"Swiss churches put consecrated hosts in match boxes for faithful to take"

[HomeschoolDad]

The bishop of Chur has ended this practice. The below article is in German but if you put it through a translator program, you will be able to read it in serviceable English (my translator rendered “ministers” as “donors”, but it was obvious what they were talking about):

kath.net

He is the bishop, it is his diocese, he is entirely within his rights, end of story.

 

[Usige]

Thanks for posting the update, @HomeschoolDad.

After reading Bishop Bürcher’s letter, I went back and reread the original article and saw that it states toward the very end that the priest/group who started the practice had not consulted with the diocese. It also looks like the person who was at the table were the boxes were picked up was not a priest (or deacon), but a member of the board for the group.

Never good to try sacramental novelty without talking to the bishop first.

 

[TheLittleLady]

I am not speaking of those who partake during Mass. There are many EMHCs who receive the Eucharist, then have hosts placed in their pyx (some EMCS pick up a filled PYX with between one and 6 Hosts). After Mass ends, they go out to carry the Eucharist to the homebound. This happens every single week.

, I’m sure people who want to have a satanic Black Mass will be hunting for this parish.

You realize that “Black Mass” is always a publicity stunt. Someone could simply come to your parish on any given Sunday, palm a host and take it to their Black Mass, they don’t have to fly to Switzerland.

 

[Tis_Bearself]

The bishop of Chur has ended this practice.

Good. I appreciate that the priest meant well, but I think the bishop’s decision is for the best here.

 

[Jessie]

I used to live in Switzerland, and cannit day that they are rule - abiding traditional Catholics at all. I’m not surprised to read of this happening there. In fact, my main surprise is that anyone actually bothered that much. The Holy Mass was butchered, and usually amounted to doing the bare minimum liturgical KY then forcing the congregation to endure a lengthy organ recital every week. So reading were cut out altogether, eucharistic prayer culled, vast amounts of organ playing (congregation listened to it, not singing Hymns) and yet the service lasted over an hour. A total nightmare for someone who is spiritually starving to death and trying to single-handedly control 3 young children. Who were totally unwelcome. My experience of the church in Switzerland ( 8 years, 2 different cities) was not particularly good.

 

[Cor_ad_Cor]

Which is a problem. If the priest hasn’t ever seen someone in Confession, he shouldn’t let them receive Our Lord.

More problems with this statement than I really have time to address…

• The seal of confession?
• Visitors?
• Those who confess elsewhere?

Just to mention a few.

 

[paperwight]

David_Catholic:

Which is a problem. If the priest hasn’t ever seen someone in Confession, he shouldn’t let them receive Our Lord.

More problems with this statement than I really have time to address…

• The seal of confession?
• Visitors?
• Those who confess elsewhere?

Just to mention a few.

Well, quite. Is it seriously proposed by the pp that the priest actually refuse a person when they present themselves before him in the Communion line on the grounds that he hasn’t seen them in Confession?

 

[Tis_Bearself]

Which is a problem. If the priest hasn’t ever seen someone in Confession, he shouldn’t let them receive Our Lord.

Yeah, never mind that they may have gone to confession at one of the other 10 Catholic churches within shouting distance. People no longer do everything at their very own parish, this isn’t the 1800s. Half the time when it’s not COVID shutdown days, I’m confessing to priests in another state from where I’m going to Mass the following Sunday, or even another country.

And by the way, if they don’t go face to face, how is the priest supposed to “see” them in Confession? He can’t figure out who a person is based on their mumbling through a screen in a parish with 1000 families.

Not to mention that some parishes have multiple priests (there are between 3 to 4 priests each at the two nearest parishes to me) so the person may have confessed to Priest A and then gotten in line for communion with Priest B. Or even be receiving Communion from Deacon X or EMHC Y who has no idea about people’s confessions at all and it’s none of their business.

Your post makes less than zero sense.

 

[TheLittleLady]

So, when I vacation in your town, I ought be denied communion?

 

[Mintaka]

The whole thing is weird. Paper is not a “noble substance,” so pyxes should never be made out of it. If it were paper covered with gold leaf or silver leaf, or if the boxes were made of gemstone, you might see the point, but it’s still stupid and careless.

Unless you’re a priest celebrating Mass, you have no business self-communicating. I could see making everyone an EMHC in order to distribute Communion, but you still couldn’t let single people self-communicate. It’s lying and cheating people, if you teach people to commit liturgical abuse.

Sigh. At least it’s not chewy chunks of supposed Communion bread, that actually is made out of honey as well as water and wheat. Or cookies, or raisin bread, or any of the other abuses of the Seventies.

And I’m glad the bishop of Chur shut down the paper box thing.

 

[Mintaka]

Re: priests not giving Communion to those they don’t know for sure to have gone to Confession – That’s how it is in Byzantine and Maronite parishes, to my understanding.