I
think what you are saying is that if the EMHC is needed, s/he needs to touch the Sacrament, but I don’t because I could receive on the tongue. So there is a difference between me receiving in the hand (unnecessary touching) and the EMHC presenting the Sacrament to me (necessary touching). Which would be a great argument except for a couple of things:
- Frequently in the US, EMHCs are used when they aren’t necessary. Surely I can’t be the only one who has been at a daily Mass where it seems like half the congregation is serving as an EMHC? And parishes in the US have perhaps underestimated the amount of time it’s fair to ask people to wait for communion to be finished. The guidelines aren’t really all that clear (probably intentionally). But would it really kill anyone if they had to pray quietly for 10 minutes about the great gift they have just received instead of 5? These are just my opinions, so I haven’t ever tried to impose them on anyone else, but surely I’m allowed to let them affect my own behavior. It doesn’t mean that I think the EMHCs are not licit, more that I think it is unwise to use so many.
- For me (as for the Church in former times) the point wasn’t necessary vs. unnecessary touching, it was touching by an ordained minister vs. touching by a lay person.
“It is a better symbol for me.” and “I agree, it seems basically pointless to me to receive on the tongue from an EMHC” were not intended to indicate that I am making a judgement of the worthines of the EMHC. I have never in my life tried to judge anything about the spiritual state of either an EMHC or an OMHC when approaching for or receiving the Sacrament. I am not a Donatist, and anyway I don’t generally have any personal knowledge of the EMHC whatsoever.
But in the same way that it is perfectly acceptable for someone to decide that they prefer to attend the Ordinary Form of the Mass, I should think it was acceptable for a person to decide that they preferred to receive the Eucharist from its Ordinary Minister. And likewise, it seems to me that in the same way that a woman might prefer to wear a head covering (which is not required) when attending the Extraordinary Form Mass, which she would feel was pointless to wear at the Ordinary Form, a person might receive on the tongue (which is not required) from an Ordinary Minister, which she would feel was pointless from an Extraordinary Minister.
I always assume that EMHCs are godly people who wish to serve the Church.
–Jen