In June, after extensive debate, the USCCB had voted to begin drafting the document. The reception of Communion by pro-abortion politicians has come to the fore as both President Joe Biden and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi are Catholic and support legal abortion and taxpayer-funded abortion.
The statement would explain Christ’s Real Presence in the Eucharist, the importance of Sunday as a holy day, and the need for Catholics to live out the Church’s teaching in their lives after receiving Communion.
While the document does address worthiness to receive Communion, Bishop Kevin Rhoades of Fort Wayne-South Bend, chair of the US bishops’ doctrine committee, has said it is not meant to be about one individual or one particularly bad action, but rather a “heightened” awareness of the need for Catholics to be conformed to the Eucharist.
The debate, Archbishop Aquila said, “is centered around the questions: What is the best way to encourage greater belief in Jesus’ true presence in the Blessed Sacrament? And flowing from his true presence, how should bishops and pastors best work to win back the souls of Catholic public figures who have failed to act in accord with the Gospel?”
“A hands-off attitude with those who publicly defy the Church’s teachings causes scandal and weakens belief in the true presence of Christ in the Eucharist,” he noted, adding that to cause scandal is to lead other into sin.
“Such an attitude could lead faithful Catholics to doubt about Jesus’ real presence in the Eucharist and could even call into question how deeply their bishops believe in it. If Jesus is truly present in the Eucharist and we do nothing when Christ is received by those who publicly and willfully flaunt his teachings, all while professing to be devout Catholics, then doubts can emerge in the hearts of the faithful. Doubts like: Do we genuinely believe Jesus is present in the Eucharist? Is the Eucharist something we can approach while in a state of serious sin? Or, if the bishops do not teach about the proper disposition to receive the Eucharist, does how one receives Jesus really matter?”
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