www.byzcath.org Forums Faith & Christian Life Faith & Theology First Communion

All I am saying is that do something special.

Call it the communion after first penace

Adult communion

Call it anything you want.

But if First penance becomes something done on a quiet Saturday and nothing special follows it you will lose the people you need the most to continue ----those with children--

Sharon,

While I heartily agree with the point that you make, making a holy and joyous event of a child's first (note the lower-case "f") reception of the Holy Mystery after his First Penance needn't be done in a group setting, require a white suit or dress and veil, or be accomplished at a certain age. It can well be an individual happening, as was their baptism, communion, and chrismation, and still be acknowledged by family and parish with just a bit of effort given to planning by mom, dad, and the good pastor.

That generations have experienced it and many may be unwilling to give it up - may in fact be so unwilling as to abandon our churches for their neighboring Latin parish - gives me pause, despite my earnest desire to see us rid of latinizations. Unlike Deacon Lance, I could be easily convinced that allowing this single remnant of latin influence to continue would be preferable to losing families - we are not talking here of some devastatingly awful assault on our theological patrimony. We are merely celebrating a single particular instance of recieving the Body and Blood with a bit of extra attention - remembering that every instance in which we commune is indeed worthy of celebration.

That said, there's one point in your post that distresses me. Are you saying that Sonic Hedgehog isn't real?????

First Tom Terrific, now Sonic Hedgehog? Will folks never cease bursting my bubbles? At least I have proof that leprechauns are real (they always eat the cookies and milk that I leave out on St. Patrick's Eve).

Many years,

Neil

Sharon,

You almost convince me that our entire position is untenable. The only reason the trouble exists is because the outward fru fru of the event has overwhelmed the meaning of it. How many Roman Catholics really understand what God's grace is all about when all it seems to mean is parents and grandparents get to ooh and ahh over the performances of their offspring?

Just when Catholic scholars are reevaluating this tendency to determine sacraments based upon regularizing what we perceive to be psychological development we continue to wish to ape the procedure.

I don't know if I'm being very clear. Perhaps an illustration will help.

I stayed with the Black Friars in Oxford during a period of my Doctoral research. A brother was preparing to leave for LA to do some post graduate work. I asked him his field. He said, "Canon Law." I was dumb founded. Do people really spend a lifetime studying such things when God's grace is so much more? Apparently.

Can you imagine an Orthodox Christian devoting themselves to legaleze as if it meant something? To my mind, and I'll admit I'm not "normal", to spend a lifetime on canon law is like spending a lifetime rearranging chairs on the Titanic. It is what the Western mind specializes in but not the Eastern mind.

Am I rambling?

Dan L

Glory to Jesus Christ!

Dear Mr. Lauffer:

Your comment about canon lawyers is, I regret to say, most unChristian. There are canonists in both the Eastern Orthodox and Eastern Catholic Churches, as well as in the Roman Catholic Church. The purpose of canon law is, in fact, also the motto of my home state of Missouri:

"Salus populi suprema lex esto."

Of course, Missouri may be interpreting it in a totally secular sense, but this is, indeed, the end-all and be-all of canon law:

"The salvation/health of the people ought to be the highest law."

Please paint with a narrower brush.

In Christ,
(Prof.) J. Michael Thompson
Byzantine Catholic Seminary
Pittsburgh, PA

OK time for your local friendly lopsided Latin to push her nose in

Over here our Hierarchy and the Parish Priests have , over the last few years become more and more worried about how First Communions were celebrated.

I believe it was Sharon a way back who described it as a kodak occasion [ or some other similar term ]

Over here it had got to ridiculous lengths. Hundreds of pounds were being spent on dresses - fancy hair ornaments, veils, white shoes etc. In one Parish it was believed that the Parish priest had stood in the pulpit one week and announced that there were to be no more tiaras with whirling illuminated Madonnas on them [ well it was an Italian Parish so nothing would surprise me ] Families were competing with each other as to who would get the most expensive dress , kilt outfit, give the biggest Communion breakfast etc. Families went into serious debt doing this . Some of the Primary Schools decided to have a School Breakfast [ all the kids of that age group in the School made their First Communion together so there could be 60 children at the breakfast plus parents , friends etc ] I can remember one wee 7 year old rushing up to his Head Teacher and telling her he had just been given 300 GBP [ roughly 545 US Dollars ] as a present. That by the way was 1996. !

