Sunday November 22, 2009
Virus scares force churches to change
By Jim Taylor
The H1N1 flu scare has had some unexpected effects.
I’m not referring to schools, businesses, or health clinics. Practices hallowed by tradition, often taught as essential, are being changed at churches.
Such as “the idea that come hell or high water you must attend church every Sunday,” said Linda Wiltshire, for the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Montreal. “If you’re sick, don’t go.”
Many churches promote shaking hands with other members, either as a greeting or during what’s called the “passing of the peace.” Now they’re expected to nod, smile, or bow instead.
A United Methodist church in Oregon adopted "holy fist bumps" during the sign of peace. In Kamloops, younger members of an Anglican church chose elbow bumping as their greeting style. The church I attended in Edmonton last Sunday tried these gestures, but the congregation’s seniors clearly felt awkward, even embarrassed.
But the changes go far deeper than fist and elbow bumps.
Communion cups
In recent years, most mainline Protestant churches have abandoned the little communion glasses that they used when I was younger. Instead, with the goal of greater authenticity, they re-introduced a shared chalice.
For the same reason, instead of trays of little bread cubes, worshippers tore pieces off a whole loaf.
The symbolism was important. In a church that endorsed “the priesthood of all believers,” the breaking the bread should not be restricted to the clergy.
Of course, Anglicans always sipped from the common cup.
I sometimes hesitated about applying my lips to the edge of a cup from which someone else had just sipped. After all, I would not drink from someone else’s water glass at a restaurant.
But always I was assured that I had nothing to fear. The priest wiped the rim and rotated the cup after each user.
I was not totally convinced. The wine itself had been in contact with a variety of lips. You can’t wipe wine.
The alcohol in the wine would sterilize any germs left behind, I was assured. And besides, this was a sacramental act – therefore exempt from conventional concerns.
"In 2,000 years, no one has gotten sick from the chalice or the wine," stated Janet Griffith, archdeacon of the Anglican Diocese of Montreal.
In the Anglican, Catholic, and Orthodox traditions, unused consecrated wine cannot be simply discarded. The presiding priest must drain the cup.
A Greek Orthodox priest in the U.S. said he has drunk the dregs of the communal chalice countless times, yet has never fallen ill from it. "It’s an article of faith that this is special," said the Rev. John Protopapas.
In other words, God would not allow the central Christian ritual to spread disease.
Well, maybe not.
Not essential after all
Calgary Bishop Fred Henry decreed that the chalice will no longer be offered to worshippers. Only to the priests. And the bread – in Catholic tradition, a wafer – will be placed in worshippers’ hands, not on their tongues.
Several U.S. dioceses have instituted similar rulings. Ordinary worshippers are not offered the risk.
To avoid sipping from the common cup, some churches have encouraged members to dip their bread in the wine – a process called “intinction.”.
To avoid even the possibility that H1N1 carriers might dip fingertips in the wine or juice, Anglican churches in Ottawa have now banned intinction. Other churches have reverted to individual cups.
Tearing off a piece of bread – regardless of its symbolism – is out. Runnymede United Church in Toronto served pre-cut bread on toothpicks. The servers wore surgical gloves.
My own church cut bread in long strips that participants could dip without getting fingers near the wine. The server used tongs to dispense the bread.
Gresham Methodist Church in Oregon added an additional server. "We are offering people a squirt of disinfectant while they are in line for communion," the Rev. Jim Parr Philipson said.
Holy water, on tap
Roman Catholics modified another time-hallowed practice. Traditionally, Catholics dip their fingers in a font of holy water before making the sign of the cross.
Boston instructed its priests to scrub fonts regularly with disinfectant.
Montreal parishes were advised to drain their fonts. But one priest poured bleach into the water instead.
"He had good intentions — he made sure there were no germs in the water — but other problems arose," commented Monsignor Jean Fortier, vicar-general at the Montreal archdiocese, after parishioners complained that the bleach had ruined their clothing.
An Italian entrepreneur, Luciano Marabese, hit headlines around the world when he invented a dispenser that squirted holy water directly into worshippers’ hands.
"I have received orders from all over the world," Marabese said.
“People initially were a bit shocked by this technological innovation,” admitted Father Pierangelo Motta, priest of the parish, “but then they welcomed it.”
All these changes were described as temporary.
"I recognize the distress these changes to our sacred liturgy may cause," Bishop Henry wrote. "Be assured that these are temporary measures only, intended to protect and care for our most vulnerable brothers and sisters."
But I wonder about a ripple effect. When policies historically treated as unchangeable prove unchangeable after all, what other unchangeable doctrines might also be called into question?
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Copyright © 2009 by Jim Taylor. Non-profit use in congregations and study groups permitted; all other rights reserved.
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Your Turn
Another pile of mail after last week’s column on the shootings at Fort Hood, and the resultant suspicion of Muslims. These letters are in no particular order.
Jean Mosher wrote, “Thanks for your very insightful item about that horrible shooting in Texas. A further thing I heard last week that bothered me very much is the fact that Maj. Hassan tried several times to BUY his way out of the army — as many others have been able to do, but was refused each time. Why? Why was he NOT able to buy his way out of the army. Certainly he was very troubled in his own mind, and was anxious to remove himself from having to deal with so many soldiers who were coming back from Afghanistan with serious disturbances. He was a troubled person. Too bad no-one was willing to help him!”
