First communion

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
First communion in Kirchzarten, 2009
Communion child in white dress with wreath, 1950
Procession of the girls for first communion, 1953
Procession of boys for first communion, 1953
First communion candle
First communion reception

As a First Communion or First Holy Communion of the most festive committed first reception of is the sacrament of Holy Communion referred. In the Orthodox and Oriental Orthodox Churches as well as in the Eastern Catholic Churches, the first communion is given in connection with baptism, also in the case of child baptism . In the Catholic Church of the West, children receive communion for the first time when the so-called age of reason has been reached, usually in a joint celebration of first communion in the parish. White Sunday has been the preferred date for first communion since the 19th century .

In the Roman Catholic baptism of adolescents and adults, they receive their first holy communion at the same time as they are baptized. The Eucharist belongs to the Catholic Church, along with the Baptism and Confirmation to the so-called sacraments of initiation, ie those sacraments by which the faithful participate partakers of the divine nature, be strengthened and incorporated into the church.

Age of children

Augustine faced Pelagian fixed positions that infants immediately after baptism , the communion had to be passed, that they may be saved in the event of sudden death. Augustine referred to Joh 6.53  EU . This view determined large parts of the practice in the early Middle Ages . Since the newly baptized infants received consecrated mass wine , the increasing reluctance to be served consecrated wine (see lay goblet ) caused problems with first communion in infancy. The decline in the practice of infant communion was accompanied by theological considerations. The above-mentioned view of Augustine played an important role in this. However, it had been turned into its opposite in the course of the text transmission. The Decretum Gratiani (IV, 130) and Thomas Aquinas (STh 3.73.3) already cite the above passage from Augustine as evidence against the need for salvation of infant communion. Thus, in the High Middle Ages, first communion in infancy was obsolete in canonical law and in liturgical practice. For the late Middle Ages and modern times, the question of the age of first communion therefore arose with a new urgency.

The Lateran Council of 1215 formulated no right, but the obligation to annual confession and participation in communion for every believer from the canonical age of distinction (seventh year of life). In modern times , however, there was often a First Communion student between the ages of twelve and fourteen, occasionally connected with leaving school or completing a catechism lesson.

After the Council of Trent , especially Jesuits began to work together to prepare children for receiving communion. White Sunday became established as the preferred date for celebrating First Communion, for the first time in Munich in 1661 and in Lucerne in 1673. Since the middle of the 19th century the date became binding for the entire Catholic Church, since the Second Vatican Council other dates have also been possible.

In the late 19th century, there was a growing demand for children to be allowed to first communion earlier. With the decree Quam singulari of Pius X , the age of seven was again established as an ideal, as was the connection between first confession and first communion. Despite the open formulation of canons 913 and 914 of the Codex Iuris Canonici (1983), this link makes it unlikely that first communion will be celebrated at a lower age. The ability to use reason is necessary in order to commit a sin at all and to be able to recognize one's own mistakes, a prerequisite for confession and thus an indirect prerequisite for first communion. It also determines the first communion. Today an age of six to twelve years is common. The communion children in Germany are usually in their third year, in Austria in their second year of school.

The concentration of the criteria for admission to First Communion on the use of reason and the age of discernment in the Catholic Church excludes, if observed in isolation, small children even in the face of death and mentally handicapped people from receiving Communion. However, in June 2016 Pope Francis declared it inadmissible for people with disabilities to be excluded from communion and masses.

The complete abolition of infant communion is limited to the Latin Church . The Eastern Churches have retained the custom, inherited from the admission of adult catechumens, of giving communion to young children at baptism and also in the years before the discernment .

Roman Catholic Church

First communion is preceded by communion instruction and the reception of the sacrament of penance . First communion is usually designed to be particularly solemn and child-friendly; In terms of canon law and liturgical law, however, no special form is prescribed. It is also possible for parents to prepare their children and for First Communion to be received at a different time and in a different Holy Mass .

In canon law it says:

“It is the duty of the parents and those who take their place, as well as the pastor, to ensure that the children who have come to use reason are properly prepared and as soon as possible after previous sacramental confession divine food will be strengthened. The pastor also has to ensure that children do not come to Holy Communion who have not yet achieved the use of reason or who, in his judgment, are not adequately prepared to receive communion. "

preparation

In some places the pastoral team of the parish ( priest , deacon , parish officer ) take on the preparation of the children for First Communion. However, the preparation usually takes place according to the model of parish catechesis in small groups, which are often led by volunteer catechists , mothers or fathers (the so-called "table mothers" or "table fathers") in cooperation with a member of the pastoral team. Elements of the preparation are weekly meetings of the small groups with the catechists, and in some places there are joint weekend camps with all groups. Some preparatory courses last more than a year, others only plan for a few days or several weekends, and still others put the preparation in special services for the children (so-called path services). Religious instruction in school can complement the preparation.

Before the first communion, there is also the first confession . The preparation for the first confession is usually integrated into the preparation for communion. First communion is not possible without confession.

meeting

Commemorative picture first communion
March 14, 1937
(two Sundays before Easter Sunday)

The traditional day of first communion, which is common in many areas, is the Sunday after Easter ( White Sunday ). Since the Second Vatican Council , some congregations have switched to arranging First Communion on a different date and dividing the group of communion children into two or more dates. First Communion celebrations also take place on Easter Monday , Ascension Day or on other Easter Sundays in April or May. This was a consequence of the large number of children in the 1960s and 1970s. Later it became decisive that the communion celebrations in the individual sub-parishes in the emerging large parishes can be better coordinated. The situation on White Sunday during the Easter break also played a role.

