Q: My diocese has seen a spate of attempted thefts of the Eucharist. Usually this happens when someone receives the Host and tries to put It into his/her pocket. Once, though, someone approached a deacon with money and tried to buy a Host!
We are all keeping a close eye out for strange behavior by people receiving Holy Communion, especially if they are not familiar to us. Some of us are wondering if there is also some way to make restrictions in order to protect the Eucharist, without violating canonical rights. For example, under these circumstances could a pastor refuse Communion to someone he doesn’t know? Could a parish require everyone attending Mass to show identification when entering the church, and keep a list? Most of our parishes already have security cameras, but they can’t catch everything, and anyway a camera can’t prevent a thief from leaving the church before anybody notices what s/he has done…. –Bella Continue reading
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