Old Days and Eucharist-Free Church

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sandmountainsli

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I had asked this in a previous post concerning whether or not some recieve Eucharist too often but thought it needed it’s own thread.
It was mentioned that during a time in the Middle Ages the CC only partook in a handful of times per year.
My confusion is what did the Churches do during the Sundays while not Eucharist was being performed?
I know the Holy Communion is central to Catholic Worship and cannot for the life of me imagine a CC without it.
Did they just read scripture or listen to music on the Eucharist-Free sundays. Help me out with this one.
WP
 
The Eucharist is the Church (since the Eucharist is God). Every Mass has Eucharist, always. If theres no Eucharist then there is no Mass. During the middle ages it was custom amongst the laity not to take Eucharist often becuase they thought they were unworthy to receive it, but it was always offered. The Mass of the middle ages was pretty much identical in appearence to the Tridentine Latin Mass.

edit: There has never been a Eucharist free Sunday (except if there is no Priest, like during a war.) The liturgy on sunday is always divine - that is it has the eucharist.
 
It was never Eucharist-free.

The celebrating priest would always partake of the Eucharist and then anyone else wanting to recieve Holy Communion would approach the altar and kneel at the communion rail.

Prior to the 1900s it was quite common for the laity to abstain from recieving the Eucharist at Mass, since they were more aware of the ban against recieving communion while under the stain of mortal sin. The Church declared that the Eucharist was to be recieved by everyone at least once a year. This is still in effect, although not observed.
 
sandmountainsli said:
It was mentioned that during a time in the Middle Ages the CC only partook in a handful of times per year.
My confusion is what did the Churches do during the Sundays while not Eucharist was being performed?
I know the Holy Communion is central to Catholic Worship and cannot for the life of me imagine a CC without it.
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I wasn’t around in the Middle Ages, but I was around in the 1960s. Back in those days, less than 1/4 of Catholics at Sunday Mass went up to communion. They stayed in the pews or along side the walls (if the mass was SRO) while those who did receive went forward. The priests, of course, always received communion. It wouldn’t be a mass if they didn’t.
 
Caesar said:
It was never Eucharist-free.

The celebrating priest would always partake of the Eucharist and then anyone else wanting to recieve Holy Communion would approach the altar and kneel at the communion rail.

Prior to the 1900s it was quite common for the laity to abstain from recieving the Eucharist at Mass, since they were more aware of the ban against recieving communion while under the stain of mortal sin. The Church declared that the Eucharist was to be recieved by everyone at least once a year. This is still in effect, although not observed.
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Ok.
I had read that during the Middle Ages people were recieving Eucharist so infrequently that they had to pass the “once per year” law so I assumed the priests got lazy at some point and were refusing to administer the sacrament.
WP
 
There was also the issue of being properly disposed to receive.

The Eucharistic Fast (the period of abstaining from all food and drink before receiving Holy Communion) was a lot longer back in those days, and many people were simply not disposed to receive because they had not fasted for the entire period of time.

Today, the Eucharistic Fast is only one hour, so it’s a lot easier for more people to be properly disposed to receive.
 
sandmountainsli said:
Ok.
I had read that during the Middle Ages people were recieving Eucharist so infrequently that they had to pass the “once per year” law so I assumed the priests got lazy at some point and were refusing to administer the sacrament.
WP
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Oh no, that was never true. Without the Eucharist there is no Mass. The only times that the Sacraments were refused were at various times when regions were placed under interdict by the Pope- although interdict has always been rare.
 
jmcrae said:
There was also the issue of being properly disposed to receive.

The Eucharistic Fast (the period of abstaining from all food and drink before receiving Holy Communion) was a lot longer back in those days, and many people were simply not disposed to receive because they had not fasted for the entire period of time.

Today, the Eucharistic Fast is only one hour, so it’s a lot easier for more people to be properly disposed to receive.
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Or some people (like me) do the traditional fast which begins at midnight Sunday.
 
Caesar said:
Or some people (like me) do the traditional fast which begins at midnight Sunday.
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I assume you mean midnight of the previous day? Or do you fast for an entire week?

I normally fast from the previous midnight, too, although sometimes I have “cheated” and taken a cup of coffee in the early morning, especially if I’ve had a late night.
 
This is from the Catholic Encyclopedia.
What should be made of this? Does it not mean they were having trouble getting the Sacrament out there? That is how I took it.
WP

Catholic Encyclopedia

Frequent Communion

Strange to say, it was in the Middle Ages, “the Ages of Faith”, that Communion was less frequent than at any other period of the Church’s history. The Fourth Lateran Council compelled the faithful, under pain of excommunication, to receive at least once a year (c. Omnis utriusque sexus). The Poor Clares, by rule, communicated six times a year; the Dominicanesses, fifteen times; the Third Order of St. Dominic, four times. Even saints received rarely: St. Louis six times a year, St. Elizabeth only three times. The teaching of the great theologians, however, was all on the side of frequent, and to some extent daily, Communion [Peter Lombard, IV Sent., dist. xii, n. 8; St. Thomas, Summa Theol., III, Q. lxxx, a. 10; St. Bonaventure, In IV Sent., dist. xii, punct. ii, a. 2, q. 2; see Dalgairns, “The Holy Communion” (Dublin) part III, chap. i]. Various reformers, Tauler, St. Catherine of Siena, St. Vincent Ferrer, and Savonarola, advocated, and in many instances brought about, a return to frequent reception. The Council of Trent expressed a wish “that at each Mass the faithful who are present, should communicate”
 
Also, in the very old days, before Pius X’s encyclical *Sacra Tridentina(1905), *the Catholic faithful weren’t permitted to approach the altar for communion unless the parish priest gave advanced permission.
 
For the Eastern Christians, depending on the Church, receiving the Eucharist isn’t necessarily a weekly thing. Strict fasts can be observed, meaning no consumption of meat, dairy, wine and olive oil on Wed. and Fri. and abstaining from sexual intercourse with your spouse the day prior to receiving the Eucharist.
 
Also, in the very old days, before Pius X’s encyclical Sacra Tridentina(1905), the Catholic faithful weren’t permitted to approach the altar for communion unless the parish priest gave advanced permission.
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I don’t think that is right. That may have been the practice in places, but the whole “I can’t receive Communion unless my confessor allows me to” is Jansenistic. That was part of the problem that Pope St. Pius X saw, while it is most laudable to have respect and reverence for the Blessed Sacrament, people were taking it to Jansenist extremes.

As another poster pointed out, the Council of Trent itself encouraged the Faithful to Communicate at every Mass they assisted at as long as they were properly disposed (observed the fast, no mortal sins).
 
It has kinda been a pendulum swing from people being extremely cautious of offending God to one of relative ease with not worrying about it. These days many people kinda ignore sin, as the culture has really influenced thinking that guilt is bad and sins don’t matter.

Maybe in the future we will find a decent balance and people will understand that sins do really matter, that we need to repent and receive the Eucharist as often as possible.

God Bless
Scylla
 
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