UPDATE, Sabbath Day, July 11:
As guessed through my cryptic hints, the parish, ironically, is St. Pius X on Bloor Street not very far from the Society of St. Pius X Mass Centre known as Church of the Transfiguration. In this day and age I find it incredulous that a priest would still attempt this. Is it any wonder that people seek refuge within the SSPX?
The Pastor is Father Brian Shea as hinted at. The matter has been reported to the Chancellor of the Archdiocese of Toronto and there has been email communication. This writer has been assured that the matter will be dealt with. The writer has also been assured that the Pastor is going to be challenged on it should it happen again tonight and tomorrow.
Father's previous parish was St. Martin de Porres in Scarborough and prior to that, St. Timothy in Orangeville.
These actions violate Canonical Law, liturgical norms and the rights of the Lay faithful. Frankly, it is the height of clericalism for a priest to take it upon himself to become the Law and dictate the spiritual expression of the faithful under your care. It is the opposite of humility and certainly not in keeping with the example of Pope Francis. But then, who am I to judge?
Any parishioner wishing to update please write me at voxcantoris@rogers.com
The annual game of musical chairs in the Archdiocese of Toronto is being played out. I was always told that priests are to "make no changes for a year."
It seems to me that little fact only works for those who might have a tinge of tradition let alone orthodoxy, you know a little Gregorian chant or Latin in keeping with the Documents of Vatican II, or a cassock or heaven forbid, moving the Tabernacle to the centre!
News has reached me today, confirmed from two sources, that a new Pastor at a prominent Toronto parish named after a very holy Saint who was also a Pope has refused to provide people who wish to kneel, the Holy Eucharist. Not only that, but he refuses to provide Holy Communion on the tongue, admonishing at least one; and he has announced this publicly at the Mass!
The parish has (or at least had) a large banner of its Patron Saint on the front wall overlooking the street. It shows this holy Pope in a beautiful green Roman chasuble giving Holy Communion to two children kneeling and on the tongue!
How ironic!
I can tell you that both persons are known to me and they are both suffering a crisis of conscience!
All this in the first week Father is a the parish and publicly claims it to be a "health hazard."
Touché, ;), I say.
Many fine articles on the matter of reception of Holy Communion can be found at here.
15 comments:
Thanks for posting that letter. I've seen another one (online somewhere) a few years ago, also from CDW, affirming that a Catholic may kneel for communion. Sorry, I'm not sure what blog.
A priest may not make these decisions about hand or tongue reception, it is none of the business of a priest. The authority of the bishop is as "low" as this decision reaches other than the choice of the individual. It cannot be made across the board on the parish level. A bishop may never forbid reception on the tongue, which is the norm, but he may choose to not permit the use of the indult for reception in the hand. Of course that would never happen, but technically speaking, the bishop decides for the entire diocese, not a priest alone in his parish.
Also, what is this nonsense about germs? A priest properly trained can administer on the tongue without even touching the person! Whereas with the hands, transmission of germs is guaranteed, with the germs accumulating on the priest's hands as more and more people reach to receive and he touches their hands. Unless he simply "drops" the host into the hand, which is risky, he is touching hands much more than tongues.
When we had the swine flu epidemic some years ago in at "at risk" county, our priest asked everyone, if they did not mind, to FOREGO Communion in the HAND to reduce contagion! Suddenly everyone was receiving on the tongue as we had not seen in decades. (A novus ordo parish!)
Why hide that this parish is St Pius X on Bloor?
You win the prize!
Priests like this give all of us a bad name. What does it matter to us whether people want to receive on the tongue? It is no inconvenience whatsoever to accommodate such a request. As a priest let me just say that I wish some of my brothers would get their ego under control and quit demanding the authority to control how others pray or receive so long as it doesn't cause a public scandal to the faithful.
No worries about crisis of conscience. Obedience to legitimate authority is never penalized by Jesus.
Seems to be that people are now required to show as little reverance as possible towards the Blessed Sacrament .
Suzanne F., the problem is it is not legitimate authority. The Law is that Holy Communion on the tongue is the normative, the hand is by Indult and can be revoked. Kneeling is always the right of the Communicant.
The priest is in error and he knows it. I've already heard from two about his antics two parishes ago.
Dear Catholics, withhold your money! It is the one thing these Modernists love more than heresy.
Another storm in a tea cup. Whether the communicant receives the host orally or manually, a reverent disposition is crucial before and after. Either way, humanity is touched by the hand of the divine when Christ feeds us with his most precious body and blood.
"Storm in a teacup?"
Nonsense, dear reader.
Communion in the hand, while licit under indult, was an abuse. In fact, you should read the history of its introduction in Canada by Msgr. Vincent Foy and how lies were told to get the Vatican to approve it.
It is the RIGHT of the communicant to decide how to receive, not the PRIEST. This is the height of clericalist arrogance.
Such worldly heresy. It shows he does not have the supernatural faith, does not believe in the Body, Blood, Soul and Divinity of our Lord Jesus Christ. Anathema.
Our Lord is not too happy when lay persons handle the Eucharist:
http://divinefiat.blogspot.com/
As Jojie has already rightly said, a priest properly trained to administer Communion should have no problems whatsoever.
One caveat to this: I have noticed that quite a few parishioners who receive on the tongue tend to 'lunge' forward when they receive Communion. I think this would quickly be remedied if 1) they were instructed to kneel and 2) priests learn how to administer Communion in such a way that the Host actually ends up on the communicant's tongue.
horrible that a priest would do this in disobedience to the Church's Directive from the Congregation of July 24, 2009. The people should revolt and stormed the Archdiocesan Chancery Office for such modernism; this particularly is a fruit of Vat 2, explicity from Paul 6th, a modernist. This priest is really unjust and unkind and uncharitable. If he is worried about a health hazard, a false excuse to excuse himself, people's breathing and coughing and sneezing; does he use a cloth to open doorknobs lest he catch a disease?
fr joe colletti
Why didn't you give the bane of the Church? Seems strange to me that you chose not to.
Makes the blog sound like a gossip column, which it is not.
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