Eucharist Reception Kneeling and Upon the Tongue is the Norm

I have spent the last few days discussing not just on my blog, but in various forums about the forms of Eucharistic reception. The honest truth is, as I mentioned in my other entries, Eucharistic reception in the hand is the result of an indult, it is NOT the Church norm. A diocese may wish to make it its norm, but it is not the Church's norm. In fact, as I have stated in my other posts, the indult can be removed. The norm for Eucharistic reception in the Latin Rite is kneeling and upon the tongue, and this is also why any of the faithful who wish to receive in this manner cannot be denied Holy Communion.

Cardinal Arinze


On another bright note, there seems that there will be some possible corrections coming to the Novus Ordo Mass, as the Vatican is preparing a Manual to help priests celebrate Mass. An important thing that has been noted is that no where in Vatican II was there a command for priests to face the people for the entirety of the Mass, and it seems that this will finally be addressed. Along with other issues. If you are interested you can read more from Zenit:Vatican Preparing a Manual to Help Priests Celebrate Mass

Stop the Cuomo Expansion Bill

If you are from New York State and opposed to abortion, it is important to know that the New York State Catholic Conference has begun an effort to oppose Governor Cuomo's attempt to expand abortion.

New York State already has one of the highest abortion rates in the country, and the governor seeks to expand this already high rate. It is important that people oppose the governor's bill, especially Catholics.

Please take a moment and visit the New York State Catholic Conference Website, and they will guide you in sending a letter to the governor and other law officials through their page; in fact, it can be sent directly through their website: http://nyscatholicconference.capwiz.com/nyscatholicconference/issues/alert/?alertid=62331936&type=ML&show_alert=1

The protection of the innocent and vulnerable in society is important, and it is part of our being Christian.

Please take a  moment and stand up for life and those who have no voice within society, the pre-born. Also, if you are keen on standing up for Catholic issues, you can register to be kept abreast of matter through the New York State Catholic Conference. Working as one, we can make a difference.

Holy Communion, Reception and Reverence

Continuing on from my discussion on Holy Communion in the hand, it is important to note, and what I find most people think, it was not part of Vatican II. In fact, the petitions and permissions granted around Holy Communion in the hand was only arrived at in 1969. I find that some people like to adhere to reception in the hand as being so important because they believe it was part of the Council, but no where in the Council documents is any allusion to this.

If you are interested in reading a short piece on the recent developments of Holy Communion in the hand, I would like to recommend: Holy Communion in the Hand?, by Paul Kokoski. I believe he does a good job in highlighting the 20th century development of this practice. It is well worth the read.

The fact of the matter is that when this practice was being allowed in 1969, it was not strongly encouraged and the majority of the Bishops looked down upon it, and for good reason. It is well noted of the thefts that have occurred as a result of reception in the hand, but more notable it is the aspect reverence, which I spoke about last time. (Just FYI: Communion in the Hand is the result of an indult, and for permission applicants must apply to Rome. It is not automatically granted, and it could be removed or rescinded by the Bishop of Diocese or Rome. Two jurisdictions which presently have communion by received by the normal means of the Church (kneeling and upon the tongue) exclusively are those of Bishop Schneider and Cardinal Ranjith).

It has long been held in the Church that Christ is fully present in the Eucharist, Body, Blood, Soul and Divinity. This Presence exists in every fragment of the Host, be it large or small. Believe it or not fragments are left on the hand; in fact, even when Holy Communion is given upon the tongue the priest will sometimes find particle upon the paten. Note that the paten is beneath the priest's hand and the recipient, never coming into direct contact with the host, save the fallen particles. Recognizing this, then how many more particles exist upon the recipient's hand when he receives communion in that form? What compounds this is that the recipient's hands are not purified, nor does he lick the surface of his hand; rather, hands often fall to side of the person allowing what may be on the hand to fall to the ground and be trampled upon. Some may say, it is too small particles that you speak of and the angels deal with such matters, but by my own experience, I have seen sacred pieces of the Host left upon my hand. Mind you, they were noticeable to my eye, and this happened on more than one occasion. It was this along with the knowledge I gained of Who I receive which changed the manner of my reception of Holy Communion.

Just to show what I am speaking about, here is a short video-



Ultimately, this is about honoring and respecting our Lord who gives himself to us in the Most Holy Sacrifice at the Mass. We should bestow the ultimate respect and reverence upon Him, especially in the Eucharist.

