Quote:
Originally Posted by christiangirl
Hmmm...the last Catholic church I attended had the following rules:
I want communion = outstretched hands
Just a blessing = folded arms
I don't want either = "reverently walk by"
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Interesting. I've never heard the "reverently walk by" except for situations where both bread and wine are offered and you choose to receive bread and not wine. (You only have to get one or the other, but if both are offered, some people opt for both.)
In the Catholic parish where I grew up, the practice was as follows:
I want a Communion wafer = outstretched hands, or hands by your sides or folded in prayer, say "Amen" when the priest says "The body of Christ", and then open your mouth and stick out your tongue slightly (the priest or eucharistic minister then places the wafer on your tongue).
Just a blessing = folded arms
I don't want either = stay seated, although you may have to stand and step aside to let people farther down the pew to get out and get in line
The parish seldom offered wine. When they did, you would receive and swallow your wafer and then either queue for wine or "reverently walk by" and go back to your pew.
Non-Catholics (whether or not they belong to another Christian denomination) are ineligible to receive Communion, as is anyone conscious of having committed a mortal sin.
I've been to a Nuptial Mass once since I converted to Judaism. I just kept my butt in my chair and said a silent prayer for the couple's happiness.