Dropped Hosts w/poll

[Holly3278]

I’ve never seen the host dropped before except for maybe a priest dropping one on to the altar. That said, I would think it would be much easier to drop the host if receiving on the tongue.

 

[Madaglan]

I don’t recall seeing a Host dropped during communion. I’ve seen the Wine spilled a few times.

One time I went to a Mass, and coming out of the Mass, there was a host on the pavement in the parking lot. Don’t know how it got there. Luckily, the deacon was outside, saw it, and dealt with the host properly.

 

[weepixie71]

i can honestly say i havent seen the Eucharist dropped either way.

 

[I_Believe]

Dear I Believe,
I have only seen one dropped host and it was from the person in front of me. I do not know how they were receiving as that is not what I am focusing on when I approach for communion. If you want a real measure, you need to ask this question of our priests, who are there all of the time.
Thanks

Good point Elizabeth. Whether in line or kneeling at the rail, We normally would not notice a Host was dropped until it’s already fallen to rest, or caught by the Paten or otherwise.

That’s why I said I’d especially like to hear from servers. But yes, older priests would be the one’s to poll.

 

[I_Believe]

I am not a server, but the only time I can remember seeing a host drop was Mass on EWTN. It was a couple of years ago.

I have never seen it happen either way.

It happened to me once, last year. I was in a different city so the priest was not familiar with how I receive and probably did not expect me to receive on the tongue as I am quite young (I was 20 at the time). So as I went up I had my hands by my sides and my mouth open. I saw for a split second that the priest was unsure what to do/what I wanted. So I quickly motioned to my mouth and he went to put the host in my mouth but I either didn’t have my mouth open enough or he fumbled. We quickly looked on the floor for where it had fallen but ‘luckily’ it had caught on my hoodie so I picked it off. The priest had a small dish under the main dish which he offered me to put the dropped host in but i quickly and quietly said, ‘it’s fine’ and put it in my mouth.

Apart from this, I have never seen the body or blood dropped.

It doesn’t necessarily have to be a fragment. When my husband was an EMHC, he once gave Communion to a lady who breathed so hard that the host went flying, not once, but twice, both times he caught it. He learned to hang on tight to it with her.

The only time I have seen a dropped host is when Father somehow dropped it on the altar. But I once saw someone take it out of their mouth and put it in their pocket on the way back to their pew. It was a young man who was mentally challenged, and his father did not notice it. I spoke to father about it after Mass, and he said he would take care of it.

I’ve never seen it at all.

I’ve never seen a dropped host either way.

But I also have a hard time believing that people exhale the Blessed Sacrament by accident. Try it. Open your mouth and present your tongue. Do you not innately inhale and then hold you breath?

I’ve never seen the host dropped before except for maybe a priest dropping one on to the altar. That said, I would think it would be much easier to drop the host if receiving on the tongue.

i can honestly say i havent seen the Eucharist dropped either way.

Count your blessings. It hurts to see it.

 

[NeedImprovement]

Count your blessings. It hurts to see it.

So very true … :sad_yes:

 

[Middleman]

It sounds like this isn’t much of a problem. I saw the priest drop the host once or twice, he then picked it up and that was that. Jesus knows that we are human, I don’t think we should make too much of these inevitable errors.

 

[jmcrae]

It sounds like this isn’t much of a problem. I saw the priest drop the host once or twice, he then picked it up and that was that. Jesus knows that we are human, I don’t think we should make too much of these inevitable errors.

Right - there is no point going into a panic over it - accidents happen. The proper response if someone drops the Host is for the priest or the nearest person standing there simply to pick it up and consume it.

 

[NeedImprovement]

I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to imply anyone was going into a panic over it.

I thought I was agreeing with I_Believe regarding what personally happens interiorly when we see a consecrated Host fall to the floor; sort of momentarily wounded to the heart. It isn’t a judgement call on anyone. It’s simply what happens on the inside of some of us in those particular circumstances .

Of course, Middleman is right. We should always be aware that Our Blessed Lord is so much more aware of how human we are.

That being said, I can tell you that the degree of difficulty increases logarithmically when one isn’t able to find the Host or Fragment [please see post # 5] afterwards.

A friend who is a White Father told me of an incident that occurred that when he was serving in the missions in Africa. During Mass, after he had just consecrated the “large” [ergo quite visible] Host and lowered it from the elevation, he placed it back on the paten. He continued the Eucharistic Prayer, glancing at the Missal. The next time he looked at the paten, the large consecrated Host it had held was gone.

They tried to find it … unsuccessfully. Then after the Mass had ended, they conducted a more thorough search, first moving the altar, then turning the entire chapel inside out practically going over it with a fine tooth comb - they never found the large consecrated Host.

According to what he told me, that was more than 30 years ago … and he’s never forgotten it.

 

[jmcrae]

I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to imply anyone was going into a panic over it.

Sorry, I hope you didn’t think I meant you, specifically. I have seen people get themselves all wound up when these sorts of accidents happen - as you know, the best thing is to remain calm and deal with it appropriately.

