AUDIO: Mary FioRito on Draft Eucharist Guidelines

Catholics dubious about what they read in the press on virtually every other matter ought not take the bait cast by media outlets and think that the bishops ducked the “abortion issue” when crunch-time came.

The deep divisions in the Church make it clear that the Church needs a big change. The document just passed by the U.S. bishops on the Eucharist isn’t it. But it might prove an important brick in beginning lasting renewal.

As the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops prepares to meet in Baltimore, misconceptions about a proposed conference statement on the eucharistic vitality and integrity of the Church in America abound.

To receive the Eucharist is more than an expression of personal piety. It is a statement of one’s full communion with the Church. Making that clear, by instruction if possible and disciplinary action if necessary, is a pastoral obligation.