The Eucharist during a time of pandemic - theological and moral dispute

Abstract

The time of the epidemic caused major transformations in the shape and functioning of society. In the midst of these social transformations was the Church as an environment based primarily on contact relationships. These transformations affected the most essential elements of the Church's ministry, including the very centre of the Church's life, the Eucharist. In the context of these changes, numerous questions and spiritual-moral dilemmas concerning the Eucharist have begun to arise. The present reflections attempt to address these very dilemmas. In the first part, these dilemmas are named. The essential part is to present the doctrinal foundations of the Church's teaching on the incompatibility of rational knowledge with the knowledge of faith regarding the doctrine of the Eucharist, especially regarding the real presence of Christ in the Blessed Sacrament and spiritual communion. In a particular way, this reflection takes into account the theological-moral aspect by referring to categories such as ordo caritatis, heteronomy, autonomy and theonomy. These categories make it possible to construct more detailed pastoral indications for the epidemic period concerning sacramental ministry, especially related to the Eucharist. The analyses also touch on the historical and liturgical themes concerning the different ways of distributing Holy Communion (on the tongue and on the hand). The final section recalls the figure of Saint Charles Borromeo, Bishop of Milan in the 16th century, in whose pastoral ministry during the epidemic many of the elements mentioned in these analyses can be found.