Sunday, October 9, 2011

Bishops in Phoenix and in Madison (WI) reduce distribution of Most Precious Blood

His Excellency, Bishop Morlino, along with Phoenix' Bishop Olmsted, have both called into question the practice of frequently distributing Christ's Blood during Holy Communion. More than questioning the practice, they are restricting it! Bishop Morlino has pointed out that the original permission for the practice was granted only for a 30 year trial in 1975. Finally we have a Bishop who can do the math!

The practice of distributing under both kinds is a source of all kinds of liturgical confusion. "If I receive the Host in one location and then have to walk 30 feet to another site to receive the Blood, then what sign of reverence is required before the Chalice being as I still carry the Body of Christ in my mouth? What about the three or four other extraordinary ministers I must pass getting back to my seat? a genuflection for each?

The question of "both kinds" is closely bound to the practice of multiplying exctraordinary ministers of Holy Communion. They stand everywhere, so there are multiple foci of worship for a believer approaching the Sacrament. He is likely to pass three or four Sacred Species prior to arriving. This is how the practice breeds 'familiarity', and then a lackadaisical attitude towards the Sacrament.

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