Carolyn Terry wrote that for Lent this year, her church had a series of lectures by people of other religions. “The man who spoke about Islam had to answer some questions about violent extremism in Islam. He said most Muslims are peaceable. Muslims and Christians all worship the one God. He seemed very pleased to be asked to talk to Christians, and he wanted mutual understanding and peace between religions.
“More and more, we live next door to Muslims, and shop in the same stores. We must see them as fellow humans, and not as Evil Ones. The more we think they’re Evil, the more they’ll think we’re filled up with hate. They love their children; they want to be financially secure; they laugh; they’re unhappy when their old parents die.
Bruce McGillis forwarded an article from the New York Times (http://www.nytimes.com/2009/11/15/opinion/15rich.html?emc=eta1). It’s “a little long,” he said, “but some good insight that also applies to Canada. Human failings everywhere.”
Mo Rajabally heaped on the praise: “I have read lots on this sad case in several USA papers and blogs. Not a single one has such objectivity and clarity as yours. Thanks.”
Bob Stoddard tied a couple of days’ writings together. A letter from Steve Roney, about the previous week’s column on Remembrance Day, had said, “While of course it is proper to mourn civilian casualties as well as military, I also think military casualties are deserving of special honour. Civilians made no conscious choice to put themselves in harm’s way; they are victims. But the soldiers, at least those who volunteered, deliberately chose to risk their lives to protect others. So it’s rather like a special remembrance for firemen, or policemen, who die in the line of duty." To which Bob responded, “Roney’s comparison of volunteering soldiers and firemen is well taken. [But] to refer to soldiers who were shot at Fort Hood as heroes who ‘gave their life’ is a distortion of the meaning of a heroic action, i.e., the situation is far different from one throwing his/her body on a live grenade near buddies.”
Cliff Boldt wrote, “Your article today reminded me of the McCarthy era of the 1950s. Then it was the communists. Today it is Muslims. Who will it be tomorrow? The Niemoller quote was apt. An added note: shortly after the incident at Fort Hood, it was reported that there had been dozens of suicides at Fort Hood in the previous months. Those deaths didn’t get major play.”
Joan Mistretta reminded me, “All extremism — all fanaticism — can lead to violent acts. Should I mention a few acts of this from Christianity? — the Inquisition, the Crusades, the witch burnings, [corporate] cooperation with the Nazis, the Ku Klux Klan, slavery, the anti-choice killings, attacks on gay people — all justified from the Bible by Christians, of which I am one. And of course the fact of war itself and what it does to people…
Joan added part of a letter she had written to her local newspaper, in response to a piece by a local Muslim cleric which denounced the shooter at Ft. Hood and begged for rational understanding.
’From time to time I receive emails which attack the Islamic faith… As a Christian I repudiate the actions of some fundamentalist extremists who claim the same faith that I do. I regret that I may not do that often enough and clearly enough. I hope the day will come in the near future when we can identify insane and pathological actions, whether coming from religious or secular ideologies, as aberrant to our society and not connected with the core of rational and religious beliefs. Today I thank the Imam for his courage and leadership. God be praised."
Finally, Rosemary Gretton wrote from California to some Canadian colleagues, “The recent incident at Fort Hood in Texas has been very much in the news and will be for a while. The soldier who killed 13 people on the base has now been charged and will face a military tribunal. This situation has highlighted the negative effects of war on veterans, physically and psychologically, and what happens when they return home.
“When students enter high school here, parents here must sign a form if they do not want the military to have access to their students’ records. Military recruitment can be quite aggressive. When you go to the movies, there are often long, graphic ads set to music which glorify the military life and the importance of serving your country. The unemployment remains high and prospects more limited, so the military may seem like an attractive option for some.”
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About My Books
Over the years, I think I have written (or ghostwritten) about 17 books. Several of them (mercifully) are no longer available from any source. But here’s a listing of those that are still available. The ones marked “WLB”, you can order from Wood Lake Books, either on-line at http://www.woodlakebooks.com, or call Wood Lake Books directly at 1-800-663-2775 in Canada, 1-800-654-5129 (Pilgrim Press) in the U.S. The ones marked “JT only” are now available only directly from me — as collector’s items, I price them all at $25 Cdn.
- Everyday God: Insights from the Ordinary
- Worlds in One
- Chance
- Seeing the Mystery: Exploring Christian Faith through the Eyes of Artists,
- Surviving Death
- Everyday Psalms
- Everyday Parables
- Letters to Stephen
- A New Understanding of Virtue and Vice
- Precious Days and Practical Love: Caring for an Aging Parent
- for Beginners
- Spirituality of Pets
(1981 and 2005, WLB, $19.95)
(1985, JT only)
(1989, JT only)
(1990, with William S. Taylor, JT only)
(1993, JT only)
(1994 and 2005, WLB, $19.95)
(1995 and 2005, WLB, $19.95)
(1996, WLB, $17.95)
(1997, WLB, $19.95)
(1999, WLB, $19.95)
(2001, WLB, $11.95)
(2006, WLB, $39)
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- Charlene Fairchild’s United Online site,
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- The Canadian Centre for Progressive Christianity home page
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