Solemn Communion?

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My Aunt (88) gave me her Rosary and told me that she had received it for her “Solemn Communion?” when she was in her teens.
I had not heard this before and wonder what it is. Does anyone know? :confused:
Thank you and
May God bless us
 
Presuming your aunt is Catholic (are you sure she is? I know a fair few non-Catholics who also pray the Rosary) she probably just means her First Holy Communion.

Cradle Catholics usually make their First Holy Communion at a younger age, but there may be reasons why she did so a little later (if she was a convert or if she lived in a remote area, if there was a war on or something).
 
Well she is a cradle Catholic. I had thought that is maybe something to do with Confirmation. It would have been back in the 30s.
Thank you for the response.
God be with you
Mary
 
It is certainly possible that your grandmother’s first Holy Communion took place when she was in her teens.

Can you ask her, or your mother/father, or uncles or aunts? Is it possible the event was recorded in the family Bible, or in other papers (letters?) Can you check the archives of the church she attended at the time?
 
I’m not sure where you’re from, so the term can have multiple meanings.
  1. The Solemn Communion (which may be termed quasi-Solemn to distinguish it from the Solemn Communion) . It is also known as the “General Communion”, although this term may be used for situations without solemnity
  2. The Solemn Communion in the full and proper meaning of the term
(1) is what Lily described and what many people might be familiar with today. All the children of a particular church receiving Holy Communion on one day, with some amount of solemnity and extras like white clothes, possibly even a procession holding candles or something, etc. This usually happens annually for a parish (at least it does in my parish)

(2) The “Solemn Communion” was an institution that was very common in certain parts of Europe - it was particularly however, associated with France. I don’t know about the USA, but I imagine that possibly immigrant parishes may have retained their own traditions.

Before the decree of St. Pius X, Quam Singulari, urging an earlier age for the reception of First Holy Communion, the Sacrament was often administered at an older age - around 12 -14. Thus the Solemn Communion was the First Holy Communion . In France, it was invested with some aspects of solemnity - the children renewed the baptismal promises, were consecrated to the BVM at the end, and often ivested with the scapular; Confirmation was also received at this time and it was generally a Big Bash

Quam Singulari was the first of a series of instructions in which children were ordered to be admitted to the Holy Communion at a younger age. Consequently, this annoyed many people who had grown used to the time-honoured ceremonies of the Solemn Communion, some of which could not be done with children as young as 7.

However, the directive could not be ignored and so the practice was usually as follows. The children were admitted either to a “private First Holy Communion” which was a very “quiet” affair, or a “General First Holy Communion” every year, which did not have much, if any, solemnity.

At an older age (11-13), they made their Solemn Communion. It was no longer the First Communion, but it retained all the trappings - Solemn High Mass, renewal of baptismal promises, consecration to the BVM, or the Sacred Heart, etc. processions with clergy and sodalities, and the sacrament of Confirmation. Accompanied of course, by the non-liturgical bits like new clothes, gifts, parties, and so forth.
 
In France and in French Canada (where I live), Solemn Communion refers to a formal reception communion by an entire class of students (everyone receiving was very rare in the past) as they finished primary or secondary school. For most of them this would mark the end of their formal education, and so this would be sort of a “graduation Mass” where everyone dressed in white and received, just as they did at their first communion. Gifts such as Rosaries would be very appropriate. I believe the practice might also have taken place in certain parts of the USA.

This is from a web article on French Catholicism:

" The significance of the first communion in French Catholicism was very relevant to its social meaning: to symbolise the passage from childhood into youth. In 1910, Pope Pie X allowed children to take their communion as early as the “age of reason”, at the age of seven years. The French Clergy decided then to distinguish between a First Communion, i.e. “private Communion” which is celebrated discretely and a “Solemn Communion”, taking place between the ages of 12 and14. This second ceremony had no theological basis, and was therefore replaced since the 1960’s by a “profession of faith”. Nevertheless, the fact that the Solemn communion was institutionalised shows that society felt the need to sanctify the end of childhood by a religious act. "

Hope this helps!
 
Pious_Mat said:
In France and in French Canada (where I live), Solemn Communion refers to a formal reception communion by an entire class of students (everyone receiving was very rare in the past) as they finished primary or secondary school. For most of them this would mark the end of their formal education, and so this would be sort of a “graduation Mass” where everyone dressed in white and received, just as they did at their first communion. Gifts such as Rosaries would be very appropriate. I believe the practice might also have taken place in certain parts of the USA.

Hope this helps!
Click to expand...
In my home parish (French parish in New Brunswick) the last time they had Solemn Communion was in the late 60s. The year I was supposed to do it, I told my parents I didn’t feel ready – in reality I had no desire to attend catechism classes in the evening. The next year they had done away with this ritual.

As indicated, this was one sacrament we didn’t prepare for in school. We were prepared by the priest in evening classes, usually in May and June. I think the ritual was dropped when confirmation started being pushed back – up until then anyone who had received First Communion was confirmed the next time the bishop came to the village (he usually visited every 2 years).

FWIW, Solemn Communion was probably a much better ritual to have in the teens than confirmation, which should be done early, with less stress on what the child does and more on what it does to the child, and much more connected to baptism than to commitment to the Church.
 
That sounds very plausible. They were living in Indiana and of German decent, but I know they went to Catholic school through high school. I did see old pictures of her sister and a neighbor friend in white dresses at about that age. It makes sense!
Thank you:thumbsup:
May God be with you
Mary
 
marywhitney said:
That sounds very plausible. They were living in Indiana and of German decent, but I know they went to Catholic school through high school. I did see old pictures of her sister and a neighbor friend in white dresses at about that age. It makes sense!
Thank you:thumbsup:
May God be with you
Mary
Click to expand...
yes this part of Midwest, Mich, Ind. etc whose historical roots are French have similar traditions due to influence of French priests and nuns, and this is the experience of the elder members on both sides of our family in Mich, Ind. and NW Ohio. It is interesting to note, in view of frequent debate on the sacraments forum about “whole class of 2nd graders celebrates communion together” vs “family brings candidate to 1st comm. in context of Sunday Mass” that traditionally the first private communion was at about the age of reason and the Solemn Communion and Confirmation with the entire class later, usually at about the age 12-14 when formal education ended and apprenticeship or “working papers” were received.

