A corporal work of mercy.

A corporal work of mercy.
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Showing posts with label Holy Eucharist. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Holy Eucharist. Show all posts

Sunday 5 November 2017

Cardinal Sarah: "No Inter-Communion between Catholics and non-Catholics."

The potential for open schism grows. Cardinal Sarah states clearly that Holy Communion is not to be given to Protestants!



CARDINAL SARAH: "NO INTER-COMMUNION BETWEEN CATHOLICS AND NON-CATHOLICS. YOU MUST BE CATHOLIC”

by Matteo Orlando


Il card. Sarah: «Niente inter-comunione tra cattolici e non cattolici. È necessario essere cattolici»"Inter-communion is not allowed between Catholics and non-Catholics. It is necessary to confess the Catholic faith. A non-Catholic cannot receive communion. This is very, very clear. It is not a matter of freedom of conscience. " This is how Cardinal Robert Sarah, prefect of the Divine Worship Congregation, responds to those who have seen an intercommunion between Catholics and Lutherans in a response given by Pope Francis to a Lutheran during his recent visit to the Lutheran community of Rome. "We give communion to Catholics," giving communion to everyone is "a nonsense," says the African Cardinal.

"There is no intercommunion between Anglicans and Catholics, between Catholics and Protestants. If they go together, the Catholic can go to communion, but Lutherans or Anglicans do not. " Without a union in faith and doctrine, opening the doors to intercommunion "would promote profanation." "We cannot do it. It is not that we must speak to the Lord to know if we can make Communion. We need to know whether we are in agreement with the rules of the Church. Our consciousness must be illuminated by the rules of the Church that says that, in order to communicate, we need to be in a state of grace, without sin, and have faith in the Eucharist. It is not a desire or a personal dialogue with Jesus that determines whether we can receive communion in the Catholic Church. A person cannot decide whether he is able to receive Communion. Must be Catholic, in a state of grace, properly married [if conjugated] ". The inter-communion does not allow unity because "the Lord helps us to be one if we receive it properly, otherwise we will eat our condemnation, as St. Paul says (1 Corinthians 11: 27-29). We cannot become one thing only if we participate in communion with sin, with contempt for the Body of Christ. "

Friday 14 July 2017

Does the CCCB liturgy head, Father Terry Fournier, believe in Transubstantiation?

Nota Bene: I have most certainly written to the Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops regarding this. They have not responded. They never do. They have had plenty of time to respond to my letter and to this article. They have not. 

Do not sit out there and accuse this writer of "grave sin" because I reported what the priest interviewed should have corrected right after it appeared in the press. Did he not read it? Did he not see what the reporter wrote? Should he not have contracted the reporter to retract or clarify? Should he not have written here or responded to the email stating that he asked The Star for a correction or clarification?

How dare you sit in judgement of this writer.


Go ask the priest!



There has been apoplectic hysteria in the secular media about the circular letter from the Church on the proper matter for the bread to become consecrated as the Body of Our Lord at the Holy Mass. The issue has been quite misconstrued and distorted by an ignorant press. The fact is, the Church has always held this position, since the matter of "gluten-free" anything became an issue. 

We have Monsignors using money from who knows where to buy cocaine for a sodomite orgy in the Vatican - a situation totally ignored by the secular press, but this is what they have spent a week reporting to discredit the Church for the few Celiac sufferers who cannot consume Blessed Sacrament under one species, even though the other is available.

Anyone who cannot receive Body of the Lord under the form of bread, can receive the Blood of Christ under what was wine, even a child and even at the traditional Latin Mass.

Look, if there is no gluten, then it is not wheat flour, it does not make bread and there is no confection of the Blessed Sacrament, no transubstantiation, period!

This is not a new instruction by the Church, it is simply a restatement of the facts for the reason that the abuse is occurring by errant priests and bishops and the result is that the Sacrament simply isn't!

Invalid matter does not make for a Sacrament!

The Toronto Star is a notorious and near-bankrupt rag of anti-Catholic bigotry and leftism and it has joined the parade. What the Star writes on the matter is not the point, it is who is interviewed and what is said that must be exposed to the Catholic faithful.

Andrea Adam, a rather poorly catechized Catholic mother has a child suffering from Celiac's disease. Mrs. Adam would not accept her parish priest's decision that gluten-free hosts would not be provided. The Toronto Star reporter states that "in the end, Adam took her daughter to Ottawa, where she was able to receive Holy Communion with a gluten-free host."

