Fasting After Mass?

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mandateman

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I came to ask a question.

I know we must fast for 1 hour before receiving Holy Communion. I have read that Our Blessed Lord is present sacramentally within you for about 20-30 minutes after receiving The Blessed Sacrament.

Is it a sin to eat, except for medical reasons, within that 20-30 minutes time frame? I ask because our parish has begun distributing donuts and coffee and juice immediately as mass ends. Parishoners are eating and drinking and the priest hasnt left the Church and the last hymns are still being sung. So my question again is, Is it a sin to eat while Our Blessed Lord is sacramentally present for that 20-30 minutes after Holy Communion or is it only inappropriate?

Mandateman
 
mandateman said:
I came to ask a question.

I know we must fast for 1 hour before receiving Holy Communion. I have read that Our Blessed Lord is present sacramentally within you for about 20-30 minutes after receiving The Blessed Sacrament.

Is it a sin to eat, except for medical reasons, within that 20-30 minutes time frame? I ask because our parish has begun distributing donuts and coffee and juice immediately as mass ends. Parishoners are eating and drinking and the priest hasnt left the Church and the last hymns are still being sung. So my question again is, Is it a sin to eat while Our Blessed Lord is sacramentally present for that 20-30 minutes after Holy Communion or is it only inappropriate?

Mandateman
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I have read 15 minutes - it wouldn’t take as long as 30 for the Eucharist to lose the accidents of bread and wine within your stomach. And I do, out of respect for Christ, refrain for at least that amount of time.

However, I also do a double genuflection in front of the exposed Blessed Sacrament out of respect as well, and that’s certainly not mandatory nor would it be a sin if I did a single genuflection - or none at all. So such gestures aren’t always binding on pain of sin.

The short answer is that there is no Church teaching that I am aware of that states that it is any sort of sin to eat immediately following Mass.

Fasting BEFORE Communion is so important that it is enshrined in Canon Law that one must fast. So surely fasting AFTER Communion cannot be an issue that has escaped anyone’s attention, however it is NOT mentioned at all!
 
I am also unaware on any specific law forbidding eating after communion. At the same time I am aware that many sins that people commit are not expressly forbidden by the church subjectively but by means of a qualification based on the spirit of law.

I am also aware that I and many Catholic people are unaware of many laws. Or believe laws cancelled that have never been cancelled like abstaining from meat on friday. This law has never been cancelled but the church allows the local ordinary if he choses to replace the abstainance with an act of love or charity which some bishops have done. The bishops who have taken their place often do not state their position leaving one to wonder if he choses to allow the replacement himself because the rulings of one bishop are not binding on another.

So many catholics do nothing on friday and chose to believe that abstaining has just been removed and do not do specific works of charity and therefore are guilty of sins. Perhaps due to ignorance only venial but this is self induced ignorance.
 
mandateman said:
Is it a sin to eat while Our Blessed Lord is sacramentally present for that 20-30 minutes after Holy Communion or is it only inappropriate?
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It is neither a sin nor inappropriate, in the sense that food and Our Lord’s sacramental presence should not mix. It is only inappropriate because one should be spending those minutes in thanksgiving rather than socializing, if possible.

Think of the people who attend daily Mass during their lunch hour. If they are to be properly nourished for the afternoon’s work, they will have to eat right away after Mass.

Incidentally, I have always heard that His sacramental presence lasts only 10 minutes, so at least half of that is covered by the closing prayers and final hymn at Mass. That leaves only five minutes after Mass for a period of personal prayer and thanksgiving. Not too much to ask on a Sunday, but not strictly required, either.

We must be careful not to make our choices of personal piety into rules for everyone. If you wish to spend 20 to 30 minutes in thanksgiving after Mass, that’s great; I do, too. If LilyM wants to do a double genuflection when the Blessed Sacrament is exposed, that’s great. But everyone’s freedom to decide whether or not to do these or other acts of piety must be respected, in the fullest sense of the word.

Betsy
 
Sadly enough, Coffee Hour is practically considered to be the Eighth Sacrament at my parish and there is no such thing as quiet prayer time after Mass. :mad:

It’s enough to make me want to take a hundred mile round-trip to go to the nearby Benedictine Abbey when my schedule permits.
 
Fasting for a period of time after communion is a pious discipline that some people chose to observe. It is entirely up to the individual to do so or not. The Church does not have anything to say about the matter.

(Now some particular priest, brother, sister, or family member might not have said that fasting after Communion was important but such opinions are not binding unless perhaps it’s a parent telling a minor child what to do.)

One should not think any less of someone who goes out to share coffee and donuts with one’s friends immediately after Mass But if someone thinks they ought to fast then that is perfectly fine too.
 
mandateman said:
I came to ask a question.

