Communion on the tongue

[friendlyperson]

Question. Is a priest allowed to restrict communion on the tongue for sanitary reasons? I am in Costa Rica and was just told by the preist at communion to please recieve in the hand. When I asked the EMHC about it afterwards, she told me it was for sanitary reasons.

 

[otjm]

Given that COTT is the universal norm, unless there is something from the bishop, probably not. If there was an outbreak of some infectious disease, possibly.

In the late 50’s and for some years onward, I was an altar boy. It was not particularly unusual for the priest, in withdrawing his fingers from someone’s tongue, to draw out a string of spit, sometimes as long as 6 or more inches.

Part of the matter was that some people salivate quite a bit; the other was that the priest was very rapid in distributing Communion and was thereby more likely to have his forefinger make contact with the recipient’s tongue.

 

[ShrodingersCat]

Unrelated, but today I went to receive on the tongue and the priest blessed me instead of giving me communion. It was a first holy communion and so there were lots of non-catholics there, so I am assuming that is why the priest made the assumption that I was not catholic (I watched afterwards and only 1 old man on crutches received on the tongue).

 

[FrDavid96]

Question. Is a priest allowed to restrict communion on the tongue for sanitary reasons? I am in Costa Rica and was just told by the preist at communion to please recieve in the hand. When I asked the EMHC about it afterwards, she told me it was for sanitary reasons.

No.

No priest (for that matter, no minister) can ever refuse to administer Communion on the tongue.

The Holy See has been quite clear on this matter, and leaves no room for interpretation nor any possibility of exceptions: refusing Communion on the tongue is prohibited. Period.

 

[FrDavid96]

Given that COTT is the universal norm, unless there is something from the bishop, probably not. If there was an outbreak of some infectious disease, possibly…

The Church says no such thing, but in fact says the opposite: Communion on the tongue cannot be denied.

 

[paduard]

No.

No priest (for that matter, no minister) can ever refuse to administer Communion on the tongue.

The Holy See has been quite clear on this matter, and leaves no room for interpretation nor any possibility of exceptions: refusing Communion on the tongue is prohibited. Period.

Yes.

Depending upon your age I suppose it is physically possible to place the Host on the tongue without touching the tongue at all
paduard.

 

[friendlyperson]

Should I tell someone?

 

[FrDavid96]

Yes.

Depending upon your age I suppose it is physically possible to place the Host on the tongue without touching the tongue at all
paduard.

I do it all the time. I’ve been doing it for decades. I’ve even done Communion in Eastern Churches and never experienced any genuine problems.

Claims about touching the tongue are just nonsense—a boogey man meant to scare people away from Communion on the tongue. It is not a problem at all.

That’s not to say that such things absolutely never happen—of course they do, but so do a lot of other things in life that we’d rather not happen. There’s no problem with Communion on the tongue.

Furthermore, health professionals are constantly reminding us that human hands are filthy. That’s why hospitals are filled with signs telling people to wash their hands, and why there’s hand sanitizer seemingly everywhere nowadays (although I think that’s sometimes taken too far as well). Medical professionals tell us that most diseases like colds and flu are spread by what? Hands!

So Communion in the hand (as some kind of health issue) is a fake attempt at a solution for a problem that doesn’t even exist in the first place.

Having said all that, I want to remind readers here (since I am a priest) that in places where distributing in the hand is permitted it’s perfectly licit, so don’t anyone think I’m saying otherwise.

 

[FrDavid96]

Should I tell someone?

I personally don’t see any point in that.

Priests already know that they can’t insist on Communion in the hand. So if a priest has already decided to do something which he knows he is prohibited from doing, what good would it achieve by telling him?

Yes, you could write to the bishop. Sooner or later, someone here is going to suggest that. But again, my personal perspective is that it won’t achieve anything worthwhile anyway.

 

[peter26]

On the infection question, there was a study by the Vatican a few years ago that concluded the risk of infection from receiving on the tongue or in the hand are about the same. I can’t find the study right now, maybe someone will track it down if they are interested.

 

[DeniseNY]

I do it all the time. I’ve been doing it for decades. I’ve even done Communion in Eastern Churches and never experienced any genuine problems.

Claims about touching the tongue are just nonsense—a boogey man meant to scare people away from Communion on the tongue. It is not a problem at all.

That’s not to say that such things absolutely never happen—of course they do, but so do a lot of other things in life that we’d rather not happen. There’s no problem with Communion on the tongue.

Furthermore, health professionals are constantly reminding us that human hands are filthy. That’s why hospitals are filled with signs telling people to wash their hands, and why there’s hand sanitizer seemingly everywhere nowadays (although I think that’s sometimes taken too far as well). Medical professionals tell us that most diseases like colds and flu are spread by what? Hands!

So Communion in the hand (as some kind of health issue) is a fake attempt at a solution for a problem that doesn’t even exist in the first place.

Having said all that, I want to remind readers here (since I am a priest) that in places where distributing in the hand is permitted it’s perfectly licit, so don’t anyone think I’m saying otherwise.

Thank you for this response, Father. As a Byzantine, I’ve never heard of any health related issues with the entire congregation receiving on the tongue. Ever.