I've got news for Andrea Adam.

Your daughter was not, "able to receive Holy Communion."  S
he received a substance made from non-wheat flour that was nothing more than that.

Did know priest ever tell the poor woman this? 

Note that this was Ottawa, under the nose of Archbishop Terence Prendergast, S.J.!

Now, for more.

Terry Fournier is a priest of the Diocese of Sault Ste. Marie and is National Director of Office of Liturgy (English Sector) for the Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops. Fournier is quoted in the Toronto Star article as follows:




Did you catch that?

"Symbolizes the blood of Christ."


The reporter does not place the phrase, which symbolizes the blood of Christ, in quotation marks. 

Why is this? Did Father say, "don't quote me," with a wink, wink and a nudge, nudge? Is there a reason why the writer quotes him, but does not, at the same time?

I think Father Terry Fournier and Bishop Crosby, President of the Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops, should confirm whether the Grand Pub-ha of the liturgical mess of the 
mass that occurs in Canada actually believes in Transubstantiation and the Real Presence, Body, Blood, Soul and Divinity of Our Lord Jesus Christ in the Eucharistic species under the appearance of bread and wine.

Yes, or no, Father Fournier, which is it?

Oh, and, Your Grace, what of that parish in Ottawa with the invalid matter?


Saturday 7 May 2016

Priests and Bishops of Canada : STOP beating up Catholics who KNEEL for Holy Communion! Where is mercy?

An email from a friend in a Canadian Diocese, contains the following information about a recent occurrence:


At a funeral last week, the person knelt for Holy Communion. She was refused to be given Holy Communion until she stood but was allowed to receive on the tongue.


Page 44, Paragraph 160 of GIRM for Canada (General Instruction on the Roman Missal), present in the front of every Roman Missal in every church in Canada states:

160. The Priest then takes the paten or ciborium and approaches the communicants, who usually come up in procession.
    It is not permitted for the faithful to take the consecrated Bread or the sacred chalice by themselves and, still less, to hand them on from one to another among themselves. In the Dioceses of Canada, Holy Communion is to be received standing, though individual members of the faithful may choose to receive Communion while kneeling. When standing before the minister to receive Holy Communion, the faithful should make a simple bow of the head. When receiving Holy Communion on the tongue, they reverently join their hands; when receiving Holy Communion in the hand, they reverently open their hands placing one beneath the other, and they consume the host immediately upon receiving it.


From this perspective, the then-Cardinal Ratzinger assured that: "Communion only reaches its true depth when it is supported and surrounded by adoration" [The Spirit of the Liturgy (Ignatius Press, 2000), p. 90]. For this reason, Cardinal Ratzinger maintained that “the practice of kneeling for Holy Communion has in its favor a centuries-old tradition, and it is a particularly expressive sign of adoration, completely appropriate in light of the true, real and substantial presence of Our Lord Jesus Christ under the consecrated species” [cited in the Letter "This Congregation" of the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments, 1 July 1, 2002].

It is important to note that Pope Francis has not changed what Pope Benedict began. While in large "Papal" Masses, he generally does not distribute Holy Communion to the lay faithful, he has been quite consistent with Deacons kneeling for Communion. If one wishes to make a distinction, "well that is a Deacon," one should look up the definition of, clericalist



The question must be asked.

Why are you as priests and bishops doing this to the faithful and allowing it? The GIRM clearly acknowledges the right of the individual to kneel notwithstanding the general norm.

Fathers, do you not know this? If you do not know it, you do now.

Listen to me. If you do know it and you are denying the faithful of their right, then it is fair to say that you are, objectively speaking, in a state of severe disobedience to the Law of the Church and objectively, in a state of serious sin. You are committing an illegal act against the faithful. What will you say to Our Lord Jesus Christ on your particular judgement day for this action?

You, Bishop; why do you allow this. How will you answer for it? Will you simply plead ignorance?

Where is "mercy"?

Given the prevailing culture, I'm just a "rigorist" and a "self-absorbed Promethean, neo-Pelagian" who is "judging from the Seat of Moses."

As laity, in Canada in particular, what is your experience and feel free to name your diocese and parish.

Thursday 19 March 2015

They want to debase the truth. It is an attack on Christ and His Sacrifice. It is an attack on the Eucharist!