I know we must fast for 1 hour before receiving Holy Communion. I have read that Our Blessed Lord is present sacramentally within you for about 20-30 minutes after receiving The Blessed Sacrament.
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Was this in an official document? I would have thought that once Our Lord has been dissolved on your tongue that He would no longer be Sacramentally present. 🤷
Is it a sin to eat, except for medical reasons, within that 20-30 minutes time frame? I ask because our parish has begun distributing donuts and coffee and juice immediately as mass ends. Parishoners are eating and drinking and the priest hasnt left the Church and the last hymns are still being sung. So my question again is, Is it a sin to eat while Our Blessed Lord is sacramentally present for that 20-30 minutes after Holy Communion or is it only inappropriate?
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I wouldn’t see anything wrong with it at all, since “immediately after Mass” is after the prayers, announcements, procession, and final hymn, which on Sundays would be at least 10 minutes. Week day Masses are obviously shorter, since there are no announcements or songs, but they usually take place at breakfast or lunch time, which would mean that the people are eating either breakfast or lunch directly after the weekday Mass, and obviously the parish priest doesn’t have a problem with that, since he usually joins in.
 
baltobetsy said:
If LilyM wants to do a double genuflection when the Blessed Sacrament is exposed, that’s great. But everyone’s freedom to decide whether or not to do these or other acts of piety must be respected, in the fullest sense of the word.

Betsy
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Darn tootin’ - that was my exact point.
 
In this country the USCCB has not requested an after communion fast be observed. In other countries this is not so. In Japan it is one hour I know, but there are other countries that do observe the fast as well.

You are perfectly free to observe the fast of you wish but like I said, it isn’t mandated here. I think sometimes people confuse what they think is right or good for them, with Church discipline.

I abstain from meat on Fridays all year, but I wholly acknowledge that we are not asked to or required to. I instituted it in my family so I could teach my kids how important acknowledging Christ’s sacrifice is to us. Other people teach it in other ways, and that is fine.

Personal acts of piety and discipline are to be lauded not criticized… LilM double genuflects, that is between her and God… and I think it is setting a wonderful example to others that might see her. Maybe her actions will lead someone to respect and love Christ in the Eucharist… that would be great!
 
I accept as I have been directed that it is not necessary only pious to fast after the reception of Holy Communion. I am not sure of the exact amount of time that our lord is sacramentally present. Clinically it is until the physical attributes of the host are disgested which St. Thomas Aquinas believed and stated he thought was about 20 minutes. In this there is no clear church teaching.

I am happy to hear that some countries have initiated a fast after reception of the Blessed Sacrament as pointed out by one of the responders. This type of piety makes good sense. I aslo received notice from the forum that eating and drinking within the nave of the church is inappropriate.

One of the comments I read stated that he and his family as do mine observe and abstain from meat on friday. He also stated that he acknowledged that this is only pious and that it is not required by church law. This is a mistake. As I stated earlier. The law on abtaining from meat has not been removed but is in full effect. The local Bishop has the authority to substitue the abstainance with another act like charity or love which has happened in many areas. But then to fail to either abstain or perform the act of charity would then be a sin. Even if the Bishop has replaced the abstainance with an act of charity we as catholics have the right to chose whether we will abstain or perform the act of charity that is not something the Bishop has control over because the act itself is still based on the existing law of abstainance.

It is always my postion to prefer the actual law of the church to any pious ideal. The beauty of personal piety however is that it allows us to remain individual and to go beyond the norm to any degree we chose within catholic parameters. Like the definition of dulia and hyper-dulia one is the degree of reverence honor and love we can pay to an angel or saint and the other hyper-dulia is reserved for the Blessed Virgin Mary. Recognising always that worship is reserved only for God. Many saints suggest that it is impossible for a human being to love, honor or venerate Our Blessed Mother in any way that surpasses hyper-dulia, nor beyond the limit her perfection deserves.
 
mandateman said:
I accept as I have been directed that it is not necessary only pious to fast after the reception of Holy Communion. I am not sure of the exact amount of time that our lord is sacramentally present. Clinically it is until the physical attributes of the host are disgested which St. Thomas Aquinas believed and stated he thought was about 20 minutes. In this there is no clear church teaching.

I am happy to hear that some countries have initiated a fast after reception of the Blessed Sacrament as pointed out by one of the responders. This type of piety makes good sense. I aslo received notice from the forum that eating and drinking within the nave of the church is inappropriate.

One of the comments I read stated that he and his family as do mine observe and abstain from meat on friday. He also stated that he acknowledged that this is only pious and that it is not required by church law. This is a mistake. As I stated earlier. The law on abtaining from meat has not been removed but is in full effect. The local Bishop has the authority to substitue the abstainance with another act like charity or love which has happened in many areas. But then to fail to either abstain or perform the act of charity would then be a sin. Even if the Bishop has replaced the abstainance with an act of charity we as catholics have the right to chose whether we will abstain or perform the act of charity that is not something the Bishop has control over because the act itself is still based on the existing law of abstainance.

It is always my postion to prefer the actual law of the church to any pious ideal. The beauty of personal piety however is that it allows us to remain individual and to go beyond the norm to any degree we chose within catholic parameters. Like the definition of dulia and hyper-dulia one is the degree of reverence honor and love we can pay to an angel or saint and the other hyper-dulia is reserved for the Blessed Virgin Mary. Recognising always that worship is reserved only for God. Many saints suggest that it is impossible for a human being to love, honor or venerate Our Blessed Mother in any way that surpasses hyper-dulia, nor beyond the limit her perfection deserves.
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