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Are there difference(s) between receiving
Communion on the tongue or in the hand?
If so, what are they?
Are there instances when one way is required
over another?
In Him,
Jason
{
Does it matter how we receive
Communion and are there instances when one way is required? }
Mike
replied:
Hi, Jason —
Thanks for the question.
The Church allows parishioners to
receive both ways, on the tongue
or in the hand and I can't think of an instance where one way is required over the other, though devout pious Catholics may disagree with me. : )
On this issue, the problem is not
so much what is allowed,
but what is not taught at
local parishes at the CCD level.
The Church allows three ways for
the faithful to receive Holy Communion,
not two.
On the tongue while kneeling
On the tongue while standing
In the hand, while standing
and there are no instances when one way is required over another!
If one receives Communion kneeling,
no other sign of reverence is needed
before receiving Our Blessed Lord
because kneeling, itself, is an act
of adoration.
If one receives while standing, whether
on the tongue or in the hand, the
post conciliar documents of Vatican
II say that a sign of reverence is
required.
Types of signs of reverence include:
making the sign of the Cross
bowing, or
a similar sign of reverence
just before receiving Holy Communion.
This is omitted by many Catholics, but
shouldn't be. Pastors
at local parishes should talk
about this from the pulpit from
time to time. Otherwise, the reverence
due to God in this paramount of
Sacraments, Jesus Himself, will
weaken over time.
Another problem, I believe, is the
Directors of Religious Education (D. R. Es) at many
local parishes instruct the students
to receive Holy Communion only one
way: In the hand, while standing.
This is not right and omits much
of what else the Church allows. I
believe they are never taught about
the other two ways to receive Holy Communion. This
is an important sin of omission
if this is the local practice at
your parish.
Whether seven years old or seven
hundred years old, the Church has
always protected the rights of the
lay faithful to receive on the tongue
(while kneeling) for Holy Communion.
As a matter of fact, I had a personal experience with a pastor who would not allow me to kneel to receive Communion. After cordial conversation afterward got no where, I called the bishop's office and someone there talked to the pastor and I was subsequently allowed to receive the Eucharist kneeling at Mass.
For a reference to backup what I
am saying you may want to read
Inaestimabile Donum [Papal Encyclicals Online][New Advent] — Instruction concerning worship of the Eucharistic Mystery - 1980 by the Sacred Congregation for the Sacraments and Divine Worship. Note: Note Number 11.
in this document it states:
11. The Church has always required
from the faithful respect and
reverence for the Eucharist at
the moment of receiving it.
With regard to the manner of going
to Communion, the faithful can
receive either kneeling or
standing, in accordance with the
norms laid down by the episcopal
conference:
When the faithful
communicate kneeling, no other
sign of reverence towards the
Blessed Sacrament is required,
since kneeling is itself a sign
of adoration.
When they receive
Communion standing, it is strongly
recommended that, coming up in
procession, they should make a
sign of reverence before receiving
the Sacrament.
This should be
done at the right time and place,
so that the order of people going
to and from Communion is not disrupted.
The Amen said by the faithful
when receiving Communion is an
act of personal faith in the presence
of Christ.
The Catechism of the Catholic Church
tells us:
"Take this and eat it, all of you": [Holy] Communion.
.
.
1387 To prepare for worthy reception of this sacrament, the faithful should observe the fast required in their Church. (cf. Code of Canon Law, Canon 919) Bodily demeanor (gestures, clothing) ought to convey the respect, solemnity, and joy of this moment when Christ becomes our guest.
I also thought portions of this article,
written by Karl Keating, were interesting:
The method of reception is entirely
up to the individual communicant. "The
priest or minister of Communion
does not make the decision as
to the manner of reception of
Communion," says the Appendix
to the General Instruction
[of the Roman Missal] for
the Dioceses of the United States.
It is improper for a priest or
extraordinary minister of the
Eucharist to insist that communicants
receive in the hand— options
are just that, optional.
That said, the discussion about
the methods of receiving Communion,
while interesting, is irrelevant
to the issue at hand, which is
whether genuflection is proper.
Whether one receives on the tongue
or in the hand has nothing to
do with whether one should or
should not genuflect when in the
Communion line. The rubrics for
reception are not limited to the
tongue-versus-hand question.
The Ceremonial of Bishops notes
that "a genuflection, made
by bending only the right knee
to the ground, signifies adoration
and is therefore reserved for
the Blessed Sacrament, whether
exposed or reserved in the tabernacle" (69).
According to the General Instruction
of the Roman Missal, during Mass
the priest is to genuflect at
certain times: "after the
showing of the Eucharistic bread,
after the showing of the chalice,
and before Communion" (233).
Immediately after his genuflection
at Communion time, the priest
self-communicates.
If
a genuflection is proper for
the priest as he receives Communion,
on what grounds could it be
improper for lay people, given
that nothing in the rubrics
suggests that genuflection
is a posture reserved for the
clergy?
Hold that thought a
moment as we consider what
the Church has taught about
what lay people are to do as
they receive Communion. In Inaestimabile
Donum, the Congregation
for the Sacraments and Divine
Worship noted that,
"when
the faithful communicate kneeling,
no other sign of reverence
toward the Blessed Sacrament
is required, since kneeling
itself is a sign of adoration."
But
a sign of reverence should be
made when the people receive
Communion standing, which is
the most common way in American
parishes.
"When they receive
Communion standing, it is strongly
recommended that, coming up
in procession, they should
make a sign of reverence before
receiving the Sacrament. This
should be done at the right
time and place, so that the
order of people going to and
from Communion is not disrupted" (11).
To
summarize: If you receive Communion
standing, you should make a
sign of reverence just before
you receive.
What should that
sign be?
Inaestimabile Donum doesn't
specify, but one could argue
that the priest and people
should make the same sign,
to show unity among themselves.
What sign does the priest make?
He genuflects. This suggests
that genuflection, then, is
the most proper sign for the
people to make. But it is not
the only sign they may
give. They may give some other
sign of reverence, such as
a deep how or even the sign
of the cross. What is required
is some sign of reverence,
and the choice is up to the
communicant.
Hope this helps,
Mike Humphrey
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