Traditional Retreat at Douai Abbey 4th -6th July 2008

 
The chalice and paten of Bl. Charles de Foucauld 
(“Photo-Monique”, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons)

The new Eucharistic miracle in Poland reminds us of the REALITY OF THE REAL PRESENCE of our Lord BODY BLOOD SOUL AND DIVINITY. The short article below, advises us to renew our Eucharistic devotion, to not be complacent and to regain a sense of the real presence. It suggests we re-instate the paten at all Masses, not just in the Old Rite.

How many times have Eucharistic abuses been prevalent in our Churches, how many times do we talk in front of the Blessed Sacrament, how many times do we show our indifference by our lack of devotion in Church.

Please read this article at:- http://www.ncregister.com/blog/philip-kosloski/what-is-god-trying-to-tell-us-with-this-new-eucharistic-miracle-in-poland/#ixzz46gGJuT4j.

Philip Kosloski writes:-

On April 17, Bishop Zbigniew Kiernikowski of Legnica, Poland announced the approval of a Eucharistic miracle in his Diocese. The miracle happened about two years ago when, “a consecrated Host fell to the floor [during the distribution of Communion and] was picked up and placed in a container with water. Soon after, red stains appeared on the host.”

The miracle was tested and the “Department of Forensic Medicine found: ‘In the histopathological image, the fragments were found containing the fragmented parts of the cross striated muscle. It is most similar to the heart muscle.’ Tests also determined the tissue to be of human origin and found that it bore signs of distress.”
What is interesting is how this Eucharistic miracle differs from other miracles, such as the miracle at Lanciano. Often the Eucharist is changed into blood after the words of consecration and at the altar in response to a lack of faith from the priest.

This time, the miracle occurred after a Precious Host was dropped during Holy Communion. The miracle itself would have happened in the sacristy when they put the host in the water (as is proper procedure), but it appears one cause of the miracle was a lack of care for the Blessed Sacrament.
Now, accidents do happen and I am not trying to single out the person or priest who dropped the host. However, it does bring up an interesting topic: the use of patens.

In the Catholic Church, the paten is typically a gold disk that is used by an altar server to hold under the mouth or hands of the person receiving Communion. It is meant to catch any hosts or particles from the host from falling to the ground.

The practice has been abandoned by most in the Church for the past few decades, but the document, Redemptionis Sacramentum, cites this instruction, “The Communion-plate for the Communion of the faithful should be retained, so as to avoid the danger of the sacred host or some fragment of it falling.”

What this miracle should do is make us reconsider how we approach the Holy Eucharist. Do we truly believe that Jesus is present in the bread and wine at Mass? Do we treat the hosts with all due respect, being extremely careful in distributing the Precious Body of our Lord?

We shouldn’t abandon the use of patens at Mass because it seems “outdated.” The reason why we use patens at Mass is because of our love of God! Why do we hold our children with utmost care, making sure we don’t drop them? Why shouldn’t we have the same care for the Eucharistic Host at Mass that is Christ the Lord! What we hold in our hands is not just bread!

Maybe this miracle came at the right time in our world, when many Catholics do not believe in the Real Presence of Christ and during an era in the Church where the Eucharist is not cared for properly. The heart tissue found “bore signs of distress” and maybe it was to show us Christ’s hurt when we do not take care of Him.