Can a child be denied first communion based on the parents sins?

[khonish]

Our school just sent home a letter with the second graders who are preparing to receive first Holy Communion. One of the requirements states: “That under the presumption one of the parents is a Roman Catholic, and if the parents are married, they are married validly in the Catholic Church and are therefore able to receive Holy Communion. The importance of this is clearly seen: that the faith is practiced in the home without any obstructions and that the parents model well and correctly the receiving of Jesus in Holy Communion in a state of grace.”
My granddaughter falls into the category of one who is awaiting anxiously to receive her first communion this year. With these requirements she will not be able to. She has a very confusing home situation, one of the reasons my husband and I send her to a Catholic School. We want her to be able to be exposed to the religion and to be able to participate in God’s gracious blessings and gifts. I asked our priest to review Mathew 19:14; Mark 10:14; and Luke 18:16. Do not hinder the graces given to the children. First Communion is such a sacred gift and one that I want so desperatly for my granddaughter to partake in, but now she will not be able to as her parents are divorced. Her mother has lived with several men since the divorce, and her father has remarried, but not in the church. Besides the above scriptures, is there anything I can use to help plead my case to allow my granddaughter to be able to receive communion?
Thank you and God Bless!

 

[Fr.Charles_Grondin]

The parents do not have to offer anything to the pastor to have their child receive first communion. It is up to the pastor to justify refusing the sacrament to a Catholic:

Can. 843 §1. Sacred ministers cannot deny the sacraments to those who seek them at appropriate times, are properly disposed, and are not prohibited by law from receiving them.

Can. 912 Any baptized person not prohibited by law can and must be admitted to holy communion.

Can. 913 §1. The administration of the Most Holy Eucharist to children requires that they have sufficient knowledge and careful preparation so that they understand the mystery of Christ according to their capacity and are able to receive the body of Christ with faith and devotion.

Can. 914 …It is for the pastor to exercise vigilance so that children who have not attained the use of reason or whom he judges are not sufficiently disposed do not approach holy communion.

The pastor cannot point to the status of the parents in order to refuse communion to their child. If the child has attained the age of reason, is properly prepared, and wishes to receive the sacrament it is his/her ** canonical right** to receive the sacrament. The burden of proof is essentially on the pastor to show a reason why the child either does not have use of reason or is insufficiently prepared/disposed.

If the pastor refuses first communion based on the status of the parents then recourse should be made to the diocesan Bishop’s office.