Can Catholics Have Communion in Non Catholic Churches?

[Winter_Rose]

Is it wrong for a Catholic to have communion at a non Catholic Church? I have family who are non Catholic and sometimes I come to visit them and have communion with them at their church.

 

[hsilgne]

Hi Winter. No, in most cases, Catholics are not allowed to participate in a communion service with other Christian denominations.

Sent from my STV100-3 using Tapatalk

 

[pdudgeon]

Is it wrong for a Catholic to have communion at a non Catholic Church? I have family who are non Catholic and when I come to visit them I go to their church with them and have communion with them.

i can understand your motivation to want to have communion with your family, and to be united as a family at the Lord's table. but the answer is still no.

first it sets a very bad example for them, because it would appear to them that you think there is no difference between the two. But there is a difference, and it's a major one.

secondly you haven't said anything about whether you would also go to a Catholic church for the Eucharest.
Sunday is a holy day of obligation for Catholics no matter where they are.
there are very few excuses for not being at mass, and visiting relatives isn't one of them.

 

[Winter_Rose]

i can understand your motivation to want to have communion with your family, and to be united as a family at the Lord's table. but the answer is still no.

first it sets a very bad example for them, because it would appear to them that you think there is no difference between the two. But there is a difference, and it's a major one.

secondly you haven't said anything about whether you would also go to a Catholic church for the Eucharest.
Sunday is a holy day of obligation for Catholics no matter where they are.
there are very few excuses for not being at mass, and visiting relatives isn't one of them.

I apologise that I didn't mentioned that in my previous comment. But I was just using that as an example. I was only wondering if any other Catholics had been in that situation.

 

[Rhamiel]

most other "churches" do not have valid Eucharist

when you receive the Eucharist with a church, you are saying "we are one Body"
and in cases where there is serious division, then such a statement is a lie
that is what Catholics are so careful not to receive the Eucharist at other churches

 

[Winter_Rose]

most other "churches" do not have valid Eucharist

when you receive the Eucharist with a church, you are saying "we are one Body"
and in cases where there is serious division, then such a statement is a lie
that is what Catholics are so careful not to receive the Eucharist at other churches

What's the difference between Catholic communion and non Catholic communion?

 

[faroukfarouk]

What's the difference between Catholic communion and non Catholic communion?

[Edited: I am putting this answer in the non-denominational section.]

 

[Rhamiel]

What's the difference between Catholic communion and non Catholic communion?

it depends where you go

if you go to an Eastern Orthodox Church, they teach very similar things that we do about the Eucharist, they have a true Eucharist that is the Body and Blood of our Lord, but we are not in full union with them, so to act like we were united when we are not is dishonest
(there are rare occasions where Catholics can receive communion at an Orthodox Church, for example, my dad was in Egypt for few months with the U.S. Navy, the Coptic Orthodox Bishop allowed Catholics who were stationed there to receive communion at his churches)

some Anglicans have very similar teachings to us, but they do not have valid priesthood, so that means they just have bread and wine and not the Body and Blood of Christ at their services, also the issue of lack of unity

many many Protestant denominations lack all three
they have diverse and heretical teachings on the Eucharist, they do not have valid priesthood/Eucharist, and we are not in full union with them

 

[Winter_Rose]

I don't mean to sound horrible or nasty, but I can't imagine Jesus saying to someone that they can't have it because they are a different denomination from everyone else.

 

[Rhamiel]

I don't mean to sound horrible or nasty, but I can't imagine Jesus saying to someone that they can't have it because they are a different denomination from everyone else.

you do not sound horrible, you are trying to be kind and you are dealing with stuff that you have always seen
all your life, you have seen lots of different denominations mixing together side by side, so it seems natural to you

but that is now what our Lord intended
Jesus set up only one Church
and these man-made divisions come up latter

now we should work on trying to end these divisions, but until they are gone, it is not really honest to pretend like they do not matter
that would be like saying the truth does not matter

 

[Winter_Rose]

you do not sound horrible, you are trying to be kind and you are dealing with stuff that you have always seen
all your life, you have seen lots of different denominations mixing together side by side, so it seems natural to you

but that is now what our Lord intended
Jesus set up only one Church
and these man-made divisions come up latter

now we should work on trying to end these divisions, but until they are gone, it is not really honest to pretend like they do not matter
that would be like saying the truth does not matter

Thanks for explaining it to me.

 

[pdudgeon]

I don't mean to sound horrible or nasty, but I can't imagine Jesus saying to someone that they can't have it because they are a different denomination from everyone else.

that's the whole problem; they are a denomination and not the true Church that Jesus founded;
an offshoot that did not remain as part of the true vine but left, and was subsequently cut off from it.