I remember someone getting really angry because her priest didn’t get upset when someone dropped a Host; he just bent down, picked it up, and consumed it. She thought he was not properly engaged in his belief in the Real Presence because he hadn’t lost his composure when this happened.

That’s what I was thinking of - I never meant to imply that you were reacting inappropriately.

A friend who is a White Father told me of an incident that occurred that when he was serving in the missions in Africa. During Mass, after he had just consecrated the “large” [ergo quite visible] Host and lowered it from the elevation, he placed it back on the paten. He continued the Eucharistic Prayer, glancing at the Missal. The next time he looked at the paten, the large consecrated Host it had held was gone.

They tried to find it … unsuccessfully. Then after the Mass had ended, they conducted a more thorough search, first moving the altar, then turning the entire chapel inside out practically going over it with a fine tooth comb - they never found the large consecrated Host.

According to what he told me, that was more than 30 years ago … and he’s never forgotten it.

Good heavens, that’s very strange.

 

[NeedImprovement]

…

Good heavens, that’s very strange.

He wonders if the Host was taken somewhere it was needed or to someone who needed it by an angel.

Also somewhat unusual (if my memory serves me correctly*), because they ( he and the confrere serving Mass) noticed it before the end of the Eucharistic Prayer, and because that large host was the only bread to be consecrated at the Mass, they took another large host and consecrated it before continuing to Holy Communion.

…a most unusual thing for sure.

*

 

[jmcrae]

He wonders if the Host was taken somewhere it was needed or to someone who needed it by an angel.

That’s what came into my mind, too, when I read it.

I have had things vanish inexplicably from time to time, as well, never to be found again (yes, I checked the garbage, and asked other family members about it), and I always hope that it was an angel who took it and brought it to someone who desperately needed it. (Any other explanation would mean that people I love throw my stuff out and then lie to me about it, which I absolutely refuse to believe.)

 

[NeedImprovement]

I’ve been tempted to think I had a better idea, trying to rationalize in my own limited mind that an angel wouldn’t cause a delay in the Mass.

On the other hand, I know someone who (several years ago) was praying daily, especially at Mass , for a bishop in Africa who’d been taken hostage by some rebels. Part of the prayer was a request that this person could somehow (miraculously) share his Holy Communion with the bishop daily if his being held hostage meant he was going without.

Also, in some purported (private or approved) events in the lives of the faithful, where it had been reported that an angel had brought Holy Communion to someone, the Blessed Sacrament would have had to come from somwhere here on earth.

So I won’t try to imagine I know the means or the reason…Just as our Blessed Lord was lost and then found three days later in the temple, some things happen for divine reasons which can’t be totally explained here.

I’m seeing this priest (White Father) this Tuesday. If I have the chance (I’m bringing someone else to see him too), I’ll just ask him to clarify one or two things concerning the event related while he was in the missions and post any clarification in this thread.

I apologize to I_Believe the OP if I’ve strayed a little from the topic of the thread.

 

[I_Believe]

I apologize to I_Believe the OP if I’ve strayed a little from the topic of the thread.

No problem at all friend

 

[RosaryFan]

To those who have seen Hosts dropped, have you seen more dropped while someone is receiving in the hand, or on the tongue ?

I’d especially like to hear from servers.

Wow, you mean I’m not the only one in the world who still receives on the tongue? The hands - of course.

I’m an extraordinary minister and I would say (in all seriousness, now) 2 people out of 50 receive on the tongue, so all dropped hosts that I’ve seen have been in the hands.

 

[Cat]

The poll is dubious and not very reliable.

The majority of Catholics in the U.S. receive Holy Communion in their hand because that is how they were taught. So mathematically speaking, more people will drop Hosts while they are receiving in the hand because there are MORE people who receive in the hand.

Also, EMHC are only used in OF of the Mass, where the majority of people receive in their hand. So of course, the EMHCs will see the majority of Hosts dropped by those who receive in the hand, since that is how the majority of people receive Holy Communion.

I’m frankly amazed to see that the poll demonstrates an almost equal number of droppage between tongue and hand.

IMO, the most accurate way to attempt to gauge which is “safer” for the Host, tongue vs. hand, would be a poll that attempts to demonstrate the percentage of dropped Hosts of the total number of those receiving in the hand vs. the percentage of dropped Hosts of the total number of those receiving on the tongue.

E.g. (these are numbers I made up! Please don’t take them seriously and quote them–I’m just trying to explain my “method” of polling here!)–

100 people receive in the hand, 5 people drop the Host = 5% droppage
10 people receive on the tongue, 1 person drops the the Host = 10% droppage

So you see, even if more people dropped the Host during reception by hand, the GREATER percentage of droppage occured during reception on the tongue.

OR if you’d prefer–

100 people receive in the hand, 20 people drop the Host = 20% droppage
10 people receive on the tongue, 1 person drops the Host = 10% droppage

Doesn’t this seem to be a more accurate way to gauge the “droppage” rate of the two methods of receiving Holy Communion than just counting numbers of dropped Hosts?

Ideally, this method of counting droppages would be applied over a long period of time in order to diminish the effect of outliers and get an even more accurate “droppage” rate.

 

[I_Believe]

Wow, you mean I’m not the only one in the world who still receives on the tongue? The hands - of course.