There is often a lack of knowledge regarding Eucharistic reception kneeling and upon the tongue, but let it be known that a communicant in the Novus Ordo can receive kneeling and on the tongue, and this has been highlighted in the GIRM (General Instruction of the Roman Missal):

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. The norm established for the Dioceses of the United States of America is that Holy Communion is to be received standing, unless an individual member of the faithful wishes to receive Communion while kneeling (Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments, Instruction, Redemptionis Sacramentum, March 25, 2004, no. 91).

When receiving Holy Communion, the communicant bows his or her head before the Sacrament as a gesture of reverence and receives the Body of the Lord from the minister. The consecrated host may be received either on the tongue or in the hand, at the discretion of each communicant. When Holy Communion is received under both kinds, the sign of reverence is also made before receiving the Precious Blood.
http://www.usccb.org/prayer-and-worship/the-mass/general-instruction-of-the-roman-missal/girm-chapter-4.cfm

 Even if the GIRM in a country varies slightly, Instruction Redemptionis Sacramentum, which is the instruction for the mass, makes it clear that no one may be denied Holy Communion for kneeling:

[91.] In distributing Holy Communion it is to be remembered that “sacred ministers may not deny the sacraments to those who seek them in a reasonable manner, are rightly disposed, and are not prohibited by law from receiving them”.[177] Hence any baptized Catholic who is not prevented by law must be admitted to Holy Communion. Therefore, it is not licit to deny Holy Communion to any of Christ’s faithful solely on the grounds, for example, that the person wishes to receive the Eucharist kneeling or standing.
http://www.vatican.va/roman_curia/congregations/ccdds/documents/rc_con_ccdds_doc_20040423_redemptionis-sacramentum_en.html

If you would like to get a deeper understanding of the Eucharist and the manner by which our Lord has been reverenced historically and theologically, I would recommend Bishop Athanasius Schneider's book Dominus Est. (Can be Purchased Here: Newman House Press)

Bishop Athanasius Schneider - EWTN - 1/2013

Bishop Athanasius Schneider speaking on EWTN, January 9, 2013. A very edifying talk on the Eucharist and the Church.

The Slippery Slope of Reception in the Hand

I have had something ratting around in my head for some time, and believe me it is something aside from the loose nuts and bolts. Ever since my return to Catholic Church, I have noticed, heard, and read about how many lay people and sometimes even priests do not reverence or even comprehend the True Presence of Christ in Eucharist. Many ideas have been put out from lack of catechesis, to the infiltration of Protestantism into Catholicism and an emphasis being put on the idea of banquet or table instead of a sacrifice. Depending on how one looks at the situation, there can be many factors which contribute to the current situation, but one that stands out in my mind and is MY personal opinion is what has transpired in the 50 or so years in the dealing with the Eucharist.


As I write this, please keep in mind that I am not pitting the Extraordinary Form against the Novus Ordo, but there cannot be denied that certain developments, such as the reception of the Eucharist in the hand have changed the perceptions for some as to Who is present and how He should be treated. I know that reading this some will exclaim that reception in the hand was practiced in the Early Church, and indeed it was, but the form was indeed different and the hands were purified before and after reception; additionally, reception in the hand was removed because of fear of abuse.


Back to Eucharistic reception, many people receive our Lord, and they fail to not that an act of reverence must be given before they receive. The General Instruction of the Roman Missal informs us that these gestures should either be a profound bow, or kneeling, yet on any given day a person can walk into a Mass and see that this is not necessarily being done, nor are those who fail to demonstrate the proper respect corrected. Prior to the reforms, the norm was reception while kneeling and upon the tongue. Presently, a person can receive upon the hand or tongue, but again this goes against the idea that consecrated hands can handle the Eucharist, for lay people are grabbing Him with their hands. The situation is further exacerbated when one considers that Extraordinary Ministers of Holy Communion are now common place, not just used in extraordinary case, and in my opinion this contributes to the slippery slope.

Once our Lord is not revered in the proper fashion and can be handled by unconsecrated hands there is a fundamental change in thinking. Further, if people can touch the host, what is to stop them from touching the sacred vessels? Nothing, and laity are seen handling them, including touching the very place where the priest hold and where sacred particles of the Host may remain. It would seem that many times in the Mass expedience becomes the key and for Holy Communion to be distributed as quickly as possible. This also brings to mind when the larger ciborium is “poured” out into others so that they may be passed to Eucharistic Ministers, and while this is done the Host is man handled and many fall upon the altar, and if they are lucky upon the corporal, but many times this is not the case.