It is also interesting to note that it is only within the last 100-120 yrs that the reform of Pope Pius X allowing the earlier age for communion that this issue arose at all, an important point whenever we are talking about “tradition”.
 
I live in Canada and I am of a Portuguese background. I remember having to do my solemn communion at about 13 years of age. The year after I was confirmed. It was in essence receiving your first holy communion again but less “ornate” for a lack of better terms. It was also held with the group being confirmed. But that was the personal organizing of the Parish.

It was optional, (although I felt a little forced by Mommy, lol!) We also referred to it not only as Comunhão Solene (Solemn Communion) but also as Profissão de fé (Profession of Faith). It also envolved staying in Catechism for another year. I’m not sure how obligatory that was.

Knowing what I know now, and my Catholic faith more enriched, I feel as though it a moment one (at any age) can have a special moment with Christ in the Eucharist. I also have the impression it can be done a few times in one’s life. That is of a personal choice.

In Church:

The parents may pray in together, having chosen to baptize their children and raise them as Christians and now ask God to continue to guide them in life to choose the right paths, etc…

The priest proceeds to ask the teenagers if they renounce satan, temptation, evil…

And eventually, with the Creed askes the teen if they believe in God, the Father Almighty.

They respond “Yes, I believe”… and so on and so forth.
 
This is still done in Portugal. I have many cousins there who made their Solemn Communions long after Vatican II. The practice is still alive in the Azores, which really says something as it is the ceremony for 1st Communion from before the lowering of the age a century ago. The age was lowered but the old ceremony was never abolished and is still done to this very day (at least in the Azores). So my cousins got TWO Communion Masses and parties: at age 7 and at 10 or so. I only had one: at 7 yo.
 
Yes it was changed by Pope Pius X…papalencyclicals.net/Pius10/p10quam.htm these are the pertinent clauses…

**After careful deliberation on all these points, this Sacred Congregation of the Discipline of the Sacraments, in a general meeting held on July 15, 1910, in order to remove the above-mentioned abuses and to bring about that children even from their tender years may be united to Jesus Christ, may live His life, and obtain protection from all danger of corruption, has deemed it needful to prescribe the following rules which are to be observed everywhere for the First Communion of children.
  1. The age of discretion, both for Confession and for Holy Communion, is the time when a child begins to reason, that is about the seventh year, more or less. From that time on begins the obligation of fulfilling the precept of both Confession and Communion.
  2. A full and perfect knowledge of Christian doctrine is not necessary either for First Confession or for First Communion. Afterwards, however, the child will be obliged to learn gradually the entire Catechism according to his ability.
  3. The knowledge of religion which is required in a child in order to be properly prepared to receive First Communion is such that he will understand according to his capacity those Mysteries of faith which are necessary as a means of salvation (necessitate medii) and that he can distinguish between the Bread of the Eucharist and ordinary, material bread, and thus he may receive Holy Communion with a devotion becoming his years.
  4. The obligation of the precept of Confession and Communion which binds the child particularly affects those who have him in charge, namely, parents, confessor, teachers and the pastor. It belongs to the father, or the person taking his place, and to the confessor, according to the Roman Catechism, to admit a child to his First Communion.
  5. The pastor should announce and hold a General Communion of the children once a year or more often, and he should on these occasions admit not only the First Communicants but also others who have already approached the Holy Table with the above-mentioned consent of their parents or confessor. Some days of instruction and preparation should be previously given to both classes of children.
  6. Those who have charge of the children should zealously see to it that after their First Communion these children frequently approach the Holy Table, even daily if possible, as Jesus Christ and Mother Church desire, and let this be done with a devotion becoming their age. They must also bear in mind that very grave duty which obliged them to have the children attend the public Catechism classes; if this is not done, then they must supply religious instruction in some other way.
  7. The custom of not admitting children to Confession or of not giving them absolution when they have already attained the use of reason must be entirely abandoned. The Ordinary shall see to it that this condition ceases absolutely, and he may, if necessary, use legal measures accordingly.
  8. The practice of not administering the Viaticum and Extreme Unction to children who have attained the use of reason, and of burying them with the rite used for infants is a most intolerable abuse. The Ordinary should take very severe measures against those who do not give up the practice.
His Holiness, Pope Pius X, in an audience granted on the seventh day of this month, approved all the above decisions of this Sacred Congregation, and ordered this Decree to be published and promulgated.

He furthermore commanded that all the Ordinaries make this Decree known not only to the pastors and the clergy, but also to the people, and he wishes that it be read in the vernacular every year at the Easter time. The Ordinaries shall give an account of the observance of this Decree together with other diocesan matters every five years.
**
 
My mom was born in 1943 and went to Catholic school in a Central a Texas Czech/German community. She did Solemn Communion sometime between First Communion and Confirmation. White dress, veils… the whole shebang. She was probably 10 or 11 or so.
 
Some Eastern Catholic Churches, in imitation of Latins (although not to be done), restrict Holy Communion from their already baptized, confirmed, first communed infant children until “age of reason”. Then when the child is somewhere between 7 and 13, have the child confess and recieve again. They call this the “First Solemn Communion”. In an Eastern context, the adoption of Latin praxis and construct, to imitate this is ludicrous and absurd.
 
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