Coughing up the Eucharist?

[jeanne71350]

Hi everyone,

I’ve been suffering with a bad cough. My throat gets swollen, and I have to cough all the time. I went to Mass today (probably should have stayed home…), and when I took Communion, I started to cough up the Eucharist. I prayed and thank God it went down. What should I have done if I actually cough it up in the future? Should I not take Communion?

-Jeanne

 

[AJV]

Hi everyone,

I’ve been suffering with a bad cough. My throat gets swollen, and I have to cough all the time. I went to Mass today (probably should have stayed home…), and when I took Communion, I started to cough up the Eucharist. I prayed and thank God it went down. What should I have done if I actually cough it up in the future? Should I not take Communion?

-Jeanne

Yes, if there is a chance that you may cough up the Sacred Species, you should not receive Holy Communion, but make an Act of Spiritual Communion. If you do cough up the Host, and are unable to consume It, then you should dissolve It completely and thoroughly in a glass of water and take that to the sacristy. The sacristan or the priest will tell you where the sacrarium (a sink that goes down into consecrated earth) is and the water should be poured down that.

 

[Cluny]

<<(a sink that goes down into consecrated earth)>>

The earth of the sacrarium is not consecrated, but it obviously IS where it would not be trodden upon by anyone or visited by animals.

Here is the article from the Catholic Encyclopedia on PISCINA (another name for the same thing. It basically describes a dry well.

Piscina (Lat. from piscis, a fish, fish-pond, pool or basin, called also sacrarium, thalassicon, or fenestella), the name was used to denote a baptismal font or the cistern into which the water flowed from the head of the person baptized; or an excavation, some two or three feet deep and about one foot wide, covered with a stone slab, to receive the water from the washing of the priest’s hands, the water used for washing the palls, purifiers, and corporals, the bread crumbs, cotton, etc. used after sacred unctions, and for the ashes of sacred things no longer fit for use. It was constructed near the altar, at the south wall of the sanctuary, in the sacristy, or some other suitable place. It is found also in the form of a small column or niche of stone or metal.

 

[Br.Rich_SFO]

Hi everyone,

I’ve been suffering with a bad cough. My throat gets swollen, and I have to cough all the time. I went to Mass today (probably should have stayed home…), and when I took Communion, I started to cough up the Eucharist. I prayed and thank God it went down. What should I have done if I actually cough it up in the future? Should I not take Communion?

-Jeanne

A Catholic is not required to receive Holy Communion just because they are at Mass. If you are sick stay home! If you feel good enough to come to Mass but are unsure about coughing after receiving Holy Communion don’t receive.

 

[ljubim]

What a coincidence… a similar thing happened to me yesterday. I had to run back to the bathroom right before communion because I felt like I was going to throw up(been sick lately). But the real reason I came to a Saturday morning mass was to recieve the body of Christ anyway, because whenever I’m not feeling well I always feel marvelous afterwards So I regained my composure and recieved communion, and felt fine the rest of the day

But I was thinking about this too… if you’re puking every other minute imagine how terrible you’d feel throwing Jesus on the floor

(My opinion is that He wouldn’t allow that anyway…)

 

[scylla]

If you are sick, it is not a sin to not come to Mass and it is actually a good thing since you can get others sick. If you feel like you have an upset stomach or are on the verge of a coughing fit it is a good thing to abstain to avoid profanation of the Eucharist.

Make a spiritual communion and cough away… Or puke away, whichever is your situation.

Once in a great while I get a bit of coughing and if that happens I just go find a bit of water to soothe my throat and avoid situations where I might cough up something I eat.

In Christ
Scylla

 

[puzzleannie]

no you should not even be in church if you are coughing and sneezing, or if you have as sore throat, have been vomiting, are nauseous or have other flu and cold symtoms. That is a lack of charity toward fellow parishioners. and you should not receive communion if you feel ill, if you have been coughing or gagging, or have reason to believe this might happen. If it does happen, cough or expectorate into a handkerchief, and after Mass go to the sacristy explain what happened and ask for help, they will wash it in the special sink and take care of it for you.

 

[Mrs_Sally]

Please do not come to Mass when you are sick! If you are very ill and cannot get to Mass for several weeks, certainly ask for the priest to come visit you. But do not drag yourself to Mass when you have a cold or the flu and possibly get others ill also!

When Our Lord is taken to the faithful in the hospital, nursing home, or the homebound, often they are given only a tiny bit of the consecrated host to ensure that they can swollow it. Also, the ill are often give a sip or two of water directly afterwards to assist with that.

Those of us who do not have a serious or long-term illness can certainly skip receiving communion or attending daily Mass knowing that we can attend the next day or in a few days when we are well again. If you are not ill, but simply have a coughing fit, it is still better to remain in your pew and make a spiritual communion than to possibly cough up Our Lord!

 

[JerrySeibert]

Never take the Eaucharist if you feel it possible that you would/could cough/vomit. Why would you? It is disrespectful.

 

[jeanne71350]

Never take the Eaucharist if you feel it possible that you would/could cough/vomit. Why would you? It is disrespectful.

My parents make me go to Church as long as I’m not on the verge of death. It’s not really me. I have to obey them. And this only happened once.

-Jeanne

 

[Newbie2]

Or if someone had a non-infectious cough as with allergies, if taking only the cup would be helpful, that is an option.

Of course, it would be wise to take a “test sip” of water at home to see if wine would cause the same cough/gag as the host.