Others

In the German-speaking countries, the baptism of adolescents is sometimes celebrated as part of the preparation time for First Communion. Sample figures for baptisms in children and adolescents in Germany (but cannot be used to represent figures for baptized persons during the preparation for First Communion): In 2005, out of 196,371 Catholic baptisms, 7,854 (3.9%) were among children between 7 and 14 years of age. In 1993 of 281,612 baptisms, 6,959 (2.4%) were among children between 7 and 14 years of age.

Many congregations include a family mass with a baptismal memory in the preparation period , to which the child's godparents are also invited. The baptism of children who have not yet been baptized can be celebrated here.

At first communion, the children's baptismal candles are often re-lit because of the close connection between the sacraments of baptism and the Eucharist . In some parishes, children wear an alb for their first communion . In many communities, the communion children are invited to the first communion altar to be.

Other denominations

Anglican churches

In the churches of the Anglican Communion , Confirmation , which is usually received around the age of 13 , traditionally precedes First Communion.

Eastern Orthodox and Catholic Churches

Communion under both forms in the Byzantine rite

The Orthodox churches and, as a rule, also the Uniate Catholic Eastern Churches do not have any special First Communion celebrations. The children usually receive the three sacraments of initiation, Baptism, Confirmation and Eucharist, in a celebration. To do this, the priest's thumb is dipped into the sacred wine for communion (in the case of an infant baptism) and this is put into the mouth of the person to be baptized, or the bread is moistened with a drop of sacrificial wine and then served with a small spoon .

Evangelical Lutheran Churches

In the Evangelical Lutheran Churches Young people may normally at their confirmation at the first time Supper participate. Individual regional churches also allow children to attend the Lord's Supper if they have been prepared accordingly by their parents or the congregation. The Church Synod of the Independent Evangelical Lutheran Church recommends early communion. It is implemented in some parishes.

Evangelical Reformed Churches

In the Swiss Reformed Churches in particular, the Lord's Supper can be received as a child; as a rule, alcohol-free grape juice is available for this.

literature

  • Peter McGrail: First Communion. Ritual, Church and Popular Religious Identity. Ashgate, Abingdon 2007, ISBN 978-0-7546-5741-5 .
  • Frank Reintgen / Christine Willers-Vellguth / Klaus Vellguth: God invites us all. The first communion course. Compendium for the catechists. Herder Publishing House, Freiburg 2007.
  • Elmar Gruber: First Communion and First Confession. ISBN 3-451-28785-4 .
  • Christian Hennecke: Simply celebrate first communion. Don Bosco Verlag, ISBN 978-3-7698-1800-0 .

Web links

Commons : First Communion  - collection of pictures, videos and audio files
Wiktionary: First Communion  - explanations of meanings, word origins, synonyms, translations

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Catechism of the Catholic Church, No. 1244.
  2. ↑ Dieter Emeis: First Communion. I. Pastoral . In: Walter Kasper (Ed.): Lexicon for Theology and Church . 3. Edition. tape 3 . Herder, Freiburg im Breisgau 1995, Sp. 834 .
  3. ^ Catechism of the Catholic Church, 1212, The Sacraments of Christian Initiation , accessed June 29, 2011.
  4. ↑ a b Pierre-Marie Gy: The baptismal communion of the small children in the Latin Church In: Hansjörg Auf der Maur, Bruno Kleinheyer (ed.): Signs of faith. Studies on Baptism and Confirmation. Balthasar Fischer on his 60th birthday. Zurich u. a., Benziger Verlag - Freiburg u. a., Herder, 1972, ISBN 3-545-21016-2 , ISBN 3-451-16593-7 , pp. 485-491 especially p. 488. Augustinus: Chapter 40 [XXII. —The Sixth Objection, Concerning the Necessity of Grace for All, and Concerning the Baptism of Infants.].
  5. ↑ In detail: Peter Browe: Die Kinderkommunion im Mittelalter In: Scholastik No. 5, 1930, pp. 1-45.
  6. ^ Decretum Gratiani (Canon Law Collection): C. CXXX. Aliorum fides in baptismo paruulos saluat .
  7. ↑ SUMMA THEOLOGIAE III LXXIII-LXXIX: Question 73.3 and Thomas Aquinas: The mystery of the Eucharist. III 73-83. Leipzig - Salzburg, Pustet, [1938] (The German Thomas Edition. Complete, unabridged German-Latin edition of Summa Theologica 30).
  8. ↑ Guido Muff: White Sunday . In: Walter Kasper (Ed.): Lexicon for Theology and Church . 3. Edition. tape 10 . Herder, Freiburg im Breisgau 2001, Sp. 1052 f .
  9. ^ Manfred Becker-Huberti : Celebrations, festivities, seasons. Living customs all year round. Herder Verlag, Freiburg, special edition 2001, ISBN 3-451-27702-6 , p. 323.
  10. ↑ See, however, the scientifically responsible, but not supported by ecclesiastical authority proposed solution in the contribution to Canon 914 / 5f in Munsterischer Commentary on Codex iuris canonici with special consideration of the legal situation in Germany, Austria and Switzerland by Rüdiger Althaus, 38th serial from July 2004; Section 6 c.
  11. ↑ Pope on the sick: Differences make us richer. Archived from the original on June 11, 2016 ; accessed on September 12, 2018 .
  12. ↑ CIC , Can. 914.
  13. ↑ On the liturgical order cf. The Inclusion of School Age Children in the Church. Study edition for the Catholic dioceses of the German-speaking area, ed. from the Liturgical Institutes of Salzburg, Trier and Zurich, Trier, 1986 (2004).
  14. ↑ rp-online.de (Rheinische Post) April 30, 2011: Quite simply for communion .
  15. ^ First Communion or Confirmation first? Archived from the original on November 17, 2007 ; accessed on September 12, 2018 (English).