Whenever I See Communion Line Blessings…

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JimG said:
“Communion line blessings are a liturgical innovation that needs to stop. There’s no ancient tradition supporting it, and no need for it other than to make people feel included.”
I don’t know if Larry D.'s opinion will catch on; I’m inclined to doubt that he gets much traction, but anything is possible.
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Well, we wouldn’t want people to feel included in the Catholic Church. This isn’t the place for that.

I don’t understand why this keeps coming up time and again. The CDW did not explicitly ANYTHING the practice. They made some observations and said they were studying the issue. And after nearly ten years, they’ve still not seen it necessary to issue anything further.

Can we not just trust our priests and bishops instead of empanelling ourselves as a litugical jury? Maybe just focus on yourself and the Eucharist during Communion, and stop worrying about what others - including the priest - might be doing.
 
JimG said:
“Communion line blessings are a liturgical innovation that needs to stop. There’s no ancient tradition supporting it, and no need for it other than to make people feel included.”
I don’t know if Larry D.'s opinion will catch on; I’m inclined to doubt that he gets much traction, but anything is possible.

catholicconspiracy.com/actsoftheapostasy/2017/03/08/whenever-i-see-communion-line-blessings/
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Agreed, look what not paying attention to the little things has done to the new mass in 45-50 years
 
It is one thing to receive a blessing from a Deacon. It’s not the same thing to receive a blessing from a layperson. The rise in the use of EMHC’s ironically coincided with the increasing practice of non-communicants approaching for blessings.
 
I would say that those who cannot receive Communion, yet feel compelled to get up out of their pews, could “get over it” just as easily as those who don’t kowtow to the minor abuses in the USA. There is a time for everyone in the congregation to receive a blessing during Holy Mass. It isn’t during the reception of Holy Communion.

But I do agree that this is a bit of a mole hill. On the other hand, I’m not sure that this itself is the issue that some people have, so much as the perceived mentality that has lead to it. These sorts of things are a symptom of a deeper disorder to many.
 
JimG said:
It is one thing to receive a blessing from a Deacon. It’s not the same thing to receive a blessing from a layperson. .
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Well, granted, and if the training of EMHCs in your diocese is anything like that in ours. this should not arise. EMHCs are told that they cannot bless. What they can do, however, as can any parent or loving friend, is to say ‘May God bless you’ or words to that effect. Obviously it would be better that nobody came into an EMHC’s line and stand there obviously wanting some acknowledgment, as opposed to going in the priest’s line, but in the famous phrase, ‘What ya gonna do’ ?

Blessings (by priests) in the Communion line in England and Wales dates from the Swanwick Declaration in 1974 (or thereabouts) so it is not a new thing. Our Bishops said that Communion should not be the time for hurt and division.

I do not see how someone receiving a blessing diminishes another person’s receiving of Holy Communion. In other words, it doesn’t matter. We should be welcoming the baby steps being taken by people considering coming into the church, and rejoicing.
 
In my parish if children go up when parents receive, Father or Deacon gives them a blessing.
 
JimG said:
It is one thing to receive a blessing from a Deacon. It’s not the same thing to receive a blessing from a layperson. The rise in the use of EMHC’s ironically coincided with the increasing practice of non-communicants approaching for blessings.
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I think the use coincided more with the huge drop in the priesthood and everyone going to communion, except of course for the small handful that request a blessing.
 
blessings in the communion line certainly aren’t that traditional- it wasn’t done when I was a kid in the 1960’s for sure.

But there are a lot of things that are done today that weren’t back then, and just because an idea is novel to our age doesn’t make it “wrong”.

I’d say on a scale of 1 to 10 on what would upset me, this doesn’t make the list.
 
Couldn’t agree more. I seem to recall something along the lines of “People were bringing children to Jesus that he might touch them, but the disciples rebuked them. When Jesus saw this he became indignant and said to them, ‘Let the children come to me; do not prevent them, for the Kingdom of God belongs to such as these. Amen, I say to you, whoever does not accept the Kingdom of God like a child will not enter it.’ Then he embraced them and blessed them, placing his hands on them.” (Mark 10: 13-16, from the Rite of Baptism)
 
I’m inclined to agree I think people over react to this and if the bishop allows it I don’t see a problem
 
JimG said:
It is one thing to receive a blessing from a Deacon. It’s not the same thing to receive a blessing from a layperson. The rise in the use of EMHC’s ironically coincided with the increasing practice of non-communicants approaching for blessings.
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Are these adults receiving all those blessings or little kids? The only people I ever see receiving blessings in the Communion line are small kids going up with their parents. And the blessings are given by a priest or Deacon. The EMHCs are usually off to the side from where I sit so I don’t know what’s going on over there.
 
