Fresno Bishop in desparate need of prayers...

KNXT EDITORIAL, JULY 2004
Denying Holy Communion
By Bishop John T. Steinbock

My dear people of God,

On June 1 of this year, I sent a commentary to our priests and deacons on a recent Instruction from the Congregation in Rome on Divine Worship regarding the Holy Eucharist. I pointed out to the priests and deacons that this document did not say, as was falsely reported by the secular media, that Catholic politicians who vote for abortion may not receive Communion. It did not refer to Catholic politicians at all.

In fact, the document stated that “sacred ministers may not deny the sacraments to those who seek them in a reasonable manner, are rightly disposed, and are not prohibited by law from receiving them.” The document emphasized this by stating clearly again that “any baptized Catholic who is not prevented by law must be admitted to Holy Communion.” I reminded our priests and deacons that “rightly disposed” can only be judged by external actions, as no one can be the judge of another person’s conscience and relationship with the Lord. If someone approaches to receive Communion who is obviously intoxicated or someone comes up who has no idea how to behave, that person is certainly not rightly disposed and may be denied Communion, but this should be done in a loving and pastoral way.

The Doctrine of the Faith has declared that even those who are not in full communion with the teaching of the Church, as long as there is not a denial of what is proposed by the Church as divinely revealed, may not be denied the Sacraments. Jesus did not come to condemn but to save. The Church must always proclaim clearly the truth of God’s teaching and love. But the mission of the Church is to teach and propose the truth, not to impose it. St. Paul tells us in first Corinthians: “whoever eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord unworthily sins against the body and blood of the Lord.” This is God’s call, not our call.

Let us not politicize the Eucharist. We all struggle, whether we are public figures or not, to be faithful to the Lord Jesus, and must constantly examine our own consciences. Let us not judge the consciences of others and be so presumptuous as to say who is and who is not worthy to receive Communion. Even those who are prevented by law from receiving Communion may be in God’s grace, and closer to God than we may ever hope to be.

The Holy Eucharist is God’s great gift to us to help us on our journey through the complexities, trials and temptations of this world. We all need the Eucharist as we all need Christ, and we also need one another. May God bless you all very, very much.

A lost shepherd, indeed. We should pray for him. Evidently, he has also not read or misread what the Church teaches.

Source.