How do you receive the host?

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Lorrie

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I always let the priest place it on my tongue. This may sound weird but I feel like if I touch it with my hands that I might taint it in some way (odd I know).
 
Actually my fear is not that I will “taint” Jesus in anyway but rather that I may miss a particle and the Particle of Jesus that contains the whole Jesus would fall on the ground and be trampled by the impending procession of people coming to communion.
 
Hello

Most of the time by tongue and a stage when I used my hands, for it fell off my tongue and I managed to catch it, but I use the tongue again for awhile now.

God Bless
Saint Andrew.
 
I receive it in my hands,incase it falls off my tongue,do NOT want the blessed bread of life on the floor!
 
I recieve in the hand although I might change that after my experience this last weekend. As I have posted in another thread our priest was away and our fill in priest was unavailable so we had a communion service. In order to have enough Hosts the deacon had to break up the Hosts into smaller pieces and when he gave me a piece of the host I noticed a couple of fragments in my hand.

Of course in a situation like this there is no guarentee that the fragment wouldn’t have fallen to the ground when the deacon put the host on my tounge and also it would have been harder for the deacon to put the piece of the host on the tounge. So it’s a catch 22 situation.
 
**I always recieve on the tongue. It is to me more reverent and shows respect towards the the True Presence of Lord God, Jesus Christ in the Eucharist. **

:amen:
 
I only recently started to receive on the tongue upon switching parishes. I receive at a communion rail, and I must say that this method seemed beneath me the first time - to kneel and have the priest put the Host on my tongue. That changed two days later as I felt such a prideful attitude drain from me. Then I realized that, for me, receiving in such a way requires more humility than taking the Body of Christ into my hands.

Our priest uses intinction anyway so by dipping the Consecrated Host into the Blood, we cannot receive it in the hand. However, I do believe that if I were to extend my hands at the rail before he gets to me, he would not dip the Host and would oblige me.
 
I didn’t vote because if it is a priest or deacon doing the distribution, then it’s on the tongue. Otherwise, if it is an extraordinary minister of communion, then it’s in the hand.
 
Sir Knight:
I didn’t vote because if it is a priest or deacon doing the distribution, then it’s on the tongue. Otherwise, if it is an extraordinary minister of communion, then it’s in the hand.
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I believe that is what I will be doing from now on also. I don’t believe recieving on the tounge is any more reverned but I believe that it makes for less of a chance for getting particles on the floor.
 
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mosher:
Actually my fear is not that I will “taint” Jesus in anyway but rather that I may miss a particle and the Particle of Jesus that contains the whole Jesus would fall on the ground and be trampled by the impending procession of people coming to communion.
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In all the years I have received in the hand, only once have I had a particle, and that was a noticeable sixe - about half the size of an eraser on a pencil. It was simple to consume it.

when taking it in the hand, if you pull back the hand to the body before consuming it, nothing will fall to the ground; and the hosts are made is such a way that they do not crumble easily at all. They have the consitency of a cracker, and unless you break a cracker, it isn’t going to release particles.
 
I always receive on the tongue. In my Church, the Altar Boy holds a Paten under your chin in case of an accident so the host would not fall on the floor.
 
I preffer the tougne, though I will recieve in the hand if it’s, say, early in the morning and I feel my mouth is particularly stinky.
 
Well, I will not be baptised until the Feast of the Assumption…

However, when the moment does finally come, I will recieve on the tougne (I attend a TLM church anyway, and that is how it is done there, while kneeling at the rail). No matter what form of the mass I attend however, it will always be on the tounge, because it is more reverent and there is less of a chance of something happening to the host, such as falling on the floor.

In Christ,
Dean
 
I receive in the hand. When I do, I look Jesus in the face and tell Him I love Him. Then I consume Him. It is such a blessing for me to receive this way.
 
I receive in the hand, because it seems easier to do a profound bow that way while receiving.

I can’t say I’m concerned a great deal either way though. While the Church allows receiving in the hand, I’ll probably do so. If the indult is removed, I’ll receive on the tongue again. As long as I can receive our Blessed Lord, that’s the important thing.

Mike
 
Receiving in the hand has always been my norm, as I find it more humble and respectful. Lately though, I have had to receive on the tongue, as I carry my baby, so not to risk dropping the host.

I will be always open to however the Church asks me to receive should the discipline change.
 
Sir Knight:
I didn’t vote because if it is a priest or deacon doing the distribution, then it’s on the tongue. Otherwise, if it is an extraordinary minister of communion, then it’s in the hand.
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Sir Knight,

I’m curious … why do you not receive on the tongue from an EMHC? Is it because they are less experienced with distributing the Eucharist this way and more prone to drop it?

God Bless,
Gary
 
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gez722:
Sir Knight,

I’m curious … why do you not receive on the tongue from an EMHC? Is it because they are less experienced with distributing the Eucharist this way and more prone to drop it?

God Bless,
Gary
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I cannot speak for Sir Knight but most people I know who do not receive from EMHC do so for a simple reason. They as I believe that the Priest through the Sacrament of Holy Orders occupies a position I guess you could say above us in the structure of the Church and is in a sense closer to God. Having been consecrated as it were, the Priest can touch the Precious Body and Blood with his hands. I don’t have that right, and could never do it… I would guess that most of us are distinctly uncomfortable receiving from an EMHC at all, let alone on the tongue. As I have stated before on this forum, I believe that EMHC is an outgrowth of Vatican II that needs to be done away with or used only in extreme emergencies.
 
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otm:
In all the years I have received in the hand, only once have I had a particle, and that was a noticeable sixe - about half the size of an eraser on a pencil. It was simple to consume it.

when taking it in the hand, if you pull back the hand to the body before consuming it, nothing will fall to the ground; and the hosts are made is such a way that they do not crumble easily at all. They have the consitency of a cracker, and unless you break a cracker, it isn’t going to release particles.
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There was actually an extensive study done on this very point and it was proved to be a myth. I will try to cite this in my next post for everyones reading pleasure.
 
Sorry, not my next post obviously but I will try to get that info about particles ASAP.

In any case I felt compelled to explain the symbolism of why reception on the tongue was adopted as the universal norm in the west even though there are a few instances in the early church of reception in the hand.

The sympolism is simple. I don’t know how many people recall or have seen the image on some altars of the Pelican tearing out its own heart to feed its brood. Well, there is the image. We receive as children and are fed by our Mother the Church. It is to help teach a spirit dependance and reliance and trust in and upon the Church in all matters. This is a very beautiful image that was adopted to help us with humility.
 
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