Faith1960 said:
Are these adults receiving all those blessings or little kids? The only people I ever see receiving blessings in the Communion line are small kids going up with their parents. And the blessings are given by a priest or Deacon. The EMHCs are usually off to the side from where I sit so I don’t know what’s going on over there.
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When I was a catechumen in RCIA, I was invited to come forward for a blessing. I’ve noticed a few adults since, though the majority are children.
 
Hello there. I was an EMHC for a short time in my former parish. We were instructed by our pastor that, being laypeople, we could not confer a blessing on someone, so when it came up, we were to put one hand on the person’s shoulder ( not the head as a priest does) and ask God to bless them. We didn’t make the Sign of the Cross over them, either.

We were forbidden to deny Holy Communion to anyone or to turn anyone away as that is serious matter for only a priest to decide.

I thought that was sound advice.
 
Jennifoo said:
We were forbidden to deny Holy Communion to anyone or to turn anyone away as that is serious matter for only a priest to decide.

I thought that was sound advice.
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It would seem, if that’s the case, this would be a very good argument for only the ordained to give Holy Communion to avoid the chance of scandal or sacrilege.
 
casslean said:
Well, we wouldn’t want people to feel included in the Catholic Church. This isn’t the place for that.

I don’t understand why this keeps coming up time and again. The CDW did not explicitly ANYTHING the practice. They made some observations and said they were studying the issue. And after nearly ten years, they’ve still not seen it necessary to issue anything further.

Can we not just trust our priests and bishops instead of empanelling ourselves as a litugical jury? Maybe just focus on yourself and the Eucharist during Communion, and stop worrying about what others - including the priest - might be doing.
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Actually, the CDWDS did not make observations on this…a priest who was one of the undersecretaries did make observations, in a letter addressed to an individual, that letter then appearing on the Internet. His answers were limited precisely because the dicastery was evaluating the matter. They have, however, yet to address it.

Thankfully, in the years intervening, we now have a truly wonderful secretary for the dicastery in the person of His Grace the Archbishop who, when responsible for the liturgy office for the Bishops’ Conference for England and Wales wrote:
Even though some in the assembly may not receive ‘sacramental’ Communion, all are united in some way by the Holy Spirit. The traditional idea of ‘spiritual’ communion is an important one to remember and reaffirm. The invitation often given at Mass to those who may not receive sacramental communion – for example children before their First Communion and adults who are not Catholics – to receive a ‘blessing’ at the moment of Communion emphasises that a deep spiritual communion is possible even when we do not share together the Sacrament of the Body and Blood of Christ.
I remember many bishops asked Pope Benedict for a clarification on this issue at the time of the 2005 Synod of Bishops, which was on the Eucharist. His response then, as it had been before and after, was silence…which is not an infrequent response to dubia that the Pope, in his sovereign judgment, decides ought not to be answered, for whatever reason he determines it should not be answered. Both Pope Saint John Paul II and Pope Benedict imparted blessings in place of Communion when they distributed the Eucharist at Papal Masses.

I especially appreciate your comment about impaneling a jury…since my then bishop sent me away for advanced studies and I was professor of liturgy and sacraments as well as his Master of Ceremonies; I also had the honour of dealing with people who attempted to play liturgical policeman.
 
alphomega said:
Agreed, look what not paying attention to the little things has done to the new mass in 45-50 years
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There is not a day that goes by in my priesthood that I do not think God for the inestimable gift that has been the reform and renewal of the liturgy…the fruit of the liturgical movement in the decades that preceded the council called by Saint John XXIII.
 
Kielbasi said:
blessings in the communion line certainly aren’t that traditional- it wasn’t done when I was a kid in the 1960’s for sure.

But there are a lot of things that are done today that weren’t back then, and just because an idea is novel to our age doesn’t make it “wrong”.

I’d say on a scale of 1 to 10 on what would upset me, this doesn’t make the list.
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Well, I do not know where you were experiencing this but I can say WE were giving blessings in the 1960s…because I remember it. The difference was it was for children who accompanied their parents to the Communion rail but had not made their First Communion. It ran the gamut from newborn infants in arms to children on the eve of their First Communion.
 
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