 

[Gorgias]

Furthermore, health professionals are constantly reminding us that human hands are filthy. That’s why hospitals are filled with signs telling people to wash their hands, and why there’s hand sanitizer seemingly everywhere nowadays (although I think that’s sometimes taken too far as well). Medical professionals tell us that most diseases like colds and flu are spread by what? Hands!

However, hands receiving the Eucharist do not aerosolize saliva onto the hand of the minister distributing the Eucharist.

 

[twf]

I personally don’t see any point in that.

Priests already know that they can’t insist on Communion in the hand. So if a priest has already decided to do something which he knows he is prohibited from doing, what good would it achieve by telling him?

Yes, you could write to the bishop. Sooner or later, someone here is going to suggest that. But again, my personal perspective is that it won’t achieve anything worthwhile anyway.

In Latin America, it also be a very different ecclesiastical environment from North America. I’ve spent a lot of time in the Dominican Republic, and I was never able to find anywhere where confession was offered with a screen. Face to face confession was the only option…in more than one province, in more than once city… I asked a priest about it, and he said the Vatican mandated face to face confessions after Vatican II. I don’t think he was lying to me. That’s what he believed.

That being said, communion on the tongue wasn’t an issue there for those who desired it.

 

[FrDavid96]

However, hands receiving the Eucharist do not aerosolize saliva onto the hand of the minister distributing the Eucharist.

Sorry, not letting that boogey man in.

Try to count how many different objects a person touches between the last hand-washing and receiving Communion on an average Sunday, let’s say 2 hours.

Household objects, doorknob, keys, car, gas station, parking lot, handrail outside, church door knob, offertory money, pewback, missalette, all those hands at the Peace, etc. etc. etc.

Then ask: how many places has that same person’s tongue touched in the last 2 hours???

Again, sorry, but the boogey-man fallacy that Communion on the tongue is any less sanitary than the hand won’t carry any water.

 

[FrDavid96]

In Latin America, it also be a very different ecclesiastical environment from North America. I’ve spent a lot of time in the Dominican Republic, and I was never able to find anywhere where confession was offered with a screen. Face to face confession was the only option…in more than one province, in more than once city… I asked a priest about it, and he said the Vatican mandated face to face confessions after Vatican II. I don’t think he was lying to me. That’s what he believed.

That being said, communion on the tongue wasn’t an issue there for those who desired it.

Goes to prove that the liberal versus conservative categories some people try to apply with such rigidity just don’t hold up to scrutiny.

 

[twf]

Goes to prove that the liberal versus conservative categories some people try to apply with such rigidity just don’t hold up to scrutiny.

“Liberal” or “Conservative” Catholics in Latin America will not be the equivalent of “Liberal” or “Conservative” Catholics in the US or Canada. Look at Pope Francis, who is very much a Latin American priest…he comes across as very “progressive” on a score of issues…yet doesn’t stop talking about the Devil and confession. “Progressive” priests in North America avoid those topics.

 

[Gorgias]

Again, sorry, but the boogey-man fallacy that Communion on the tongue is any less sanitary than the hand won’t carry any water.

No boogeyman here: when you distribute into the hands of a communicant, you can do so without touching their hand (just, as you asserted, you can distribute on the tongue without making contact with the communicant’s mouth).

My case is different, here: when a person opens their mouth, they aerosolize saliva onto your hand. If they’re sick, then your hand – and therefore, subsequent hosts you touch – may transfer these germs to subsequent communicants.

Under normal conditions, no problem. If a communicant is ill, however…

No boogeyman. Just simple fact.

 

[friendlyperson]

Update: I contacted the parish with my concerns (complete with citations from Church documents). The priest told me that he had promoted communion in the hand for sanitary reasons but that he had not required it of me. What do you think of this response? When I went up for communion and he told me “in the hand, please,” I did not realize that he was still giving me a choice. I just felt like I better do what he said. I don’t know. Maybe if he had wanted to “promote” communion in the hand he could have done so after mass. But it was not made clear to me that I still had the option of receiving on the tongue. I definitely felt pressured. What do you guys think?

 

[CB_Catholic]

Update: I contacted the parish with my concerns (complete with citations from Church documents). The priest told me that he had promoted communion in the hand for sanitary reasons but that he had not required it of me. What do you think of this response? When I went up for communion and he told me “in the hand, please,” I did not realize that he was still giving me a choice. I just felt like I better do what he said. I don’t know. Maybe if he had wanted to “promote” communion in the hand he could have done so after mass. But it was not made clear to me that I still had the option of receiving on the tongue. I definitely felt pressured. What do you guys think?

I think you should accept the priest’s clarification and receive the way you choose and let it go. At least you asked for clarification, some people would not and then stew about it. Now you have cleared things up.

 

[Solomonson]

No boogeyman here: when you distribute into the hands of a communicant, you can do so without touching their hand (just, as you asserted, you can distribute on the tongue without making contact with the communicant’s mouth).

My case is different, here: when a person opens their mouth, they aerosolize saliva onto your hand. If they’re sick, then your hand – and therefore, subsequent hosts you touch – may transfer these germs to subsequent communicants.

Under normal conditions, no problem. If a communicant is ill, however…

No boogeyman. Just simple fact.