What's with this bowing business?

                              Only to be found in a salvage yard, not in a church

I rarely (if ever) attend a Mass in the Ordinary Form so, on the odd occasion when I arrive at a church to attend Sunday Mass and find an OF in progress, I observe with increasing amazement.

It was after the 'excommunications' back in 1988 that my wife and I took the decision to withdraw from what was then the Novus Ordo.

It, or rather the circus acts that accompanied it, was disaffecting our children and I could not answer their questions as to why the priest insisted on sitting down throughout the Mass with half a dozen small children sitting on his lap, yes, really.
Or why we no longer knelt to receive Holy Communion from a priest but queued to receive standing from a lay person.

Or why my wife and I constantly had to re-brief the children on what the priest meant in his sermon when he said that all Catholics should, as a matter of conscience, vote Labour or when he continually referred to the teachings of Gandhi.

And now, I find that what I witness at an OF Mass really bears little resemblance, in any shape or form, to the OF and EF Masses we attended pre 1986.

Above all else there is the total lack of reverence. You could be sitting in a pub if you closed your eyes and listened to the clamour around you.

With the destruction of the communion rails came a total disregard for the Body and Blood of Christ truly present on the sanctuary; the barrier that provided a dividing line between the profane and the sacred was gone and with it vanished all the inhibitions of reverence.

It seems to me that all sorts of odd bodies wander on and off the sanctuary before Mass as if it's a sort of circus arena that requires the tables and chairs laid out in readiness for the clowns to appear.

Above all else, what I notice more than anything, is the disappearance of the genuflection.

No one, priest, nun or layman, bends their knee any longer when they cross in front of the tabernacle.

Why?

I know why.

 It is because they no longer believe that the Son of God is present in the form of bread in the tabernacle.

Holy Communion has become an unholy reunion when they adopt the Protestant theology of it being an occasion of remembrance rather than of commemoration. How sad.


And when they do cross the aisle or sanctuary, they bow, and it's an awful sort of an apology of a bow, a bob of the head, a nod and a wink. 

Give them a few more years and the bow will have disappeared also and all and sundry will stroll around, hands in pockets, gum in mouth.

                      The Japanese know how to bow, maybe a few lessons are needed

Where is the footage showing Pope JPII's first visit to the USA?

It seems appropriate, somehow, in the aftermath of Independence Day celebrations and, in light of the debate regarding communion in the hand or on the tongue to review Bl Pope John Paul II's visit to the USA way back in 1979.

Taken when Pope JP II was still a Cardinal -
 it was all so black and white then!

Why? Because he gave a guide as to how one should receive the Body of Christ.
A nun was kneeling at the communion rails (they did that back then) but, instead of opening her mouth and extending her tongue she held out both hands.
The Holy Father gently guided her hands so that they were joined Amen fashion and then placed the host on her tongue. What better sign could one wish for?

I just wish that I could find the clip on Youtube.

Want to be a modern martyr and not be killed?

Here's how.....

...The Conference of English and Welsh Bishops has approved one's right to kneel to receive Holy Communion. Yes, that is correct. I have re-read Fr Tim's blog and there it is in black and white....here's what the Bishops state:-


"...... individual members of the faithful may choose to receive Communion while kneeling".

I know that, Fr T advises against blogging in letters large and clear in a more recent post but.....I just cannot resist!
This is your chance to become a martyr for Christ; no communion rails? just kneel - Extraordinary Ministers? just kneel - unsympathetic parish priest? just kneel - parish scandalmongers? ignore 'em and just kneel!
We are all bound to obey our Bishops in matters of legitimate teaching regarding the Faith so please.... let's get on and do it!

If Padre Pio could do it.........?

CARDINAL ARINZE SPELLS IT OUT FOR THE BISHOPS

"The Church of Rome never said remove the altar rails..."

Bishops get it wrong....again!

Fr Tim and Fr Simon and Laurence England all carry news regarding the latest initiative (if that's the right word) from the Bishops of England and Wales. They, apparently, have made application (and received approval) to the Congregation for Divine Worship to have reception of Holy Communion standing as the general rule.