What is behind the attempt by Kasper, Marx, Tagle and and the others who are attempting to change doctrine through pastoral practice and a talk of "mercy" as if it is something never practiced in two thousand years?

It is about sacrilege and debasing the Holy Eucharist. It is about denying that the Mass is the Sacrifice of Calvary and debasing it to be the reenactment of the Last Supper rather than a re-presentation of that Sacrifice. If the Eucharist is just a meal, who are we to judge or restrict by law those who want to come? If they want to come, they must do as all of us. Repent of your sins with a firm purpose of amendment. Period. It is that simple. Are any of us truly worthy? Of course not, that is why we pray the Centurion's prayer three times, or once if we're more worthy as in the modernist rite. When we pray, "only say the word" the word is said in the confessional when the priest says, "Ego absolve te!"  There is the healing. There is the mercy. 

The Ordinary Form of the Mass, the Novus Ordo Missae is a sacrificial offering, assuming the form, matter and intent is there on the part of the priest. Sometimes, it is illicit even if it is valid. More than often, it is a "banal" product as then Cardinal Ratzinger called it. It is not possible that it can convert and convict in the same way as the the traditional form for its prayers are deficient and its celebration often not sufficient. The Mass according to the latest books by St. John XXIII was nearly eliminated. It was banished by those modernists who were out to undermine the faith and are now at their zenith. This form of the Mass more fully expressed the Catholic faith and the Sacrifice and there is no denying it. It is as straight forward as 2 + 2 = 4 and those who say otherwise want you to believe that it really equals 5. 

They are at the height of their power now and they will come crashing down.

For your spiritual edification.




"A Meditation on the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass"  
By Michael Sestak
August 2014


Some days back, a viewer on YouTube forwarded a kind request, asking me to produce a film showcasing the beauty and richness of the Latin Mass. I started the project, but never imagined where it would lead.

I worked on the video each day after work from 7pm - 3am for five consecutive nights. It was a draining experience. But I am satisfied with the end result.

PURPOSE

"A Meditation on the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass" is not meant to be a mere inspirational drama, but a heartfelt prayer, a Catholic meditation.

It should be viewed as such: Focused. Silent. Penitent.

My sincere hope is that you will grow in your love for God, and your Faith will be strengthened.

SYMBOLISM

After previewing the movie for my family, they expressed concern about some of the symbolism, particularly the scene of the Kiss of Judas and the priest kissing the altar. Please know that I based everything on ancient Catholic teaching. For example:

"When the priest kisses the altar, he is kissing Christ, *faithfully,* in contradiction to the kiss of betrayal by Judas." In a sense, the priest is making atonement for the betrayal of Judas.

"The priest reading the Introit represents Christ being falsely accused by Annas and blasphemed."

"The priest going to the middle of the altar and saying the Kyrie Eleison represents Christ being brought to Caiphas and these three times denied by Peter."

"The priest saying the 'Dominus vobiscum' represents Christ looking at Peter and converting him."

"The priest saying the 'Orate Fratres' represents Christ being shown by Pilate to the people with the words 'Ecce Homo.'"

"The priest praying in a low voice represents Christ being mocked and spit upon."

"The priest blessing the bread and wine represents Christ being nailed to the cross."

"The priest elevating the host represents Christ being raised on the cross."

"The priest goes to the Epistle side and prays signifying how Jesus was led before Pilate and falsely accused."

"The priest goes to the Gospel-side, where he reads the Gospel, signifying how Christ was sent from Pilate to Herod, and was mocked and derided by the latter."

"The priest goes from the Gospel side again to the middle of the altar - this signifies how Jesus was sent back from Herod to Pilate."

"The priest uncovers the chalice, recalling how Christ was stripped for the scourging."

"The priest offers bread and wine, signifying how Jesus was bound to the pillar and scourged."

"The priest washes his hands, signifying how Pilate declared Jesus innocent by washing his hands."

"The priest covers the chalice after the Offertory recalling how Jesus was crowned with thorns."

"The priest breaking and separating the host represents Christ giving up His spirit."

Taken from "The Catholic Church Alone: The One True Church of Christ" by the Catholic Education Company, New York, page 551. The book has been out of print for many decades; used copies sell for about $200.00 or more, but can be read freely on Google Books.

