The communion rail, or standing for communion?

[TNT]

                          ST. CYRIL OF JERUSALEM.

(Cateches. Mystagog. v.(1))
… nor with thy fingers separated, … placing thy left hand as a throne for thy right, …and in the hollow of the palm receive …

I tell ya what, the more thangs change the more they stay the same…
That’s nearly the same way my honey gives me sum o her Popcorn.angelqueen.org
BTW:
Who’s gonna volunteer to charitably post to the Easterns Forum that their Tincture Communion is a complete Novelty?

1. How old is Receiving on the tongue?
2. How did this subject end up on “**communion rail, or standing for communion”?

**

 

[MTD]

My understanding is that kneeling is allowed in the sense that the priest/bishop is permitted to introduce kneeling at communion. It is not allowed in the sense that, if no provision is made for kneeling and that is not the custom, the communicant may not kneel. However current instructions are that communion is not to be denied to people who kneel.

I’m sorry, but your understanding is incorrect. No. 160 of the typical edition of the GIRM says, “Fideles communicant genuflexi vel stantes, prout Conferentia Episcoporum statuerit.” (Translation: The faithful communicate kneeling or standing, as the Conference of Bishops will have established.) When the US Conference of Catholic Bishops sent in adaptions to the GIRM for our country, they established the norm of standing to receive Holy Communion. However, as the second letter from Monsignor Mario Martini given here specifically mentions, the Holy See approved that norm of standing in the US on the express condition that no one is to be accused of disobedience who decides to kneel.

Maria

 

[Resurrexit]

I don’t see why people seem confused on this issue.

Firstly, most protestants, apart from a few small groups such as Anglo-Catholics, believe the Eucharist to be symbolic only, and don’t believe in the real presence.

Secondly, the Catholic Church teaches that Protestants, such as Anglo-Catholics, do not have valid Apostlic succession.

Thirdly, therefore even if a Protestant were to believe in the Real Presence, his/her faith is misplaced, so to speak, because a layman can not consecrate.

This is not meant to be offensive, just a statement of the Catholic position on this.

 

[Melissa]

My parish may not be TLM (we’re sistered with one, though), but we still have our altar rail and use it … and anyone capable does kneel.

I much prefer kneeling … especially when I have to wait a little bit for the priest or deacon to get to me, as I can get my thoughts all properly collected (walking is something that I find myself getting distracted by).

While my parish typically distributes only under one Species (there are some exceptions–I’ve received intincted), back when I was Episcopalian, the church I went to had a rail, and about three people behind the first one (with the bread in the Episcopal service) was a second person with the cup. So … even saying “but we need to distribute under both” doesn’t, IMO, necessitate a move away from the rail.

 

[Jerry-Jet]

I’ve never been to a Catholic Church that had a communion rail. Are they hard to find?

If a parrish was building a new Catholic Church and wanted it to have a communion rail would it be OK to build it that way?

 

[Marilena]

I’ve never been to a Catholic Church that had a communion rail. Are they hard to find?

If a parrish was building a new Catholic Church and wanted it to have a communion rail would it be OK to build it that way?

ican’t answer that. it might be up to the local bishop. but in the SSPX chapels, everyone of them has a communion rail.

 

[AJV]

BTW:
Who’s gonna volunteer to charitably post to the Easterns Forum that their Tincture Communion is a complete Novelty?

Don’t know whether it qualifies, but I think I did that once in the EC forum in a thread about communion in the hand…also pointing out that intinction was earlier associated with Judas ! Pointed it out charitably just like you said. And din’t gte slammed

 

[tpraines]

Kneeling and recieving on the tongue!!!
Thank goodness we practice these at our Parish… But I also pass 4 other parishes to go to my more traditional parish!

But do not always fault the priest or bishop! It is the bishop’s decision as to the norm, but he cannot require or mandate either! Cardinal Arinze has spoken on this many times.

