Communion in the hand particles on the floor

[Neithan]

Take off your shoes (Exodus 3:5).

 

[po18guy]

Precisely! Since it is impossible to break bread without tiny - even microscopic particles being shed - and I’m pretty sure God knows this…

…does He not know how to sanctify the ground we tread?

Can we know what that sanctification will accomplish, both presently and in the future?

I see a whole lot of scrupulosity these days. We hear “pandemic” but anxiety and scrupulosity are certainly epidemic, with 1:5 suffering from some form of it.

 

[HomeschoolDad]

HomeschoolDad:

Traditionally, that was when you called the priest over to retrieve the Host and purify the floor.

But then why not do the same thing if someone fumbles the Host and drops it while receiving in the hand? Why can’t the same safeguards and procedures work in that case?

They can, and they should.

I have never seen a priest or a communicant drop the host. Not saying it doesn’t happen somewhere, just that I have never seen it. Have I gone to some kind of special churches in all my years that it hasn’t happened? No, I don’t think it happens as often as some would have us believe.

I’ve seen it happen (onto the paten), and I served both the OF and EF for years. Maybe once or twice. I didn’t keep track of how many times. And I have seen many visible fragments fall onto the paten. I never ceased to be amazed at how meticulous “old school” priests were about purifying the paten (and yes, they were celebrating the Novus Ordo/OF).

I am one of the 7-8 women that clean our church every week. We have not found hosts lying around. There are no crumbs on the dark colored carpet in front of or behind the altar Where we vacuum each week.

I’m glad to know that.

I can’t post the link but this is a true story:

The Day the Host Dropped

Beautiful story. That is exactly what the priest should have done.

I have heard stories, possibly apocryphal, about priests cutting out squares of carpet where the Host fell. I don’t believe I’ve ever seen one. They shouldn’t have carpet to begin with. Hard to keep clean and it wears out.

Keep in mind that God the Father makes the bread and wine into the body and blood of Jesus, he also has the power to make it cease being the body and blood of Jesus if it lands on the ground by accident or is taken to be abused in anyway.

It’s an interesting point of view, but the Church doesn’t teach this. That said, God can do anything.

Precisely! Since it is impossible to break bread without tiny - even microscopic particles being shed - and I’m pretty sure God knows this…

…does He not know how to sanctify the ground we tread?

Can we know what that sanctification will accomplish, both presently and in the future?

I see a whole lot of scrupulosity these days. We hear “pandemic” but anxiety and scrupulosity are certainly epidemic, with 1:5 suffering from some form of it.

Tiny, microscopic fragments that no longer have the appearance of bread are no longer the Body of Christ. Visible fragments and crumbs are the issue here. It is not scrupulosity to note that These remain the Body of Christ and to treat Them accordingly.

 

[po18guy]

I did not get that sense. If it is particles, then pick them up and consume them! If we are so clumsy or heavy-handed that we regularly break the Eucharist and shed particles, then something else is at work here.

This said by a congenitally uncoordinated person.

 

[HomeschoolDad]

I did not get that sense. If it is particles, then pick them up and consume them! If we are so clumsy or heavy-handed that we regularly break the Eucharist and shed particles, then something else is at work here.

I am referring to fragments, particles, whatever you want to call Them, that slough off or break off by Themselves. I am not implying that They are caused by the communicant’s clumsiness.

But I find it difficult to believe that each and every communicant is so meticulous, and takes this act so seriously, that they look for such fragments, see Them, and consume Them. Maybe they are. I don’t know. I don’t receive CITH so it doesn’t apply to me, but it applies to Him, and that’s why I care.

 

[JimR-OCDS]

The Church doesn’t teach this because it’s was a way to ensure that lay people didn’t touch the consecrated host. But is God really this powerless ?

There were many traditions(small T) that the Church used to control people.

Hopefully, the Church has evolved over some of these things by now.

 

[puer.dei]

Didn’t you not watch the rest of the video?

Yes, I saw him deliberately damage the hosts.

