TCA Question & Answer of the Day

Each weekday, you'll find a new question and answer. Check back for the new question and scroll down to see previous day's entries! Let us know what you think - - or question! -- by emailing us at tcanswer@osv.com.

For the Week of January 12-16, 2009

Question of the Day for Friday, January 16, 2009

Non-Catholics and Communion

Q. Why is it that you hear some priests tell their congregation that those who are not Catholic cannot receive Communion; then, when you go to another city or state, it is okay in some Catholic churches? Did God really say that non-Catholics cannot receive Communion in a Catholic church?

A.L., Bismarck, N.D.

A. Here’s a reply from TCA columnist Father Francis Hoffman, J.C.D.:

Why some priests say one thing and others another on such an important point is beyond me, and I would not like to speculate about the reasons. What I can state is that the priests who tell their congregations that “those who are not Catholic cannot receive Communion” are simply speaking the truth and passing along what the Church teaches. Sometimes that position is not very popular and calls for a certain pastoral sensitivity, but it is the right thing to do.

Having said that, let me note that there are some exceptions, and the most notable is for members of the Orthodox Churches who may receive Holy Communion, as well as Penance and Anointing of the Sick, when they request them spontaneously. Outside of exceptional circumstances, clearly defined in Canon Law, Protestants are not to receive Holy Communion, and in no case are the non-baptized to be allowed to receive the Holy Eucharist.

This disposition is not a lack of friendliness with non-Catholics, but simply the consequence of what it means to receive Holy Communion. That act means the person who receives it assents to everything the Church teaches. Non-Catholics do not.

Holy Communion is also a sign of unity. Most Catholic Churches have missalettes in the pews, and most misalettes reprint the indications of the USCCB’s “Guidelines for the Reception of Holy Communion.” In part that guideline states:

“Because Catholics believe that the celebration of the Eucharist is a sign of the reality of the oneness of faith, life, and worship, members of those churches with whom we are not yet fully united are ordinarily not admitted to holy Communion.”

Question of the Day for Thursday, January 15, 2009

Astronomer Popes?

Q. Have any of the popes ever shown an interest in astronomy?

 F.M., Los Angeles, Calif.

A. One clue to the answer to your question lies in the fact that the Holy See operates the Vatican Observatory, one of the oldest astronomical research institutions in the world, with headquarters at the papal summer residence at Castel Gandolfo, Italy. This institution’s dependent research center, the Vatican Observatory Research Group, is hosted by Steward Observatory at the University of Arizona in Tucson.

The Vatican Observatory Research Group operates the 1.8m Alice P. Lennon Telescope with its Thomas J. Bannan Astrophysics Facility, known together as the Vatican Advanced Technology Telescope (VATT), at the Mount Graham International Observatory in southeast Arizona.

Given this information, we shouldn’t be surprised to learn that several popes have in fact been astronomy buffs. Last December, Pope Benedict XVI noted their interest when he greeted participants in the events that celebrated the beginning of UNESCO’s International Year of Astronomy. This international year, marking the fourth centenary of Galileo Galilee’s first observations with his telescope, officially begins in Paris today.

“Among my predecessors of venerable memory there were some who studied this science,” said the Pontiff said during his Angelus, “such as Sylvester II, who taught it, Gregory XIII, to whom we owe our calendar, and St. Pius X, who knew how to build sundials.”

For the full text of the Pope’s address, click here.  For more about the Vatican Observatory, click here.

Question of the Day for Wednesday, January 14, 2009

Vatican Diplomatic Relations?

Q. Last week the Holy Father met with the international diplomats accredited to the Holy See. As a sovereign nation, I assume that the Holy See maintains diplomatic relations with a number of countries. How many nations are included? Which ones are not?

 K.L., New York, N.Y.

A. On the day of the meeting you mentioned, the Vatican Press Office reported that the Vatican State maintains full diplomatic relations with 177 states. The latest addition to the list, added on November 4 of last year, was Botswana, a nation with a population of approximately 1,800,000, inhabiting an area in southern Africa just a little smaller than Texas.
In addition to these 177 nations are the European communities and the Sovereign Military Order of Malta, plus two special missions: one of the Russian Federation, governed by an ambassador, and the office of the Organization for the Liberation of Palestine (OLP), governed by a director.

The Vatican State also has permanent observer status at the United Nations. It is a member of seven U.N. agencies and organizations, an observer in another eight, and either a member or an observer in five regional organizations.

The most prominent nations without formal diplomatic relations with the Holy See are China, North Korea, Vietnam and Saudi Arabia.

Question of the Day for Tuesday, January 13, 2009

Forbidden Forks?

Q. I recently attended a lecture given by a deacon from the parish I attend. While advocating against the male celibate priesthood, he informed the audience that the Catholic Church used to forbid eating with a fork. “Had God intended us to use forks, He wouldn’t have given us hands,” he said was the Church’s rationale behind the condemnation.
I believe the points he was trying to make were that (1) Church rules can be wrong (if not downright ridiculous), and (2) the Church does change its rules when it “wakes up” to modern times.

Since that speech, I’ve heard several parishioners using the “antiquated fork rule” as an example of how behind-the-times the Church can be and how malleable its rules can be. My two questions: (1) Did the Church ever outlaw the use of forks? (2) If it did, would the fork ruling be on the same traditional/doctrinal level as the Church’s stance on the male celibate priesthood?

T.B., via email

A. Here’s a reply from TCA columnist Father Ray Ryland, Ph.D., J.D.:

The Church has never outlawed the use of forks; the deacon’s statement is both false and absurd. If for some good reason in a particular situation the Church had outlawed the use of forks — and remember, She never has — the ruling could not be compared with the weight of the Church’s practice of admitting only celibate males to the priesthood.

I think you see clearly the points the uninformed deacon was probably trying to make. His absurd statement is like others used today to undercut the Church’s authority and justify dissent from her teaching. You have already seen that false statement about the Church and forks having its intended effect on some of the parishioners.

Pray for the deacon to be led away from gross error and to faithfully uphold the Church’s teaching. I suggest you approach him privately to discuss this matter. Ask him to document his story about the Church and forks. Tell him about the negative effects of his statement you have observed in others in the parish. And you might also ask him to read and ponder Matthew 18:6.

Question of the Day for Monday, January 12, 2009

Attendance at 2008 Papal Audiences?

Q. How many people took part in audiences with Pope Benedict XVI last year?

 H.K., via email

A. According to recent Vatican statistics, more than 2 million people! During 2008, about 2,215,000 participated in a general or special audience, the Sunday Angelus, or liturgical celebrations over which the Holy Father presided.

More than half a million people assembled for the Wednesday general audiences; the highest attendance was in October. The midday Sunday Angelus gathered more than a million.