Would you agree that the below list has broken down belief in the Real Presence?

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Perhaps the worship of a reverent OF or the EF May help to enhance my (our) perception and understanding of the Sacrifice of the Mass and the true presence of our Lord?
 
Hodos said:
Communion in the hand has nothing to do with the knowledge that Christ is truly present.
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Pope Paul VI in Memoriale DominI:

“These may be feared from a new manner of administering Holy Communion: they are a lessening of reverence toward the noble Sacrament of the altar, its profanation, or the adulteration of correct doctrine.”
 
CRV said:
I think postures externally express what we believe interiorly.
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godisgood77 said:
those things enrich the Mass
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This is the crux of the issue right htere. The way people interpret the permitted postures differs a great deal between persons. One person sees the OF postures as irreverent or expressing a lacksadaisical attitude, someone else sees them as enriching, expressing unity or something else positive.

From a common sense standpoint, I presumed that godisgood77 was talking about postures and gestures and not trying to say that the Mass is enriched by people receiving without being in a state of grace, or people wearing immodest clothing. I would further say that as we have seen on these forums, what constitutes modest clothing is even more subjective than postures and gestures. It’s likely that virtually all of the clothing I consider to be normal daily wear including for Mass would be considered immodest or otherwise inappropriate/ disrespectful for Mass by someone else.
 
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Tis_Bearself said:
The way people interpret the permitted postures differs a great deal between persons.
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I think most people would agree that receiving Communion in the OF by forming a throne by cupping the hands is the reverent way to receive.

Putting out a single hand palm up - isn’t.

In these two examples, the first way exteriorly shows that one believes it is Jesus whom one is about to receive. The second way, clearly doesn’t as the gesture is the same as putting out ones hand for the change handed back to you at the cashier. And does this occur?

Yes, it was within the last 3 years that people at the OF Mass at my parish had to be reminded how to receive the Eucharist reverently by making a throne with their cupped hands.

But with all that said, yes, I see your point of view.
 
CRV said:
I think most people would agree that receiving Communion in the OF by forming a throne by cupping the hands is the reverent way to receive.

Putting out a single hand palm up - isn’t.
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In all the many Masses I have gone to in my life where people received in the hand, I’ve never seen anyone just hold out one hand as you describe, nor have I heard or read any reminder telling people how to hold their hands. I’m not saying it doesn’t happen someplace - obviously it did at your parish - but it would seem to be an unusual occurrence.
 
Then you are blessed. Sadly, it’s not the only place I’ve been to where communion was received in ways not as reverent as could or should be.
 
CilladeRoma said:
Mass is supposed to be about community.
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Is Mass primarily about the community or primarily about God? What is our prime reason for coming to Mass? To focus on and adore God, or meet the community?

Of course community is important and Mass is generally a meeting of the community, but what is the prime focus when we go to Mass?
 
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actions express thoughts and belief…so your list definitely might help weaken the reality of the person who is the Holy Eucharist…the Son of God.
 
Exactly! And that’s what I was trying clumsily to get at. We have to know the words and be able to recite them, but that’s only a small part of the picture. It’s not until we’ve allowed the words to sink in and form our lives - including, but not limited to our actions during Mass - that we really know them in the deeper sense.

However, as far as particular gestures like kneeling during Communion are concerned, I would just point out that kneeling for Communion has never been a tradition in the Christian East (including the Catholic East). And, as I mentioned, receiving Communion in the hand has been pointed out by many scholars to be an ancient practice in the Church. So pointing to things like these doesn’t really do much to p(name removed by moderator)oint the causes of decline in belief in the Real Presence.
 
The Lutheran parish my wife and I are members of does all the things listed in the OP, and does intinction, and one of the three pastors is a woman, and uses EMHCs (the senior pastor calls the parish the “500lb gorilla in the middle of the city” because it dwarfs every other church in town; parking is a pain to find on Sunday). And yet, regular members at that parish believe that what they receive at communion is the Body and Blood of Jesus, though some are more nuanced than others.

The senior pastor, who’s been there for 20-some years, does all of the catechism classes himself.

I think that is a pretty strong example that it is catechesis, not the listed practices, that help determine belief.
 
It is about the community coming together to worship God.
If the community aspect was not important, Mass would not be an obligation, we could pray at home by ourselves.
 
CilladeRoma said:
If the community aspect was not important, Mass would not be an obligation,
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Is it an obligation because it is a gathering of the community, or because it is a re-presentation of the Holy Sacrifice on Calvary which we are called to be witnesses of? Yes you can pray at home, but can you be there to witness the Consecration at home?
 
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