FINAL THOUGHTS by Fulton J. Sheen

Too many of us end our lives, but few of us see them finished. A sinful life may end, but a sinful life is never a finished life.

Our Lord finished His work, but we have not finished ours. He pointed the way we must follow. He laid down the Cross at the finish, but we must take it up. He finished Redemption in His physical Body, but we have not finished it in His Mystical Body.

He has finished the Sacrifice of Calvary; we must finish the Mass.

Sunday 15 March 2015

Getting Jesus off the floor - one person at a time and it begins with you!

An reprint of an old post of April 28, 2008

Image result for padre pio communion
It was good enough for him. who are you that you should do otherwise?
After work one day, I attended St. Michael's Cathedral in Toronto for the late afternoon Holy Sacrifice of the Mass. I arrived early and was able to pray the Rosary during the exposition and adoration which occurs daily at the Cathedral from after the lunch hour Mass until the end of the day. This daily exposition and adoration has been going on for as far as I can remember. It is probably what has kept this wretched City from sinking even further into the abyss.

After I received the Eucharist (on the tongue) I had no sooner closed my mouth and the woman who preceded me let out a little gasp; there He lay dropped on the carpet, two inches from my right foot and my steel-toed construction boot. She dropped Him, she dropped Him from her hand and He bounced off the toe of my boot.

How is this possible that she dropped Him from her hand? I mean, did she just let go!


Everyone stopped, including me. I stood perfectly still with Our LORD lying there beside my foot. Father bent down slowly and picked Him up and held Him in his hand against the ciborium


If that were not enough, a few moments later, as I was kneeling on the right aisle the last communicant approached; she took the Host and started to walk away without consuming. I put up my hands to gain Father's attention and was prepared to stop her if he could not. Fortunately, she got the message and consumed Our LORD. Perhaps, she was just lazy or sloppy, perhaps she meant no sacrilege. Or perhaps she did.


Blessed Mother Teresa of Calcutta often opined that this change (an indult which is optional for the local Bishop to accept and will be abrogated by a future pope) was the worst problem in the world today; "Wherever I go in the whole world, the thing that makes me the saddest is watching people receive Communion in the hand."


If you are in your late 50's, you will have had a similar experience to myself. When I celebrated my First Communion I was on my knees at the communion rail. Together, with my other classmates we held a white linen cloth which was hung over the rail by the altar boys and which we held up under our chins. An altar boy accompanied the priest holding a brass plate called a paten and placed it under our chins. The priest approached and held up the Holy Eucharist and with it made the Sign of the Cross whilst saying; "Corpus Domini nostri Jesu Christi custodiat animam meam in vitam aeternam. Amen" which translates to, May the Body of Our Lord Jesus Christ bring you to eternal life. Amen.


A few years later I was told that I was "lucky" because I was part of the first class of altar boys that did not need to learn Latin. By this time, and in the new church building, there was no communion rail and nobody knelt any more for Holy Communion. People lined up and approached the priest in a similar fashion to what they do at McDonald's. We altar boys still held the paten and people received the Eucharist on their tongues. When the last person had communicated the altar boys would carefully carry their patens horizontally to the Altar and assist the priest with the ablution. I can clearly remember seeing little pepper sized particles of the Eucharist on the paten which the priest wiped off with his fingers into the chalice after which I rinsed his fingers over the chalice and he would consume the remains.

I don't need to describe how Our Blessed LORD is received today. So instead, let me pose a few questions:


Do you wash your hands before receiving his body?

Do you "make a throne with your left and receive Him in your right" and then bring your hands to your mouth to feed yourself? Or, do you take Him with your fingers and pop Him into your mouth like a cracker or a potato chip?

Do you purify your hands afterwards as was the actual practice in those days prior to the ninth century when the few laity that actually did receive the Eucharist received in their hands?

Have you ever noticed any particles left on your hands?

Do you think any particles would have fallen to the floor to be tramped under afoot, or mopped up and poured down a municipal drain or vacuumed up from the ubiquitous carpet?

Do you think someone did not consume the Sacred Species but instead stole Him so as to dishonour and defame Him in a black satanic ritual?

Did you ever find Him in a hymn book or under a pew or lying on the asphalt in the parking lot?

Something to think about isn't it?

There is an abbreviated Latin saying in the Church, Lex orendi, lex credendi. That is to say, the law of prayer becomes the law of belief. We are sensory beings and how we worship, how we pray, what we see and smell and hear affects how we think, how we believe and what we believe.

