Can a Catholic attend a Eastern orthodox Mass?

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Hi,
I’m going on a trip to Romania in a few weeks and while I’m there I would like to attend an Eastern orthodox mass. Just to clarify, I don’t want to join the Eastern orthodox church or neglect my duty of attending a Catholic Mass on sunday, I’m secure in my Catholic faith. Can I do it? Has the Church ever addressed this topic? (I think it’s a real tragedy that the Church split. 1054 was a great year for our enemy)
 
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Yes; however it is my understanding that the Orthodox do not allow inter-church Communion. Out of respect for their rules, you should refrain from receiving.
 
Kullervo said:
Hi,
I’m going on a trip to Romania in a few weeks and while I’m there I would like to attend an Eastern orthodox mass. Just to clarify, I don’t want to join the Eastern orthodox church or neglect my duty of attending a Catholic Mass on sunday, I’m secure in my Catholic faith. Can I do it? Has the Church ever addressed this topic? (I think it’s a real tragedy that the Church split. 1054 was a great year for our enemy)
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Absolutely! And if you liked it, when you get home you can seek out an Eastern Catholic Divine Liturgy.
 
otjm said:
Yes; however it is my understanding that the Orthodox do not allow inter-church Communion.
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Some do, some don’t. At times when an Orthodox Church has a large Byzantine Catholic counterpart, Melkite Greek Catholic and Antiochian Orthodox, you might see some intercommunion.

ZP
 
I’m pretty sure you can attend, but may not actively participate. Active participation in non-catholic worship is forbidden by divine positive law.
 
All as above.

NB However: My understanding is that such a liturgy would not fulfill any obligation to assist at Mass.
 
Kullervo said:
I’m going on a trip to Romania in a few weeks and while I’m there I would like to attend an Eastern orthodox mass.
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Where in Romania are you going? If you are up in the northwest, then there will be a strong Greek Catholic presence where you can participate fully.
 
ziapueblo said:
Some do, some don’t. At times when an Orthodox Church has a large Byzantine Catholic counterpart, Melkite Greek Catholic and Antiochian Orthodox, you might see some intercommunion.
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I don’t know how common or open any intercommunion is, but the Romanian Orthodox and Catholic Churches have good enough relations that a couple of years ago their patriarchs blessed the waters together on Theophany . . .

I’m not certain, but I believe the prohibition of a Catholic receding Communion at an Orthodox liturgy is entirely from the Orthodox end.
 
Please cite the Divine positive law that says that one may not participate in Orthodox worship. If it is positive law, we should have a source for it, an actual written-down commandment.

-Fr ACEGC
 
dochawk said:
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ziapueblo:
Some do, some don’t. At times when an Orthodox Church has a large Byzantine Catholic counterpart, Melkite Greek Catholic and Antiochian Orthodox, you might see some intercommunion.
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I’m not certain, but I believe the prohibition of a Catholic receding Communion at an Orthodox liturgy is entirely from the Orthodox end.
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And should be respected, without question or expectation.

Intercommunion happens, but is the exception to the rule. We should not go to an Orthodox Divine Liturgy even hoping to receive Holy Communion. If we are invited to receive, that is a matter of conscience and circumstance for the individual
 
Yes, you can actively participate, but just not receive holy Communion, unless you had absolutely no way to get to a Roman Catholic Church and it was a serious reason. But like one person posted — they don’t permit receiving holy Communion unless you are orthodox.
 
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Well, I’m basing that off of this:

“Common participation in worship ( communicatio in sacris ) which harms the unity of the Church or involves formal acceptance of error or the danger of aberration in the faith, of scandal and indifferentism, is forbidden by divine law.” [Orientalium Ecclesiarum, 26]

However, after reading this document I was reminded that it made provisions for Catholics to attend EO liturgies in some cases.
 
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dochawk said:
I’m not certain, but I believe the prohibition of a Catholic receding Communion at an Orthodox liturgy is entirely from the Orthodox end.
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I would agree

That’s interesting you brought up Romania. A friend of mines daughter was up there a few summers ago and was staying at a Romanian Orthodox Monastery. She would attend Divine Liturgy but not commune. A couple of Sundays before she left the priest asked why she never approached the chalice. She said that she was Greek Catholic and he told her, “we’re the same Church. Next Sunday you come up.”

ZP
 
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You’re exactly right. I have been to several Orthodox Divine Liturgies and would never even think of approaching the chalice. We should respect their rules for sure.

I know a Melkite who has a summer home in a different state. There is no Byzantine Catholic Church in the area so he has been attending the OCA in town for years. They know he is Melkite but he has become part of the community over the years and he communes at the Church. It’s like you said, a special exception, where over time he has become part of the parish and the priest eventually invited him to have communion. He says it will be his parish when he retires.

ZP
 
The decree on ecumenism says the same thing:
Yet worship in common (communicatio in sacris) is not to be considered as a means to be used indiscriminately for the restoration of Christian unity. There are two main principles governing the practice of such common worship: first, the bearing witness to the unity of the Church, and second, the sharing in the means of grace. Witness to the unity of the Church very generally forbids common worship to Christians, but the grace to be had from it sometimes commends this practice. The course to be adopted, with due regard to all the circumstances of time, place, and persons, is to be decided by local episcopal authority, unless otherwise provided for by the Bishops’ Conference according to its statutes, or by the Holy See.
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Traditionally, as Vatican II says, common worship was viewed by the Church as generally giving witness against the unity of the Church (ie being an occasion for giving scandal with regard to indifferentism). That’s why it is generally forbidden by divine law, being only permitted when a discriminate judgment is made that that danger is not present.

The problem is, of course, the course that was adopted is a general permission that is taken advantage of indiscriminately. How can the prohibition be said to be general, when the permission is general? And seeing the kind of stuff many of our leaders take part in, and the general indifferentism that has resulted among most Catholics, it’s hard to see that they are actually taking any of what Vatican II describes into account.

Since no bishop is forcing anyone to participate in non-Catholic worship, it seems advisable to generally follow the traditional approach which led to much less indifferentism.
 
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ioannes_pius said:
However, after reading this document I was reminded that it made provisions for Catholics to attend EO liturgies in some cases.
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Although this provision has been removed, there have been times in which Greek Catholics have been permitted to fulfill their Sunday obligation at in Orthodox Divine Liturgy. This what argue against what you have said, as well.

I would have to do more research to be sure, but if memory serves me correctly, this provision was in The ecumenical directory. It was removed out of sensitivity to the Orthodox viewpoint.
 
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