When Do We Receive?

 Twelfth Sunday after Pentecost
    In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.  Amen.  So here we are, at the last of the five precepts of the Church: You shall receive the sacrament of the Eucharist at least during the Easter season.  This precept coincides in a tangential way to our readings about the glory of the new covenant, and about our eyes being blessed to see Christ in the Eucharist, as many of the patriarchs longed to see Christ.  But, there has also been a lot of talk about receiving the Eucharist, who should, who shouldn’t, etc.  So a timely message, too.

    For most Catholics today in the US, the idea of receiving the Eucharist at once seems outdated, a holdover from previous centuries when people would attend Mass, but not receive the Eucharist.  In some countries, though (Mexico comes to mind), it is still very rare to receive the Eucharist regularly at Mass.  Why this hesitation?  Traditionally, there has been an emphasis on a worthy reception of Holy Communion, and many have not deemed themselves worthy (rightly or wrongly).  Pope St. Pius X labored tirelessly to promote frequent reception of Holy Communion (as long as one was not aware of any mortal sins).  Pope Francis has also spoken about Holy Communion not being the prize of the perfect, but the medicine for the sick.  Properly understood, both popes are right.  Receiving Holy Communion is not something that we do only after we have achieved the heights of sanctity.  It is what helps to make sanctity possible.
    At the same time, receiving Holy Communion presumes that we are in union with Christ and His Church.  The word communion means union with.  So when we receive the Eucharist, we are seeking to have union with Christ and His Mystical Body.  To maintain Eucharistic integrity, the Church does also teach that those who are in mortal sin should not receive the Eucharist, nor should those who are persistently living in a public way contrary to the teachings of Christ (the phrase is grave and manifest sin) be given Holy Communion.  

Bishop Vincke

    Some see this as treating the Eucharist as a prize.  But Bishop Vincke, formerly a priest of our diocese, put it well when he wrote in his diocesan publication:
 

Imagine a woman whose husband goes to strip clubs and repeatedly sleeps with many other women, and she knows about it.  The husband comes home and wants to have dinner with his wife, acting as though nothing was wrong.  He is indifferent to the many ways he has hurt and wounded her. […] Let’s take this a step further.  The cheating husband now wants to be intimate with his wife.  Again, he shows no remorse for the ways he has hurt her.  At the very least, shouldn’t the husband first apologize to his wife?  Shouldn’t he take ownership of what he has failed to do and tell her he is sorry?

Telling those who have “cheated” on the Lord by seriously damaging their relationship to Him that they cannot receive is not treating the Eucharist as a prize, but treating it as it is: the act of greatest intimacy between a person and Christ that can be achieved in heaven.  Intimacy is only appropriate when the love that the intimacy reflects is accurate.  So, no matter how powerful, influential, or public a person is; or how weak, unknown, and private a person is; no one who has been unfaithful to Christ in a major way should receive or be given Holy Communion, unless repentance has first taken place.  
    But it might not simply be mortal sin which keeps  a person from receiving on a particular day.  A person may find himself or herself so distracted that they have missed the readings, the homily, and the prayers, and do not feel adequately prepared to receive.  Or, a person may have arrived at Mass later than the Gospel, and so should not receive (because that person hasn’t joined in the first major part of the Mass, the Mass of the Catechumens (now often called the Liturgy of the Word).  This does not mean that parents of babies and toddlers can never receive (caring for them is part of your vocation, even if you’re not getting every word from the readings or the homilies, or kneeling during the Canon).  This also does not mean that, if you leave on time to arrive for Mass but get stuck by a train or an accident of another car, that you cannot receive.  But, all things being equal, if we are not mostly attuned to what is going on, drawing strength from the preaching of the Word and uniting ourselves interiorly to the offering of the priest, then perhaps we do not partake for that day.  Or, perhaps we forgot to fast for one hour before receiving Holy Communion, so we are not prepared in that way.  There are other reasons, other than mortal sin, why a person might not receive.  That is a decision between the person and his or her conscience (with some authority given to the priest, as well), which should not be presumed by others.
    I know that it is tough not to receive at Mass.  Others may look at us and wonder why we’re not going up in line (the Italians, I believe, have it right; they just go up whenever they’re ready, not always pew by pew).  People may presume that we have done something horribly wrong.  But frankly, that’s none of their business.  It would be better to be wrongly judged by others, than to commit a sacrilege by receiving in the state of mortal sin.  And, of course, we try to offer confession regularly enough so that you have a chance to go each week, whether at scheduled times, or, if those times don’t work, you can always schedule time with me throughout the week.  But, as you’re saying with me, Domine, non sum dignus, take a chance to decide: Am I ready to receive Holy Communion today?  Or do I need to abstain, for whatever reason?
    Because the reception of Holy Communion should also not be just a routine that we don’t consider.  This is the moment of greatest union with Christ on earth.  It should be done with the greatest of intentionality of wanting to be united with Christ and thanking Him for His sacrifice which made this union possible.  Yes, receiving the Eucharist is the greatest way to participate in Mass, and the summit of what the Mass is for.  Therefore, it’s not to be done as if we were standing in the check-out line at Meijer’s, waiting for our turn at the counter.
    The Church commands us to receive Holy Communion at least once per year, in the Easter Season.  As Pope St. Pius X and Pope Francis encouraged, if we are prepared, we should receive Holy Communion regularly, frequently even.  Receiving Christ into us strengthens us to be able to live as the disciples and saints God calls us to be, and without that great gift, holiness is so much more difficult.  Avail yourself of this treasure from heaven when you can.  Receive the Body of Jesus Christ, His perfect sacrificial offering to the Father in the power of the Holy Spirit.  Amen.