Thanks,

SF
 
SFisher said:
Hi all,

With all the recent concerns about H1N1 and public health in general, do we need to think about implementing new procedures that make the administration of the sacraments more sanitary? Any thoughts or concerns?🤷 Thanks,

SF
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Most diocese are (name removed by moderator)lementing changes: The Chalice is no longer being offered to the Laity (it is of course always required of the celebrating priest(s)), Communion is only received in your hand, The screen is always available for use between the priest and Confessor for Reconciliation. None of the other Sacraments risk spreading H1N1.
 
A visiting priest at the latin mass where I go planted the host so firmly on my tongue that his thumb touched it. Honestly felt like i was getting a cold that afternoon. What to do?
 
I don’t know how many Eastern Christians frequent this forum, but what about adopting their method of Communion “served” into the Communicants’ mouth by a golden spoon?
 
MusicMan said:
I don’t know how many Eastern Christians frequent this forum, but what about adopting their method of Communion “served” into the Communicants’ mouth by a golden spoon?
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That takes a lot of practice, and it’s not something I think the Latin Rite priests would be able to pick up overnight.
 
and the spoon would contain the droplets that would have the virus
 
MusicMan said:
I don’t know how many Eastern Christians frequent this forum, but what about adopting their method of Communion “served” into the Communicants’ mouth by a golden spoon?
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That would necessitate a change in discipline for the Latin Church as you would have to change to levaned bread.
choy said:
and the spoon would contain the droplets that would have the virus
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When the spoon is used properly it never touches any part of the mouth.

Though the priest and deacon still receive from the Chalice so if they were sick it could be passed on.
 
And we’d all probably clamp down on the spoon.

So, let me ask the flipside to the question … Are the Eastern Christians making any changes due to H1N1?
 
MusicMan said:
And we’d all probably clamp down on the spoon.
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When used properly you can not clamp down. You would tilt your head back and open your mouth. The priest places the spoon over your open mouth and dumps the contents into your mouth. The spoon should not enter your mouth.
So, let me ask the flipside to the question … Are the Eastern Christians making any changes due to H1N1?
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Not that I am aware of.
 
A certain Byzantine Catholic priest, who I will not mention, has whacked me in the back right molar every time (OK, all 3 times) I have attended the Liturgy at his church.
 
The spoon touches the mouth often and it gets breathed on. We’ll have to watch and see if there is widespread illness in the churches that commune that way.

Non of this bothers me. This germ phobia is silly for the most part unless you are immuno- compromised and then I guess you should take some kind of steps. But for the majority of us we survive germs all the time.
 
‘When the spoon is used properly it never touches any part of the mouth’

The same when Holy Communion in the Latin Rite is administered on the tongue.

At the TLM I go to, I never feel the priest’s fingers when he places the Host on my tongue.

With all this hysteria about the swine flu today, I’m thinking: what did Catholics do during the 1918 Spanish flu epidemic when Communion was administered?

Something to mull over…
 
barb_finnegan said:
‘When the spoon is used properly it never touches any part of the mouth’

The same when Holy Communion in the Latin Rite is administered on the tongue.

At the TLM I go to, I never feel the priest’s fingers when he places the Host on my tongue.

With all this hysteria about the swine flu today, I’m thinking: what did Catholics do during the 1918 Spanish flu epidemic when Communion was administered?

Something to mull over…
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good point. Communion has been done for 2000 years and just imagine all the comunicable diseases that came out in that time period

and yet here we are today
 
By the time you go up to receive communion, you’ve already touched the door handles to come into the church, touched the pews, the missalettes, the holy water and breathed in the same space as dozens, if not hundreds, of other people.

Money is probably the most unsanitary thing there is in the world to handle and nobody is concerned about the precautions that banks, restaurants and retail businesses are taking.

Seems to me that “someone” would very much like to scare us all away from the sacrament of the Eucharist…
 
choy said:
good point. Communion has been done for 2000 years and just imagine all the comunicable diseases that came out in that time period

and yet here we are today
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They probably stuck leeches on the people once they contracted the flu.
 
malachi3 said:
A visiting priest at the latin mass where I go planted the host so firmly on my tongue that his thumb touched it. Honestly felt like i was getting a cold that afternoon. What to do?
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Receive in your hand. It is possible to do so while kneeling at the altar rail. I did so for many years back in the late 70’s, early 80’s. And in the U.S. receiving in the hand is Always an option.
 
MusicMan said:
I don’t know how many Eastern Christians frequent this forum, but what about adopting their method of Communion “served” into the Communicants’ mouth by a golden spoon?
Click to expand...
A gold spoon still has the risk of transmission if it is breathed on, or touches the lips or tongue.
 
I think the Bishops are going about this backwards. I receive in the hand and will always support that method of reception. However … It’s really my opinion that Communion on the tongue is more sanitary. If it is done properly, the distributor’s fingers should not touch the tongue. The same about the hand is not necessarily true.

Even if done WRONG, the germs that the distributor may pick up from the mouth are much less than all the germs that could be picked up from the hand.

Or am I completely off base here?
 
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