In otherwords, it all began with the Church which Jesus founded.
At the Last Supper He told us that the bread was His body and the cup of wine was His blood.
It was to be the last time that the disciples would be with Him before the passion,
and His last opportunity until after His resurrection to teach them and to bind them togather
with each other, and also as a bodily part of Him. He showed this as well in the washing of their feet
that they were to be a part of Him.

the different denominations still see the bread and wine (or grape juice)
and remember His sacrifice. but that's all they see--- what is right before their eyes.
And in seeing only that they miss so much more of what was taking place that night.

What they totally miss is that the whole purpose of the Last Supper is the bethrothal binding together
of the bride (the church) symbolized by the apostles and the bridegroom (Jesus) on this earth, as a symbol
and a promise of the heavenly wedding that is to take place at the end of time.

Essentially the Last Supper was much like the bethrothal agreement where Jesus secured His prospective bride (the church).

(and this is yet another reason why Catholics don't take communion at other denominations. they have chosen to leave and not be a part of the church that Jesus founded, but to go out on their own.)

the other denominations only remember Jesus' sacrifice on the cross for our sins.

but for your comfort, there is a parable of the wedding feast from Mat. 22:2-14 that is relevant.
In that story a king does indeed refuse service to a person who does not have the correct wedding garments
to sit at the wedding banquet and celebrate the wedding of his son.

 

[AvilaSurfer]

What's the difference between Catholic communion and non Catholic communion?

A priest doesn't consecrate the bread and wine in a non-Catholic church, so there's really no point. It's all symbolic.

 

[Dewi Sant]

We have a duty of obedience to our Bishops.
As the priest does to his.

In The Ancient Way (Orthodox forum), this would be a 'ask your priest' question

As Christians we are called to discipleship.
As one under the care of the Greek Orthodox Archbishop of the UK, I do not receive at Catholic Mass out of obedience to my bishop. There is no doubt to my belief in the real presence in the Catholic church.

There are exceptional circumstances mentioned above when Catholics may receive at the Orthodox altars but these are exceptional and with express permission from the celebrant (the Bishop to which they are vicar). Catholics do not have a 'right' to receive at Orthodox altars, likewise nor do the Orthodox have a 'right' to receive at Catholic altars.
Christ instituted the Church for the discipleship of His people in the strengthening of their faith toward the Final Judgement.

 

[pdudgeon]

We have a duty of obedience to our Bishops.
As the priest does to his.

In The Ancient Way (Orthodox forum), this would be a 'ask your priest' question

As Christians we are called to discipleship.
As one under the care of the Greek Orthodox Archbishop of the UK, I do not receive at Catholic Mass out of obedience to my bishop. There is no doubt to my belief in the real presence in the Catholic church.

There are exceptional circumstances mentioned above when Catholics may receive at the Orthodox altars but these are exceptional and with express permission from the celebrant (the Bishop to which they are vicar). Catholics do not have a 'right' to receive at Orthodox altars, likewise nor do the Orthodox have a 'right' to receive at Catholic altars.
Christ instituted the Church for the discipleship of His people in the strengthening of their faith toward the Final Judgement.

agreed, and very well said.

 

[Sword of the Lord]

If the Eucharist in Protestant churches is simply bread and wine as the Catholic Church says, why is it wrong if Catholics eat bread and wine with Protestants?

 

[Rhamiel]

If the Eucharist in Protestant churches is simply bread and wine as the Catholic Church says, why is it wrong if Catholics eat bread and wine with Protestants?

because they say it is the same

false equivalency

lol I tend to use strong analogies that get me in trouble

so I will just simply say, it implies unity where unity has been wounded

 

[Sword of the Lord]

because they say it is the same

false equivalency

lol I tend to use strong analogies that get me in trouble

so I will just simply say, it implies unity where unity has been wounded

Protestants say they are "the Church" too, but it's OK to go to their services. That implies unity and shows support for their claim of being the Church.

 

[pdudgeon]

Protestants say they are "the Church" too, but it's OK to go to their services. That implies unity and shows support for their claim of being the Church.

when you get into RCIA and study the Catholic Eucharest, it's depth, and everything it entails,
then you'll understand the real difference between the two.
even just looking at the surface comparisons of the two, they aren't the same.

 

[Gnarwhal]

I think it's important to note that the Eucharist is primarily receiving the true body and blood of Christ, and it's also entering into communion with the Church itself. I was told at some point long before I came to Catholicism that (to paraphrase) communing with another denomination is essentially affirming their eucharistic theology. That's why we don't do it, we can't commune with a faith community that doesn't acknowledge the truth of what the Eucharist is.