Altar Rail Puts Communicants on Right Track

[paperwight]

Don_Ruggero:

Actually, it can cause a tragedy.

Not that likely, the people behind are usually moving slowly enough to prevent tragedy

It’s certainly happened in our parish, An elderly partially-sighted lady fell over the person in front in the line, when they suddenly dropped to their knees without warning or simply checking behind them.
She never left her house again, because of her injuries and because she lost her confidence.

 

[paperwight]

You’re merely showing that intinction by the priest, i.e. not that self intinction is allowed.

I’ve already stated that I accept this.

However, what I’m referring to is when I’m EMHC of the cup and a person comes to receive with the consecrated host in their hand and wants to dip the host into the cup to receive the Precious Blood. As I was instructed by my pastor, this is prohibited and I should place my hand over the cup and instruct the person to receive the host first, then they can receive from the cup.

Sorry, but obedience to my pastor trump’s directives from strangers on CAF.

Jim

That’s interesting, In our parish we EMHCs are told to let it go, if someone does that, as Communion is no time for arguments.

 

[JimR-OCDS]

Merely placing my hand over the cup, as I was instructed to do and I had to to it twice, didn’t cause and argument.

The blame falls on a visiting priest from Canada, who told the people to receive this way and he whispered to the congregation jokingly, “just don’t tell Father I told you to do this.”

Since then, their have been some people who receive from the cup this way.

Like yourself, I originally volunteered for the ministry, the priest to me just let the person receive this way rather than cause an argument. Of course he never said no to anything and that was a problem in of itself.

Later as we got a new pastor, he told me not to allow it and instructed me as mentioned above.

To me, a person sticking their hand down into the cup, is offensive.

Imagine a person you really don’t know, coming up to you at a social gathering and dunking a piece of food into the cup you’re drinking from ?

I’d be offended and probably would get new glass of the beverage I was previously enjoying.

Jim

 

[Loud-living-dogma]

That is indeed a tragedy. Just curious, at our parish, the infirm or elderly can stay in the front pews and receive. Is this not the case at most / all parishes?
I guess not.

 

[Maximilian75]

and I apologised for any disrespect (which was not my intention) later in this thread.

 

[PetraG]

The people who would walk away rather than receive Him have something very wrong with their thought process…and needed remedial catechesis.

We are in total agreement on that point. My feeling that this is a cause of scandal is that the matter went to trial in a civil court, not that these particular members of the faithful were disciplined. Of course the faithful ought to be subject to discipline. I can also understand if civil authorities are called if people are physically barred from the church. That was not the charge, however.

I think we have a difference on a small point: not whether they ought to be subject to discipline, but whether or not calling civil authorities ought to be left out of churches except in the most unavoidable extremity. Short of that, the Church has her own avenues for discipline of the faithful.

May the faithful lodge protests against their pastors? We agree on that, as well: There is a time, there is a place, there is a way it is done. The rights of the faithful are fully protected within that context. They are not harmed by submitting obediently even to denials they do not deserve. Even if a pastor is flat-out wrong, the faithful are more harmed by pridefully refusing to bear wrongs patiently than by the wrong itself.

Having said that, the pastor and the other faithful do better to bear wrongs patiently, as well. They do not deserve to have to do it, but it is better for all concerned if they can find a way whenever they can.

 

[Loud-living-dogma]

Well Jim, would you drink communally out a cup at a party? I doubt it. So why is dunking all that much worse?

 

[phil19034]

It is the same in my Diocese. Lots of families with young children at the TLM

I see the same here.

 

[Flor]

Now I am wondering if an alter rail is going to be installed at our church next week … no music practices or activities can be scheduled for a week due to remodeling of the front of the church.
Nearly two years ago a change was made to the administration of the Holy Bread at the Spanish Masses : it can only be received directly on the tongue, and never in the hand. The Spanish are not allowed to handle it, because evidently a few were keeping it, sneaking it out of the Service, and using it for Satanic rituals. So, the actions of a very very few resulted in a long lasting consequence for a couple thousand sincere Spanish Catholics.