 

[MPat]

Didn’t you not watch the rest of the video?

Well, it consists of three “experiments”:

1. Some hosts have been dropped on a table.
2. A host has been put down on a glove.
3. A host has been put down on a hand.

Now, let’s look at the video instructing how to receive Communion in hand by Archdiocese of Kaunas (done since in Lithuania until now Communion in hand was practically unheard off). Well, first two experiments seem to be irrelevant, since nothing like that happens in this instructional video.

So, how reliable is the third “experiment”? Well, what were the experimental conditions? For example, were the hosts “reused” between experiments (breaking is far more likely if they were)? Were there any more tries (it is far less impressive, if he is showing the only case of host breaking out of ten)?

Therefore, the video is not really “the proof”. By itself, it only shows us that the host can break under certain circumstances, and we knew that already.

So, nothing changes: sure, one should check for any visible fragments and deal with them accordingly, should he find any. There is nothing else one can do, so afterwards one should simply trust God, Church, the priest, other faithful. Failure to trust won’t make things any better.

 

[Emeraldlady]

Here is the proof

I watched the video and I think it is over the top. Of course we must understand the great mystery of Christ present to us in the substance of the bread, but balance out the temptation to make an idol of the accidents(philosophy), by the fact that the Popes and Bishops all over the world practice communion in the hand with due reverence.

The Eucharist is a cause for great joy and thanksgiving and to bring unnecessary imaginings to that great mystery is going to affect your capacity to cooperate with the grace we are offered in that moment.

 

[TheLittleLady]

Actually, no. The Church teaching is that the Presence remains as long as the appearance of bread and wine remain. We are not talking about electron microscope appearance, just, regular appearance. When the particle is small where you would not distinguish it from paper or any other bit of debris on the floor, the Presence is no longer there.

You might want to volunteer to help the Sacristian sometime, see how the hosts come packaged and that they are manufactured not to crumble,

 

[Julie4]

I take the host directly on my tongue. I feel more comfortable doing it that way. My husband, though, takes his communion his hand. I am not dogmatic on which is best. But it is sad that people may disrespect Jesus by not being careful with the consecrated host. I’m sure that sometimes it is just inadvertent. Maybe priests should bring this up before the mass so that people will be extra careful with the host.

 

[CRV]

Fragments of the Eucharistic Species

 

[Margaret_Ann]

You might want to volunteer to help the Sacristian sometime

I was the sacristan at the Catholic community center off-campus when I was in college 25+ years ago. I had to clean the paten, chalice and altar etc. And as I’ve previously posted on other threads I was a EMHC in my senior year (which I gave up after about a month).

 

[Mountie]

The teaching of the Church is that the Real Presence subsists as long as the accidents (appearance) of bread and wine remain. So, when the appearance of the bread or wine no longer remain, we cannot say that the substance is Jesus.

It is my understanding that the hosts are made in such a way to prevent crumbs from breaking off. If a particle, exhaustively including a nanoparticle or one indistinguishable from dust, falls, we can safely say that the Real Presence is not in that substance because it is no longer under the appearance of bread. So we should not be scrupulous about a small particle, not seen by the human eye, because that isn’t Jesus. Jesus remains in the host as long as it appears as bread and wine.

I find this article to provide a fantastic explanation:

https://newtheologicalmovement.blogspot.com/2012/07/fragments-of-eucharistic-species.html

 

[Mountie]

To add, if you notice a crumb on your hand, consume it. I personally prefer to receive on the tongue. However, given the current pandemic, my pastor advised us to receive in the hand as to ensure less of a chance of spreading a possible infection. To be honest, I’m a little uncomfortable with receiving on the hand, but I intend to do so as reverently as possible. If you’re still in doubt even after inspecting your hand, just trust in God. The fact that you worry is evidence of inner reverence. But the important thing is to trust in God. If this pandemic has taught us anything, it’s that we’re not in charge, God is. Small particles that do not appear as bread do not contain the Real Presence. Rest easy.