If I participate at a Mass where it is not the norm, I am not to be denied communion (although it has happened more than once!) The priest should politely ask to see me after Mass. Then he is to instruct me as to the norm of that diocese, but never in a repreimanding sort of way…

I have also attended Mass where after Mass the priest told me that the Bishop forbids communion kneeling. I calmly asked him to repeat it to me as I did not want to misquote him when I spoke directly to the bishop. He insisted, ‘speak to the Bishop, he forbids it.’ There were several witnesses. I respectfully walked away. I wrote a very short letter (our Bishop is a very busy holy man) and he responded personally with an equally short letter. It stated that he was concerned regarding my comments and invited Fr. ? to a private meeting, where Fr. ? confirmed what I had written. Thank you for bringing this to my attention, I have corrected Fr. ? and instructed him accordingly. It is well within the GIRM to allow kneeling for the reception of communion and I encourage whatever reverent practice that you are most comfortable… Fr. ? was soon removed from that parish and relocated about 45 minutes outside the metro area.

I get so tired of people saying Fr. so and so said so! Get the facts… Defend your priests & bishops. They need our support and many times they need to know that you support certain devotions and practices. Many times a new bishop is hesitant to change anything because he thinks the people are happy with it. Get to know your priests and bishops! They need your help…

And if all else fails, find a parish that supports your tradition and your faith. Tithe and tithe well… vote with your tithing! Be active in your traditional parish. Many times people just go to Mass because they have a great choir or great youth group. Tradition parishes can have these benefits as well as holding on to the faith!

By the way, I have heard several priests ask for the altar rails back. One specifically told me that he was going to re-install the altar rails so that the elderly could more easily receive! Many many want to kneel, but cannot. He now has ushers at the front of the line to help up any elderly who wish to kneel!!! It is fabulous!

Other have told that they have had ushers time the communion line and they say that the communion rail is faster! No more waiting for the person in front of you, the priest simply moves down the rail! SOothe arguements about it being faster are not only selffish, but wrong!

 

[Lover_of_Jesus]

Our parish routinely uses 1 priest, 1 deacon & 5 EMHC’s for communion .(approx. 1000 people at a typical Sunday Mass)

If we were to exclusively use the altar rail and only the priest and deacon I don’t see how it could be as fast as we do it now.

If we were to use the altar rail and use the priest,deacon and the 5 EMHC’s, it would be a mess, the altar rail would not be long enough to effectively use all of them.

Please note I personally think we really should only use the altar rail, even if it takes 2 or 3 times as long. I also thank those that serve as EMHC’s, but I really think they should be used much less frequently.

 

[boppysbud]

Personally I like to receive on the tounge, because I have had a stroke and cannot trust myself to hold the Sacred Host in my hands. But for the same reason I cannot kneel, if I did I could never get back up.

So I can not judge anyone. But it makes me extremely self concious to read people say that EVERYONE MUST KNEEL. it is like they are judgeing me without knowing my story. You might think that the presence of my walker might clue them in but I feel the dirty looks. For the same reason I am completely incapable of kneeling on one knee in the line, people that genuflect right before recieving nearly tripp me when they go down immedately at the head of the line.

What ever happened to genuflecting when you leave your pew, instead of at the head of the line?

I think people should matter more than rules, some of us can’t keep all the rules. It’s not our fault.

 

[Rand_Al_Thor]

But I’d love to kneel at my parish, though the Novus Ordo GIRM doesn’t allow it…

Pax tecum!

That is absolutely not true at all. There is nothing in the GIRM about the posture at Communion. Nothing at all. At the NO I normally attend, we all recieve kneeling at a Communion rail.

In Christ,
Rand

 

[Michelle2006]

I am very blessed to have found a parish in which kneeling at the rail to receive communion is the norm, whether it be the NO or the TLM. No extraodinary ministers are ever used. A few people do choose to stand and still fewer receive in the hand. They are free to do so, nobody has a problem with this.

The majority of parishioners seem to really like this “old fashioned” way of doing things. The other Sunday I saw an elderly man walking with the help of a cane approach the rail for communion. The priest was prepared to give him communion standing, but this man insisted on kneeling. It was a small thing that most people didn’t noticed, but this man’s reverence touched me very much.

MIchelle