This is how the instruction reads:-


"In the Dioceses of England and Wales Holy Communion is to be received standing, though individual members of the faithful may choose to receive Communion while kneeling. However, when they communicate standing, it is recommended that the faithful bow in reverence before receiving the sacrament"

Erm....is there a message in this picture?

I know of a church that has had its altar rails removed in the past four weeks and, several others where the rails are stuck in limbo in a dusty church hall awaiting the ravages of time or, who knows, the call of the faithful who have had enough tomfoolery (good word that!) and who will no longer stand to be treated like cretins.

Just what do they have against kneeling for Heaven's sake? If Our Blessed Lord could so humble Himself to be abused and then crucified like a common criminal, can we not kneel to receive Him?

Do their Lordships not read or pay attention to the scriptures?


2:6 Who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God:

2:7 But made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men:

2:8 And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross.

2:9 Wherefore God also hath highly exalted him, and given him a name which is above every name:

2:10 That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth;

2:11 And that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

2:12 Wherefore, my beloved, as ye have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling.

2:13 For it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of his good pleasure.

2:14 Do all things without murmurings and disputings:

2:15 That ye may be blameless and harmless, the sons of God, without rebuke, in the midst of a crooked and perverse nation, among whom ye shine as lights in the world;

Phillippians Chapter 2.



I WON'T STAND FOR COMMUNION!

I thought that I had posted enough on the subject of kneeling to receive Our Blessed Lord by mouth but, Francis Phillips of the Catholic Herald has opened up the debate still further and the blogosphere has got a tad worked up by it.
So here are my last words, really. Prompted by the fact that, up until January of this year I had never, in 66 years (doggie ones), laid hand on a consecrated host.
What happened in January was, for me, a shocking experience. I was fortunate enough to serve an EF Mass at St Mary Maggiore's in Rome. It took place in a side chapel with a congregation of four. By the time the priest was ready to distribute Communion, the congregation had swelled to 10 or 12 souls - such is the power of the Mass of all time!

Faced with this dilemma, the priest, most reverently, broke up each host into segments but, horror of horrors, one segment fell to the floor. The priest suffered from acute arthritis and I knew he would not be able to retrieve the host so I began to place the communion plate over the fragment for retrieval later (standard practice in times past). However, the priest, being a little more worldly wise than I, did not wish to leave the host unprotected as there were crowds wandering around the church and chance is not an option where the safety of the host is concerned.
He whispered to me that I should pick it up.....I bent down with hand outstretched but then froze...I was incapable of movement..."Pick it up" whispered the priest more insistently...still I could not move...rational thoughts were racing through my head. I knew this was the only thing to do and the right thing to do but I was still doing a reasonable impression of Lot's wife. "Pick up the host" whispered the priest commandingly, so I did.
Afterwards I was in a state of mild shock; I was very disturbed and it took a day or two to wear off.
Now this story will be pooh-hooed by many. I can hear cries of "inbred superstition," "religious maniac"and much more besides but, it is a fact that those of us who believe in the True Presence and the divinity of Christ also believe that He should be accorded not just reverence but the greatest reverence we can reasonably show when we receive the Blessed Sacrament.

Here are some of the specious arguments that I have read over the past few weeks (and my responses in red):

1. "I can be just as reverent standing up" Really? Is that possible? It's an outward sign as well as an inward one we are looking for and kneeling is more reverent than standing for these reasons - it requires more effort and it is a recognised way of humbling oneself.

2. "Our Church doesn't have Communion rails" Install them

3. "It takes up too much time to kneel" What! can't we afford God a few extra minutes?

4. "Our priest does not like to give to those kneeling" Speak to your priest and if you don't get any joy, write to your Bishop and then Rome

5. "We have Ministers of Holy Communion who will not give to those kneeling"
Get rid of them. Extraordinary Ministers of Holy Communion are only permitted to distribute the sacrament under exceptional circumstances (not likely to be normally encountered in most parishes) - See Ecclesia de Mysterio

6. "Receiving by mouth spreads diseases" No one has died from receiving the Body of Christ yet!

