Some Protestants find it deeply offensive that non-Catholics are not invited to receive communion in the Catholic Church (and, conversely, that Catholics will not receive communion from Protestants). The issue is not, as is often perceived, that Catholics consider Protestants to be second-class Christians, like some spiritual caste system. It really boils down to two different ways of looking at communion and the very meaning of church. For Catholics, holy communion (more often referred to as Eucharist--a word meaning thanksgiving) is both a inward experience and an outward expression of unity with Christ and Christs Church. Eucharist is, in fact, the most perfect expression and experience of unity, since we believe we are receiving not just a symbol of Christ but Christ himself, really present--body, blood, soul, and divinity--under the appearances of bread and wine. Just as the cross has vertical and horizontal beams, so Christs sacrifice unites us with God and with each other. For Catholics, the unity of the Church is not just invisible but also visible: structural, authoritative, doctrinal, etc. To be in unity together looks like something specific. This is why Catholics individually say amen just before receiving the Body and Blood of Christ; its an expression of our conviction that Christ is truly present in the Eucharist and also an expression of our belief in the Church Christ founded and the full teaching of this Church, which we believe has been received from Christ through the apostles and entrusted to their successors, our Bishops, who safeguard the full deposit of faith. Thats why, for example, before being received into full communion in the Catholic Church, one must publicly say, I believe and profess all that the holy Catholic Church believes, teaches, and proclaims to be revealed by God. Protestants Christians would not say amen to the full breadth of Catholic teaching or profess that they believe ALL that the Catholic Church believes (or else they wouldnt, by definition, be Protestant). Thus, to receive communion in a Catholic Church would be to express a sign of visible unity that is not yet complete (as Catholics understand full Christian unity). It would be objectively dishonest. Think of it this way: for Catholics, receiving communion is not a step on the path to unity, it is, as the Catholic Church teaches, unity itself. Catholics recognize all baptized persons as full brothers and sisters in Christ, but also recognizes that we are not yet living the fullness of our unity.
Posted on: Fri, 01 Aug 2014 12:30:21 +0000
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