It is important to remind the faithful of their canonical right to receive Holy Communion while kneeling, regardless of the form of the Sacred Liturgy that they attend.
His Eminence Cardinal Blase Cupich of Chicago has recently written a letter in his archdiocesan publication discouraging the practice of kneeling for the reception of Holy Communion. Now, I state straightaway that I am not here to encourage anyone to be disrespectful to their ordinary, and it is not my place to theorize on motives. However, I wish to express my respectful disagreement and remind the faithful of their canonical right to receive Holy Communion while kneeling, regardless of the form of the Sacred Liturgy that they attend.
I will get to the point right away. The General Instruction of the Roman Missal states quite plainly: “The norm established for the Dioceses of the United States of America is that Holy Communion is to be received standing unless an individual member of the faithful wishes to receive Communion while kneeling” (160, emphasis mine). The GIRM then makes a cross-reference to the 2003 Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments’ Instruction Redemptionis Sacramentum, which states:
“The faithful should receive Communion kneeling or standing, as the Conference of Bishops will have determined,” with its acts having received the recognitio of the Apostolic See. “However, if they receive Communion standing, it is recommended that they give due reverence before the reception of the Sacrament, as set forth in the same norms.” (90, quoting the former GIRM)
Further, “it is not licit to deny Holy Communion to any of Christ’s faithful solely on the grounds, for example, that the person wishes to receive the Eucharist kneeling or standing” (RS, 91).
It is of interesting note that it is because of the 2003 instruction that the GIRM underwent a revision. Editions of the GIRM released prior to the finalization of the 2011 English Missal had said that Holy Communion could not be denied to those who kneel but exhorted pastors to help “catechize” individuals who may kneel. The U.S. Bishops’ Committee on Divine Worship’s January 2012 newsletter acknowledges this editing choice: “In the current edition, the exhortation to catechesis is removed and the exception to the norm of standing is left to the discretion of the faithful.” Thus, it is apparent that the intention of the Holy See, as reflected in the U.S. adaptation of the GIRM, is that the faithful have a right to receive Holy Communion kneeling; and further, those who do so are not in need of exhortation, correction, or “catechesis” for this display of piety.
With all due respect, the cardinal’s letter sends a confusing message. It was my understanding that we were in a season of “Eucharistic Revival.” At least that is what the posters, pamphlets, bulletin articles, letters from bishops, and a gathering of over 50,000 Catholics (many of whom chose to receive Communion kneeling) told us. We have been told that we are in a time of crisis with regard to the faithful’s understanding of the Real Presence of Christ in the Eucharist and that priests, especially, need to be doing everything we can to foster deeper understanding and appreciation of this great gift of Christ who offers Himself as priest and victim in the Eucharistic Sacrifice.
It would seem to me that taking a moment during the blessed Advent season to cast judgment on people’s piety would not aid in a deeper appreciation for Christ in the Eucharist. The cardinal asserts that people who kneel for Communion engage in a “gesture that calls attention to oneself or disrupts the flow of the procession.” I have been distributing Holy Communion as an ordained cleric of the Church for over a decade now, and I have been serving at the altar in some capacity for nearly 40 years. To say I have often heard the argument before that kneeling (or genuflecting) causes interruptions would be an understatement. Sadly, I will admit that I have even used this argument in support of pastors (and I repent of having done so).
But I have never actually seen this to be the case. I am sure there could be some anecdotes with some veracity to them, but these seem to be the exception and not the norm. Now, I have seen disruptions and distractions caused by inattentive and improper reception of Communion on the hand—seeing the Sacred Species fall, seeing ministers have to stop and insist that people consume, and the like. I have seen many disruptions in the Communion procession and many abuses. But I can say, with confidence, that none that I have seen have ever been caused by people who are kneeling. And even if this were the case, there are pastoral methods that would easily correct such issues that do not involve telling people they cannot kneel for Holy Communion.
With the justified social media outcry of responses to the cardinal’s pastoral exhortation, I was reminded of a time back in 2003 when the U.S. Bishops were still encouraging “catechesis” for people who chose to kneel at the reception of Holy Communion. I recall a smoke-filled room, having a cigar with a Jesuit professor who has since gone to his reward. “It seems that our bishops are concerned with people kneeling for Holy Communion,” he observed. Then, exhaling, he said, “With all the issues in the Church and world today, some have chosen to focus on people showing too much reverence to Christ in the Eucharist.”
Indeed, with ongoing abuse, a crisis of faith, a need for renewal of catechesis, a lack of priests, divided families, sexual confusion, the apparent approval by Catholics of the slaughter of innocents in the womb, and any number of social injustices, as well as a declining number of those who attend Holy Mass weekly—not to mention, again, the lack of understanding of the Real Presence of Christ in the Eucharist—fixation on the piety of those who choose to kneel when receiving their Eucharistic Lord does not give the faithful the impression of a pastor of souls who is in touch with the needs of the people.