7. "Priests do not kneel when they receive, why should I" Because you are not a priest - simple

8. "I want to kneel but I would be the only one doing so" Our Lord was the only one to offer up His life for us....surely we can take a little embarrassment (and snide comments) on His behalf?

9. "But we wish to receive under both kinds and kneeling would be impossible"
Each species is entire and complete, each host is both body and blood and each drop of precious blood both body and blood. It is unnecessary to receive both*
*as an extra note: reception of the Precious Blood is fraught with safety issues. How do you recover from a spillage? You cannot leave the Body of Christ there on and in the fibres of the carpet, so what do you do? You know the answer!

10. "The Apostles did not kneel to receive at The Last Supper" As priests and Bishops of the Church they had the privilege of receiving (as far as we know) by hand

A reflection for Advent - receiving Holy Communion

My eldest brother, God rest his soul, used to tell me that he suffered intense attacks of terror on his way up to the communion rails to receive the Eucharist. Why? Because he was in apprehension of receiving physically, the body and blood of the Son of God, Jesus Christ, maker, redeemer and creator of all; the Supreme Spirit - God of Heaven and Earth. Put like that it is understandable that "terror" of a spiritual kind should be felt as we approach. We are in awe, we are in love but, if we are honest, we also fear the goodness, power and greatness of God. It is as if we are approaching the Beatific Vision except that the Vision is locked away from us for the time being and, in its place we have the wonder of the Host.

The Holy Father wishes communicants to kneel and receive on the tongue

Some of you will know that I occasionally serve on the altar and this is a precious privilege; but when I serve at a private Mass in Father's chapel, it takes on a more acute significance. There is no congregation and, suddenly, the intimacy of the moment is heightened. When I see the priest's host and "my" host lying side by side on the altar, I am overwhelmed by emotion - a mix again, of fear but also a number of other emotions which are really too personal to go into but, above all else is the sense that God is coming to me! Not only that, but He is within inches of me; I could reach out and touch Him, but, of course, I don't. He is there for me as an individual, and that is a very special and wondrous thing. That 'fear,' for want of a better word, heightens until the moment of receiving the host.

Sadly, at the time of the Christmas Feast when some 'Catholics' return to go to their once a year Mass, many are not in a suitable state of grace and should NOT receive - I can still hear the Dominican Nuns of Burnt Oak telling us boys that the worst sin of all was to receive Our Lord unworthily!

So here is a reminder of the conditions for receiving Holy Communion:

1. Must be in a state of grace, that is, NOT in mortal sin. If you are in a state of mortal
   sin, go to confession first.

2. Should be free from venial sin, make a good act of contrition (Confiteor) before
    reception.

3. Fast from food and drink for at least one hour beforehand (or, try to fast for 3 hours
    if you are able, it is a small penance but a good one to observe).

4. Follow the Mass in your missal, or, meditate and pray if you do not have one.

5. Kneel and open your mouth widely, holding out your tomgue.

6. After reception bow your head and wait until the person on the left of you has
    received before making your way back to the pew.

7. Keep your hands clasped or in the 'Amen' position at all times.

8. Make a good act of thanksgiving - say the 'prayer before the crucifix' and gain an
   indulgence.

Now, please do not shout at me for advocating reception on the tongue and kneeling. I know that people say you can be devout when standing and in receiving in the hand and, so you can. BUT.....you can be more devout when kneeling. It is also the customary practice at the Extraordinary Form of Mass so, if you attend one of those, you really must comply - it goes with the territory!
Not satisfied? OK, let's say you have been honoured with a knighthood or are going to be endowed as a Dame - do you decide to flout the protocols and stand in front of your Queen. Of course you don't - you feel very honoured and fortunate to be there and you do not wish to offend anyone on this auspicious occasion, least of all your monarch....so, you kneel - and receive in accordance with the established practice.

And if you feel I am being over prescriptive then I am sorry but I do not think you can be informal in any way with regard to Holy Communion; I find people who wander aimlessly up with their hands in their pockets or flopping about by their sides intensely distracting and the sight must be offensive to Almighty God.
In fact, my brother was right, if we do feel terror it will help us to hold what we are about to take part in as something very, very special.