Christianity: Details about 'Infant Communion'
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TheologySupport for infant communion is drawn from several gospel verses, including Matthew 19:14 and Mark 10:14. Among the Church Fathers, Cyprian, Augustine, and Leo the Great explicitly favored infant communion. HistoryIn the Early Church, everyone who attended the full Mass was expected to receive the Eucharist; catechumens and penitents were not present for the Consecration. At that time, both the Roman Catholic Church and the Eastern Orthodox Church permitted and encouraged parents to present their children to receive the Eucharist. The Apostolic Constitutions (fourth century) instruct that children are to receive communion after the various orders of clergy and consecrated laity and before the general congregation. Over time, concerns grew over danger of spillage from the chalice when it was offered to the entire congregation; there were also practical concerns about consecrating the right amount of wine. It eventually became common in the Western Church for only priests and some monks and nuns to receive the Eucharist from the chalice. The teaching of the Church was that Christ was present, whole and entire, under the form of bread or wine. Others maintain that the restriction of the chalice to the clergy and religious was motivated by scrupulosity rather than practical concerns . Ultimately, the elimination of reception under both species made infant communion impractical and it had declined in the West by the time of the Great Schism. This practice has since fallen into disfavor in the Roman Catholic Church, especially with the growing emphasis on not giving the sacraments (other than baptism) to those not yet able to understand them (see age of reason). Meanwhile, in the Eastern Church, the faithful continued to receive the Eucharist under both species. With no practical difficulties or theological qualms with giving communion to infants and children, this practice continues in the Eastern Orthodox Church to this day. CatholicismThe practice of allowing infants and children to receive the Eucharist has fallen into disfavor in the Roman Catholic Church. Catholics generally refrain from infant communion and instead have a special ceremony when the child receives his or her First Communion, usually around the age of seven or eight years old. This is in accordance with the Code of Canon Law (followed in the Roman Rite), which states:
However, the Council of Trent held:
Formerly, the Eastern-rite Churches in full communion with the Roman Pope were generally required to conform to Western Church practice. However, the Second Vatican Council's decree Orientalium Ecclesiarum, although not specifically addressing infant communion, states that the Council "confirms and approves the ancient discipline of the sacraments existing in the Oriental Churches, as also the ritual practices connected with their celebration and administration and ardently desires that this should be re-established if circumstances warrant it" (Section 12).This has led some of these churches to restore the previous practice of permitting infant communion. The Code of Canons of the Eastern Churches (followed by the Eastern Catholic Churches) permits infant communion: "With respect to the participation of infants in the Divine Eucharist after baptism and chrismation with holy myron, the prescriptions of the liturgical books of each Church sui iuris are to be observed with the suitable due precautions." (Canon 710) Eastern OrthodoxyIn the Orthodox Church, any person of any age receives the Eucharist as soon as possible after their baptism and chrismation, usually at the next Divine Liturgy. Infants and children are not usually required to fast or go to confession before communion until they are old enough to be aware of their sins, usually eight to nine years old. In the Orthodox practice, the consecrated bread and wine are placed together in the chalice, and the priest administers the Eucharist with a small spoon. Infants typically receive a small amount of consecrated wine; older children receive the consecrated bread as well. There is no theological reason for withholding the bread from infants, merely the practical concern of not giving solid food to those not ready for it. Protestant DenominationsMany Mainline Protestants practice open communion, in which the Eucharist is offered to people without discrimination of age or denominational status. In these churches, while the very young often commune, it is unusual for infants to receive the sacrament. Denominations which practice closed communion generally deny the sacrament to those not members of their congregation or denomination, regardless of age. In churches where membership is often not permitted until the teenage years (for example, the Amish), infant communion is very rare. In recent years, Eastern Orthodox writers in the west, especially the successive deans of Saint Vladimir’s Orthodox Theological Seminary, have had considerable success in commending Eastern Orthodoxy to a western audience, and in arguing for the legitimacy of its practices from the standpoint of history, scripture and tradition. Paedocommunion is one Eastern practice that has gained considerable attention in the West, including among some conservative Protestants. Notable conservative Protestants in favor of the practice are Peter Leithart, Doug Wilson, Rousas John Rushdoony, James Jordan and Gary North. The Reformed Episcopal Church, a conservative Anglican denomination, also is tolerant of the practice, and many conservative Presbyterians favor paedocommunion as well. See also
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