Buddhist Catholic Contemplative Evangelical General Christian Hindu Jewish Latter-day Saint Muslim New Visions Progressive Christian

Beliefs

Topics

Columnists

Resource Library

Research Tools

Video

Podcasts

Thought Readers

Faith In Media Tracker

Newsletters

Ad-Free & Subscriber Log-In Subscription Support

Follow Patheos

The Anchoress

Home
Catholic
Bad Pastors Cheat the Faithful of Sacraments and Wonder

Bad Pastors Cheat the Faithful of Sacraments and Wonder

Last updated on: March 13, 2015 at 12:23 am by Elizabeth Scalia

Bad Pastors Cheat the Faithful of Sacraments and Wonder 2015-03-13T00:23:54+00:00 Elizabeth Scalia

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

Given the burlap banners, the lack of kneelers (because heaven forbid we kneel before Christ in worship and adoration, particularly after Communion) the ridiculously pretentious (and dubiously licit) whole-wheat pitas and everything else Katrina Fernandez describes here, I would already be pre-disposed toward wanting to avoid the parish from which her grandmother was laid to rest, but this bit is really unconscionable, unpastoral, and in need of attention:

Not only did he consecrate a wheat pita but when I went up to receive on the tongue he forcefully tried to pry open my hands to put the Eucharist in my palm. When I remained in front of him with my mouth open, holds folded closed, to receive on the tongue he grabbed my hand and took the Body of Christ, wedged it between my fingers and said, “Just take it. It’s easier this way.”
Easier for what or whom?! There were not even 50 people in that church! How was me receiving on the tongue going to disrupt the communion line? It made absolutely no sense. Just take it, it’s easier this way? And at my grandmother’s funeral is where you decide to make your little anti-trad point?
And while he was busy making a show out of denying me communion on the tongue in front of my family at my dead grandmother’s funeral, he was hap-happily giving out consecrated wheat pita to the rest of my non-Catholic family without a moment of instruction or notice in the program on why they shouldn’t receive.

Egregious and completely unpastoral. Forgive me, but can we finally pull ourselves completely away from 1974, stop trying to be so groovy, man, and so, like, you know, with-it and subversive, and all about our own personal, like, philosophies, of what, you know, the mass and the liturgy is all about?

Read the whole horror story. The priest could afford the time to announce that in his parish they’re too cool and groovily-unified to kneel (it’s not groovy to grovel?), but not the time to suggest that non-Catholics, or anyone not in a state of grace, refrain from receiving Communion (although that may not matter if the Eucharist is not licit, see Deacon Greg for more on that).

I despise these “pita communions” even when the pita is rendered within the specifications of the RS, and for a very simple reason: crumbs.

Pitas crumble. The altar becomes laden with tiny, sometimes microscopic bits of the Flesh and Blood of Christ. In disbursal, more crumbs. They get knocked or windswept to the ground with our movements. Thus the Body of Christ is trod underfoot (or sucked into a vacuum and disposed of thoughtlessly) and this is a grave insult to His Presence.

I recall reading a story about Dorothy Day, how a priest performed Mass in her home and — because he was all groovy and “simple” he used an earthenware coffee mug for the Precious Blood. After the Mass, Day kissed the coffee mug, then shattered it and buried, so it would never be used for anything as mundane as coffee again. I wonder how she would feel about all of this. I think she’d be scandalized, by the pitas, by the lack of piety, by the push-along.

Some things you Just. Don’t. Do. One of them is subject His Majesty to your own conceited ideas of what is “humble” and befitting his Body and Blood, or presuming to know what demonstrates “unity with the poor.” A cousin of mine, a Capuchin who has long-served the poor, learned how much they hated seeing Christ’s Body offered to them from straw baskets and jelly glasses: it caused them pain. They wondered if, because they were poor, they to be denied a measure of Christ’s beauty and grandeur so common to the middle classes and above?

My cousin learned to buff up the good stuff and use it, in honor of both Christ Jesus and the poor who sought him.

Another thing you just don’t do? Be “really cool” and “modern” about Holy Communion, by using pitas, or honey cakes, or commercial crackers. Sorry. We do not get to play with the Eucharistic species; we don’t get to play with the liturgy, and we ought not because

a) we’re not children, and mass is not playtime, and
b) left to our own devices (and convinced that everything that came before us is in need of ‘updating’) we will usually get it all wrong, because of our egos.

Also, I’m sorry but anyone who thinks a whole-wheat pita demonstrates some sort of “with-it” enlightened awareness is at least 20 years behind the times and not at all attuned to the needs of an increasing number of people who — thanks to genetically modified wheat — are suffering from celiac disease and in need of the low-gluten communion wafers these nuns make. You want to be “with-it”, well, that’s a damn sight better, and more relevant to the sheep, than a pita.

