Father Chicken Little here, happy to pass on some common sense hygiene from Australia! I wonder how the government feels about the common chalice at Mass?
"Celebrating birthdays at school just got a little less fun for kids in Australia. New guidelines issued Tuesday by the country's National Health and Medical Research Council say that children can no longer blow out the candles on cakes at school because doing so spreads too many germs."
Of course as I have written before at Roman Masses that are concelebrated, the concelebrants never, never, ever drink from a common chalice, this includes the princes of the Church and other archbishops and bishops, not to mention priests. No they do what his hygienically common sense, they take the Sacred Host and intinct it into the chalice of Precious Blood.
The Holy Father also gives Holy Communion to the deacons of the Mass as they kneel before him through intinction as well. No one drinks from the common chalice save the celebrant himself.
I think Europeans are more conscious of health issues, like germs and cleanliness whereas we Americans like the Australians until recently have blown on cakes and drink after others with reckless abandon!
HAPPY AND HEALTHY BIRTHDAYS TO ALL!
9 comments:
Good Father Chicken Little - Is there any evidence that an epidemic has resulted from the use of the common cup. I mean, evidence that does not come from the irrational fears in your head...
Pater Ignorant... er, excuse me, Ignotus: Could you please explain to me why so many leftist priests play "chicken little" when it comes to receiving the Host on the tongue?
Giovanni - There's no "chicken little" being played with receiving on the tongue. Chicken Little had an irrational fear, much as Good Father Chicken Little has with pathogens and common cups.
"Anyone who wishes can receive communion on hand or tongue" said the liturgically correct Henny Penny.
I am probably more germ conscious than the average, and I have never really liked taking from the Chalice, even when I did partake of alcoholic beverages (which I have not done for thirty years). However, even I have to wonder if things are going a bit far here, with children and birthday cakes. What’s next? Everyone has to wear a mask?
That said, we would perhaps do well to adopt some common sense hygiene practices such as those drummed into me at school and by my German-born mother – washing hands after using the bathroom and taking out the garbage, etc; sneezing and coughing into one’s sleeve instead of one’s hand, etc. Americans (and many British people), especially of the male gender I suspect, don’t appear to score very high on these elementary common sense hygiene measures.
A-2, I think my Italian relatives in Italy would be quite alarmed at the American custom of drinking from the common chalice and for hygiene concerns.
Does that apply to other places in Europe such as the UK? I think that apart from the Anglican Church, most protestant churches when they have Holy Communion, have tiny individual cups, precisely because of good hygiene. I have seen some Methodist here going to the communicant himself dipping the bread into the grape juice, but I think that it rare.
The only Protestant Church that I think has people drinking from a common chalice is the Protestant Episcopal Church in this country, is that true in the UK with the Anglican churches there?
If we have to wear masks, I want mine to be Phantom of the Opera.....
Father,
To answer your question, before the Swine Flu outbreak in 2009 the Catholic Church in England offered the common Chalice. My research indicates that the Church of England did too (I have no direct knowledge of this). My research also indicates that, following the outbreak, the Catholic Church in England did as we did here in the States, offering communion only in one species, and that the Church of England continued to offer communion in both species but now by intinction. I do not know what the practice has been since the outbreak subsided. Perhaps John Nolan has the latest information about all this.
Over here I believe that the Episcopal Church allows the communicant to take from the common Chalice or to intinct (while kneeling at the altar rail of course =)).
Pater,
I suppose it is fairly evident which masks we Anonymous types would wear =).
Ignotus, Your's should be a clown mask...
Post a Comment