Examples can continue to be stated, and I could go into the abuses which transpire, but the point is that once Eucharist is view and treated differently by priests, and in the happenings of Mass, there will automatically be a change of perception of Eucharist by the people and the way they act and interact. Once the Eucharist is treated in a fashion that is not tantamount to its divine nature and the respect due, people will react in such a way to it as they do to anything that is mundane.


The example should be set that our encounter in the Mass is nothing other than Christ himself, and that we are not worthy, but it is He who makes us so and invites us. We should be as children fed, and fed by none other than an Alter Christus and reflect gestures and demeanor that make this evident. If this is done, it is hard for anyone, especially children coming up in the faith to deny that what they are encountering is something otherworldly and that moment when Heaven meets Earth and Christ is among us, present in Body, Blood, Soul and Divity.

I plan on writing a bit more on this, but I don't want this piece to be too long.

Why We Celebrate Christmas on December 25th CKA

Catholics Know the Answer have put up another excellent video, and considering my entry regarding the Christmas celebration not being pagan, I thought this would be great to share.

Merry Christmas.

Merry Christmas

Wishing everyone a very Merry Christmas!

Remember among today's festivities to give honor to our Lord in every thought, word and deed, and to attend Holy Mass.

God bless you all.

Christmas is not Pagan

Around this time of year, there are always people asserting that Christmas is a pagan holiday. While it may be true that there are pagan festivities around the time of Christmas, there is no writing among the Church Fathers, nor within the Church to support the subversion of the pagan holidays.

If one were to examine the Church Fathers, they would find admonitions against associating Christ with pagan gods, especially that of the Sun God, and this was being done as early as Tertullian.

The question then arises of why did the Church pick December 25th for the date of Christ's birth? The frank answer is that they believed it to be so, but before I get to that, many wish to associate Christmas with the feast of Sol Invictus. However, it should be noted that this feast, which essentially replaced worship to Mithras, did not occur until 274 AD. Yet, it may be found that Christian communities were already celebrating the birth of Christ circa 200 AD; consequently, the date varied from community to community, and the uniformity of the celebration would not be until the 300s AD. Nevertheless, Clement of Alexandria (who died in 215 AD) noted that the Basilidians were celebrating the Epiphany on January 6th during his time. It would not be until the Emperor Constantine that Christians would be able to meet and practice their faith freely, and matters such as calendars and even Holy Scripture could be addressed.

Why was December 25th chosen?

The early Christian tradition that Jesus was born on Dec 25 stemmed from the Jewish belief that prophets died on the anniversary of their conception. Since Jesus was crucified on Nisan 14 (equivalent to Mar 25), according to the Gospel of St. John, this implied that He had been conceived on Mar 25 (hence the Feast of the Annunciation) and born on Dec 25. This would differ from the Eastern Church's calculation, which would ultimately reach the conclusion of January 6th.

The date concluded was not chosen to subvert Saturnalia, Sol Invictus or any other pagan festivity, and there is no early writing to suggest otherwise; rather, such ideas were contrived much later, but the date falling on December 25th or January 6th had more to do with calculations based on scriptural interpretation than pagan festivities.

While St Cyprian may have thought it providential that Christ should be born the day the sun was born, paganism and association of Christ with the Sun God was deemed heretical; therefore, it was not the goal of the Church to associate Christ with the Sun God. It was merely the day that they believed was birthday of Christ.

Some Cool Catholic Videos

I am always delighted when I see Catholics answering the call to evangelize, teach and share the faith with others, and it has been noted that the new domain for exchange is the internet and mass media. Answering this call has been a relatively new group called "Catholics Know The Answer", based out of the Philippines, who is actively engaging and sharing the faith on Facebook with excellent images, videos, and writing.

I would strongly encourage anyone who is keen to learn more about the Catholic faith, or perhaps gain something worthwhile to share with family and friends to visit their Facebook page.

What I am posting up now are two videos which were recently shared on their group page, and though I am one who sees a lot of "Catholic" media, I had not seen these before. I think they are worthwhile and they convey an excellent message in a short amount of time. It is wonderful to watch for you own edification, but also with your family and friends who may have misunderstandings or lack clarity about the Catholic faith.

The first video: "The Bible: A Brief History"

The second video: "The Truth About Mary and Scripture"

Keep Christ in Christmas

As we are in the season of Advent with Christmas just around the corner, I thought it proper to share this video to spark some thought, and to keep Christ in Christmas.