Receiving Holy Communion in the hand was an abuse that began in Holland and spread to Belgium and then to England before crossing the Atlantic. It was the late 1960's and it was wrong. Pope Paul VI, was either incapable or unwilling to stop what was considered to be an abuse and abomination. He condemned it, regretted it and then, legalised it!

Just because we can does not mean that we should.

Throughout history, it was often the laity, or one nun as in St Catherine of Sienna or a holy priest as with St. Philip Neri with the gifts of the Holy Spirit who helped to rescue the church from its corruption. Who says that it cannot be you and me, one person at a time. You can fix the problem, it really is very simple and you can begin the next time you attend the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass.

You can join Pope Benedict's plan which is becoming clearer.

I just didn't think it would be lead from Kazakhstan.







This situation today is a perfect time to send you to read here about the Archbishop of Lima in Peru. He has just banned Communion-in-the-Hand!



Here is a podcast by the ubiquitous Father Z on the subject.


Here is a lengthy and necessary read by Jude A. Huntz which appeared in the March 1997 issue of Homiletic and Pastoral Review.


This was just posted by Fr. Thomas Kocik on the New Liturgical Movement.


Be sure to read this essay by the Most Reverend Athanasius Schneider, Auxilary Bishop of Karaganda in Kazakhstan.

Thursday 12 March 2015

It was good enough for them, what about the rest of us?

UPDATE:

Kat has posted an update.She has received an apology from the priest and he has sent one out to those that wrote to complain. Good for him, but it should never have happened in the first place. Since the matter has been closed the contact list has been removed.


The "Little Flower" during one of her later illnesses. What would she think of this?
Katrina Fernandez, at The Crescat, has suffered the loss of her Abuela (grandmother). 

Kat; may the LORD welcome her into His arms and may she at this moment be enjoying the beatific vision. Eternal rest grant unto her O Lord and may light perpetual shine upon her. May she rest in peace. May you also be comforted in your loss and those members of our family also.

St. Pio of Pietrelcina in choir at Mass
We owe Katrina thanks for even in her time of grief she has declared publicly the scandal which took place at the hands of the parish staff and priest at the Church of St. Therese of Lisieux in Chesapeake, Virginia. Somehow, I don't think the Little Flower would be impressed. No roses for you! Tell me, have you ever seen such a list of staff? PLEASE SEE AT THE END OF THIS POST.


Not only was it difficult to obtain the Last Rites for her Abuela, Kat herself was degraded at the communion rail, when she desired to receive Our Blessed Lord in the legal and first way, on her tongue. This can never be denied!

Tantumblogo at A Blog for Dallas Area Catholics asked a salient question, "Who is the real fundammentalist/extremist?"

My question for the priest is this, "Father, you clearly felt Kat was wrong, who were you to judge?

Communion in the hand is an error, a grievous error. It is an abomination and I urge you friend, please do not do it. Please receive Our Blessed Lord on your tongue and whenever possible, kneeling. It is permitted by indult and it can be revoked at any time. That will not happen under the current Bishop of Rome but mark my words well - there is a man alive right now who will one day sit on the Chair of Peter and that man will "restore all things in Christ."

He will do away with this abomination and he may very now be doing his penance for it.

Please visit Katrina at Patheos and read it all there.


Bl. Mother Teresa - "Dominus est!"
Dominus est! They knew it. Do we?

Monday 30 July 2012

New Auxiliary Bishop in Toronto

Bishop Kirkpatrick consecrated by His Eminence Thomas Cardinal Collins
Toronto has a new Auxiliary Bishop, His Excellency, the Most Reverend Wayne Joseph Kirkpatrick. His Excellency will serve the Church at Toronto in the northern region. 

It was fascinating to see in the Catholic Register this picture of His Excellency providing the Most Holy Eucharist to a communicant at Mass. There is nothing particularly unusual about the picture, it is a Shepherd of the Church in the Cathedral feeding the Bread of Heaven to a faithful Catholic, wearing a head covering, kneeling, with her eyes closed and receiving Him on her tongue.


Bishop Wayne Kirkpatrick places the Eucharist
on a parishioner's tongue during his first mass at
 St. Michael's Cathedral as Toronto's newest auxiliary bishop.
I note this and you should too.

Why?