Since then celebrations have become much simpler - in many Parishes, Albs are used - provided by the Parish , the large elaborate Communion Breakfasts have all but disappeared and the children are beginning to understand more clearly that this is special - it is the day they Receive Christ for the very first time.

Now your children are accustomed to being able to Receive Christ every time they are at Liturgy - and I wish that the Latin Church could understand the benefit of Spiritual food for these young people - but I do not see why that you cannot have a real family and parish celebration of the first time a child has Received the Mystery of Penance and followed this the next day with Reception of Communion. If a child is allowed to do this when he/she is ready and can understand about sin, Confession and Penance then it can be an individual celebration and the whole Parish can share the joy of that child. Small gifts can be given - a prayer book, a neck cross, and icon and so on - gifts like this help to re-inforce what the celebration is about.

Photographs can still be taken - and , because it was their day and not shared with umpteen other children , it will still be remembered.

Anhelyna

Anhelyna,

All of the abuses on the side of secularizing this holy event and making it an excuse for excess have occurred here as well, perhaps more so, given Americans' special penchant for extravagance. Like you, I believe that joyful individual celebration, of what is truly an individual experience, is a much more spiritually and personally fulfilling route to take.

Many years,

Neil

and, perhaps, the more so.

Dan,

I don't know that I'd accuse you of rambling, but I was with you, until you got worried about being unclear and decided to provide an illustration. Besides offending Professor Thompson, you lost me there; I'm still trying to make the connection.

Many years,

Neil

Angel of Glascow, my beloved,

Indeed.

The other week I was at one of the local craft stores, and had several coupons in hand. It is my custom to try to hand out any coupons I'm not going to use to someone who can make use of them - makes folks smile as well as saving 'em money. So anyway, the folks ahead of me were a mom and a bride-age daughter. They were there to purchase one of those paper-roll doodads that the ushers unroll down the church (or bowling alley) aisle just before the parade comes down at the wedding. Or so the bridal-industric rules say. Oh - that roll of paper - nearly $30. (My unneeded coupon saved 'em eighteen bucks...) And that's one of the LESSER of the several hundred "necessary" purchases! SHEESH!!!!!!

It's become "the thing" to follow these "rules"
for virtually EVERY rite-of-whatever sort of event - baby showers, baptisms, First Communions, Bar/Bat Mitzvahs - it's INSANE. Instead of an event of importance to the soul or family, it becomes another one of those d@mned parties where everything has to be just ruddy perfect - in other words, a day of anxiety and expense.

I cannot imagine that the Evil one could have come up with a better way of getting the attention off the state of ones soul when it's most important, and onto trivialities.

More power to those who say NO! We can have a fancy party anytime. Some days though, we should put all our attention towards welcoming the Greatest Guest - who in fact owns the whole place.


Oh, as far as canon lawyers - God bless 'em. As far as I'm concerned, they're rather like accountants - in both cases, it's not a field I would care to devote my life to, but I'm awfully glad some folks do, because there are times when lives and futures can depend on someone who knows their stuff.

And as far as folks leaving because of a lack of Kodak Moments, well, why were those folks there in the first place? Either they have failed to grasp what is "needful" or we've done a terrible job of catechising and evangelizing. Prob'ly both.
If we return to the treasure that is ours, teach it well and celabrate it with joy, people will come, see and stay, because their hearts will be touched.

Sharon

Neil dear,

I never said Sonic WASN'T real. He isn't (necessarily) in MY universe, but as someone who is firmly convinced of the existence of the Land of Oz (it's totally surrounded by the Deadly Desert, you know) far be it from me to declare this or that to be "merely imaginary."

If we can just input the right stuff into the Stargate, who knows what we'll find?


Keep your dreams alive.


Sharon

Neil,

Please don't confuse my ideology with my practice. I was illustrating a point to LGC, that one way or another you may lose people. The motivation for keeping or discarding a practice based on people staying or leaving is a misinformed notion. Often things like this are used as an excuse for an already latent desire to start going to the Latin Church/Orthodox Church. Actually the best course is to let parent's have a choice. Those that feel strongly one way or the other should have their needs met. So have a First Solemn Communion if necessary, (my parish does) but don't force those who don't belive in it to participate. Eventually I believe it will disappear as a truly Byzantine understanding of the Mysteries of Initiation is taught to and grasped by the people. First Confession is a different matter and I wonder, as Sharon does, if a one size fits all mentality is a good idea in this instance.

