From January 18 to 25, the Church will celebrate the “Week of Prayer for Christian Unity” under the motto “Reconciliation – the Love of Christ compels us.”
In commemoration of the 500-year anniversary of the Protestant Reformation, the Pontifical Council for Christian Unity is promoting a document encouraging Catholics "to hear Luther’s challenge for the Church of today, recognizing him as a ‘witness to the gospel."
Bishop Franz-Josef Bode of Osnabrück, in an interview with Evangelical Press Service, stated his belief and hope that there could be shared Communion between Catholics and Protestants in 2017.
“In the year of commemoration of the Reformation, it would make sense to deal with how the Church of the future could look,” continued Bode, envisioning a unified Catholic and Protestant Church. “It would be too simplistic if both confessions see in ecumenism only the way as the goal.”
Bishop Bode contends that the understanding of Communion in Catholic teaching is changeable in order to reach common ground for intercommunion.
Intercommunion for non-Catholics without acceptance of Catholic teaching on the real presence and transubstantiation has been a goal for liberal bishops of Germany and elsewhere. The occasion of Pope Francis’ visit to Sweden and his remarks there last fall brought more attention to the issue.
At present, the discipline of the Catholic Church regarding non-Catholics from Reformation churches receiving Holy Communion is set forth in Canon 844 of the 1983 Code of Canon Law as well as Canon 671 of the Code of Canons of the Eastern Churches.
According to the Church’s dogmatic teachings regarding the Sacrament of the Eucharist, Canon 844 reserves Holy Communion to Catholics who are not prohibited by their moral circumstances or by law.
Canon 844 goes on to delineate the conditions under which a Catholic may receive Sacraments from non-Catholic churches. These conditions are:
-- that the case be one of necessity or genuine spiritual advantage for the Catholic party;
-- when the danger of error or indifferentism is avoided;
-- when it is physically or morally impossible to approach a Catholic minister;
-- the Sacraments are received from a church which has valid sacraments according to the judgment of the Holy See.
It is this last condition which governs the present state of intercommunion with Reformation Churches. At the present time, Church discipline prohibits a Catholic from receiving Communion from a Reformation church since, in the judgment of the Holy See, none have valid Holy Orders and, consequently, none have a valid Eucharist.
And so, practically and really, the possibility of a Catholic receiving from the minister of another church, when the first three conditions are fulfilled, is limited strictly to the Orthodox Churches, other Oriental Churches, Old Catholics, Polish National and others whose sacraments are recognized by the Holy See. Further, Paragraph 3 of Canon 844 allows for members of those churches to receive Sacraments from a Catholic minister, when they ask and are properly disposed.
Regarding the conditions under which non-Catholics from Reformation churches may receive Holy Communion, Paragraph 4 of Canon 844 prescribes even stricter conditions for non-Catholics who belong to churches which have a valid Eucharist, proclaim a true Eucharistic faith and administer a valid Sacrament of Penance. And so, non-Catholics from Reformation church may receive Holy Communion only under the following conditions:
-- when they are in danger of death or other grave necessity;
-- when the norms of the diocesan Bishop or Conference of Bishops are properly observed;
-- when they cannot approach a minister of their own church;
-- when they freely request the Sacrament;
-- when they manifest a “Catholic faith” in the Sacraments and are properly disposed.
These last two conditions are very important.
When Catholics and Orthodox present themselves for Communion, either to their own minister or that of another Church with valid sacraments, Eucharistic faith and proper disposition is assumed, given the introduction to both Penance and the Eucharist at an early age in Churches which have a Catholic Eucharistic faith.
However, when a non-Catholic presents himself the norms demand an investigation to determine the person's faith, and to determine the necessary moral conditions for a proper reception of the Eucharist. That all these conditions are met, especially the last two, cannot be determined by a minister of Communion, ordinary or extraordinary, in the Communion line.
In the United States, the Conference of Catholic Bishops have issued guidelines, which are generally outlined in missalettes found in church pews almost everywhere. These exclude weddings, funerals and other such occasions as appropriate moments for intercommunion.
Acceptable moments for non-Catholics to receive Holy Communion from Catholic ministers would be individual and normally determined by a pastor after consultation with the bishop, or, in accordance with norms drawn up on the basis of Paragraph 5 of Canon 844.
And so, Bishop Bode has expressed his hope that the 500-year anniversary of the Protestant Reformation will be the moment when the Church’s discipline regarding the reception of Holy Communion by non-Catholics of the Reformation will be generally and fully welcome to receive the Eucharist from Catholic ministers.
This would be a most welcome development in practice especially in the case of Catholics in mixed marriages, when the non-Catholic attends Mass and has a sincere desire to partake in the Eucharist along with his or her spouse.
It should be noted clearly, however, that neither Bishop Bode nor any other Catholic Prelate has suggested that Catholics be permitted to receive the Sacrament from churches in which there is no valid Sacrament of Holy Orders and thus no valid Eucharist.
Whether this evolution in Eucharistic practice actually takes place remains to be seen.
Certainly, this moment in the history of relations between the Catholic Church and churches of the Protestant Reformation gives everyone of good faith and good will the opportunity to pray to the Holy Spirit, asking that the day not remain too far off when there will truly be “One Flock and One Shepherd” once more.
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