Posted on 01/08/2025 9:56:38 AM PST by ebb tide
“Some pastors have been inquiring about reinstalling an altar rail. According to the current directives, there is no need for it. The General Instruction of the Roman Missal (GIRM) specifies that the normal posture for the reception of Communion is standing,” states the memo, found in the December 2024 combined mailing from the Vicar General.
“To install a rail would suggest a posture other than GIRM’s stated norm. No one is sure where the impetus for this is originating, but it seems to be picking up a bit of steam,” the notice concludes.
In fact, the tradition of the Catholic Church, unbroken until the era of liturgical experimentation in the 1960s and 1970s, is that the lay faithful receive the Blessed Sacrament, administered by a priest, his hands having been consecrated for the handling of the sacred Eucharist, on the tongue while kneeling.
The tradition of receiving Holy Communion on the tongue while kneeling is directly tied to the reality of what – or rather, Who – the Eucharist is: As the Body, Blood, Soul and Divinity of Jesus Christ, the Eucharist deserves nothing less than a posture of profound reverence.
The movement to return to this traditional posture is accordingly inspired by a deep love and reverence for Our Lord Jesus Christ and recognizes that the manner in which He is received also has a direct impact on the belief of His Real Presence in the Eucharist. The posture of kneeling is proper to worship of God Himself while standing is, on the other hand, a posture one uses when interacting with an equal.
Years after the abusive practice of receiving Holy Communion standing and in the hands was codified in practice, a 2019 survey showed that only 3 in 10 Catholics believe the bread and wine become the Body and Blood of Jesus Christ during Mass.
The laity overwhelmingly responded by calling on the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops to reinstitute traditional liturgical practices, with one non-Catholic suggesting: “Start treating it like you believe it’s the Real Presence.”
Dr. Thomas Carr, O.P., president of the Ave Maria Lay Dominicans, shared to X last year the commentary of an anonymous priest friend, who explained that the practice of receiving Holy Communion standing and in the hand began as an abuse expressly forbidden by Pope Paul VI.
“However, many bishops, starting in Europe, disobeyed the Pope and continued the illicit practice. Out of concern for widespread disobedience, Pope Paul VI eventually issued an Indult allowing for Communion in the hand in those dioceses where the practice had become more common and widespread. However, he specified that this practice was not to be instituted in all the other dioceses across the world, and that the proper way to receive the Holy Eucharist continue to be on the tongue while kneeling,” the priest stated.
“Sadly, in continued disobedience, most bishops across the world eventually allowed for the reception of Holy Communion in the hand. This was not the will of Christ,” he continued.
“The care and reverence given to the true Body and Blood of Jesus has been gravely diminished,” the priest noted. He concluded, “Latin-rite Catholics ought to make the effort to receive the Holy Eucharist on the tongue while kneeling.”
Ping
It’s amazing to me how reactionary and political some of these novus ordo Bishops are. Their propaganda and methods are no different from leftists in government.
That they would reject, suppress and talk against the form of the mass conducted for at least 500 years (and basically much longer), for fervent Catholics who want it, is dumbfounding. It’s as if they want to drive people from the Church.
I see it in our own diocese. The one church holding latin mass is the smallest and most “run-down” church in the diocese. No matter, its community is vibrant, and it is bursting at the seams with attendees every Sunday.
The response from the Bishop was to declare the church an “oratory” - a private church for private use, that is no longer part of the formal diocese.
For a while we had a deeply traditional young priest as our pastor who went through great lengths renovating our already beautiful church including installing traditional confessionals and a beautiful full altar rail. People still have the option to receive standing or in the hand (some people are physically incapable of kneeling), but most receive kneeling, as I do. A neighboring parish we sometimes go to does the same thing, though it doesn’t have a full altar rail. Most people in that parish prefer it to standing. It unquestionably is a much more reverent and humble posture and I love it.
I am old enough to remember receiving communion at a rail.
You have a smart bishop — and you should thank him. When the Vatican orders bishops to eliminate the Traditional Latin Mass, these oratories in the U.S. have generally been exempt from these restrictions.
Fastest way for Catholic pastor to get cancelled is for him to ask bishop to allow him to offer a Traditional Latin Mass.
I’d love to be wrong on this.
Modern Church: “We set up the Synod to hear from the laity. You should have a greater voice in Church governance.”
Laity: “We want the Church to be more in line with history. Can we start with restoring respect for the Eucharist? How about altar rails?”
Modern Church: “You want stupid things.”
LGBTQ Crowd: “We want to change the Bible and Church teaching on human sexuality.”
Modern Church: “Cool.”
Unfortunately, you're not wrong at all:
An even quicker way for a priest to be canceled in some dioceses is to preach against gay sex.
There’s that synodal church for ya. Letting the lived experience of the people influence church practice. Seems some folks’ synodality is more equal than others’.
The Roman Mass, in all of its essentials, goes back at least to Pope St. Damascus in the third century. The effort to suppress it is demonic.
I know of a parish where they had one or two single-person kneeled for those who wanted to receive Our Lord properly.
I like having a kneeled because I can’t get up without one 😩
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