Fr. Deacon Lance

Professor,

My apologies. I still believe canon law is best left to the West.

Neil,

Are you familiar with "Nama Rupa"? It is a Buddhist way of describing the attachments to the world of forms and shapes that keep one away from Nirvana.

I'm open to being educated about canon law. I'm sure there must be more to it than I perceive. However, so far my impression is that it represents the over emphasis upon legeleze and name and shaping things that are beyond are ability to define.

One Orthodox critique with whom I rather agree said that all that needed defining was completed by the ninth century, but the West went on defining. Isn't the Iconostasis the place at which definitions stop and we worship and isn't the Iconostasis the place at which heaven meets earth? I should think we need more worship and less definitions during Divine Liturgy. E.g., we don't need to say that a child is finally ready to be fed at 2nd grade because they went through this or that hoop. We need rather to rejoice in the Bread of Heaven.

Dan Lauffer

Sharon - you are kidding - I hope :rolleyes:

we just have a lovely marble floor and our Parish Priest [ pastor] believes that no-one else but him can keep it in tip top clean condition. It's never covered.

I had this feeling that you folk were mad and after that little shock I have the evidence as well can't really manage a URL for this - i'd have to subscribe - but do have a look at today's Wall Street Journal

Houses of Worship Reach Out to Pets
A small number of otherwise-traditional clergy are creating pet-friendly worship services as part of a larger movement among houses of worship to fill empty pews by offering amenities considered important to modern lives.

With apologies for being badly off topic - mea culpa

Angela,

Cross-my-heart-and-hope-to...whatever.

Every word the truth. Should you ever set foot in the States with nothing else better to do than to visit a craft store (in this case Michael's) you will indeed find a HUGE "Bridal" section filled with all sorts of overpriced wickedness. Oh -it's the RESOURCEFUL families that buy 'em there. The folks who leave it in the hands of a profesisonal wedding planner are extremely likely to get the identical objects at a fancy price markup.

Sharon
(who about puked to see the Easter junk appearing in craft & fabric stores a couple weeks before Lent began....as usual)

Anhelyna, my dear, let me assist you:

[QUOTE]Originally posted by Gaudior:
[QB] Anhelyna, my dear, let me assist you:

3/10/04 Wall St. J. A1
2004 WL-WSJ 56922419

The Wall Street Journal
(Copyright (c) 2004, Dow Jones & Company, Inc.)

Wednesday, March 10, 2004

Houses of Worship Are Reaching Out To a Flock of Pets
---
Purr Box Goes to Communion At St. Francis Episcopal; A Group 'Bark Mitzvah'
By Elizabeth Bernstein

For the first time in 10 years, Mary Wilkinson went to church one Sunday in
January. She sat in a back pew at St. Francis Episcopal Church in Stamford,
Conn., flipping through a prayer book and listening intently to the priest's
sermon. What drew Ms. Wilkinson back into the fold was a new monthly program
the church introduced -- Holy Communion for pets. As part of the service, the
59-year-old retired portfolio manager carried her 17-year-old tiger cat to the
altar, waited in line behind three panting dogs to receive the host and had a
special benediction performed for her cat, Purr Box Jr. "I like that the other
parishioners are animal people," Ms. Wilkinson says.

With pews hard to fill, a small number of otherwise-traditional clergy are
welcoming animals into the flock. Some are creating pet-friendly worship
services, while others have started making house calls for sick animals. Some
are starting to accompany pet owners to the vet when they euthanize a beloved
pet. Occasionally, clergy are even officiating at pet funerals and group "bark
mitzvahs." Congregants at temple Beth Shir Sholom, in Santa Monica, Calif.,
have an animal prayer sung to the tune of "Sabbath Prayer," a song from
"Fiddler on the Roof": "May our God protect and defend you. May God always
shield you from fleas."

All Saints Episcopal Church in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., has doubled attendance at
its Sunday evening service since it began last summer to invite pets once a
month. It wanted to attract people who walked their dogs on the church
grounds. "We call it evangelism," says Rector Sherod Mallow. "It's opening your
doors to the different needs of the community."

