Worthiness to Receive Holy Communion

Minutes after Pope Benedict XVI was named, the liberal press was already implying that this man is not in touch with today's church and modern society. He is too conservative, too closed-minded, and a downright mean person. My translation of this is that he will not make any big changes in the Catholic Church. He will maintain the integrity and traditions of the church. And when times warrant, he will be a strong defender of the faith and doctrines of the church. These are all things that I admire about this man. This is why I was praying/rooting for him to be elected.

I believe the following memo, is partly what the press and some Western Catholics are afraid of most (the following excerpt is from a memorandum sent by then Cardinal Ratzinger to Cardinal McCarrick and was made public in the first week of July 2004). The main point of the memo is that not all moral issues have the same weight and importance as abortion and euthanasia. Read the complete memo here.

Worthiness to Receive Holy Communion
by Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger

5. Regarding the grave sin of abortion or euthanasia, when a person’s formal cooperation becomes manifest (understood, in the case of a Catholic politician, as his consistently campaigning and voting for permissive abortion and euthanasia laws), his Pastor should meet with him, instructing him about the Church’s teaching, informing him that he is not to present himself for Holy Communion until he brings to an end the objective situation of sin, and warning him that he will otherwise be denied the Eucharist.

6. When "these precautionary measures have not had their effect or in which they were not possible," and the person in question, with obstinate persistence, still presents himself to receive the Holy Eucharist, "the minister of Holy Communion must refuse to distribute it" (cf. Pontifical Council for Legislative Texts Declaration "Holy Communion and Divorced, Civilly Remarried Catholics" [2002], nos. 3-4). This decision, properly speaking, is not a sanction or a penalty. Nor is the minister of Holy Communion passing judgement on the person’s subjective guilt, but rather is reacting to the person’s public unworthiness to receive Holy Communion due to an objective situation of sin.