Viewing mass online doesn't show people receiving communion

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I image the logistics of the church building and the live stream camera matter. But I wonder if it also has to do with the number of people who are legally allowed to gather.

At my parish we have the priest, a sacristan, a reader, a cantor, and an accompanist. They all receive. I do not know if we have a camera operator. I suspect we do but that person may be able to operate the camera remotely so as not to be in the nave.
 
In my archdiocese, the instruction from the archbishop is that only the celebrant can receive
 
That seems to be the dominant point of view. However, it does not hold up against the commandments to love God and each other. The Church and her Sacraments should not be hostages to the spirit of envy.
 
Again. We are not a church for the privileged. And pondering the unfairness of something is not envy but rather a call for a just policy that is evenly enforced without prejudice. The lack of humility shown is a bigger concern for me than envy of those who are deemed special.
 
LighthouseRon said:
With public attendance to mass in our diocese not allowed right now we are viewing mass online as several parishes offer it during this difficult time. I’ve noticed that nobody except the celebrant is shown on camera receiving communion. There are a few folks who do attend who are deemed necessary but they aren’t shown on camera receiving and the camera is typically focused on the alter or turned in another direction. I’m just curious if anyone knows why? Not a really important question I realize but if someone happens to know I appreciate your time.
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I’ve seen both.

My GUESS, is it is one of 3 things:
  1. some bishops/pastors don’t want people receiving online in order to prevent people from feeling “jealous” that they can’t be servers to receive, or just to avoid transmittal by an asymptomatic server (though servers do get pretty close still to the priest).
  • so perhaps, they are receiving outside of Mass, after the broadcast stops?
  1. They may have already received that morning or will at a later mass
  • Churches are still having multiple masses on Sundays, but many are only broadcasting one (some are broadcasting all, but many just one).
  • people are supposed to only receiving once, with a max of 2 times. So it is possible that the servers, etc that you see online may have received at an earlier mass, as I’m sure they are helping all the priests with each Mass on Sunday instead of having multiple server teams. Or they will receive at a later mass?
  1. Maybe some are refraining in solidarity with others who cannot receive.
Those are my educated guesses.

God Bless
 
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Our churches house and we adore the Blessed Sacrament. We are exactly a church of and for the privileged.

Because of my heavenly Father’s generosity, my pastor’s love for his sheep, and my specialized skills, I am able to receive Communion once a week. Like the forgiven servant, shall I appropriate that for myself, but hold everyone else to the strictest account of what I deem “even” and ponder how to prohibit them from receiving all the other days of the week (Mt 18:23-35)? No. That would be a demonstration of gross ingratitude.

Many of us are hurting for lack of our accustomed access to the sacraments, but it absolutely does not follow that no one should have access to them because everyone can’t. That’s not the generosity God demands of us as men and women who love and follow Jesus.
 
I think I stumbled on to an explanation in our catholic newspaper:

Under an April 9 order, the (State) Health Authority banned gatherings of more than 25 people. At small gatherings that are allowed, people must stay at least six feet apart. But the April 9 official memo also prohibited Communion, a challenge the task force is aware of and working on.
 
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I think I found out the reason…

It was most likely due to this article from the Philadelphia Inquirer, on March 31st.

www.inquirer.com

Despite virus concerns, some Philly Catholics still receiving Communion on the tongue

Social distancing procedures are being adopted throughout the U.S. and much of the globe, but some religious organizations have been slow to act. In Philadelphia, Sunday Mass — with Holy Communion — continues at the Cathedral Basilica of Saints Peter and Paul.
www.inquirer.com www.inquirer.com
 
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Yeah, that put the kibosh on a couple churches around here that were trying to just quietly hand out communion to whoever “happened to be in the church praying” when Mass occurred. Without naming names, there was a church out here in the boonies giving Communion that all of a sudden quit doing it after that article came out. (Or if they didn’t outright quit, they pretty much made social media posts saying the church is closed and don’t show up.) I’m willing to bet there were even more churches doing that than the couple mentioned in that article (the church I just spoke of was not mentioned in the article). My guess is the Archbishop sent out a strongly worded message after that article was printed.

On the one hand I was a little sad that people had to be so blabby and public about it and ruin it for those who were able to receive, but on the other hand not having the option made me not have to wrestle with my conscience about whether to go receive or to obey the Archbishop, and when one goes does one have to hide one’s vehicle from the police so it doesn’t look like anyone is “gathering” etc.
 
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Tis_Bearself said:
Yeah, that put the kibosh on a couple churches around here that were trying to just quietly hand out communion to whoever “happened to be in the church praying” when Mass occurred. Without naming names, there was a church out here in the boonies giving Communion that all of a sudden quit doing it after that article came out. (Or if they didn’t outright quit, they pretty much made social media posts saying the church is closed and don’t show up.) I’m willing to bet there were even more churches doing that than the couple mentioned in that article (the church I just spoke of was not mentioned in the article). My guess is the Archbishop sent out a strongly worded message after that article was printed.

On the one hand I was a little sad that people had to be so blabby and public about it and ruin it for those who were able to receive, but on the other hand not having the option made me not have to wrestle with my conscience about whether to go receive or to obey the Archbishop, and when one goes does one have to hide one’s vehicle from the police so it doesn’t look like anyone is “gathering” etc.
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That person should have sent his/her video to the Archbishop. It was his mass they were were receiving communion at. S/he could have written him an email, sent him the video and explained him/herself.

Instead, he/she sent it to the media and really made the Church look bad. Shame.

Esp. when Cardinal Sarah said that bishops & priests should not be withholding confession and communion from people who want it. He said they can not distribute at mass, but outside of mass, if someone feels they need communion, they should be allowed to receive.

Secularist simply don’t understand and again, it’s really a shame this person sent the video to the media instead of expressing his/her concerns to the Archbishop (who was at that mass).

😦
 
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I actually thought Perez was trying to maybe let priests just sort of quietly carry on with the tiny crowds who were still going out to Mass at that point. I strongly suspect he did not want to stop the Masses. He was about the last bishop around here to stop them and he left the churches open with confession and Adoration and prayers going on all through the last couple months of shutdowns, despite Archbishop Lori and I think Bishop Malooly also closing all the churches.

My personal feeling is that Mass provides less risk than most of the other stuff that we were allowed to do during the pandemic (go to the grocery store, get takeout food, even go to the park with probably 50 other people there), but at the same time we don’t need articles about Catholic churches spreading the virus, plus so many priests are old and I don’t want them getting sick. So I ended up just trying to offer it up for the last six weeks. I got so bummed about it that I ended up crying in my last ocnfession over it but hopefully it is helping some souls and this business will soon be over.

I just came from Adoration where there were the usual 25 people all sitting at least 6 feet apart. I recognize most of them as the usual daily Mass and weekly Adoration crowd who are down there all the time, a couple of them are like 90 years old and are not getting sick, let’s hope it continues that way.
 
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It is the virtue of prudence, played out for us on our screens.

No one said that striving for virtue would be easy, or immediately gratifying.
 
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Well I hope it is helping some sinners and some souls in Purgatory because even for somebody like me who is not going to lose the faith or leave the Church or whine about it, it just…you know what word I would use here if it wasn’t verboten on CAF probably.
 
The Koreans. After a Catholic community was established there, they waited twelve years before seeing priest or receiving a sacrament.

Twelve. Long. Years.

Are we so fragile that we cannot do twelve weeks?
 
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