 

[crenfro]

Hello.

I’d love the use of the altar rails to return. May be difficult for some older folks though.

It is great, however, that we have the opportunity to receive communion as frequently as we already do.

 

[Maximilian75]

Thats very sad… If it has to be mandated, COTT should be mandated for the whole parish, and not just for the Hispanic masses… the satanists could just come to an English language mass

 

[anon64350612]

Angels do not have bodies; they do not literally stand or kneel. Because we do have bodies, kneeling helps us understand and internalize what we are really doing at Holy Communion.

 

[anon64350612]

I am all for it. Both the priest and the “audience” can face almighty God and pray together. Does the song “People Look East” apply to everyone except the priest?

 

[phil19034]

Nearly two years ago a change was made to the administration of the Holy Bread at the Spanish Masses : it can only be received directly on the tongue, and never in the hand. The Spanish are not allowed to handle it, because evidently a few were keeping it, sneaking it out of the Service, and using it for Satanic rituals. So, the actions of a very very few resulted in a long lasting consequence for a couple thousand sincere Spanish

“Holy Bread”?

Interesting that the pastor didn’t make the whole parish tongue only, since they could come to an English mass and steal the host too. I wonder why he didn’t feel the English masses were at risk as well?

Finally, let us know if they are installing altar rails or just doing something else (like refinishing the floor). My guess is that if he was installing an altar rail, you would know.

• I would GUESS that before a priest made a decision to reinstall altar rails, that he would let the parish know. That way, people could have some (name removed by moderator)ut on whether to fund-raise for marble, metal or a custom carved wood rail. Or if they should install movable rails or use temporary rails first.
• Most pastors use a committee to help him select new pews… so I would totally expect most pastors to use a committee to help him select an altar rail.

 

[Loud-living-dogma]

But, is it a problem to receive on the tongue? It’s not like that’s a bad thing, right?

 

[Flor]

No, it’s fine to receive on the tongue. But at first it felt like a punishment since it was the consequence of wrong doing. I asked the Spanish Deacon if we were being punished and he said , No - the risk to the Sacred Host was just so great that we don’t want to risk the safety of it.

 

[Flor]

" they could come to an English mass and steal the host too …" you are correct. There is poorly concealed (often not at all) racism at times in our Parish. Our dear Priest is Filipino, so he’s not the generator. Sometime that will be a different thread.

 

[phil19034]

No, it’s fine to receive on the tongue. But at first it felt like a punishment since it was the consequence of wrong doing. I asked the Spanish Deacon if we were being punished and he said , No - the risk to the Sacred Host was just so great that we don’t want to risk the safety of it.

Perhaps it was the Spanish Deacon’s idea? Perhaps he pushed for it and the pastor OKed it? That might explain why it was limited to the Spanish masses.

 

[Flor]

Yes, that sounds likely. The Deacon is responsible for a very large Spanish Ministry, organizing almost every aspect of it. Also, the Spanish crowd is larger than the English. At an English Mass there are a few spare places left to sit - they are more quiet and formal , so anyone out of order would be duley noted and reported. At the Spanish Masses I am up front on right sitting at the piano, and a sea of Spanish arrive and keep arriving until there’s standing room only…and people standing along the isles and in back. Special holidays, streaming out the front doors which are left open. I guess more difficult to monitor than English.

 

[exnihilo]

It’s certainly happened in our parish, An elderly partially-sighted lady fell over the person in front in the line, when they suddenly dropped to their knees without warning or simply checking behind them.

She never left her house again, because of her injuries and because she lost her confidence.

That would be unfortunate, but how could this be suddenly? The person dropped to their knees at the front to the Church right in front of a priest in order to receive communion, right? I don’t consider that sudden or unexpected.