Catholics-why would they do this?

Question

why did the Catholic church threaten a girl who couldn't eat wheat? They wouldn't validate her communion because she had a wheat allergy.That can't be right.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/5762478/

I use the word "threaten" in that they were going to make her attempt invalid.

Jesus didn't make the rule about what ingredient needed using. It is the thought that counts, not what the wafer is made of.

Answer 1

Mark 7 (New International Version)

1The Pharisees and some of the teachers of the law who had come from Jerusalem gathered around Jesus and 2saw some of his disciples eating food with hands that were "unclean," that is, unwashed. 3(The Pharisees and all the Jews do not eat unless they give their hands a ceremonial washing, holding to the tradition of the elders. 4When they come from the marketplace they do not eat unless they wash. And they observe many other traditions, such as the washing of cups, pitchers and kettles.[a])
5So the Pharisees and teachers of the law asked Jesus, "Why don't your disciples live according to the tradition of the elders instead of eating their food with 'unclean' hands?"

6He replied, "Isaiah was right when he prophesied about you hypocrites; as it is written:
" 'These people honor me with their lips,
but their hearts are far from me.
7They worship me in vain;
their teachings are but rules taught by men.'[b] 8You have let go of the commands of God and are holding on to the traditions of men."

9And he said to them: "You have a fine way of setting aside the commands of God in order to observe[c] your own traditions! 10For Moses said, 'Honor your father and your mother,'[d] and, 'Anyone who curses his father or mother must be put to death.'[e] 11But you say that if a man says to his father or mother: 'Whatever help you might otherwise have received from me is Corban' (that is, a gift devoted to God), 12then you no longer let him do anything for his father or mother. 13Thus you nullify the word of God by your tradition that you have handed down. And you do many things like that."

14Again Jesus called the crowd to him and said, "Listen to me, everyone, and understand this. 15Nothing outside a man can make him 'unclean' by going into him. Rather, it is what comes out of a man that makes him 'unclean.' "[f]

17After he had left the crowd and entered the house, his disciples asked him about this parable. 18"Are you so dull?" he asked. "Don't you see that nothing that enters a man from the outside can make him 'unclean'? 19For it doesn't go into his heart but into his stomach, and then out of his body." (In saying this, Jesus declared all foods "clean.")

20He went on: "What comes out of a man is what makes him 'unclean.' 21For from within, out of men's hearts, come evil thoughts, sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, 22greed, malice, deceit, lewdness, envy, slander, arrogance and folly. 23All these evils come from inside and make a man 'unclean.' "

Sound familiar at all?

Answer 2

The Church wasn't MAKING her attempt invalid. Her attempt was invalid because wheat must be used to make the wafers that are consecrated into the Host. Because Jesus used wheat, and nobody wants to do anything different from what Jesus did, because it's a Sacrament. If it wasn't a Sacrament, probably nobody would care. But because it IS a Sacrament and because only the Church can issue Sacraments, they have rules to follow and EVERYBODY has to abide by the rules.

People who have wheat allergies can receive the Eucharist in the Most Precious Blood. So the girl DOES have an option. There is a woman in my parish who is allergic to wheat and she is always given the Eucharist this way, no questions asked.

In the highly rare cases where a person was allergic to both wheat and wine, or for those who have some illness that prevents swallowing or something like that, the Church offers what is called "spiritual" reception of the Eucharist -- a person desires but cannot consume by mouth (physically), so they consume in their hearts (spiritually).

All this to say, there's a back-up plan, and then there's a back-up for the back-up plan, and THOSE are the avenues the girl should have taken. Her parents should not have tried to make up their own solution when the Church has solutions in place.

Answer 3

What do you mean? The Church didn't "threaten" her!

The Church has rules, just like any organization. One of the rules is that the hosts used for Holy Communion must be made of wheat flour and water. In the case you are asking about, a priest used a rice flour host for this girl's first Holy Communion. It was invalid because the priest used invalid matter (that is to say, ingredients). He did not have the authority to change the Church's rule to fit the situation.

The Church does make allowances for the use of low-gluten bread. Moreover, someone with celiac disease can arrange to receive Holy Communion under the form of wine alone.

Answer 4

Just like the bread Jesus used during Passover at the Last Supper, the bread used in the Eucharist is unleavened wheat flour.

The General Instruction of the Roman Missal, section 320 states:

The bread for celebrating the Eucharist must be made only from wheat, must be recently baked, and, according to the ancient tradition of the Latin Church, must be unleavened.

This is an almost 2,000 year old rule that is probably not going to be changed.

A valid Holy Communion consists of receiving the Body of Christ (the consecrated bread) or the Blood of Christ (the consecrated wine) or both.

The girl with the wheat allergy can receive a completely valid Eucharist by receiving only the Blood of Christ in the consecrated wine.

Alcoholics can receive a completely valid Eucharist by receiving only the Body of Christ in the consecrated bread.

http://www.usccb.org/liturgy/current/chapter6.shtml

With love in Christ.

Answer 5

Why would you say that the Church "threatened" her? I'm familiar with several cases of people with celiac disease who couldn't take the wheat-based Host, but there's never been any kind of threat spoken or implied that I'm aware of. Please explain in more detail -- thanks.

According to Church law, the Host must contain wheat because it's symbolic of Christ who became the Living Bread. Even the tiniest particle of the Host is still enough to be considered the Eucharist, and that's normally not enough to cause people with gluten allergies to have problems.

And in any event, people with celiac or other allergy problems can still receive the Blood since Christ is wholly present in both Sacred Species. There's usually a way around the problem, but in many cases, the person or their parents insist on having things done their way or not at all.

Edit:

Ah, thanks, Benthic_Man -- that explains it. I had an idea that the parents were the ones causing the problem in this case with their "Our way or no way" attitude.

Answer 6

That is wierd, we have a family in our parish that has 3 people with celiacs disease(I think I spelled that right), and they allow them to receive the precious blood only even if it is a mass that they do not offer it to the public.

Celiacs can't have any kind of gluten.

Also, I know that you mean well but we do not think of it as a wafer. It is the most manifest prescence of God on this planet and is very very sacred, it must be made correctly and once it is concecrated it is the real flesh of Jesus Christ. So it really matters a lot.

Answer 7

The church didn't threaten her. Her family was asked to stop making a stink while the question was resolved, and to take the Precious Blood (wine) instead of the communion wafer. Insead, the family went to the press, came up with the brilliant idea of substituting their own communion (which isn't allowed), and some short-tempered and ill-sighted people got defensive because of it.
Thanks to her impatient asshat parents, and with a little help from her local diocese, the girl got completely alienated.

Ever notice that this stuff only happens in the US? This is why the Vatican doesn't allow Americans to hold important offices in Rome. We constantly seem to screw stuff up.

Answer 8

Threaten? I've never heard of a Catholic church being angry or threatening anyone to do communion. The churches I go to, you at your own will stand up and wait in line for communion. If you don't want to go then you just stayed seated!

Answer 9

I'd have to have more information. I'm Catholic and I know people at our church that have rather severe wheat allergies. The priest arranged to have gluten-free Communion available for her. I believe the Church in general is becoming more aware of this issue for people.

Answer 10

Your story being true or not. The host, which is in the form of a wheat wafer, is actually the body of Christ. This is what we believe.

God allows us to see, taste and feel it as a wheat wafer in order that we can better accept it into our bodies but the reality of that wafer is that it is God's body or flesh. No one is allergic to God's body.

Yours in Christ Jesus, Grace

Answer 11

Most catholic churches provide a wheatless flour alternative to traditional communion in a small compartment of the little dish thingy they use.