Because I continue to hear weekly how priests in this very diocese refuse, attempt to "correct," criticize, insult, complain, and scandalise those Catholics who wish to receive Holy Communion kneeling and on the tongue.

Make no mistake. While in Canada, the norm for receiving Holy Communion is standing and that is the bishops choice, it is the individual Catholics' choice to kneel if they so choose. Pope Benedict XVI only gives Holy Communion on the tongue to communicants who are kneeling.

While Holy Communion can be received on the hand, that is an indult and can be removed with the stroke of the Holy Father's pen, and I believe will be one day not too far into the future. Notwithstanding many episcopal leaders in this country ordering the prohibition of Holy Communion on the tongue during the H1N1 scam, that prohibition by any priest, bishop, archbishop or even cardinal was wrong. They had no right. The law of the Church is that the norm for receiving Holy Communion is the tongue, the exception is the hand.

Now, my point in this post is not to cause His Excellency any discomfort but in fact, to acknowledge that he is fully aware of the law of the Church and he clearly respect it and the right of this communicant. The photo above appeared in fact, in The Catholic Register. The reason for this post is to arm you, loyal Voxett, so that you know and have visual proof the next time a priest of this Archdiocese attempts to scandalise you at the communion rail, if you can find one.

May God bless our new Auxiliary Bishop and may He abide in him.




Wednesday 28 September 2011

How we Communicate

If you' ve not visited Rorate Caeli blog to read this post by New Catholic, then please do and read the comment box.


Send it to your Catholic friends and especially to priests.


Here is a sample:


Translation problems? Mass celebrated towards the people? Altar girls? Postures?


No, the greatest and gravest problem of the liturgy of the Latin Church - that is, of the "Ordinary form", or Mass of Paul VI - is one that transcends all this, even it is related to all of them: it is the way the Body of Christ is treated. That must be the very first issued tackled by an eventual true "reform of the reform", one that is set not by fleeting example, but by hard law.


If you receive Holy Communion in the hand, stop and stop it now!


It was wrong for Paul VI to allow this abomination. He should have outlawed what was a vile abuse and now you are participating in it.


Stop it now!

Monday 25 July 2011

The Hands of the Laity

With a tip to Rorate for this quote:

"And when they came to the floor of Nachon, Oza put forth his hand to the ark of God, and took hold of it: because the oxen kicked and made it lean aside. And the indignation of the Lord was enkindled against Oza, and he struck him for his rashness: and he died there before the ark of God." --2 Samuel 6: 6-7 Douay-Rheims

Quaeritur:

I: If there are two priests present distributing Holy Communion, why are two Extraordinary Ministers of Holy Communion necessary on a Saturday when there are less than 70 people present?

II: Why am I still shocked when whilst the priest is occupied as he should be in the Confessional, a woman feels it simply okay to attend to the Tabernacle to retrieve Consecrated Hosts for the sick?

How do we end this?

Discuss.

Monday 28 April 2008

Getting Jesus off the floor - one person at a time and it begins with you!

An update of an old post of April 28, 2008

After work today, I attended St. Michael's Cathedral in Toronto for the late afternoon Holy Sacrifice of the Mass. I arrived early and was able to pray the Rosary during the exposition and adoration which occurs daily at the Cathedral from after the lunch hour Mass until the end of the day. This daily exposition and adoration has been going on for as far as I can remember. It is probably what has kept this wretched City from sinking even further into the abyss.

The Cathedral in Toronto is indeed a wonderful example of Gothic revival. Oh, I could make a few improvements such as restoring the High Altar and a Communion Rail; but other than that it is quite stunning. Its windows must be amongst the most beautiful in Canada. Through the St. Michael's Choir School they have kept alive at every Sunday and Holy Day liturgy, Gregorian chant and the sacred choral music of the Church's patrimony.

You probably think a "but" is coming; well gentle people, it is.

After I received the Eucharist (on the tongue) I had no sooner closed my mouth and the woman who preceded me let out a little gasp; there He lay dropped on the carpet, 5 cm from my right foot and my steel-toed construction boot. She dropped Him, she dropped Him from her hand and He bounced off the toe of that boot.

How is this possible that she dropped Him from her hand? I mean, did she just let go!

