Today’s front page Washington Post story by Michael S. Rosenwald and Michelle Boorstein explains a lot. One thing it doesn’t explain well is what happened in one Catholic church in Maryland.
In short, a priest denied communion to a woman at a funeral. Catholic teaching is very clear on who may receive communion. Among the people who should not present themselves for communion in a Catholic church are non-Catholics, such as Buddhists. From the Post story:
But Johnson is also a Buddhist who supports gay marriage and other progressive causes. Guarnizo [the priest], by contrast, once signed an elaborate document denouncing Catholic politicians who support “morally repugnant” ideas . . . Guarnizo, with the help of ex-World Bank and State Department officials, travels through Europe promoting free markets via conservative religious values.
When Johnson, who was also openly living with her female partner, presented herself for communion, Father Guarnizo denied it to her. Rosenwald or Boorstein even bungle this part of the story:
The Rev. Marcel Guarnizo, standing before her, placed his hand over the offering bowl, denying her the sacrament.
The “offering bowl”? An offering bowl is what is passed around to collect monetary offerings. A communion bowl holds the Eucharist, or communion hosts. In this slip up, the Post betrays the recurring ignorance of religious belief which animates not only this story, but also so many stories about religion, such as the Obama administration’s attack on religious liberty in the health care mandate.
No wonder we find the headline “Bleak outlook for US newspapers.”
If you want to be really correct the chalice is called a ciborium.
The Chalice is for the wine & water, the Ciborium for the hosts; sometimes the Priest/celebrant will use the Paten (a priest’s Chalice has a Paten)for communion of the hosts, instead of the Ciborium.
There is a bleak outlook for basic facts at Washington Post.
Also, there is a bleak outlook for Fr. Guarnizo getting a fair shake from the bishop.
BONUS: There is a bleak outlook for me giving a d a m n about anything that Washington Post or Harry Reid say about JACK.
Maybe the lefties want to regulate who receives the Communion.
Who needs a Stalin when we have all these “militants” in the press, in the schools, in the universities ?
3-Sherab, your quip is closer to potential reality than most Americans can imagine.
By the time the BHObots are finished with us and the country, yes, who can and cannot receive Communion – along with a whole “host” of other issues – will be defined, monitored, regulated and enforced by the US Department of Religious Freedom, Fairness & Equity.
Actually, I was being absolutely serious. There are already many realities in which you couldn’t keep your job and you would be exposed to serious danger should you in any way openly oppose the totalitarians’ opinions and actions.
Freedom is not “in danger”, it’s already disappearing.
The implicit violence of the propaganda of the marxists is more than explicit already, in many realities.
It will get worse, and in case of a defeat of Freedom in November it will get much worse.
Many conservative pundits do not realize this because they live in a protected shell.
And this is how you subvert Freedom: in stages. It’s pure Gramsci doctrine.
In our RC church, there is a small notice in our missals distributed for funerals and weddings. The notice says that while we regret the barriers between Christians, we cannot distribute the Eucharist to our non-Catholic brothers and sisters in Christ.
Much to their credit, I cannot remember any non-Catholic not observing this request. They respect our religion and we respect theirs…
That’s the difference.
Geez, when I was about 14 I accompanied a friend to his Catholic school for a day. One of the routines was daily Mass. Even though I was a Presbyterian I knew enough to not participate in their Mass. I stayed in the pew. This woman is just trying to create an incident.
And Communist China has stated that it gets to decide whom is a Catholic Bishop (as well as the next Dali Lama.)
Same for the (LCMS) Lutherans. Communion implies a unity of doctrine and belief that – unfortunately – is not present between many Christian branches (much less between Christianity and Buddhism).
“Michael S. Rosenwald and Michelle Boorstein”
Seriously, do you expect a couple of people with those names to understand the rules of the Catholic Church? I see this is a garden-variety display of religious ignorance.
What this is to me is just one more example of media sloppiness. Checking the facts is outside of their paradigm.
Especially when it fits the narrative.
that’s a really vile comment. those darn Joos again. what could anybody with a Joo-sounding name possibly know about Catholicism?
you must be a liberal, since you’re so hung up on race and religion. get over yourself.
Go present yourself in a Mosque in the same way. See what happens…
Our motto since 1965: “Tolerance to the point of suicide.”
actually muslims want you to pronounce the shahada an arselift with them.. the first time you do it, you are muslim thenceforth..
(there is the question of sincerity, but arselifting and headbanging shows your enthusiasm)
But the equivalent act in a mosque would be spitting on a Quran or something to that effect. How do you think Muslims would react if they were prostrating themselves and suddenly some infidel decided not only not to prostrate, but to spit on and tear up the Quran they were using for readings? No, even this understates the gravity of someone approaching Communion despite not even professing Christianity.
