Canons on Intercommunion

[invocation]

I snagged this from another ongoing thread…

Catholics are bound by Catholic Canon Law which states:

Can. 844 §1. Catholic ministers administer the sacraments licitly to Catholic members of the Christian faithful alone, who likewise receive them licitly from Catholic ministers alone, without prejudice to the prescripts of §§2, 3, and 4 of this canon, and ⇒ can. 861, §2.

§2. Whenever necessity requires it or true spiritual advantage suggests it, and provided that danger of error or of indifferentism is avoided, the Christian faithful for whom it is physically or morally impossible to approach a Catholic minister are permitted to receive the sacraments of penance, Eucharist, and anointing of the sick from non-Catholic ministers in whose Churches these sacraments are valid.

§3. Catholic ministers administer the sacraments of penance, Eucharist, and anointing of the sick licitly to members of Eastern Churches which do not have full communion with the Catholic Church if they seek such on their own accord and are properly disposed. This is also valid for members of other Churches which in the judgment of the Apostolic See are in the same condition in regard to the sacraments as these Eastern Churches.

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Now, I am curious, in §2, what exactly does “true spiritual advantage suggests it” mean? That sounds awfully broad to me and I just can’t imagine that it is as broad as it sounds.

in the peace of Christ.

 

[jmcrae]

Now, I am curious, in §2, what exactly does “true spiritual advantage suggests it” mean? That sounds awfully broad to me and I just can’t imagine that it is as broad as it sounds.

in the peace of Christ.

Note that this can only happen in churches where they have valid Sacraments, so we are speaking here about separated churches like the SSPX and Eastern Orthodox.

With spiritual advantage, and while avoiding the sin of indifferentism, would seem to imply that there is no valid priest available who is in communion with Rome.