Going to communion within one hour of eating

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Polak said:
Having said that, if one is able to go and chooses not to go, is that a sin?
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Not going to Communion is not a sin in and of itself, as Glennon_P said.

Any sin would be in your motivation for not going.

Examples of motivations that are “not a sin”:
  • You became nauseated during the Mass and didn’t want to receive for fear you would get sick to your stomach and gag or vomit after receiving.
  • You physically couldn’t get to the Communion station (I have seen this in action at very crowded Masses)
  • You felt unworthy to receive because you had just had a big argument with your neighbor the day before and you feel you should go make peace with them before receiving Our Lord.
  • Your child needed the restroom or a diaper change right at Communion time, so you went and took care of business rather than receiving.
  • You’re afraid of catching COVID from the distribution of Communion.
Examples of motivations that could be sinful:
  • You don’t trust the absolution you got from your priest and don’t think you’re worthy to receive.
  • You don’t think it’s important to receive Jesus, or don’t believe in the Real Presence.
  • You disagree with the Church-approved norms for distributing Communion, so you’re protesting by refusing to receive.
 
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What if there is no real motivation and you just don’t feel like getting up and going in to the communion line?
 
Polak said:
What if there is no real motivation and you just don’t feel like getting up and going in to the communion line?
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I think then you’d want to ask yourself why you’re not motivated to get off your butt briefly to receive Christ. It sounds like a symptom of a deeper issue.
 
I think a Catholic who just “didn’t feel” like receiving Jesus, unless he was feeling too unwell to stand in line, really needs to think about their faith and why they are a Catholic and why we go to Mass. It’s like rejecting a very great gift.
 
Tis_Bearself said:
I think a Catholic who just “didn’t feel” like receiving Jesus, unless he was feeling too unwell to stand in line, really needs to think about their faith and why they are a Catholic and why we go to Mass. It’s like rejecting a very great gift.
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Of course, I agree, but would that count as a ‘motivation that could be sinful’?
 
Think of it like this:

When I was a kid, my parents set my bedtime at 9 PM.

When I was older, it was made 10 PM.

When there were events for our family to attend, bedtime was after we finished the event, had supper, changed clothes, that might be 1 AM. This did not mean that I could break the house rules on other nights.

When I was 15 I had a curfew of 9 PM.

When I was 17 my curfew was 11 PM and I could go to bed whenever I wanted.

Disciplines can change.
 
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