I’m quite sure I could not care less, but I glanced at the article. It was her mother’s funeral, I suppose she was raised Catholic herself, on the other hand she was a famous person now non-Catholic and actively opposed to some (perhaps) critical beliefs.
Myself not being Catholic, the occassions when I attend a Catholic service, generally wedding or funeral, I’m often uncertain as to what is allowed, or required, or forbidden. But that does not seem to be the case here. More a matter of what is appropriate.
Seems awfully minor, except to the individuals involved.
Wrong; sacrilege is not a minor matter. It is absolutely crucial to the Church, and even fake/lapsed/would-be Catholics know about it. Just ask around.
You think the Post went crazy on this with three major stories about the Lesbian/Buddhist/non-practicing Catholic being denied communion. Wait until the first gay couple shows up at the doors of the church and insists on getting married in a Catholic ceremony. I think this was just a dress rehearsal. The show will be even bigger and better when that happens.
And there will be no end to the weeping and wailing and gnashing of teeth at the WaPo.
Michael Rosenwald and Michelle Boorstein need to be made to issue an apology for ignorantly or deliberately misrepresenting the reason for the denial of Communion.
All right, let’s assume that the woman was a Buddhist. Buddhism involves following the eight-fold path: of Right view, Right intention, Right speech, Right action, Right livelihood, Right effort, Right mindfulness, and Right concentration.
How well does the alleged Buddhist woman follow practices of, for example, abstaining from lying and from divisive or abusive speech, being resolved on renunciation and freedom from ill will, and abstaining from illicit sex?
Being concerned with the rituals of another religion seem far from right to me.
BINO
Right Action =? provoking others of differing religion to violate their beliefs?
I think not.
The lesbian in question is not a Buddhist. She is a slut.
Remind me again what percentage of voting Catholics voted for Obama?
As an evanglical Christian Protestant I watch with some irony and amusement the thuggery being shoveled on the Catholics. The Lord knows they’ve asked for it.
If Martin Luther were alive today he would be nailing 100 theses to their doors.
Thesis #100: you make your bed. You lie in it.
Revelation 3:16 “Because you were lukewarm, neither hot nor cold, I will vomit you out of My mouth.”
Do not take pleasure in the plight of the Catholics because so many voted for Obama. Rather, pity those who voted for Obama for being so lukewarm.
oy.vey.
If she was raised Catholic. She has no excuse to not know the safety procedures wrapped around an encounter with the Living God embodied in the host.
If she’s Buddhist, she ought to know self- abnegation in the face of whatever provocation.
And, for some reason, sending Jewish reporters to explain Christian doctrines and habits is a reflex. There’s this really odd book where the writer gets hung up on the slang, and misses the really odd story that he mentions in passing. The strange story he thinks is perfectly normal- It’s not, to a Christian. Being ” alive in Christ” is not the main event. It’s one of the oddest books I’ve ever read.
This would be solved (along with that Catholic hate-crime against Ms. Fluke) if there were an American Catholic Church which the Government could recognize (NOT ESTABLISH) for tax purposes, etc. The Chinese are already showing us the way. If Rome wished to nominate a Bishop, they could coordinate with the American Catholic Church, who could facilitate acceptance. Then that Bishop could preside over both the Roman Catholic (if they are permitted) as well as the American Catholic Churches.
Oh, by the way, I’m joking.
Don’t even joke like that. Too many people will take you seriously.
the Post may have done a bad job of explaining what happened, but PJ media hasn’t done much better.
you quote a sentence that starts “she is also a Buddhist…”which implies that she is a Catholic. is she, in fact, a Catholic? then it doesn’t really matter if she is “also” a Buddhist, if she disagreed with the priest before, or if she’s living with another woman or a goldfish or a blow-up doll…if she is a Catholic in good standing she can take communion.
the priest doesn’t get to decide whether in HIS opinion someone is a “good” Catholic.
Sure he does.
Rob, didn’t you hear? There’s a new branch of Homeland Security that keeps a list of everyone’s religion (unless they’re Muslim). If you’re listed as “Catholic”, you are deemed by the government to be a Catholic, period.
I read the first two pages of the article on the WaPo site (before paywall) and it’s a *total* hit-piece on the priest–the authors mention crimes and associations of members of the board of an organization the priest formed to rebuild a cathedral in Russia, f’r cryin’ out loud!
Now, I have no idea whether the priest is good or bad, but it’s clear the reporters either were given a dossier on the guy or were tipped on how to tar him, because that’s sure the gist of the article.