This weekend, the Gospel draws our attention to St. Joseph and his miraculous dream. In that dream, the angel confirmed the miraculous and divine nature of Mary’s pregnancy, referencing the prophecy of Isaiah: “Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and they shall name him Emmanuel, which means "God is with us." The Church has always believed that Joseph never questioned Mary’s purity. Since he was righteous, he divorced Mary quietly (they were betrothed at this point), so as not to expose her to shame. Joseph understood that however Mary’s pregnancy occurred, it was holy, and he didn’t feel worthy to be a part of it. We can imagine his thought: “If this child Mary conceived is the Son of God, if she conceived by the Holy Spirit, how can I share this with her?” The only righteous thing was to distance himself. So, God sent the angel to say: “Joseph, have no fear! Though this child is God’s, and He has chosen your bride to be His mother, God also chooses you to serve Him as a father, to be a husband to His mother. He is not just the Emmanuel, but He is also your Emmanuel – He is with you.” At the invitation of the Lord, Joseph awoke and took Mary into His home, faithfully serving Mary and Jesus as a husband and father, protector and provider, until the day of His death, which was a happy death, because He died in the embrace of Jesus and Mary, the reward of his humble service.
We can learn a great deal from St. Joseph’s reverence and humility before the mysteries of God. We may not often think about it this way, but at Mass the Church – like Mary – conceives Jesus and bears Him into the world. In the Eucharist, God is with us – He is our Emmanuel. None of us is worthy to approach this mystery (“Lord, I am not worthy…”), and yet the Lord invites us, and when we are in the state of grace we respond humbly to His invitation and come forward to “take Him into our homes”, into our hearts, souls, minds, and bodies. The marvel of this Mystery is that we receive the Whole Christ – Body, Blood, Soul, and Divinity – in the smallest particle of the Host, and in this smallest drop of Blood form the Chalice. No grace is lost by receiving either the Host or the Chalice, and no grace is gained by receiving from both; in either, by the marvel of this mystery, the entire Christ is presented to the faithful for communion – He is Emmanuel, He is God – and when the faithful receive Him in the Host or in the Chalice – He is with us entirely. This is called concomitance, and understanding this can do much in terms of deepening our wonder, reverence, understanding, humility, and gratitude in the face of such a great mystery.
I share this teaching again to clarify the practice of our parishes not to distribute communion under both kinds in normal circumstances. At certain times, doing so serves the edification of the Faithful – First Holy Communion or Corpus Christi, for instance. But there are a number of logistical and theological reasons for not doing so all the time, including: the number of assistants needed to distribute both species and the Church’s instruction not to unduly multiply extraordinary ministers; avoiding the unnecessary risk of profanation or spillage (the Blood is a much more delicate species than the Body and requires increased diligence and care when distributing); the constant shifting between distributing during “healthy” seasons and not distributing during “sick” seasons; and the catechetical reason of avoiding any suggestion in our practice that communion under one kind alone is somehow deficient, unfair, or disenfranchising. The priest must receive under both kinds for validity, and He does so in the name of the entire Body of Christ, as he acts in the person of Christ at the altar, but the faithful participate fully in the Eucharist by receiving under either species, and the graces received are infinite. Let this not be a source of consternation, but let the truth of this mystery inspire instead deep sentiments of wonder, awe, gratitude, and reverence, just like St. Joseph!
In saying all of this, we will make a small adjustment to our practice of distributing Holy Communion. Some, because of allergies or illnesses, cannot receive the Eucharist under the species of bread. Desiring that they share in the grace of this Sacrament, beginning on January 7th and 8th, a side chalice will be offered for those who cannot receive the Sacred Host at Sunday and Holy Day Masses. This chalice will have a small amount of the Precious Blood to accommodate those who are in need, and so if you are able to receive the Sacred Host, please avoid partaking of the Chalice to ensure those who need to receive in this form are able to do so. An EMHC will be to the right of the priest with the chalice, so please sit on that side of the church towards the front if you need to receive the Precious Blood. I am grateful for everyone’s understanding and cooperation in this matter. Additionally, beginning on December 31st we will make kneelers available for those who wish to kneel while receiving the Eucharist. In an effort to foster deeper devotion in all of our hearts, that same weekend we will begin making a communal act of preparation for Mass, as well as a communal act of thanksgiving at the end of Mass. This will take only a few additional moments and I am confident it will pay dividends in grace. May God bless you in the week ahead, and may Mother Mary lead you more deeply into the Sacred and Merciful Heart of Jesus. St. Joseph, pray for us! I remain,
Affectionately yours in Christ,
Fr. Hess
