Rorate Caeli

Communion kneeling and on the tongue made mandatory in the Cathedral of Lima

A reader from Lima, Peru has informed Rorate that to receive holy communion at the Cathedral-Basilica of Lima, Perú, the faithful must now kneel in addition to receiving only on the tongue. For that purpose, two kneelers are now put before the steps of the high altar at the moment of Communion, just like in Papal Masses.

In his sermon on September 20, 2009 in the Cathedral, Juan Luis Cardinal Cipriani Thorne, Archbishop of Lima, made the following statement:

"The most respectful way of receiving the Eucharist is kneeling and on the tongue. We must recover a sense of respect and reverence due to the Eucharist, because the love to Jesus is the center of our Christian lives. Our souls are at stake."
The Archbishop -- who has tried to make Lima a "Eucharistic City" -- also exhorted his flock to adore the Eucharistic Lord in the more than 70 adoration chapels in the city.

Readers might recall that in August, in apparent preparation for this significant move, the Cardinal had also preached a strong exhortation in favor of communion kneeling and on the tongue, as well as the use of the communion plate. (See this article on WDTPRS.) The Cardinal had already banned communion in the hand in his Archdiocese last year.