Communion rights.

In your August 13 issue, John Garvey defends his earlier remark that "no one has a right to Communion" (Correspondence). Yet he fails to note that Vatican II's Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy states that: "Mother Church earnestly desires that all the faithful be led to that full, conscious, and active participation in liturgical celebrations which is demanded by the very nature of the liturgy. Such participation by the Christian people as 'a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a purchased people' (1 Peter 2:9), is their right and duty by reason of their baptism."

This is just right. All Christians (even bishops and politicians), by reason of their baptism alone, have a right, and even a duty, to enjoy the full, conscious, and active participation in liturgical celebrations, and especially in the celebration of the Eucharist.

THOMAS E. AMBROGI

Claremont, Calif.