Communion in the hand

[organist]

Fr Tim Finegan on his blog http://the-hermeneutic-of-continuity.blogspot.com has a translation of a blog from Rome.
AGI) – Vatican City, 22 May – Benedict XVI gave communion this evening to the faithful who knelt in front of him, following the tradition, that is, not giving the consecrated particles into the hands but putting them directly into the mouth. Both ways are allowed in the present liturgical norms but this way underlines more greatly the meaning of the Eucharist as the renewed sacrifice of Jesus, while the other is more in line with the protestant conception which emphasises more the dimension of the meal.

The Church of Papa Ratzinger is worried about the lack of respect for the Eucharist, evident from the ever increasing number of liturgical abuses which are committed in the course of celebrations. Recently, L’Osservatore Romano dedicated a whole page to this problem, giving space to a study of the theologian Inos Biffi, who denounced a crisis of faith in the mystery of “transubstantiation” that is, of the real presence of Christ in the consecrated host, as the cause of this phenomenon.

In an interview with “papanews.it”, Mgr Albert Malcolm Ranjith, secretary of the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments, condemned the “inexplicable extravagances” committed by some priests in the liturgy, emphasising that it is “not their property but that of the Church”. “The Mass”, he affirmed, “is not a spectacle, but sacrifice, gift and mystery.” Regarding communion in the hand: “ I just believe” affirmed the Archbishop, “that it is necessary to review this practice: I speak personally, but I am convinced of the urgency of returning to giving the particle to the faithful directly into the mouth, without them touching it, emphasising in this way that in the Eucharist there is really Jesus and that all should welcome him with devotion, love, and respect.”

For Mgr Ranjith, further, “It would be a case also of returning to kneeling at the moment in which one communicates” as “an act of respect towards the gift and the mystery of the Eucharist.” “Beyond the role which I have in the Vatican, as a catholic” he concluded, “I ask and question: why be embarrassed by God? Kneeling at the moment of communion would be an act of humility and of recognition of our nature as sons of God.”

This is deeply disturbing and the dangers of reading this sort of thing late at night led to a long battle to get to sleep! The Tablet has had recent correspondence about receiving on the tongue as infantilism. I think communion should be a personal encounter. It is not possible to have such an encounter when kneeling. Even when standing receiving on the tongue feels awkward. I can understand that many prefer this but I often observed how reverently people receive in the hand. Many priests give communion too quickly with a muttered "Body of Christ". Many special ministers are far more thoughtful and take time over it. The Eucharist us a sacred meal. I deplore lack of devotion to the sacred Host but what is needed is better catechises not the old response of treating the faithful like children. We are sons and daughters of God and stand in the faith of the risen Christ full of joy at receiving our Lord. We have returned to the custom of the early Church and the apsotles. Let us not go backwards!

[presbyter]

We have returned to the custom of the early Church and the apsotles.

A bit of a sweeping statement, if I may say so! Would that it were that simple!

Read, for example, the four narratives of the institution in the NT - two are in the context of a meal - two are not.

For the really, really keen - and for those who can cope with a complicated and even baffling style of grammatical English - I recommend Ascetic Eucharists - Food and Drink in Early Christian Ritual Meals - Andrew McGowan - Oxford Early Christian Studies - 1999. Be advised - this is not an easy read.

[organist]

We have returned to the custom of the early Church and the apostles.

A bit of a sweeping statement, if I may say so! Would that it were that simple!

Read, for example, the four narratives of the institution in the NT - two are in the context of a meal - two are not.

For the really, really keen - and for those who can cope with a complicated and even baffling style of grammatical English - I recommend Ascetic Eucharists - Food and Drink in Early Christian Ritual Meals - Andrew McGowan - Oxford Early Christian Studies - 1999. Be advised - this is not an easy read.

If it's not an easy read, perhaps you could summarise some conclusions for us please? I assumed that at the feeding of the 5 thousand, Last supper, Emmaus, and early church celebrations the bread was given into the hands of the people. Some pictures imply a passing of the one loaf round a table with pieces being broken off and then consumed.
Am I wrong? When was the practice of communion on the tongue introduced?

[organist]

Presbyter I did a google search on this and was dismayed at the amount of material against communion in the hand. I was also appalled at the frequent statement that the "best way" to receive is on the tongue. There appears to be dispute about the approximate date of the start of receiving on the tongue.

[Southern Comfort]

It was only in the 9th century that Communion on the tongue started to replace Communion in the hand. Up to that time, the norm in Western Christianity was that everyone received in the hand, and from the cup. At around the same time, Communion from the cup also started to be denied to the laity (the process had started earlier in some places - Communion from the cup by means of a reed or straw....), to be gradually replaced by intinction (not without tremendous controversy), which itself had disappeared by the 13th century, leaving Communion under the form of bread administered in the mouth as the only survivor.

This is of course an oversimplification, and it's important to remember that different practices co-existed in different parts of Europe right through that part of the Middle Ages which was also characterised by the Eucharistic controversies (11th-12th centuries especially), evolution of the doctrine of concomitance, and evolution of Communion outside Mass and worship of the Eucharist outside Mass. This in turn led to diminished frequency of receiving Communion at all, which in turn led to church legislation that said you must receive at least once a year ("Easter duties"). Pius X started to redress all that with his advocacy of frequent Communion and allowing children above the age of reason to communicate, and Paul VI reintroduced Communion in the hand and Communion from the cup in the 1960s-70s.

[docmattc]

This is but one aspect of the backlash against the perceived lack of reverence that has crept into the liturgy. The extreme of this is the view that we should abandon Novus Ordo entirely. Sadly, as time goes on I'm becoming increasingly more sympathetic to this school of thought as I struggle each Sunday to detect any sense of the sacred within our celebration. For instance I wonder why I plan a very prayerful Communion Antiphon when the congregation see it as background noise behind which they can either chat, or allow their kids to run riot.

We cannot however restore reverence and the sense of sacred by legislation, it needs formation, both of clergy and laity. I imagine that one can receive communion reverently or irreverently both on the tongue and in the hand. Equally, one can distribute communion meaningfully, or very off hand.

[oopsorganist]

So when is the Mass finished. After the communion antiphon? Or after the blessing? I dunno. If you have children running riot be thankful, rejoice, the Church will continue.

An old boot once complained to me about my toddler moving up the aisle after Communion on her knees. Slowly of course, you can't move fast on your knees.

Apparently, "Some of want to pray". !

I took my family elsewhere for quite a long time.

Is some of the Sacred in the people who chat?

When are you swopping services with me for a week? You will like the quiet after Communion, but not the noisy chat at the end of the Mass. Your parish will be so glad to have you back they will be quiet after Communion! A few bars of my rendition of Shine Jesus Shine should do the trick.

Next Sunday any good?

Even at 8 I knew it was a no go taking Communion with my tongue stuck out.