Pet services are aiming to draw in the elderly, many of whom rely on pets as
their only companions, and people who have strayed from religion because it no
longer seemed relevant. The effort is part of a larger movement among houses of
worship to attract worshipers by offering amenities considered important to
modern lives. In recent years, churches and synagogues have added everything
from in-house Starbucks cafes and sports clubs to special worship services for
children and singles.

Churches such as Manhattan's Cathedral Church of St. John the Divine have long
held annual services to bless everything from rabbits to elephants. Catholics
have long revered Saint Francis as a protector of animals.

Rabbi Isaac Jeret, of Temple Emanu-El, in Palm Beach, Fla., recently took that
tradition to a new level when he began making house calls to ailing animals.
Noticing the popularity of animal benedictions in churches, Rabbi Steven Fink
of Temple Oheb Shalom in Baltimore organized a similar event for his own
worshipers last May. More than 100 owners and their animals showed up,
including guinea pigs and a king snake. "It touched people who saw the temple
as not relevant to their lives," says the rabbi, who is planning a second pet
blessing in May.

Helping the trend along: the $30 billion pet-products industry, which is
marketing spirituality in new ways. After pet gravestones became one of its
five most-requested products, Petco introduced memorial stones in 2002.
Customer requests also prompted the company to start carrying kosher dog food
and Hanukkah treats last year. Hallmark, which annually ships 500,000 pet
sympathy cards, introduced several with spiritual imagery last year. One
features a drawing of a little bear with wings and a halo flying up to heaven
and the line "Such a sweet little soul could never be forgotten."

Skylight Paths just published a book called "What Animals Can Teach Us About
Spirituality." "Peace to All Beings: Veggie Soup for the Chicken's Soul,"
(Lantern Books) contains prayers for all sorts of creatures, including
insects. (One prayer: "Peace and compassion prevails on Earth for our tiny
brothers and sisters everywhere.") Pet boutiques, such as Miami Beach's Dog
Bar, carry plush toy dreidels, Stars of David and St. Christopher pendants for
collars, and kosher pet food (production supervised by a rabbi).

For devout pet lover Kathleen Eickwort, of Ocala, Fla., these developments are
welcome. When her dog, Sarge, was diagnosed with non-Hodgkins lymphoma in June,
she made religion a part of his treatment. In addition to chemotherapy, Sarge
received a 20-minute visit from the rector of Ms. Eickwort's Episcopal church,
who touched him and prayed for his recovery. Sarge also went to church twice.
Now, his cancer is in remission. "There is no reason why prayer healing
shouldn't work for animals," says Ms. Eickwort.

Last summer, a member of St. Francis Episcopal Church in Stamford began
bringing her King Charles Spaniel on Sunday mornings; soon, several other
attendees were regularly bringing their dogs. "They felt that they would be
welcomed, because we have long had a blessing of the animals," says Frank
Baker, the church's former treasurer.

Not everyone at St. Francis was happy to share the pews with furry creatures.
One longtime congregant sent an e-mail to the church saying that his son-in-law
suffered an allergy attack because of the animals. The parishioner, who won't
allow his name to be used for fear of backlash from the "animal people," warned
that dogs at the after-church coffee hour might bite children eating cookies.

In response to the concerns, the clergy created the monthly pet-friendly
service, similar to the one at All Saints in Fort Lauderdale that they had read
about in an Episcopal newspaper. "We thought we could bring people in," says
the Rev. Mark Lingle.

The new service, introduced in November, is abbreviated, with readings tailored
to animal lovers. At the recent service that Purr Box Jr. attended, Rev. Lingle
read a psalm about a ram, prayed for "all creatures everywhere" and
individually blessed each animal in attendance.

Oliver, a 7-month-old Clumber Spaniel, chewed through his leash and took off
after a red cardinal he spotted outside the window while Enoki, an 8-year-old
black cocker spaniel, growled. Rev. Lingle took the commotion in stride,
grabbing a roll of paper towels and a bottle of Nature's Miracle after the
service and inspecting the altar for drool while pets and their owners milled
about. "For a lot of people, the relationships they have with their pets are
central to their lives," he says. "They like to be in a place that recognizes
and honors that."

Mary Wilkinson was happy that she had brought Purr Box Jr. in to be blessed for
his digestive problems. Now, she says she plans to come back each month,
rotating her 11 other cats.