(Wow, man…some of those nuns don’t even wear habits…but even they, like, care that the communion wafer follows the specs. Far out! My mind is blown!)

Also extremely troubling? When Katrina called the parish to ask for her dying grandmother to receive the Sacrament of Anointing, the office seemed not to understand that parish “prayer teams” as well-intended as they are — and as someone who has done pastoral ministry in hospitals, I know the work is not always easy — the anointing they offer is not a sacramental one, and bears no power to exorcise or to forgive sins.

For a prayer team to make pastoral visits to routine patients is one thing. To send them to a dying person in need of these last rites in place of a priest, as this office worker seemed to be insisting was the preference of the parish, is to utterly cheat a dying church member of the consolation and courage that comes with absolution.

It is a heinous thing to suggest to anyone that a parish prayer team, no matter how holy and generous they are, is a suitable replacement for a sacrament-bestowing priest in a time of urgent need.

A bishop needs to be informed that his sheep are being cheated of their sacraments — that they may not even be receiving a licit communion within this parish, and that perhaps the shepherd of the parish needs a refresher course on the meaning of his priesthood, to whit: a shepherd serves the sheep, not his own ideas, and he serves them in obedience to established norms. To put his own ideas before the sheep, or the common liturgy, is to be in need of a reminder from Gregory of Nyssa: Ideas lead to idols; only wonder leads to knowing.

It is by wonder that we come to know God, through wonder that we begin to understand Christ, through wonder we beseech his Holy Spirit.

If you think you have it all figured out, and the rules and norms do not apply to you, well…then you’ve stopped wondering, and you’ve shut down avenues to knowing.

A grieving lamb needs a shepherd who can see her, can identify her need and then bring her the consolation and medicine that will speed her healing. This pastor, this shepherd, failed a lamb, and did it miserably. Pray for him. With a full generosity of heart, pray for him, because we need good shepherds, who know their sheep, and help carry them — rather than pushing them along — when they are wounded.

Related:
In anticipation of the annual LA Religious Education Conference, Joanne McPortland is wondering, once again, if we can fully identify what is lacking in Catholic education, and whether the deep need for Adult Education will be better-addressed. Please, God, let us hope so.

God have mercy on your church, and in your Goodness and Wisdom, enlighten us so that we may fully and honestly recognize where we are lacking and falling short in all things. Alert us to our needs, in our worship, in our education, in our charity, in our daily works. We ask this in the name of Jesus, the Christ, your son, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Ghost. Amen.

More:
Mark Shea
Dwight Longenecker

Previous Post

March 10, 2015

This is how Hillary should always dress

Next Post

March 12, 2015 Just How Harrowing Can Lent Be?

