Sacramental sharing thrown wide open in Saskatoon.

On January 31, 2005, the diocese of Saskatoon published the instruction called Sacramental Sharing: Pastoral Directives for Sacramental Sharing in particular circumstances between Catholics and Baptized Christians of other Denominations. It calls into question the usual interpretation and application of the encyclical on the Eucharist.

The Pastoral Directive, promulgated by Bishop Albert LeGatt, attempts to put into practice the call from the Second Vatican Council to strive towards reconciliation and unity among Christians. The broad interpretation of the Diocesan Directives, however, places authentic ecumenism in danger and especially denigrates the sacredness of the Eucharist.

Everyone acceptable

Bishop LeGatt's directive states early on, in accord with Church teaching, that "It is a source of joy that Catholic pastors may, in certain cases, administer the sacraments of the Eucharist, Reconciliation, and Anointing of the Sick to Christians who are not in full communion with the Catholic Church" (no. 4). He then interprets those conditions so broadly as to make the rare cases commonplace.

In no. 10 of the Pastoral Directives, he states: "A baptized Christian of another denomination who comes forward for Communion during a Eucharistic celebration is understood to be in genuine spiritual need and to be requesting the Eucharist on his or her own initiative. However, he or she is encouraged to request the sacrament by meeting with the Catholic pastor privately for a fuller discussion."

The Code of Canon Law pertaining to this issue (no. 844, sec. 4) reads: If the danger of death is present or other grave necessity, in the judgment of the diocesan bishop or the national conference of bishops, Catholic ministers may licitly administer these sacraments to other Christians who do not have full communion with the Catholic Church, who cannot approach a minister of their own community, and on their own ask for it, provided they manifest Catholic faith in these sacraments and are properly disposed."

A misinterpretation of "grave need"

The requirements stated in Canon Law are not difficult to meet when the individual in question is a member of the Orthodox faith, or of a (schismatic) group such as the Society of St. Plus X which has valid orders and sacraments though regarded as illicit. The requirements become problematic with Protestants who do not have, as their core doctrine, the belief in the Real Presence of Christ in the Eucharist.

Of concern, therefore, is the overly broad interpretation of "grave necessity" by the Saskatoon Pastoral Directive. Bishop LeGatt has instructed his diocese that it should be interpreted in such a way that anyone "who comes forward for Communion during a Eucharistic celebration is understood to be in genuine spiritual need and to be requesting the Eucharist on his or her own initiative." This is a gross misinterpretation of "grave need."

The Saskatoon Pastoral Directive also renders dialogue meaningless when it claims those who are non-Catholic are "encouraged to request the sacrament by meeting with the Catholic pastor privately for a fuller discussion." With the most important element of Catholic faith in question, it should be evident that dialogue prior to possible reception of the Sacrament is a "requirement" rather than an option.

A mere cultural event

The Pastoral Directive gives the impression that reception of the Eucharist is not, first and foremost, the source and summit of all graces, but rather a mere cultural or communal event. This interpretation is evident in number 17-18:

17. The partner (Ed: note use of word "partner" instead of spouse) who is a baptized Anglican or Protestant in an interchurch marriage may receive Holy Communion in a Catholic Church on occasions of ecclesial or familial significance when he or she may experience a serious spiritual need. Ultimately, the spouses themselves determine what are the significant occasions when they have a strong spiritual desire to receive Communion. However, there should be a special significance to the occasion. It is not meant to be a routine practice.

In essence the bishop and his advisors who wrote this directive are equating what appears to be "personal social discomfort at being excluded" with "grave necessity". Not only does it reduce the sacrament to a cultural event but it also deconstructs the essence of the Catholic faith.

This cultural and social concept of the Sacrament of the Eucharist is further evident in the next section:

18. A marriage partner from one of these Christian denominations who meets the conditions laid out in paragraph 7 may request the Eucharist from a Catholic pastor on special occasions such as:

a) their marriage and subsequent anniversaries celebrated with a Mass

b) Baptism, First Communion, Confirmation, graduation Mass, and wedding or ordination Mass of a child, grandchild, or close family member

c) major Feast days: Easter, Pentecost, and Christmas

d) times of serious illness and/or approaching death

e) funeral of their partner, child, or grandchild

f) retreats, Marriage Encounters, Parish Missions, and religious workshops when these are attended with their partner

g) other special circumstances in consultation with the pastor

The Directory for the Application of Principles and Norms on Ecumenism issued by the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity from Vatican City on 25 March 1993 states in no. 130 that "Catholic ministers will judge individual cases and administer these sacraments only in accord with these established norms, where they exist. Otherwise they will judge according to the norms of this Directory."

John Paul II 

Pope John Paul II, in his encyclical Ecclesia de Euckaristia specified that

"these conditions, from which no dispensation can be given, must be carefully respected, even though they deal with specific individual cases, because the denial of one or more truths of the faith regarding these sacraments and, among these, the truth regarding the need of the ministerial priesthood for their validity, renders the person asking improperly disposed to legitimately receiving them" (no. 46).

In understanding the Catholic position, certain terms need to be defined. "Individual cases" involve identifiable persons, not a universe of cases. "Exceptional" means "extraordinary" with respect to the nature of the situation; the admission to communion of non-Catholics cannot become an ordinary practice. The "special circumstances" in this context are certain defined conditions, both objective and subjective, that must be verified.

The Pastoral Directive, on the other hand, states emphatically that "a) the directives are to be interpreted broadly to favour sacramental reception by those eligible" (original emphasis).

It is clear that the norms laid out by Bishop LeGatt in the Pastoral Directive of the diocese of Saskatoon violate some of the basic principles of Catholic doctrine and discipline. The directive has implicitly and explicitly reduced reception of the Eucharistic Sacrament to a mere cultural and social event.

Bibliography:

Sacramental Sharing: Pastoral Directives for Sacramental Sharing in particular circumstances between Catholics and Baptized Christians of other Denominations may be found on the Internet:

http://www.ecumenism.net/archive/ saskatoon_sacramental_sharin_pastoral_directives.pdf

The Directory for the Application of Principles and Norms on Ecumenism is found at

http://ww.adoremus.org/EcumenismNorms.html

Code of Canon Law of the Catholic Church

http://www.vatican.va/archiv/ENG1104/_INDEX.HTM 

Ecclesia et Eucharistia

http://www.vatica.va/edocs/ENG0821/_INDEX.HTM