Everyone stopped, including me. I stood perfectly still with Our LORD lying there beside my foot. Father bent down slowly and picked Him up and held Him in his hand against the ciborium

If that were not enough, a few moments later as I was kneeling on the right aisle the last communicant approached. She took the Host and started to walk away without consuming. I put up my hands to gain Father's attention and was prepared to stop her (after all, I am a Knight of Columbus) if he could not. Fortunately, she got the message and consumed Our LORD. Perhaps, she was just lazy or sloppy, perhaps she meant no sacrilege.

Blessed Mother Teresa of Calcutta often opined that this change (an indult which is optional for the local Bishop to accept and can be removed by the Pope) was the worst problem in the world today; "Wherever I go in the whole world, the thing that makes me the saddest is watching people receive Communion in the hand."

If you are in your mid to late 50's, you will have had a similar experience to myself. When I celebrated my First Communion I was on my knees at the communion rail. Together, with my other classmates we held a white linen cloth which was hung over the rail by the altar boys and which we held up under our chins. An altar boy accompanied the priest holding a brass plate called a paten and placed it under our chins. The priest approached and held up the Holy Eucharist and with it made the Sign of the Cross whilst saying; "Corpus Domini nostri Jesu Christi custodiat animam meam in vitam aeternam. Amen" which translates; May the Body of Our Lord Jesus Christ bring you to eternal life. Amen.

A few years later I was told that I was "lucky" because I was part of the first class of altar boys that did not need to learn Latin. By this time, and in the new church building, there was no communion rail and nobody knelt any more for Holy Communion. People lined up and approached the priest in a similar fashion to what they did at McDonald's or now, Tim Hortons. We altar boys still held the paten and people received the Eucharist on their tongues. When the last person had communicated the altar boys would carefully carry their patens horizontally to the Altar and assist the priest with the ablution. I can clearly remember seeing little pepper sized particles of the Eucharist on the paten which the priest wiped off with his fingers into the chalice after which I rinsed his fingers over the chalice and he would consume the remains.

I don't need to describe how Our Blessed LORD is received today. So instead, let me pose a few questions:

Do you wash your hands before receiving his body?

Do you "make a throne with your left and receive Him in your right" and then bring your hands to your mouth to feed yourself? Or, do you take Him with your fingers and pop Him into your mouth like a cracker or a potato chip?

Do you purify your hands afterwards as was the actual practice in those days prior to the ninth century when the few laity that actually did receive the Eucharist received in their hands?

Have you ever noticed any particles left on your hands?

Do you think any particles would have fallen to the floor to be tramped under afoot, or mopped up and poured down a municipal drain or vacuumed up from the ubiquitous carpet?

Do you think someone did not consume the Sacred Species but instead stole Him so as to dishonour and defame Him in a black satanic ritual?

Did you ever find Him in a hymn book or under a pew or lying on the asphalt in the parking lot?

Something to think about isn't it?

There is an abbreviated Latin saying in the Church, Lex orendi, lex credendi. That is to say, the law of prayer becomes the law of belief. We are sensory beings and how we worship, how we pray, what we see and smell and hear affects how we think, how we believe and what we believe.

Receiving Holy Communion in the hand was an abuse that began in Holland and spread to Belgium and then to England before crossing the Atlantic. It was the late 1960's and it was wrong. Pope Paul VI, at worst, an ineffectual shepherd, was either incapable or unwilling to stop what was considered to be an abuse and abomination. He condemned it, regretted it and then with absurdity, legalised it!

Just because we can does not mean that we should.

Throughout history, it was often the laity, or one nun as in St Catherine of Sienna or a holy priest as with St. Philip Neri with the gifts of the Holy Spirit who helped to rescue the church from its corruption. Who says that it cannot be you and me, one person at a time. You can fix the problem, it really is very simple and you can begin the next time you attend the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass.

You can join Pope Benedict's plan which is becoming clearer.

I just didn't think it would be lead from Kazakhstan.






This situation today is a perfect time to send you to read here about the Archbishop of Lima in Peru. He has just banned Communion-in-the-Hand!

Here is a podcast by the ubiquitous Father Z on the subject.

Here is a lengthy and necessary read by Jude A. Huntz which appeared in the March 1997 issue of Homiletic and Pastoral Review.

This was just posted by Fr. Thomas Kocik on the New Liturgical Movement.

Be sure to read this essay by the Most Reverend Athanasius Schneider, Auxilary Bishop of Karaganda in Kazakhstan.