Browse Our Archives

Select a Category "Remaking" Ourselves 'Remaking' America 9/10 Mindset 9/11 trials Abortion ACORN Adoration Advent Advent 2008 Advent 2009 Advent 2010 Alternative Energy Alternative Media America American Catholic Church American Church American Genius Ameridolatry ANCHORESS BOOKSHELF Anglican-Roman Reconciliation Answers & Questions Anti_Semitism Archbishop Hilarion Ayn Rand Bad Mass Barack Obama Baseball Benedict Benedict & Islam Benedict in UK Benedict XVI Benedictine Bill Whittle Birth Control Blogs and Blogging Blogs and Blogging Bloodless Coup Bobby Jindal Bookchat Breitbart Bride at every wedding... Bride at every wedding... Buckley Bullies Bush Bad? Bush Good Buster Capitalism Catholic Fiction Catholic Vocations Catholicism Celibacy Chaput Charitable Stuff Chesterton Chile Chris Christie Christians in Exile Christine O' Donnell Christmas Christmas Gift Ideas Church Hates Science? Church hates women Communion of Saints Compline Conclave 2013 Confession Constitutional Stuff Conversion Crisis & Opportunity Critical Thinking Crooks and Liars Crucible of Faith Cuba Culture of Life Culture of Life/Death Culture of Treason? Dancing Death Dialogue re Islam Dick Meyer Divorce and Remarriage DOJ Domestic Terrorism Dominican Order Don't try me too high Dowd Dumb Democrat moves Dumb GOP moves Economic woe Education Egregious Harry Reid Elder Son Elder Son's Sweet Girlfriend Elderly Election '10 Election '12 Election '16 Election 2004 Election 2006 Election 2008 Election 2010 Election 2016 Elena Kagan Elitism Embryonic Stem Cell Research End Times? English language Enhanced Interrogation Erosion of Rights Eucharist Euthanasia Exorcism Extraordinary Synod Facebook Faith Faith and Reason Faith Friday Faith Perspective Faithful Friday Fascism Again Fascism in America Fatima FCC Feminism Film First Things Forgiveness Fr. James Martin Francis and Islam Francis in America Frassati Fred Thompson Free Speech? Freedom of Worship FutureChurch Global Pandemic GOP Congress Haiti Head Covering Health Care Here and Queer Hermits Heroes Hitchens Holy Spirit Holy Week '09 Holy Week '10 Hoo-Hah & BS Hoo-Hah & BS Icons Illegal Immigration In The Arena Interviews Interwebz Iran Uprising Iraqi Christians ISIL ISIS Islamic State Islamification/Islamofascism Islamification/Islamofascism Isra-El It's all about me! Me! ME! James Burke Jerry Lewis Jesus Christ Joblessness John Boehner John McCain John Paul II John XXIII Juan Williams Just Words Katrina/Rita King is a Fink Latin Mass Leadership Lectio Divina Lent Lent '08 Lent '09 Lent 2010 Lent 2011 Limbaugh Listen to Lizzie Litigious Society Liturgy Liturgy of the Hours Mainstream Media Manliness Marriage Mary Media Excess Medical Merton Michelle Obama Mighty John O' Connor Misc. Miss Ella Missionaries Mitt Romney Monasticism My brother S My Irish Aunties Mystic Monks Nanny Statism Nature NEA Neri New Media Newman Noonan Notre Dame NPR Stuff Nun News Obama Bad? Obama Good? Obama White House Oil Spill Online Retreat '08 Online Retreat Days Oratory Orthodoxy Our Hillary! Parenting Passionists Patheos Patheos Book Club Patrons Paul Ryan Penance Penn Jillette Philosophy PJTV Podcasts Poetry Politics-free zone Pop Culture Pope Emeritus Pope Francis Prayer Predictions Priesthood Pro-Life Public Sector Unions Purgatory Questions about Catholicism Quotes of the Day Quoting the News Race in America rants Recipes Remarried Catholics Reposts by request Retreat thoughts Rome Rudy Giuliani Russia Saints Sarah Palin Scandal Scott Brown SCOTUS Scriptural stuff Secularism Send in the clowns Serving up hot links Sexuality Sherrod Shroud of Turin Sisters and Nuns Social Entrepreneurship Social Media Social Security Socialism doesn't work Sports and Faith Stem Cells Strange Gods Suffering Synod Tea Parties Tea Party Terri Schiavo The 9/11 Commission The Catholic Answer The Constitution The Desert The Fourth Estate The Pelosi The Perpetual Adolescents The Rosary Third Party? Timothy Dolan Touch of evil TSA Tsunami TV/Pop Culture/Music TV/Pop Culture/Music Twitter Uncategorized Unemployment Unintended Consequences US Military Vaginal Musings Vatican Vespers video faves Vile Joe Biden Voter Fraud War by Litigation War on Terror War, What it good for? Why can't weeee be ... World Youth Days Year of Faith Year of the Priest

Select a Month August 2016 July 2016 April 2016 March 2016 January 2016 December 2015 November 2015 October 2015 September 2015 August 2015 July 2015 June 2015 May 2015 April 2015 March 2015 February 2015 January 2015 December 2014 November 2014 October 2014 September 2014 August 2014 July 2014 June 2014 May 2014 April 2014 March 2014 February 2014 January 2014 December 2013 November 2013 October 2013 September 2013 August 2013 July 2013 June 2013 May 2013 April 2013 March 2013 February 2013 January 2013 December 2012 November 2012 October 2012 September 2012 August 2012 July 2012 June 2012 May 2012 April 2012 March 2012 February 2012 January 2012 December 2011 November 2011 October 2011 September 2011 August 2011 July 2011 June 2011 May 2011 April 2011 March 2011 February 2011 January 2011 December 2010 November 2010 October 2010 September 2010 August 2010 July 2010 June 2010 May 2010 April 2010 March 2010 February 2010 January 2010 December 2009 November 2009 October 2009 September 2009 August 2009 July 2009 June 2009 May 2009 April 2009 March 2009 February 2009 January 2009 December 2008 November 2008 October 2008 September 2008 August 2008 July 2008 June 2008 May 2008 April 2008 March 2008 February 2008 January 2008 November 2007 October 2007 September 2007 August 2007 July 2007 June 2007 May 2007 March 2007 February 2007 January 2007 December 2006 November 2006 October 2006 September 2006 August 2006 July 2006 June 2006 May 2006 April 2006 March 2006 February 2006 January 2006 December 2005 November 2005 September 2005 August 2005 July 2005 June 2005 May 2005 April 2005 March 2005 February 2005 January 2005 December 2004 November 2004 October 2004 August 2004

TAKE THE

Religious Wisdom Quiz

Who did angels visit, warning of Sodom's destruction?

Select your answer to see how you score.

Noah Lot Abram Laban