I’m an extraordinary minister and I would say (in all seriousness, now) 2 people out of 50 receive on the tongue, so all dropped hosts that I’ve seen have been in the hands.

Hi RosaryFan, So how many have you seen dropped, and how long have you been a EMHC ?

Just curious. I’m sure a priest, deacon, server or EMHC would see it more often than the laity in the pew and in the Communion line.

 

[I_Believe]

The poll is dubious and not very reliable.

The majority of Catholics in the U.S. receive Holy Communion in their hand because that is how they were taught. So mathematically speaking, more people will drop Hosts while they are receiving in the hand because there are MORE people who receive in the hand.

Also, EMHC are only used in OF of the Mass, where the majority of people receive in their hand. So of course, the EMHCs will see the majority of Hosts dropped by those who receive in the hand, since that is how the majority of people receive Holy Communion.

I’m frankly amazed to see that the poll demonstrates an almost equal number of droppage between tongue and hand.

IMO, the most accurate way to attempt to gauge which is “safer” for the Host, tongue vs. hand, would be a poll that attempts to demonstrate the percentage of dropped Hosts of the total number of those receiving in the hand vs. the percentage of dropped Hosts of the total number of those receiving on the tongue.

E.g. (these are numbers I made up! Please don’t take them seriously and quote them–I’m just trying to explain my “method” of polling here!)–

100 people receive in the hand, 5 people drop the Host = 5% droppage
10 people receive on the tongue, 1 person drops the the Host = 10% droppage

So you see, even if more people dropped the Host during reception by hand, the GREATER percentage of droppage occured during reception on the tongue.

OR if you’d prefer–

100 people receive in the hand, 20 people drop the Host = 20% droppage
10 people receive on the tongue, 1 person drops the Host = 10% droppage

Doesn’t this seem to be a more accurate way to gauge the “droppage” rate of the two methods of receiving Holy Communion than just counting numbers of dropped Hosts?

Ideally, this method of counting droppages would be applied over a long period of time in order to diminish the effect of outliers and get an even more accurate “droppage” rate.

I know there is more chance others will notice if someone receiving in the hand drops a Host, there is a greater chance more folks will see it, or if they do not actually see it fall, the process for retrieving it draws attention.

Not trying to prove anything though. OhMalley I think it was, said something on another thread that inspired me to ask, that’s all. I even mentioned on that thread I was going to post the poll and stated I knew it wouldn’t prove anything. No agenda.

 

[Cat]

I know there is more chance others will notice if someone receiving in the hand drops a Host, there is a greater chance more folks will see it, or if they do not actually see it fall, the process for retrieving it draws attention.

Not trying to prove anything though. OhMalley I think it was, said something on another thread that inspired me to ask, that’s all. I even mentioned on that thread I was going to post the poll and stated I knew it wouldn’t prove anything. No agenda.

Yes, I realize that this was just a casual poll, and I appreciate the light-hearted approach and the fact that no one is trying to “prove” anything or attack anyone.

And as I said, I’m amazed that the numbers are virtually equal.

In care you’re wondering, I didn’t answer the poll. I’ve never seen a Host dropped, but I’ve only been Catholic five years. In my parish, people mainly receive in the hand, but there are quite a few, especially among the Hispanic and Asian population, who receive on the tongue. There are also several families where everyone receive on the tongue. I often receive on the tongue, but the Holy Communion has more meaning for me if I receive in the hand. My point is, the priests and EMHCs are used to people receiving both ways.

What I DON’T see is people kneeling to receive. Several hundred people attend our Masses, and I honestly think–and I’m not just saying this to be “liberal”–I honestly think it would be a tripping hazard. Perhaps one reason I don’t see it is that only a few miles away, there is an oratory where the TLM is prayed daily and several times on Sunday, and I think that those who prefer to kneel and receive attend this Mass. Also, there is a parish about five miles away where a very traditional OF Mass is prayed, with more Latin and chant and other “traditional” practices, and the option to receive at the kneeling rail on the tongue is offered along with the option to receive in the hand standing. So there are plenty of opportunities for traditionalists to attend a Mass that satisfies their longings for tradition.

And we also have the Life Teen Mass and a Children’s Mass!

Yes, we’re very blessed here! Our bishop is wonderful.

 

[RosaryFan]

Hi RosaryFan, So how many have you seen dropped, and how long have you been a EMHC ?

Just curious. I’m sure a priest, deacon, server or EMHC would see it more often than the laity in the pew and in the Communion line.

Hi. I’ve been an EMHC for almost 2 years now, but that has little to do with what I’ve seen. I’ve seen maybe 3 drops and they were all from the pew, not while I was serving. And they were all hand-recipients. Again, I don’t see many receive on the tongue anymore. When I serve at a Mass, there are maybe 50 people in my line on any given Sunday and no more than 2 receive on the tongue. When I, myself, receive on the tongue, sometimes the EMHC looks a little panicked when I stick my tongue out.

I’ve been lucky so far, in that no one has dropped a host that I’ve given them, but once I was distributing the precious Blood and some guy dribbled it onto the rug. UGH!