[Mark17]

Well, here again, we have a difference of opinion. I was told, not to miss mass under any circumstances, that it was a mortal sin. Then, if I received the Eucharist with a mortal sin on my soul, it was a mortal sin of sacrilege. I wanted to avoid that, so I stopped receiving the holy Eucharist, so I wouldn’t commit a MS of S.
My dad got suspicious, and asked if I committed a mortal sin? I was embarrassed by that, but I preferred darkness more than light, cuz my deeds were evil. Yes, I was confused, like most of my catholic friends. That’s no way to go through life, scared every moment of every day. Maybe that’s why I was looking for the truth. I figured there had to be something better than what I was experiencing. I wanted to miss the flames of Hell 🔥😇 I figure God has a kind of fire we know nothing about and spending even one second in the flames would be a million times worse than the worst thing any of us could imagine in a million lifetimes.

[boatbums]

I remember as a little kid waiting for Mass on Sunday morning and having to fast from the night before for Communion. I was SO hungry, I snuck a half of a doughnut and then went up to the rail anyway. I was SO convicted by that and scared to death I would go to hell if I didn't make it to Saturday confession. Now, the rules for fasting before Communion are:

Current canon law requires a one-hour fast before receiving Communion (canon 919): "One who is to receive the Most Holy Eucharist is to abstain from any food or drink, with the exception only of water and medicine, for at least the period of one hour before Holy Communion." The Eucharistic fast was mitigated by Pope Pius XII from a complete fast after midnight to a fast of three hours (1957); then Pope Paul VI further reduced the requirement to one hour (1964). These changes were intended to encourage Catholics to receive Communion more frequently.

Don't you think it a little odd that these fasting rules have changed so much? What fifty-something years ago could be considered a mortal sin, isn't even ANY kind of sin now!