Fr. Ryan Erlenbush at The New Theological Movement
has some pertinent comments and some very good points as he asks
today “What is wrong with a priest giving blessings to young children in the
Communion line?” I, too, have written about the subject of blessings at Holy
Communion, here.
Fr. Erlenbush’s article is a
response to Fr. Cory Sticha, who has stated, “I despise blessing children in
the Communion line…” [read
the article here], and Fr. Z, who agreed with Fr. Sticha [here].
I must admit that when I wrote my
post about blessings at Communion, I was not thinking at all about the
implications for families with young, pre-first-communion children. That’s
partly because I’ve been in parishes where there are just not that many
children. It’s also because I was thinking only about adults who know they
should go to confession, but want a blessing anyway.
I’m inclined to agree with Fr.
Erlenbush in his analysis of whether or not a priest should give a blessing to young
Catholic children in the Communion line. Here are some of his thoughts (read
the full article here):
Limits of this discussion
…There is only one particular
case we will be looking at… – the question of whether a priest should give a
blessing to Catholic children who have not yet received their First Communion
but who have joined their parents in the Communion line…
…[W]e must
recall that the practice of regular Communion has only fairly recently come
back to prominence in the life of the Church. And, whether this is always to
the spiritual benefit of the faithful (since many, it seems, are unaware of
what is required to be well disposed for the Sacrament), the widespread
practice of both the father and mother regularly coming forward in the
Communion line is not much more than one hundred years old (at least in North
America).
When it was less common for
both the mother and father to come forward, it was more common for the young
children to remain in the pew with one or both of their parents. However, now
that it is more common for both parents to come to Communion, it has also
become the practice that the parents bring their infants and young children
with them in the Communion line (rather than leaving them alone in the pew).
This practice of bringing the
young children forward in the Communion line is a bi-product of the practice of
frequent reception of Holy Communion by parents. And, since regular Communion
is rather new, it is no surprise that the liturgical books have not yet
addressed the issue. The Church does not tell the parents what they are to do
with their infants – neither does liturgical law tell the priest how he is to
handle young children when they accompany (or are carried forward by) their
parents in the Communion line.
In any case, a simple sign of
the Cross made over an infant can hardly be said to disrupt the distribution of
the Blessed Sacrament. This little blessing, given to young Catholic children,
does not do any great violence to the liturgy but can instead be seen as a
legitimate adaptation brought on by the rather recent phenomenon of both
parents regularly coming forward to Communion.
…
Another option: A Spiritual
Communion?
Some will recommend that
children who are too young to receive Communion should not be blessed but
should instead be allowed to make a spiritual communion. These persons suggest
that the Host be held before the child and that the priest allow a brief moment
for the child to bow or make some other gesture of worship [or they recommend
some other variation on this theme].
I do not think this practice is
reasonable, on two accounts. First, a child too young to receive Communion is
not capable of making a spiritual communion – if he is, then he should be
receiving sacramental Communion. Second, providing this pause for a spiritual
communion would be even more disruptive to the liturgy than the act of a simple
blessing. Finally, this substitution would still be an “addition” (in
legalistic terms) and would thus not really solve the so-called “problem”
anyways.
A reason for blessing the young
children
One reason for blessing the
young children who are brought forward in the Communion line is that they are
united to the Church by the living faith which they received in their baptism.
Now, the Communion line is a sign of the unity of the Church; therefore, these
little ones do no harm in coming forward with their parents, for they are truly
united to the Church by the theological virtues of faith and charity.
However, according to the
practice of the Roman Rite (a practice which, in my opinion, is very wise),
children below the age of reason are not to take Communion. Still, I can see no
reason why the communion with the Church, the mystical body of Christ, in which
they share through their baptism cannot be expressed through a simple blessing
given by the priest.
Now, I do not say that any parish or priest should introduce this practice.
If, however, it is already a custom in a given parish, refusing to bless the
children hardly seems a battle worth fighting. In any case, the parents clearly
cannot leave toddlers and infants alone back in the pews, so the children
will generally be brought forward in the Communion line when both parents are
communicating. (my emphasis)
What should be avoided
If a priest does give blessings
to children, a few things should be
avoided.
First, the priest should not be touching the children with the fingers which he uses to distribute
Communion. The danger of the profanation of the Eucharist is far too great.
Sacred Particles will surely be dispersed, resulting in sacrilege. (my emphasis)
I like Fr. Erlenbush’s stipulations here; that the custom of
blessing children in the Communion line should not be introduced if it is not already in place, and that the priest must
exercise great care in how he gives
the blessing. In addition, Fr. Erlenbush notes:
Second, extraordinary ministers ought not to make the sign of the Cross. It
would cause great confusion, and they have not the authority. Indeed, they
should not give any sort of “blessing”. Perhaps they could say something like,
“Receive Jesus in your heart” (as Archbishop Chaput suggests) – personally, I
see no easy solution to this aspect of the question. (my emphasis)
Yes, the problem of extraordinary ministers giving a “blessing”
is something to be addressed, I
believe. It has been addressed in our diocese, but lay ministers continue to do
it, even when instructed otherwise. The solution I see is this: use fewer
extraordinary ministers! At least in many of the parishes in the Diocese of
Baker, there is an overabundance of them, and they are over-used. And
especially with regard to administering the Host, it seems to me that only a
priest’s hands are anointed to that purpose, and lay ministers should not be
doing it anyway.
And, finally, Fr. Erlenbush makes what I think is a most
important distinction between the case of “blessings at Communion” in general,
and those for young children:
Third, it seems to me that the
situation of a Catholic child (who is too young to receive Communion) should not be lumped in with those who are
non-Catholic or who are not disposed to receive Communion on account of mortal
sin. The persons in these last groups are not visibly united to the Church
through living faith, and so they are quite different from the little ones.
Still, again, there is no easy solution to this problem. (my emphasis)
Amen to that.
Of course, in defending the
blessing of children at Communion, many would quote the scripture verse, “Suffer
the little children, and forbid them not to come to me” (Matthew 19:14);
however, as Fr. Erlenbush points out, this is a “low blow”, since “the
question is not whether to bless children, but when”. In this case, I think Fr. Erlenbush convincingly
answers that question – whether to bless children – in the affirmative.
Be sure to read Fr. Erlenbush’s full
article – he addresses other aspects of the issue which I did not include
here.
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